As much as Acrutes wants to avoid his past and look toward his new freedom, he cannot. Especially when that past comes in the form of an infant son he thought was dead. Through Julia, he produced a son that has now shown up on his doorstep.
Esther, a Christian widow with no children of her own, offers to nurse Caleb for Acrutes until he is grown. But that means embarking with him across the continent to his homeland of Germany.
While there are the inevitable plot points such as Acrutes' conversion and his marriage to Esther, there are several interesting parts at the end that make this book worth reading.
There is only one perfect character that I can think of. Otherwise, they are all believable.
Francine has once again done her history homework and combined it with her descriptive writing style.
All in all, the Mark of the Lion trilogy was one rare trilogy that got better as it went. As Sure As the Dawn is one of the better series endings ever written. It's a good thing she didn't decide to write any more.
4 stars
Showing posts with label francine rivers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label francine rivers. Show all posts
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
An Echo in the Darkness by Francine Rivers
An Echo in the Darkness picks up directly where A Voice in the Wind left off.
After being mauled in the arena, Hadasseh is taken in by a Roman physician searching for purpose. he nurses her back to health and than takes her in as an apprentice.
Meanwhile, Marcus leaves home thinking Hadasseh is dead and embarks on a journey to the Holy Land-Hadasseh's home country. While there, he searched for the meaning of life.
Back at home, Julia is dying of an illness inflicted by her immoral lifestyle. Hadasseh returns to her disguised to try and lead her to Jesus before it's too late.
Though the end of this book is pretty predictable, it is well written. Francine continues to leave no holes in her research on Rome.
The reader can easily relate to the characters because they stay the same as they were in the first book.
Since we didn't hear much from Acrutes in this book, the last book in this series is fully dedicated to him.
But An Echo in the Darkness is one of Francine's best books to date.
4 stars
After being mauled in the arena, Hadasseh is taken in by a Roman physician searching for purpose. he nurses her back to health and than takes her in as an apprentice.
Meanwhile, Marcus leaves home thinking Hadasseh is dead and embarks on a journey to the Holy Land-Hadasseh's home country. While there, he searched for the meaning of life.
Back at home, Julia is dying of an illness inflicted by her immoral lifestyle. Hadasseh returns to her disguised to try and lead her to Jesus before it's too late.
Though the end of this book is pretty predictable, it is well written. Francine continues to leave no holes in her research on Rome.
The reader can easily relate to the characters because they stay the same as they were in the first book.
Since we didn't hear much from Acrutes in this book, the last book in this series is fully dedicated to him.
But An Echo in the Darkness is one of Francine's best books to date.
4 stars
A Voice in the Wind by Francine Rivers
To all of those who have tried and failed at writing Biblical fiction, read A Voice in the Wind, the beginning of the Mark of the Lion trilogy.
The story follows a Roman woman who longs for love and beauty-in all the wrong places. Julia is the daughter of a Roman centurion, so she has everything she could want-servants, men, riches, jewels-but not the kind of beauty she wants. Even after she marries, she is not satisfied.
Haddasseh is one of Julia's new servants, purchased at the marketplace. She is Jewish, contrary the to beliefs of her mistress. But she is always there for Julia when she needs a friend at the end of the day.
Marcus is Julia's brother, a Roman soldier under his father. He is in love with Hadasseh, but her being as Jewess, will not return the kind of love he wants.
Acrutes is a German warrior taken as a Roman prisoner and trained to be a gladiator in the arena. he will do whatever he can to earn his freedom.
Though there is a large cast of characters in this book, larger than I mentioned above, it never really gets confusing. It does a good job of setting up the next two books and greatly prompts the reader to read on.
Don't shy away when you see the book's length; read on. You won't regret it.
3.5 stars
The story follows a Roman woman who longs for love and beauty-in all the wrong places. Julia is the daughter of a Roman centurion, so she has everything she could want-servants, men, riches, jewels-but not the kind of beauty she wants. Even after she marries, she is not satisfied.
Haddasseh is one of Julia's new servants, purchased at the marketplace. She is Jewish, contrary the to beliefs of her mistress. But she is always there for Julia when she needs a friend at the end of the day.
Marcus is Julia's brother, a Roman soldier under his father. He is in love with Hadasseh, but her being as Jewess, will not return the kind of love he wants.
Acrutes is a German warrior taken as a Roman prisoner and trained to be a gladiator in the arena. he will do whatever he can to earn his freedom.
Though there is a large cast of characters in this book, larger than I mentioned above, it never really gets confusing. It does a good job of setting up the next two books and greatly prompts the reader to read on.
Don't shy away when you see the book's length; read on. You won't regret it.
3.5 stars
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