Libi was born deaf and mute, and her cousin Shamira, whose household she was part of, her faith that Jesus was the Messiah being strong, had taken Libi to find Him, seeking - and receiving - a miracle. Now Libi's voice, which she lifts in praise to God, is pure and sweet, and her hearing, acute.
But Saul of Tarsus has stoned Stephen and they are going house to house, dragging people into the street and putting them in chains, often stoning them. Their primary targets? Anyone who can say Jesus healed them.
Libi's parents and brothers go farther than her aunts and uncles and cousins to avoid people who might kill Libi in an attempt to kill rumors of miracles, and so they end up in Antioch, where Libi helps the leaders of the church with the children they've taken in, including a blind girl. Despite her brothers' best attempts to keep tabs on her in the agora, Libi slips away from them, unintentionally, as she looks for the herbs and spices her mother wanted for dinner. She is rescued from a rape attempt by Cassius, who is not as nice as he seems - yet. Cassius has a father who killed his mother so he wouldn't have to acknowledge his illegitimate son. He entered the army when Servius Arrius allows him despite knowing he is really too young. For a while, he does well, until he mocks the Man he is crucifying as well as the other 2, and Servius makes him leave for disrespecting the families of those crucified. Then he is put on duty at Jesus's tomb, and what he experiences makes him run, meaning, as a deserter, he will be put to death if he is caught. He ends up in Antioch, where he saves Libi from the would be rapists and thieves, and earns the respect of the family when he tends their donkey's bad leg and it heals up, plus he uses the miscellaneous skills he learned in the Army and accepts a position as what we would call a handyman in exchange for room, board, and a small salary.
Libi and Cassius grow closer, esp. after Cassius gives his heart and life to Jesus, but something is about to shake both their worlds to their foundations. The appearance of Saul of Tarsus, now Paul, saved, proves too much for Libi, and Cassius's confession of being the one who nailed Jesus to the cross doesn't help matters. But the leaders of the church in Antioch take Cassius in, and Paul teaches him via his own witness. One of Libi's brothers offers to write her a letter to Shamira, and Shamira's husband Asa comes to visit with her answer.
Will Libi face and conquer this challenge to her faith, which up to now has been largely untested? And can Cassius face down his past by faith, and become. the believer Libi can rely on? Will they end up together or will their individual crises keep them apart? And what will happen when Servius Arrius shows up looking for lodging for himself and his horse and finds Cassius there?
One thing the author does is consistently use "reign" when the correct term is "rein." "Reign" means to rule. "Rein" is part of the tack on a horse. It is a loop that goes from the bit on one side to the bit on the other, and is used to guide the horse when riding, or to lead it into a stall or to a hitching post. It can also be used as a synonym for holding your tongue - i.e., "She has to learn to rein in her tongue before she says something that will get her in trouble." It can also be used for pulling a child closer to you to keep them out of danger, as in, "The father reined in his rambunctious son to keep him safe from the crowds." When you are unsure which to use, always look it up. And the homonym, "rain," is of course water falling from the sky to the ground. Although that was not misused, I thought I would include it because it is easy to misuse it since the words all sound the same.
A 3rd book is in the works, apparently, but not yet released as of this writing.