Written by Angela Hunt
Published at Bethany House
About the book
When an ambitious tyrant threatens genocide against the Jews, an inexperienced young queen must take a stand for her people.
When Xerxes, king of Persia, issues a call for beautiful young women, Hadassah, a Jewish orphan living in Susa, is forcibly taken to the palace of the pagan ruler. After months of preparation, the girl known to the Persians as Esther wins the king's heart and a queen's crown. But because her situation is uncertain, she keeps her ethnic identity a secret until she learns that an evil and ambitious man has won the king's permission to exterminate all Jews--young and old, powerful and helpless. Purposely violating an ancient Persian law, she risks her life in order to save her people...and bind her husband's heart.
My Thoughts
In this biblical fiction, you will discover how Angela Hunt views the life of Hadassah a.k.a. Queen Esther was in the time of the ruling of Xerxes, King of Persia. Through the pages of the this book, you will be transported in the time of the ruling of Xerxes and the event that will bring young Hadassah to become Queen Esther. This book also novelize the story behind the plot to kill the Jews and ultimately how Esther herself put her life in danger in order to save her own people.
I don’t mind historical fiction but I am a bit uneasy on taking a biblical story and novelize it. Though I must admit that reading this book makes you wonder if her life was like the one portrayed in the novel. The author was able to portray the life in Persia and compared the Persian women with their Jewish neighbors. You can see the differences of lifestyle and almost smell the odors from the market. You can close your eyes and visualize the life of the queen, how the parties were thrown and even be a witness of the life of the slaves in the palace.
As much as I admire the fact that the author has penned a great story around a well known biblical account, I ponder on the purpose of doing so. I am torn inside between sticking to the book of Esther in the Bible and allowing my mind to venture into what might have been to be in her shoes, how life was in an harem, what Hadassah really thought so many years ago and what life was for her as a queen. How did she really interact with the king? Did she really loved him? What was her feeling at every steps of her life? Part of me would prefer to personally imagine it. Part of me enjoys having the novelize version of Angela Hunt.
If you enjoy historical fiction – more specifically biblical historical fiction – I think you will enjoy Esther – Royal Beauty.
Esther is available for purchase at your favourite bookstore, even amazon.ca and amazon.com.
Kindle Edition
Disclaimer: The book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc. for review purposes. I was not monetarily compensated for this review. Please note that the review was not influenced by the Sponsor in any way. All opinions expressed here are only my own.
No comments:
Post a Comment