Brothers' War is a historical novel written by David Paul Emma, and published by Flyfolio Communications. The novel takes place during the First Jewish-Roman War in 66 A.D. The plot follows Nathan, a young man living in Jerusalem, as he traverses the Mediterranean world while not only evading the Romans, but his malevolent brother as well.
Book Cover
The cover of Brothers’ War is reminiscent of ancient Roman mosaics. The face that appears on the left is the face of Nathan, the story’s main character. The face on the right represents Nathan’s villainous brother and his disfigured face.
Four mosaic symbols are featured on the front and back cover, as well as the interior of the novel. They represent a different point in Nathans travels. Each different book in the novel is ornamented with it's coinciding symbol. The menorah (top left) represents Jerusalem, the trinacria (top right) represents Sicily, the Titus Arch (bottom left) represents Rome, and the ichthys symbol (bottom right) represents not a book but only a singular chapter in which the symbol is mentioned.
Illustrations / book interior
Brothers' War title page with mosaic style typography.
Hand-drawn map of the Mediterranean Sea highlighting the destinations of Nathan's travels throughout the novel. Map has decorative hand-drawn border based off ancient Roman mosaics. Border also features the four symbols that represent the cultures that are key to the novel.
Illustration depicting a Roman soldier witnessing the destruction of the 2nd Temple during the Siege of Jerusalem.
The discovery of a woman's corpse coddling her infant in her arms.
Nathan and his brother sharing a rare tender moment on a bridge spanning the Tiber River in Rome.
Sketches and Process images
