Journey of Strangers — Elizabeth Zelvin

1493: Joanna is one of 2,000 Jewish children torn from their parents on the Lisbon docks and sent as slaves to a pestilential island off the African coast. 1495: Diego Mendoza and his sister Rachel return to Spain in 1495 after two years with Columbus in Hispaniola, heartsick at the destruction of the Taino people. With their friend Hutia, a Taino survivor, they search war-torn Europe and the pirate-infested Mediterranean searching for the family they lost when the Jews were expelled from Spain. Joanna endures abuse and tragedy, determined to survive. In Istanbul, in the heart of the Ottoman Empire, Rachel finds work in the Sultan's harem. Hutia, determined to marry her, adopts a new name and a new faith. 1497: Only Diego's life lacks purpose. Inspired by tikkun olam, the Jewish mission to repair the world, he sets sail for the hell Jews call the Isle of Crocodiles. A Kindle Scout winner.