The Roman Republic is about to collapse, and the kingdom of Judea is on the brink of civil war. It is the first century BC, and Julius Caesar's conquests have made him a hero of the people and an enemy of the Senate. Meanwhile, Hyrcanus II of Judea is warring with his brother over control of Judea-itself in the process of subjugation to the Romans. Into this battle steps Antipater, father of King Herod the Great and the shrewdest political mind of his time. Through bold negotiations and military triumphs, Antipater guides Hyrcanus to victory and assures Judea's autonomy within the new Roman Empire. The Dusk of Judea tells Antipater's forgotten story as the first Minister of Judea-from his high-stakes maneuvers among Caesar, Pompey, and Mark Crassus, to saving the Jewish Holy Temple, to rebuilding the Wall of Jerusalem, to raising Herod and founding the Herodian Dynasty. The world would remember his son, but it was Antipater's important work at this turning point in Jewish history that truly saved the Judean kingdom.