Revell Blog Tour: Rachel

Author: Jill Eileen Smith

Genre: Life, romance

Series: Wives of the Patriarchs

Number in series: 3^rd

My rating on a 1-10 scale: 9

Type: Historical fiction

Number of pages: 314

Time period: Bible times

Publisher and price: Revell, $14.99

My overall opinion: After finishing Jill’s books, I am always amazed by her attention to detail. In addition to that, I always feel like I really have gained a great insight into whichever characters were featured. This book was no exception! I found myself completely empathizing with Rachel and the anger she harbored, and with Leah and the desperation and pain that pierced her. I definitely felt a connection with each of them, and with Jacob. It takes skill to establish such a connection, but Jill has it down to a science! As is usual with Jill’s books, this one was Biblically accurate and even had direct quotes for some of it. It kept me reading (and up too late). I highly recommend it to all Biblical and historical fiction fans!

Revell Blog Tour: Rebekah

Author: Jill Eileen Smith

Genre: Life

Series: Wives of the Patriarchs

Number in series: 2^nd

My rating on a 1-10 scale: 9.5

Type: Historical fiction

Number of pages: 316

Time period: Bible times (somewhere in the area of 2000 b.c.)

Passage from book:

My overall opinion: Yay! Jill Eileen Smith did not disappoint with this, her newest book! Rebekah, the heroine, is a character who is easy to relate to. I know I’ll always remember the insights that I gained about her from this. In the Bible, I’ve always found her a bit hard to understand – how could she and Isaac choose favorites? How could she deceive him like that? This book did a great job with explaining that. I’m not saying that God “spoke” to Jill and told her how it was…but Jill did a great job putting me, the reader, in Rebekah’s mind, so that I understand WHY she might do what she did. For example. Have you ever thought about how Isaac felt after his father Abraham almost sacrificed him? Or what Sarah thought about Abraham doing that? I hadn’t…but after this book, wow, I am thinking about that. Once again, this book is Biblically accurate, like all of Jill’s have been thus far. Jill mentions in the introduction, if I remember right, that after writing this, she saw Rebekah in a whole new light. I understand that totally…I do too. I can’t recommend this book highly enough…and I can’t wait for “Rachel.”

**Revell supplied me with this book in exchange for my honest review. I was not required to post a positive review, nor was I paid in any way other than the book.**

“Available February 2013 at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group.”

Cover Focus: Rebekah

Rebekah by Jill Eileen Smith

Book blurb from goodreads.com : “When her father dies and she is left in the care of her conniving brother Laban, Rebekah knows her life has changed forever. Her hope for the future is restored when she falls in love with her cousin Isaac, and their relationship starts strong. But marital bliss cannot last forever, and the birth of their twin sons marks the beginning of years of misunderstanding, disagreement, and betrayal. The rift between them grows wider and wider until it is surely too deep to be mended. And yet, with God all things are possible.
Join bestselling author Jill Eileen Smith as she fills in the blanks around the biblical women behind the men we know well. Her in-depth research and creative storytelling bring Rebekah's unique story alive with romance, heartache, and the power of forgiveness.”

Read my review: Haven't read it yet, but guess what? Within another month or two, I'll be posting a review for the blog tour of this book! I know it'll be wonderful.

Why I like this cover: It’s so lovely! Some covers catch your eye and hold it for a long time – this is one of them. Look at all her jewelry, for example! A gold and lapis (?) headband, a gold necklace, and matching dangly gold earrings. Her dress is such a beautiful shade of periwinkle-blue too! I think her eyes are brown (after inspecting several different pictures of the same cover) with maybe a bit of gold or green in them too. And I’ve always wanted black hair…but I am definitely blond. In every respect. ANYWAY. I like the background of the cover too, with the blue and yellowish sky, the water-pot (which is very apt to anyone who knows Rebekah’s story) and those pretty green palm trees. And the title itself is so neat! That fancy, semi-Persian script…perfect. I can’t wait to read this next book in the “Wives of the Patriarchs” series! Sarai was great.

Revell Blog Tour: Sarai

Author: Jill Eileen Smith

Genre: Life

Series: Wives of the Patriarchs

Number in series: 1st

My rating on a 1-10 scale: 9.5

Type: Historical fiction (Biblical, actually)

Number of pages: 317

Time period: Bible times (around 2165 B.C.)

Press release: Sarai, the last child of her aged father, is beautiful, spoiled, and used to getting her own way. Even as a young girl, she is aware of the way men look at her, including her half-brother Abram. When Abram finally requests Sarai's hand, she asks one thing--that he promises never to take another wife as long as she lives. Even her father thinks the demand is restrictive
and agrees to the union only if Sarai makes a promise in return--to give Abram a son and heir. Certain she can easily do that, Sarai agrees.

But as the years stretch on and Sarai's womb remains empty, she becomes desperate to fulfill her end of the bargain--lest Abram decide that he will not fulfill his. To what lengths will Sarai go in her quest to bear a son? And how long will Abram's patience last?

My overall opinion: I loved it. This is the first book I’ve read by Jill Eileen Smith, and the first book in her new “Wives of the Patriarchs” series. You may have heard of her “Wives of King David” series? I can’t wait to read the rest of the books in this series. Anyway, about this book. It’s about (as you ought to know) Sarai, wife of Abram – who later became Sarah and Abraham, parents of Isaac. This Biblical fiction was well-written, riveting, factual, exciting, and a really good read. I love that I feel now like I actually know Abram and Sarai! There was not excessive description of the union of Hagar and Abram, or Sarai and Abram, though both were mentioned and explained as needed. This book is definitely one that I’ll be keeping and reading time after time. I highly recommend it for historical or Biblical fiction lovers!

ISBN: 978-0-8007-3429-9
Price: $14.99
Paperback
320 pages

Available March 2012 at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group.

***The author and Donna Hausler from Revell provided me with a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for a review. I was not compensated for this review in any other way. I was not required to give a positive review. The opinions expressed in this review are my own. I really did love it. ***