Book Review - Noble: The Story of Maakah

The second book in the King David’s Brides series by Mesu Andrews is Noble: The Story of Maakah. This one focuses on the third wife the Bible lists during his reign in Hebron. The Geshurite princess sent as a treaty bride to David has been trained all her life in the ways of royalty. Her mind is sharp and calculating, always putting the good of the kingdom before herself, relying on the wisdom of her royal parents and the priestesses of her goddess. David ben Jesse, however, is in passionate pursuit of God’s own heart. He already has two wives, one more than he ever intended, and does not plan to take this opinionated heathen princess as his third. But circumstances bring out the protector in David, prompting Ahinoam and Abigail to embrace Maakah and all of them to seek God’s wisdom for her future.

Andrews has an incredible talent for taking the information given to us in the Bible and reputable historical documents, then using fiction as necessary to bring life to characters easily overlooked in the Old Testament writings. With remarkable skill for crafting fully immersive stories so rich that one can easily believe her characters’ thoughts and feelings are her own, she wrestles with some intense topics. In Noble, that means struggling with betrayal, clarifying the difference between royalty and nobility, exploring some of the challenges people would have faced in the process of letting go of their idols and embracing Yahweh, and the elephant in the room that is the fact of David taking multiple wives. While it was a common practice among royalty at the time, it is expressly forbidden in the Law, as we read in Deuteronomy 17. How then does one handle the fact that this God ordained king who so passionately pursued God’s heart did not only break the law, but did so repeatedly? It is a very charged issue, and rightly so. The fact remains that we do not really know the answer to that. Andrews handles it carefully and prayerfully, as is well expressed in her excellent Note to Reader and Author’s Note sections, both of which are treasure troves of information and insight. Though it is not a topic that should be glossed over, one should not miss the exquisitely addressed differences between thinking and acting royally as opposed to having a noble heart and mind. This is the gold in the purse of Noble, a treasure beyond jewels, and one that is timeless.

Noble: The Story of Maakah, the second book in the King David’s Brides series by Mesu Andrews, is available now from your favorite local bookseller or online:

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I received an ARC of this book. It did not influence my review. All opinions expressed here are my own.

Book Review - When Stars Light the Sky

The latest release from Elizabeth Camden is a heartrending tale set in the turbulent years preceding America’s entry into World War I as German immigrant Inga Klein finds herself invited to the position of secretary to the American ambassador in Berlin. Her first formidable foe? Chief diplomatic counselor Benedict Kincaid. Her task? Smooth relations between her benefactor and Benedict. With a great sense of humor, an awareness of others’ needs, and more intellect than she credits herself, Inga finds a way to turn Benedict’s world on its ears. But it is the sticky situation of citizenship that knocks them both for a loop. Convincing the kaiser’s people to allow Inga to evacuate with the American contingent takes a lot of acting that has the potential to set Inga and Benedict on an irreversible course. With the demise of political relations and removal of the American representatives from Germany comes consequences of a political and personal sort they must unravel delicately.

In the second book of her Women of Midtown series, Elizabeth Camden sweeps us across the ocean and back on a tide of simmering tensions. We are carried along as nations choose sides, negotiating and hobnobbing to solidify relations personally and politically, pulled deep into the machinations of man when faced with war. Camden’s descriptions allow the reader to sit back and be fully immersed in life with Inga, Ambassador Gerard, Benedict, and the rest of the American contingent in Berlin. It is an achingly beautiful take on opposites attract theme for which I heartily recommend a box of tissues.

When Stars Light the Sky by Elizabeth Camden, book 2 of her Women of Midtown series, is available now from your favorite local bookseller or online:

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Thank you to the author and publisher for allowing me a copy to read and review. All opinions expressed here are my own and are completely genuine.

Book Review - The Queen’s Cook

Tessa Afshar concocts a beautiful Queen Esther story in her new release, The Queen’s Cook. This installment of the Queen Esther’s Court series focuses on Roxannah, daughter of an impoverished Persian noble, whose work in the kitchen is an aberration from the way things are done among women of her station and whose talent draws attention of both the favorable and unfavorable kind. Forced to work in order to keep a roof over her mother’s head, Roxannah is thankful for her position in the queen’s kitchens and does not want to jeopardize this security, but it does not take long for her to stand out in her own way. Such great talent draws Roxannah into the presence of her queen and then into the drama and intrigue of court life when she and the Jewish physician Adin learn of a plot against Amestris, Queen Esther’s nemesis and the powerful wife of their king. Opposition seems to come from all sides, and yet through the faithful encouragement of Adin and Esther, Roxannah comes to find the life and the light in the midst of her darkness. With delicate storyline layers of bitter struggle and sweet redemption, Afshar crafts a delicacy worthy of royalty.

The Queen’s Cook by Tessa Afshar is available now from your favorite local bookseller or online:

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Thank you to the author and publisher for allowing me a copy to read and review. All opinions expressed here are my own and are completely genuine.  

Book Review - Brave

As a reader of biblical fiction, I have a process that precedes actually reading a new novel. First, I look to the author to determine the original text from which they draw their work. Then I read the original text and sit with it for a time to digest God’s holy word before diving into the novel. I want to hold the fact separate from the fiction, but have grown to love the way the fiction fills in context and points toward God’s truth while helping us consider things we sometimes don’t want to stop to consider. One thing many of us hesitate to ponder for long is the relationship between David ben Jesse, God’s anointed king, and his wives. It makes sense that we do not want to linger on the polygamist relationship of a historical figure we tend to put on a pedestal as the icon of a man after God’s own heart. This is an incredibly sensitive subject to cover, but I have great respect for Mesu Andrews and her approach to it in her latest release, Brave. Because the fact of the matter is that even a man after God’s own heart is still a man. David did have multiple wives. And they are important enough that God inspired man to record them by name in the Old Testament.

Brave is the story of Ahinoam of Jezreel, who is interpreted by Andrews as a Kenite with exceptional dagger throwing skills and who works with her father to forge weapons for David’s ragtag army during the years of running from King Saul. She is spirited, fierce, and loyal. She is also not interested in marriage or being a silly woman, like the mother who abandoned her and her father so many years ago. Yet the Lord works in mysterious ways. In this instance, it is to bring Ahinoam and David together as husband and wife, to forge their relationship as the Lord gives and takes away. Giving and taking provision, giving and taking friendships, giving and taking family. Through it all, they must learn grace and forgiveness. They must learn to praise Him and seek His will. They must learn to keep their focus on Him instead of their human desires. Especially when Abigail, widow of Nabal of Carmel, also becomes David’s wife.

Andrews is a voracious researcher and I am always fascinated by the context provided in her novels. It is an honor to camp in the wilderness with Ahinoam, feeling the cool walls of the cave at my back, if only in my mind. It is hard to avoid building relationships with the characters she brings to life in text, particularly this strong dagger throwing, God seeking match for the future king. Brave’s narrative switches between Ahinoam’s point of view and David’s, and though I initially thought I just wanted her POV, it did not take long to see that his is essential for greater understanding. Brave is an enlightening read, if not an easy one, and I now wait as patiently as I can for the next installment of the King David’s Brides series.

Brave, book one of the King David’s Brides series from Mesu Andrews, is available now from your favorite local bookseller or online:

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Thank you to the author and publisher for allowing me a copy to read and review. All opinions expressed here are my own and are completely genuine.

Book Review - Shield of the Mighty

Connilynn Cossette recently released the latest installment of her The Kings Men series with Shield of the Mighty. In this story, Zevi battles his past and present to save his future. As a captain in the newly appointed King Saul’s army, Zevi is tasked with recruiting soldiers and artisans and gathering tributes for the king from the one tribe he dreads to face: the one that turned him out as an orphaned child and delivered him into the begrudging hands of relatives who did not want him. And one that wants nothing to do with supporting a Benjamite king. It is in his former hometown that he comes face to face with an artisan who just might be able to save them all in the eyes of King Saul; one who has no love for the king or his recruitment. But without her, their hometown forfeits any hope of protection by the army and will inevitably fall in a horrific way to the unspeakable acts of horror by the Philistines. Zevi cannot allow this to happen. Not to Maresha and not to her.

The incredibly talented and achingly beautiful widow Yochana would rather see King Saul deposed than create perfumes for his wife and daughters. Unfortunately, being captured by the his captain means she will soon end up face to face with the king. As she travels with Zevi and his men, information comes out that gives her a new understanding of what actually happened on the day her husband ran into battle. She also learns valuable information about the hauntingly handsome soldier that changes the way she sees him. When trouble strikes, Zevi and Yochana realize their only hope is in the King of Kings and his vessel just happens to be the Benjamite King Saul.

Cossette is positively brilliant with biblical historical fiction. Her passionate research shows as she crafts a rich world in which we can see the history of God’s people play out in a nearly tangible way. There is not a page when I am not in the setting, smelling the earth and the scents of the various plants Yochana uses in her fragrances and oils. Her characters are my family; the compound at Kiryat-Yearim is a familiar home to me. Complex scene settings, thorough and relatable characters, and intricate plots keep me enthralled from beginning to end. Shield of the Mighty is marked with consistency of her craft and a must-read in my opinion.

The Kings Men series new release Sheild of the Mighty by Connilyn Cossette is available now from your favorite local bookseller or online:

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This is where I usually write a disclaimer, thanking the author and publisher for allowing me a copy to read and review. However, this disclaimer is where I thank my beloved husband for fully supporting my purchase of this book. As always, I’m full of opinions, which are my own and are completely honest.

Book Review - Voice Of The Ancient

From the very beginning, with the four cousins hiding above and spying on the proceedings as the nation of Israel waits with bated breath for lots to be cast and a king to be called forth, Voice Of The Ancient moves furiously and eloquently through the bloody beginning of Saul’s reign. Zevi, Gavriel, Avidan, and Shalem are cousins on the cusp of manhood when the new king’s ragtag volunteer army is called up for battle and the pact of their blood brotherhood is put to the test. With two of them meant for the life of a soldier, the others must decide who they are and who they are meant to be in the eyes of the One Who Sees. And the One Who Sees has a plan beyond their rebellion. For Avi, that includes crossing paths with a young boy who is mistaken as his missing cousin and who is not actually a boy, but a woman in disguise for the sake of her treacherous journey to the safety of family she has never known. As Avidan and Keziah search for his missing cousin and her family, they learn together to listen to the Voice Of The Ancient for guidance.

Connilyn Cossette writes this coming of age story filled with turmoil and hope in a message about value and redemption from the One who gives both. I tried so hard to read it slowly and savor every detail, but was captivated from page one and finished it in a day. Connilyn has a great knack for truly immersing the reader in the lives of her characters. I am particularly fond of the longstanding relationships built throughout the course of her novels, which could be read enjoyably as standalone stories, but have a richness in the familiarity that has been developed through generations as I have read each of her novels.

Voice Of The Ancient, book 1 of The King’s Men series, by Connilyn Cossette is available now from you favorite local bookseller or online:

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Thank you to the author and publisher for allowing me a copy to read and review. All opinions expressed here are my own and are completely genuine.

Book Review - The Love Script

The Love Script is my first Toni Shiloh book. It definitely won’t be my last. The first in her Love in the Spotlight series, this one begins much stronger than the relationship manufactured to save face for Hollywood super star Lamont Booker and hair stylist Nevaeh Richards when the paparazzi catch the two in something that looks like, but isn’t, a romantic embrace. Trying to save face and maintain Lamont’s witness for God, they agree to begin dating, unprepared for the consequences. And the consequences mount rapidly, from paparazzi harassment beyond Nevaeh’s imagination to conviction that lying to save one’s witness does not glorify God. Naturally, there’s also the complication that comes from accidentally falling in love with someone who is pretending to be in love with you while you’re pretending to be in love with them. Shiloh writes characters who are easy to love with banter I could just eat up. The Love Script is packed with hard hitting biblical truth without sounding preachy, and it hit me in some places I needed to be convicted. I came for the sweet romance and stayed for the hearty truth.

The Love Script by Toni Shiloh is available now from your favorite local bookseller or online:

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Thank you to the author and publisher for allowing me a copy to read and review. All opinions expressed here are my own and are completely genuine.

Book Review - Between the Wild Branches

Connilyn Cossette has earned her place on my list of most inspired authors by proving book after book that her historical fiction gives context and helps the reader understand truths from our biblical history. That means my expectations were high for her latest release, Between the Wild Branches, book 2 of The Covenant House series. If you have not yet read my review of To Dwell Among Cedars, book 1 of The Covenant House, you can find it here. Then, sit back and let me tell you why you need to get your sweet mitts on this book right away.

Lukio was just a young boy when the Ark of the Covenant was returned to the Hebrews by the kings of Philistia, but he noticed that the young king of Ashdod stood alone in his desire to destroy the cursed box instead of giving it back to their enemies. Now he is the champion of Ashdod, Demon Eyes, invincible and betrothed to the king’s favored daughter, but holding on to his childhood love for the woman who is now the slave of his future wife. When Lukio learns what has happened to Shoshana in the decade since he left her, he knows he must use his position and resources to secret her from the palace and return her to safety in Kiryat-Yearim. Little does he know that her rescue and his decision to give his life for hers will expose the vanity of the life he has carefully crafted and the reality that he can truly find his place grafted among the family who never quit praying that Yahweh would protect their Natan and return him to them.

Cossette’s illustration of grafting us into the family of the One True God is tended as well as the gardens Lukio’s sister nurtures in To Dwell Among Cedars and is an exquisite example of the way we can be transformed from our sin sick Philistine selves into Yahweh’s beloved children. We are treasured and longed for by Him the way Elazar and Yoela do Lukio, even when we are foolish and don’t recognize that His grace and mercy are freely extended to us. With the character of Lukio, Cossette held a mirror before me and revealed that God sees me as a beloved branch, fit for nurturing, pruning, and developing desirable fruit.

Between the Wild Branches, book 2 of The Covenant House series, is available now from your favorite local bookseller or online:

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Thank you to the author and the publisher for allowing me a copy to read and review. All opinions are my own and are completely genuine.