In 2001, I read my first Christian novel–Francine Rivers’ Redeeming Love. The prophet Hosea’s story came alive, and my heart was stirred.
I wanted similar stories but searched for something set during Bible times, with REAL Bible people.
Next, I found Angela Hunt’s 3-book series, Legacies of the Ancient River. Each book—Dreamers, Brothers, and Journey—explored Joseph’s life and legacy. I devoured Genesis 37-50 as I read the novel that corresponded to the biblical text. Through the context of history and culture, Angie’s novels unveiled new insights from God’s Truth.
When Google and Amazon showed up, I began searching for even MORE novels about Bible characters. Lynn Austin’s 5-book series, Chronicles of the Kings, captured my heart for the next several months. That’s when my heart KNEW I needed to write biblical fiction.
My Mentor Authors
So, I went back to study these three authors’ techniques, voice, and content. How had they made biblical people walk off the page and into my heart?
When I finally met them face to face, it was a total “fan girl” moment! What a joy to call Angie Hunt my friend and continue learning from her. If you haven’t yet seen her books on writing techniques, click here. They’re fabulous!
Book Description
In Ur of the Chaldees, Ishcah faces the daunting prospect of marrying Abram, a man she has never once met in her thirty-nine years, and a man who renames her Sarai on their wedding day. Their union, arranged since childhood, tests her as she grapples with uncertainty about her future and Abram’s true nature, including his devotion to an unseen God–entirely unlike the idols she has worshipped all her life.
When Abram reveals that Adonai has directed them to leave the family, Sarai chooses to place her trust in him and to follow his God, even though she is unsure of Adonai’s promise to make them a great nation. As the years pass without a child, Sarai wrestles with doubt and faith within her marriage. Her skepticism that Abram’s and her descendants will outnumber the stars grows with time, and only a miracle can prove Adonai’s faithfulness to His word.
My Endorsement & Review
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Endorsement for Bethany House Publishers:
Biblically sound and historically rich, Rescued Heart digs into unanswered questions about Abraham and Sarah’s Bible story. Angela Hunt drew me into Sarah’s joy with Adonai’s promise of a son. Through Hunt’s tapestry of expertly woven words, I felt Sarah’s repeated disappointments, searched my own frustrations, and realized only Adonai could rescue Sarah’s heart and mine.
Review:
Angela explains in the front matter’s Note to Readers how she distinguishes the Bible’s Truth from a rabbinic document, The Book of Jasher (TBJ). The TBJ is held sacred by Jewish scholars. Though the Bible quotes the TBJ twice, it’s not included in the God-breathed, infallible, and unalterable Truth of the Old Testament (Jewish Tanakh) and New Testament.
I wondered if I might confuse or compare Rescued Heart with my research and storyline for Beauty’s Surrender, the story I wrote about Sarah’s life for Guideposts in 2024. But instead of feeling confused, I was fascinated! Reading Angela’s biblically, historically, and fictionally layered story proved again that no two authors will write the same story. Even when retelling the same Bible Truth and much of the same research, our gifts and imaginations are as different as our fingerprints!
Finally, I LOVED Angela’s plausible/believable “might have happened this way” on many of the Bible’s unanswered questions. Why did Abraham—a man lauded for his faith in Hebrews 11—ask Sarah to lie about being his wife and call herself his sister? Did Hagar tell Abraham that THE Angel of the LORD appeared to her and told her Ishmael’s name and his blessing? Why did Sarah die in Hebron, and why did Abraham have to travel from Beersheba to bury her? For all these questions and more, you’ll discover logical and satisfying answers. Experience Sarah’s Rescued Heart and perhaps allow the Lord to examine yours.
About the Author
Angela Hunt is a New York Times bestselling author of more than 160 books, with 5.5 million copies sold worldwide. Angela’s novels have won or been nominated for the RWA RITA Award, the Christy Award, the ECPA Christian Book Award, and the HOLT Medallion. Four of her novels have received ForeWord Magazine‘s Book of the Year Award, and Angela is the recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award from both the Romantic Times Book Club and ACFW. Angela holds doctorates in biblical studies and theology. She and her husband make their home in Florida with mastiffs and chickens. Learn more at AngelaHuntBooks.com.
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