in the nabataean, an arabian prince named malichus, the son of king aretas and queen elatha of petra, takes a journey that finds him becoming the object of a sale that leaves him enslaved. in the course of his sojourn, he learns that art of cheating at trade and endures the whims of the gods. malichus crosses paths with several women who shape the contours of his life-his mother, a teenage lover, and two wives. was their guidance merely fate or did god stretch out an unseen hand through them to lead malichus into jewish society, then to a roman household, and, in the end, to a key moment in the great drama of salvation? the author, donald b. derozier, weaves a tapestry that tells the tale of this prince turned slave. malichus witnesses the wonder of the work of jesus, called messiah, who reaches out to him at the moment of his arrest, touching his ear with hands soon to be bound, and heals him. "who are you, really?" malichus asks. this question captivates malichus and drives him to seek its answer as the pages of the nabataean reveal his search.