The Reckoning

The charismatic mastermind of a series of high-profile terrorist attacks with the goal of attaining Jewish independence and statehood, Avraham Stern was driven by his belief that he was the Jewish liberator of British Palestine. By early 1942 he was the most wanted man in Palestine, forced to take refuge in an attic in Tel Aviv to evade Assistant Superintendent Geoffrey Morton, who was assigned to track him down. Stern’s capture and death have been debated and endlessly contested over the years. The official British report stated that Stern was attempting to escape, and Morton had reason to believe that he had explosives. However, witnesses claimed that it was a cold-blooded murder that precipitated a cult of martyrdom, precluding any possibility of a détente among the British, the Arabs, and the Jews, and inspiring his followers for many years.
The Reckoning chronicles Patrick Bishop’s fascinating quest to uncover the truth about Stern’s ignominious death. Gaining access to Morton’s private archive and interviews with witnesses, Bishop relates a dramatic story that resonates to this very day in one of the world’s most conflicted regions.
“Bishop’s book has all the suspense and detail of a good novel.”—Boston Globe
“Mr. Bishop’s depiction of Stern’s downfall is masterful.”—The Economist

“Bishop’s book has all the suspense and detail of a good novel.” — Boston Globe
“What [Bishop] does, thanks to tireless research and powerful storytelling, is show how a ruthless murderer of civilians became an unnecessary martyr.” — New York magazine
“Mr Bishop’s depiction of Stern’s downfall is masterful.” — The Economist
“Bishop’s fast-paced, well-written work sheds considerable light not only on how and why Stern was killed but on the final, violent years of the British mandate in Palestine.” — Publishers Weekly
“Clearly representing the point of view of the colonial British authorities, the author largely avoids demonizing or making heroes of either of his main protagonists, a failing of most English and Israeli accounts of the period.” — Library Journal
Praise for Fighter Boys: “I know of no more thoughtful nor yet more moving study of their achievement.” — Max Hastings, Sunday Telegraph (London), on FIGHTER BOYS
“As a vivid chronicle of who the Battle of Britain pilots were, what motivated them, and why they were ultimately successful, Fighter Boys is unsurpassed.” — Daily Telegraph (London) on FIGHTER BOYS
“No one reading this book can possibly doubt the heroism of those involved…there can’t be a finer history.” — James Holland, The New Statesman (London) on FIGHTER BOYS
“Bishop successfully weaves a story that is both entertaining and revealing…. He does an admirable job of showing how British police officers faced the difficult task of maintaining order between Jews and the Arabs whose resistance set the stage for later bloody confrontations.” — Washington Post
“Patrick Bishop’s book has important lessons for the modern day.” — Economist (UK), “Books of the Year” pick
“Patrick Bishop’s book on the death of Avraham Stern is an important chapter in the tragic and bloody history of the Holy Land” — Iron Mountain Daily News (Michigan)