CFBA: In the Field of Grace by Tessa Afshar

Song Stuck on the Brain: Let Us Shake Off the Coals of Our Garments (hymn)

This week, the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance is introducing:
In The Field of Grace River North; New Edition edition (July 1, 2014) by Tessa Afshar


MY TAKE:

Tessa Afshar is back with another hit. YAY! If you're a follower of my blog, you're familiar with this author because I've reviewed and raved about every one of her books. I'm very particular about my Bible fiction. It's a careful balance between retelling the story in precise detail and filling in the details with history and fictional license without changing anything or leaving anything out. Add to it that it needs to be enticing, entertaining and captivating. A balance between drama and hope. Tessa does it all. She has a gift for story telling that allows me to step into the pages of the Bible and relive history in detail all while feeling I learned something new and enlightening in my relationship with Jesus.

Ruth's story is one of my favorites, but I always wondered why her story had so much to share that she got her own book. Obviously there are genealogical connections and other things that make her story important, but Tessa shines a light on Ruth and brings her into a new perspective that really opened up her story to me. It's beautiful. My mom has already read it and loved it and now my 17 year old niece is reading it. This is a book for all ages. Don't miss out.


ABOUT THE BOOK:

Destitute, grief-stricken, and unwanted by the people of God, Ruth arrives in Israel with nothing to recommend her but Naomi's, love. Her loftiest hope is to provide enough food to save Naomi and herself from starvation.

But God has other plans for her life. While everyone considers Ruth an outcast, she is astounded to find one of the most honored men of Judah showing her favor.  Long since a widower and determined to stay that way, Boaz is irresistibly drawn to the foreign woman with the haunted eyes. He tells himself he is only being kind to his Cousin Naomi's chosen daughter when he goes out of his way to protect her from harm, but his heart knows better.

Based on the biblical account of Ruth, In the Field of Grace is the story of a love that ultimately changes the course of Israel's destiny and the future of the whole world.

If you would like to read the first chapter of In The Field of Grace, go HERE.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

TESSA AFSHAR was voted "New Author of the Year" by the Family Fiction sponsored Reader's Choice Award 2011 for her novel Pearl in the Sand. She was born in Iran, and lived there for the first fourteen years of her life. She moved to England where she survived boarding school for girls and fell in love with Jane Austen and Charlotte Bronte, before moving to the United States permanently. Her conversion to Christianity in her twenties changed the course of her life forever. Tessa holds an MDiv from Yale University where she served as co-chair of the Evangelical Fellowship at the Divinity School. She has spent the last thirteen years in full-time Christian work.

CFBA: Harvest of Gold by Tessa Afshar

Song Stuck on the Brain: Guess Who's Back by Eminem... sorry, they keep playing it on the ad for a kids cartoon and it's stuck.

This week, the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance is introducing:   Harvest of Gold River North; New Edition edition (July 1, 2013) by   Tessa Afshar

MY TAKE:

Persian Prince Darius and his Hebrew wife Sarah are back for their second tale in Harvest of Gold. We first met them in Harvest of Rubies as Proverbs 31 literally came to life in a beautiful story of love, respect and self-worth. Darius and Sarah's marriage had found stability but was far from complete. Darius believes himself unable to love Sarah the way she loves him, he also fights his mother's Hebrew heritage and doesn't want anything to do with Sarah's God. The wall's around his heart go as "high as the moon" according to Nehemiah. Sarah loves her husband. She sees a good, kind man in Darius that she longs to know intimately on an emotional and spiritual level, but his rebuffs hurt and now she struggles with her own walls. No matter their personal feelings, they have been sent to find and stop an assassin bent on killing the king. The journey to Jerusalem to help Nehemiah rebuild the walls may be a cover for Darius and his men, but God has bigger plans. He can restore the damage to the heart of Jerusalem as well as in the hearts of Sarah and Darius.

Tessa Afshar has once again created a phenomenal and beautiful story that's not only historically and Biblically accurate, but reaches deeper into the heart and shows a married couple not only finding healing and growth in their own relationship, but in their relationship with God - and how the two work so necessarily hand in hand. Outstanding story.

On  a side note, there are two secondary characters, Lysander the Spartan and Roxanna the Persian aristocrat, that have sparked quite a strong interest in one another this time around. I hope this means we'll be reading their story soon as well. I have a feeling any novel by Tessa Afshar is bound to knock my socks off.

Read my reviews of Harvest of Rubies and Pearl in the Sand.


ABOUT THE BOOK:

The scribe Sarah married Darius, and at times she feels as if she has married the Persian aristocracy, too. There is another point she did not count on in her marriage-Sarah has grown to love her husband. Sarah has wealth, property, honor, and power, but her husband's love still seems unattainable.

Although his mother was an Israelite, Darius remains skeptical that his Jewish wife is the right choice for him, particularly when she conspires with her cousin Nehemiah to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. Ordered to assist in the effort, the couple begins a journey to the homeland of his mother's people. Will the road filled with danger, conflict, and surprising memories, help Darius to see the hand of God at work in his life-and even in his marriage?

A hidden message, treachery, opposition, and a God-given success, will lead to an unlikely bounty.

If you'd like to read the first chapter of Harvest of Gold, go HERE.


ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

TESSA AFSHAR was voted "New Author of the Year" by the Family Fiction sponsored Reader's Choice Award 2011 for her novel Pearl in the Sand. She was born in Iran, and lived there for the first fourteen years of her life. She moved to England where she survived boarding school for girls and fell in love with Jane Austen and Charlotte Bronte, before moving to the United States permanently. Her conversion to Christianity in her twenties changed the course of her life forever. Tessa holds an MDiv from Yale University where she served as co-chair of the Evangelical Fellowship at the Divinity School. She has spent the last thirteen years in full-time Christian work.

CFBA: Harvest of Rubies by Tessa Afshar

Song Stuck on the Brain: I Try by Macy Gray

This week, the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance is introducing: Harvest of RubiesRiver North; New Edition edition (May 1, 2012)byTessa Afshar

MY TAKE:

I was blown away the first time I read a Tessa Afshar book. That book, Pearl in the Sand, raised the bar on Bible based fiction. It was gripping and I fell head over heals for her writing. As you can imagine, I was jumping up and down when I saw Harvest of Rubies offered for review.

I fell head over heals in love again. This time around, the Bible connection is limited as to Biblical historical figures, Nehemiah is present but it doesn't center around his life, instead it centers around his young cousin. As the title suggests, Tessa has used Proverbs 31 as her inspiration. It's masterfully done. Sarah doesn't see herself as worth more than Rubies, but as her story unfolds and she learns to trust the Lord to find her self worth and love, her  life changes. Her eyes are opened to see what others already can. The love story between Sarah and Darius appears disastrous at first, but the honesty and insight that goes into creating their journey was beautiful.

I never would have expected that Proverbs 31 could have taken on such an intimate and personal meaning to me, but it has. It's like the author pulled back the curtain and allowed us to see the real story behind the proverb. Beautiful. It's also the first in a series and I'm anxious to see where the author takes us from here. It's bound to be a fabulous journey.

ABOUT THE BOOK:

Remarkable Talent Threatens to Cloud a Life

The prophet Nehemiah’s cousin can speak several languages, keep complex accounts, write on tablets of clay, and solve mysteries. Her accomplishments catapult her into the center of the Persian court – working long hours, rubbing elbows with royalty, and becoming the queen’s favorite scribe.

Not bad for a woman living in a man’s world: so why does Sarah feel like a failure?

A devastating past has left Sarah with two conclusions: that God does not love her, and that her achievements are the measure of her worth – a measure she can never quite live up to.

Darius Pasargadae is accustomed to having his way. A wealthy and admired aristocrat, the last thing he expects is a wife who scorns him.

Can two such different people help one another overcome the idols that bind them?

If you would like to read the first chapter of Harvest of Rubies, go HERE.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

TESSA AFSHAR was voted "New Author of the Year" by the Family Fiction sponsored Reader's Choice Award 2011 for her novel Pearl in the Sand. She was born in Iran, and lived there for the first fourteen years of her life. She moved to England where she survived boarding school for girls and fell in love with Jane Austen and Charlotte Bronte, before moving to the United States permanently. Her conversion to Christianity in her twenties changed the course of her life forever. Tessa holds an MDiv from Yale University where she served as co-chair of the Evangelical Fellowship at the Divinity School. She has spent the last thirteen years in full-time Christian work.

 

CFBA: Pearl in the Sand by Tessa Afshar

Song Stuck on the Brain: Lover, Lover by Jerrod Neimann

This week, the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance is introducing:


Pearl In The SandMoody Publishers (September 1, 2010)


by

Tessa Afshar




MY TAKE:

I would never have understood how much there was to Rahab's story before reading Pearl in the Sand. I'd read the Bible stories, but somehow the significance of Rahab never went beyond the woman who saved the spies. Wow, is there so much more to the story. To see just how closely Tessa stayed to the Biblical accounts, I went back and re-read the accounts in Joshua, Ruth and Matthew. She did an amazing job. Yes, Rahab's story is short, but by bringing in all of the Hebrew traditions and the meaning behind those traditions and laws, the real story became so much clearer. Rahab, like Ruth and Esther, had an important role that can so easily be lost in the massive amounts of historical and spiritual teachings that are contained in the Bible.

What I enjoyed the most about this book though, was how Rahab and Salmone came to life for me. The historical accuracy was important, but seeing into their hearts and understanding the struggle they each faced over her past as a whore was both heart rending and powerful. More than that, seeing Rahab finally realize her worth in God's eyes brought me to tears. It's a question we all face, no matter our past.

Pearl in the Sand is gripping emotionally, allowing you to see the clash between sin and salvation, and love and war. It carries you through the first blush of love and attraction through the rocky road that follows and into the happiness that comes when a couple can finally let go of themselves and give their whole heart to God and each other. An amazing read.


ABOUT THE BOOK:

Can a Canaanite harlot who has made her livelihood by looking desirable to men make a fitting wife for one of the leaders of Israel? Shockingly, the Bible’s answer is yes. At the age of fifteen Rahab is forced into prostitution by her beloved father. In her years as a courtesan, she learns to mistrust men and hate herself. Into the emotional turmoil of her world walks Salmone, a respected leader of Judah. Through the tribulations of a stormy relationship, Rahab and Salmone learn the true

source of one another’s worth in God and find healing from fear and rejection.

If you would like to read the first chapter of Pearl In The Sand, go HERE



Watch the book video:





ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Tessa Afshar was born in a nominally Muslim family in Iran and lived there for the first fourteen years of her life. She survived English boarding school for girls before moving to the United States permanently. Her conversion to Christianity in her mid-twenties changed the course of her life forever. Tessa holds an MDIV from Yale University where she served as co-Chair of the Evangelical Fellowship at the

Divinity School. She has spent the last twelve years in full and part-time Christian work and currently serves as the leader of Women’s and Prayer ministries at a church in Connecticut.