In the year 1492, the Spanish Inquisition has all of Spain in its grip. After centuries of riots encouraged by the Church, the Jews-who have been an important part of Spanish life since Roman times-are expelled from the country by royal edict. Many decide to convert to Catholicism to remain, but several hundred thousand choose exile to retain their faith. Given little time to flee, some perish before they can even escape the country.

Yonah Toledano, the 15-year-old son of a celebrated Spanish silversmith, has seen his father and brother die during these terrible days-victims whose murders go almost unnoticed in a time of mass upheaval. Trapped in Spain by circumstances, he is determined to honor his family's memory by remaining a Jew.

On a donkey named Moise, Yonah begins a meandering journey, a young fugitive zigzagging across the vastness of Spain. Toiling at manual labor, he desperately tries to cling to his memories of a vanished culture. As a lonely shepherd on a mountaintop, he hurls snatches of almost-forgotten Hebrew at the stars; as an apprentice armorer, he learns to fight like a Christian knight. Finally, as a man living in a land where danger from the Inquisition is everywhere, he must confront the ultimate questions of identity and survival.

How he discovers the answers, how he finds his way to a singular and strong Marrano woman, and how he achieves a life with the outer persona of a respected Christian physician and the inner life of a secret crypto-Jew, is the fabric of this epic novel. The Last Jew is a gripping piece of historical fiction, an authentic tale of high adventure, and an unforgettable love story.