What do you think?
Rate this book
The Scars Between Us #1
This Knot of Thorns
Haunted by the tragedy of that morning, Jubilee can't help but question the truths etched into her heart since birth. If God is truly a loving God, where was He the day her virtue was ripped away?
After a marriage of dark secrets leaves him haunted by demons of his own, Atticus Albanus swears he will never again find himself bound to another woman.
That is, until a proposal of marriage brings the two together, leaving each to face the darkness of their pasts.
As the chains that bind them begin to intertwine, will they find freedom or will they drag the other deeper into the darkness?
𝗔 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲, 𝗹𝗼𝘀𝘀, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗻𝗲𝘄 𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗲 𝘄𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝗻 𝗖𝗵𝗿𝗶𝘀𝘁, 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗞𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗧𝗵𝗼𝗿𝗻𝘀 𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗹𝗼𝗴𝘆 ‘𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝗰𝗮𝗿𝘀 𝗕𝗲𝘁𝘄𝗲𝗲𝗻 𝗨𝘀’.
After a marriage of dark secrets leaves him haunted by demons of his own, Atticus Albanus swears he will never again find himself bound to another woman.
That is, until a proposal of marriage brings the two together, leaving each to face the darkness of their pasts.
As the chains that bind them begin to intertwine, will they find freedom or will they drag the other deeper into the darkness?
𝗔 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲, 𝗹𝗼𝘀𝘀, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗻𝗲𝘄 𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗲 𝘄𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝗻 𝗖𝗵𝗿𝗶𝘀𝘁, 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗞𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗧𝗵𝗼𝗿𝗻𝘀 𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗹𝗼𝗴𝘆 ‘𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝗰𝗮𝗿𝘀 𝗕𝗲𝘁𝘄𝗲𝗲𝗻 𝗨𝘀’.
- GenresChristian Fiction
452 pages, Paperback
Published August 16, 2024
8 people are currently reading
83 people want to read
About the author
Faith Mathewson
3 books61 followersFaith Mathewson grew up in Oregon and has been certifiably obsessed with stories for as long as she can remember.
She tried her hand at writing at sixteen and hasn’t stopped since. Faith loves Jesus and seeks to create stories and characters that glorify Him. Photography, coffee, and snuggling her dog-child Oliver, are just a few of her favorite things.
She tried her hand at writing at sixteen and hasn’t stopped since. Faith loves Jesus and seeks to create stories and characters that glorify Him. Photography, coffee, and snuggling her dog-child Oliver, are just a few of her favorite things.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
May 15, 2025
𝗘𝗡𝗗𝗢𝗥𝗦𝗘𝗠𝗘𝗡𝗧𝗦
Packed from cover to cover with 𝙣𝙪𝙜𝙜𝙚𝙩𝙨 𝙤𝙛 𝙂𝙤𝙙’𝙨 𝙪𝙣𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙙𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙖𝙡 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚, 𝙃𝙞𝙨 𝙪𝙣𝙛𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙢𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚 𝙛𝙖𝙞𝙩𝙝𝙛𝙪𝙡𝙣𝙚𝙨𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙪𝙣𝙛𝙖𝙞𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙢𝙞𝙨𝙚𝙨, 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘒𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘛𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘯𝘴 is a masterfully written story following one girl’s relationship with her God, and the effect that such a relationship has in the lives of those she meets.
This book is 𝙖 𝙗𝙚𝙖𝙘𝙤𝙣 𝙤𝙛 𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙖 𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙣𝙜𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙗𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙡𝙚𝙩 𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙛𝙖𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙜𝙧𝙤𝙬 𝙙𝙞𝙢, even in the midst of our worst nightmares. I promise that you cannot read 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘒𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘛𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘯𝘴 and come away untouched by the Spirit of God!! - Abigail Sara, The Guardians of Tawaii
𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘒𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘛𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘯𝘴 is a book that 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙗𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙠 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙩 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙨𝙚𝙬 𝙞𝙩 𝙗𝙖𝙘𝙠 𝙩𝙤𝙜𝙚𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙖𝙜𝙖𝙞𝙣. Faith has woven together a tapestry full of life’s ugly truths and illuminated them with God’s redeeming love. 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘒𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘛𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘯𝘴 is 𝙖 𝙗𝙚𝙖𝙪𝙩𝙞𝙛𝙪𝙡 𝙙𝙚𝙥𝙞𝙘𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙤𝙛 𝙝𝙤𝙬 𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙨 𝙙𝙖𝙧𝙠𝙣𝙚𝙨𝙨, piercing even the blackest night. It’s 𝙖 𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙛𝙚𝙘𝙩 𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙪𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙤𝙛 𝙗𝙚𝙖𝙪𝙩𝙮 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙖𝙨𝙝𝙚𝙨, and it’s a book that will stay in my heart for a very long time. - Kaelin Scott, Kissed by a Rose, Worthy of Love, and Game Set Love
“𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘒𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘛𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘯𝘴 is a beautiful, transportive read back into the past where the people of old faced the same struggles many do today. 𝙈𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙬𝙨𝙤𝙣 𝙙𝙞𝙜𝙨 𝙙𝙚𝙚𝙥 𝙞𝙣𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙞𝙗𝙡𝙞𝙘𝙖𝙡 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙢𝙚𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙨𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙚𝙨 𝙖 𝙧𝙚𝙙𝙚𝙢𝙥𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙤𝙣 𝙙𝙞𝙛𝙛𝙞𝙘𝙪𝙡𝙩 𝙩𝙤𝙥𝙞𝙘𝙨 𝙬𝙝𝙞𝙡𝙚 𝙩𝙚𝙡𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙖 𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙥𝙚𝙡𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙮. This book, the characters, and lessons are all ones you can root for.” - Caitlin Miller, author of The Memories We Painted and Our Yellow Tape Letters
…
𝘈𝘨𝘦 𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘊𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘞𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘒𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘛𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘯𝘴
Due to the plot's nature, I consider This Knot of Thorns to have a PG-13 rating.
TKoT definitely will not be for everyone, I tackle a lot of heavy topics within this story including alcoholism, drug addiction (in the past), and homosexuality (this is not the main plot point, but it is a secondary character story and is portrayed as sinful)
The number one thing I want to put out there is that due to a large part of the plot surrounding a sexual assault that took place before the story starts, there are discussions surrounding SA and the intimacy between a husband and wife after one has been assaulted, as well as a few vague scenes that do fade to black.
Though the content is far from graphic or gratuitous and nothing is more than alluded to, I do ask that you consider these facts before picking up the book as I know we all have different convictions and beliefs surrounding certain topics in the books we read! ♥️
Packed from cover to cover with 𝙣𝙪𝙜𝙜𝙚𝙩𝙨 𝙤𝙛 𝙂𝙤𝙙’𝙨 𝙪𝙣𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙙𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙖𝙡 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚, 𝙃𝙞𝙨 𝙪𝙣𝙛𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙢𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚 𝙛𝙖𝙞𝙩𝙝𝙛𝙪𝙡𝙣𝙚𝙨𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙪𝙣𝙛𝙖𝙞𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙢𝙞𝙨𝙚𝙨, 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘒𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘛𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘯𝘴 is a masterfully written story following one girl’s relationship with her God, and the effect that such a relationship has in the lives of those she meets.
This book is 𝙖 𝙗𝙚𝙖𝙘𝙤𝙣 𝙤𝙛 𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙖 𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙣𝙜𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙗𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙡𝙚𝙩 𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙛𝙖𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙜𝙧𝙤𝙬 𝙙𝙞𝙢, even in the midst of our worst nightmares. I promise that you cannot read 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘒𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘛𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘯𝘴 and come away untouched by the Spirit of God!! - Abigail Sara, The Guardians of Tawaii
𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘒𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘛𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘯𝘴 is a book that 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙗𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙠 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙩 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙨𝙚𝙬 𝙞𝙩 𝙗𝙖𝙘𝙠 𝙩𝙤𝙜𝙚𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙖𝙜𝙖𝙞𝙣. Faith has woven together a tapestry full of life’s ugly truths and illuminated them with God’s redeeming love. 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘒𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘛𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘯𝘴 is 𝙖 𝙗𝙚𝙖𝙪𝙩𝙞𝙛𝙪𝙡 𝙙𝙚𝙥𝙞𝙘𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙤𝙛 𝙝𝙤𝙬 𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙨 𝙙𝙖𝙧𝙠𝙣𝙚𝙨𝙨, piercing even the blackest night. It’s 𝙖 𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙛𝙚𝙘𝙩 𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙪𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙤𝙛 𝙗𝙚𝙖𝙪𝙩𝙮 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙖𝙨𝙝𝙚𝙨, and it’s a book that will stay in my heart for a very long time. - Kaelin Scott, Kissed by a Rose, Worthy of Love, and Game Set Love
“𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘒𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘛𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘯𝘴 is a beautiful, transportive read back into the past where the people of old faced the same struggles many do today. 𝙈𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙬𝙨𝙤𝙣 𝙙𝙞𝙜𝙨 𝙙𝙚𝙚𝙥 𝙞𝙣𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙞𝙗𝙡𝙞𝙘𝙖𝙡 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙢𝙚𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙨𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙚𝙨 𝙖 𝙧𝙚𝙙𝙚𝙢𝙥𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙤𝙣 𝙙𝙞𝙛𝙛𝙞𝙘𝙪𝙡𝙩 𝙩𝙤𝙥𝙞𝙘𝙨 𝙬𝙝𝙞𝙡𝙚 𝙩𝙚𝙡𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙖 𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙥𝙚𝙡𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙮. This book, the characters, and lessons are all ones you can root for.” - Caitlin Miller, author of The Memories We Painted and Our Yellow Tape Letters
…
𝘈𝘨𝘦 𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘊𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘞𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘒𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘛𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘯𝘴
Due to the plot's nature, I consider This Knot of Thorns to have a PG-13 rating.
TKoT definitely will not be for everyone, I tackle a lot of heavy topics within this story including alcoholism, drug addiction (in the past), and homosexuality (this is not the main plot point, but it is a secondary character story and is portrayed as sinful)
The number one thing I want to put out there is that due to a large part of the plot surrounding a sexual assault that took place before the story starts, there are discussions surrounding SA and the intimacy between a husband and wife after one has been assaulted, as well as a few vague scenes that do fade to black.
Though the content is far from graphic or gratuitous and nothing is more than alluded to, I do ask that you consider these facts before picking up the book as I know we all have different convictions and beliefs surrounding certain topics in the books we read! ♥️
Read
August 22, 2024ENDORSEMENT:
“Poignant and powerful! This Knot of Thorns invites you to step back into the riveting atmosphere of the first century, yet its stirring truths of guilt and shame and grace remain timeless in their portrayal. In the darkest moments, hope’s healing embrace can still be found. A beautiful addition to any history lover’s shelf!
—Morgan Taylor Giesbrecht, author of The Lies We Live
“Poignant and powerful! This Knot of Thorns invites you to step back into the riveting atmosphere of the first century, yet its stirring truths of guilt and shame and grace remain timeless in their portrayal. In the darkest moments, hope’s healing embrace can still be found. A beautiful addition to any history lover’s shelf!
—Morgan Taylor Giesbrecht, author of The Lies We Live
April 4, 2024
I couldn’t pull myself away. I would actually get upset when I had to work and couldn’t read. The whole time all I could think about was when I could read again. Prepare a box of tissues.
The way you feel the characters emotions is absolutely beautiful and painful at the same time. The interlocking of healing that flows from all the characters is done with such thought out writing. I was a huge fan of all the kings horse for its raw and powerful words spoken as Eloise desperately called out to God when she was confused and hurting. In This Knot of Thorns you see the long term affects that sexual assault have on a person and how it affects not just the person but the people around her. It isn’t ignored as a detail no one would care about it is one of the main focuses. I was on pins and needles every time the main characters would talk. Practically screaming “JUST TELL EACH OTHER ALREADY!! You will know that the pain is not because of each other pleaseeee”
I loved the way she shared the gospel as she questioned her faith and doubted that she knew the right thing to say. Watching her continue to share the gospel even through tribulations and opposition was a much needed encouragement.
I adored all of the characters and loved how their stories flowed together.
All of the amazing things to say I do have some things of note some of the dialog was hard to follow I wasn’t quite sure who was speaking and had to re read it a few times. I found it to be a little long but that could have also been my urgency to finish it and see the healing brought to the characters that I had grown so fond of.. However that doesn’t deter me from recommending people to read it!
Such a great read
The way you feel the characters emotions is absolutely beautiful and painful at the same time. The interlocking of healing that flows from all the characters is done with such thought out writing. I was a huge fan of all the kings horse for its raw and powerful words spoken as Eloise desperately called out to God when she was confused and hurting. In This Knot of Thorns you see the long term affects that sexual assault have on a person and how it affects not just the person but the people around her. It isn’t ignored as a detail no one would care about it is one of the main focuses. I was on pins and needles every time the main characters would talk. Practically screaming “JUST TELL EACH OTHER ALREADY!! You will know that the pain is not because of each other pleaseeee”
I loved the way she shared the gospel as she questioned her faith and doubted that she knew the right thing to say. Watching her continue to share the gospel even through tribulations and opposition was a much needed encouragement.
I adored all of the characters and loved how their stories flowed together.
All of the amazing things to say I do have some things of note some of the dialog was hard to follow I wasn’t quite sure who was speaking and had to re read it a few times. I found it to be a little long but that could have also been my urgency to finish it and see the healing brought to the characters that I had grown so fond of.. However that doesn’t deter me from recommending people to read it!
Such a great read
August 16, 2024
This story is beautifully broken. Full of mystery, pain, hope, desperation, and the ultimate truth that only Jesus can bring complete healing, Matthewson doesn't shy away from the hard. I love solid Christian stories that portray the hard and 'controversial' topics in a healthy way, and This Knot of Thorns is definitely counted among them. Matthewson approaches topics like SA, self-h*rm, manipulation, and so many other ones with grace and wisdom.
August 16, 2024
This Knot of Thorns is a book that will break your heart and then sew it back together again. Faith has woven together a tapestry full of life’s ugly truths and illuminated them with God’s redeeming love. This Knot of Thorns is a beautiful depiction of how light overcomes darkness, piercing even the blackest night. It’s a perfect illustration of beauty from ashes, and it’s a book that will stay in my heart for a very long time.
May 28, 2024
This was not my first experience with a Faith R. Mathewson novel. She is such a master at character building and writing the most compelling and lovable protagonists. You can just tell how much she cares for her characters with the pains she takes to write them. I enjoyed this novel. I read it in two days and it did not lose my interest. I would say this story was a slow burn to a fault. FRM so accurately replicates reality in her writing. The conflict between the two main characters goes back and forth so many times that I, as the reader, was getting just as frustrated as they were which made for a very visceral reading experience. The writing itself is well done, clear, balances imagery with storytelling, and very rarely took me out of the story. Overall, I would recommend this book to a friend!
April 7, 2024
I have absolutely no words to describe just how touching this story is!
𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘒𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘛𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘯𝘴 is an amazing 1st century novel following the lives of Jubilee and Atticus as they seek to grow closer together and to conquer their separate demons.
Contained within the pages of this heart-rending novel is the Gospel message and many other truths about God that Faith has masterfully woven in.
𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘒𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘛𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘯𝘴 is perfect for fans of 𝘈 𝘊𝘳𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘊𝘩𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘴, 𝘞𝘪𝘯𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘔𝘰𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 and 𝘛𝘸𝘪𝘤𝘦 𝘍𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘥.
Again, I am at a loss for words to describe just how much I love TKOT, and I will never be able to recommend it enough!!
𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘒𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘛𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘯𝘴 is an amazing 1st century novel following the lives of Jubilee and Atticus as they seek to grow closer together and to conquer their separate demons.
Contained within the pages of this heart-rending novel is the Gospel message and many other truths about God that Faith has masterfully woven in.
𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘒𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘛𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘯𝘴 is perfect for fans of 𝘈 𝘊𝘳𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘊𝘩𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘴, 𝘞𝘪𝘯𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘔𝘰𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 and 𝘛𝘸𝘪𝘤𝘦 𝘍𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘥.
Again, I am at a loss for words to describe just how much I love TKOT, and I will never be able to recommend it enough!!
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews