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Overpowered
After a blood crime sends Taliyah bat Shammai running from her home, she flees into the hill country. Yet the hills are no place for a woman traveling alone. Strange dreams of talking jackals and mysterious mists are the least of her worries—for she knows that the Avenger of Blood will be following close behind her.Barred from the Refuge by the circumstances of her crime, Taliyah thinks that her best chance of survival may lie with Cypress and his band of giant Cedar, hardened Thorn, boasting Vine and tidy Fig. Unsure whether to stay or go, Taliyah is reassured by the arrival of a young man with a mysterious past and cardamom-colored eyes. Something tells her that he is a man she can trust. Yet when a new king rises at the city of the Dawn, Taliyah and the seven criminals are called to fight a battle they cannot win. Will the outlaws stand fast in the face of certain death? Can Taliyah ever find safety again? Even escaping the battle may not save her… for the Avenger is still coming.-- Loosely inspired by the tale of Snow White, this Christian fantasy novella is set in a magical version of ancient Israel. 135 pages (33,000 words) plus 65 pages of bonus features including cut scenes, a bonus short story, author interview, and more. For ages 12 and up.
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Published October 29, 2018
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About the author
Kathryn McConaughy
2 books16 followersKathryn McConaughy is a Christian fantasy author who writes for teenagers and adults. Her stories are set in fantasy versions of Medieval and Ancient Near Eastern worlds. She has studied 16 languages (7 living, 10 dead), but would only want to claim fluency in one of them. She enjoys fighting with a broadsword, reading, gardening, researching, and cooking.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
March 4, 2019
Kathryn McConaughy is an amazing writer. This story is brilliant. Read it. <3
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October 8, 2018I give this incredible story five stars!
Wow! Overpowered is a fast-paced, unforgettable story about the inevitability of justice, the fight against evil and the intervention of One who fights for those who trust in him. The story is an intricate tapestry that brings together two stories; Snow White, and, most interestingly, the account of Gideon's sons in the book of Judges.
The author's Middle-Eastern setting is rich and multi-layered. It is clear she has done expansive research. While the world is not ours, the setting is so authentic. This is a brutal world in which people must defend themselves or hire others to do it for them. It is a world where "everyone does what they deem right in their own eyes".
Taliyah flees her home to escape a horrific crime. She must reach one of the refuge cities where she can seek asylum. But, the Avenger of Blood pursues her and will not be thwarted. Taliyah joins with a mercenary band of criminals, disguising herself as a boy in order to escape capture. But a ruthless king has taken the throne in the city for which she is bound, a prince flees for his life, and the Avenger of Blood draws ever closer.
The combining of Snow White and the Biblical account of King Abemelich and his brothers was an unusual premise to me. The story of Gideon's sons is so brutal that I was unsure how the author could pull this story off without resorting to excessive violence. She remedies this by creating her mercenary band. The men are delightful and such fun! I also enjoyed the inside information the author gives the reader; something about Taliyah that the men know but she does not. And, this story has a frightening villain. I had my suspicions of his identity but enjoyed the surprises. I also loved that there were two villains instead of one. The battle scene was one of my favorites, especially because of the subtle references to an unusual army.
After reading this story, please continue reading. The author explains her world, answers questions and even includes some deleted scenes. I found these scenes to be just as engrossing as the story. My favorites involved Taliyah and her cousin and a suspenseful scene involving a novitiate priest caught in the throes of temptation. Also, the bonus material includes a chapter from the author's Sleeping Beauty story entitled "The Guardian of Our Beauty" and even another Snow White retelling which I enjoyed very much.
Overpowered is a suspenseful and fun read rich in period detail and engaging characters. Thoroughly recommended! God bless you all.
Wow! Overpowered is a fast-paced, unforgettable story about the inevitability of justice, the fight against evil and the intervention of One who fights for those who trust in him. The story is an intricate tapestry that brings together two stories; Snow White, and, most interestingly, the account of Gideon's sons in the book of Judges.
The author's Middle-Eastern setting is rich and multi-layered. It is clear she has done expansive research. While the world is not ours, the setting is so authentic. This is a brutal world in which people must defend themselves or hire others to do it for them. It is a world where "everyone does what they deem right in their own eyes".
Taliyah flees her home to escape a horrific crime. She must reach one of the refuge cities where she can seek asylum. But, the Avenger of Blood pursues her and will not be thwarted. Taliyah joins with a mercenary band of criminals, disguising herself as a boy in order to escape capture. But a ruthless king has taken the throne in the city for which she is bound, a prince flees for his life, and the Avenger of Blood draws ever closer.
The combining of Snow White and the Biblical account of King Abemelich and his brothers was an unusual premise to me. The story of Gideon's sons is so brutal that I was unsure how the author could pull this story off without resorting to excessive violence. She remedies this by creating her mercenary band. The men are delightful and such fun! I also enjoyed the inside information the author gives the reader; something about Taliyah that the men know but she does not. And, this story has a frightening villain. I had my suspicions of his identity but enjoyed the surprises. I also loved that there were two villains instead of one. The battle scene was one of my favorites, especially because of the subtle references to an unusual army.
After reading this story, please continue reading. The author explains her world, answers questions and even includes some deleted scenes. I found these scenes to be just as engrossing as the story. My favorites involved Taliyah and her cousin and a suspenseful scene involving a novitiate priest caught in the throes of temptation. Also, the bonus material includes a chapter from the author's Sleeping Beauty story entitled "The Guardian of Our Beauty" and even another Snow White retelling which I enjoyed very much.
Overpowered is a suspenseful and fun read rich in period detail and engaging characters. Thoroughly recommended! God bless you all.
November 5, 2018
This is a beautifully written retelling of Snow White. It's filled with loveable characters and captivating action, and the book itself is packed with bonus material like interviews, cut scenes, and historical information that helped the author in creating this Near Eastern fairy tale. It's awesome to see a light fantasy set in a unique place and time, and I thoroughly enjoyed the book!
Disclosure: I received this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Disclosure: I received this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
December 29, 2019
A terrific blend of Bible and fairy tale
I was very pleased with this unique mashup of Snow White set in a fantasy world reminiscent of ancient Israel. I wasn’t sure what to expect from such a premise. Everything felt fresh and original, from the mercenaries/dwarves to the servant girl posing as a boy in their midst. The fantasy animals in the story world were a fun touch as well. The story was well written, with many beautiful passages. I look forward to more by this author.
I was very pleased with this unique mashup of Snow White set in a fantasy world reminiscent of ancient Israel. I wasn’t sure what to expect from such a premise. Everything felt fresh and original, from the mercenaries/dwarves to the servant girl posing as a boy in their midst. The fantasy animals in the story world were a fun touch as well. The story was well written, with many beautiful passages. I look forward to more by this author.
October 8, 2018
What a beautiful story! I cannot express how much I enjoy this author's retellings set in a fantasy version of the ancient Near East. This story held familiar story lines, yet presented in such original ways that they felt entirely new to me. The setting and world came alive on the page and in my imagination, and I fell in love with these characters. Taliyah is a vivid and lovable heroine, and the hero nearly jumps off the page, his character is so vivid. The bandits and the villains are also distinct and memorable.
Included at the end of the book are several deleted chapters (which give deeper insight into the story and characters), a fascinating question/answer section in which the author explains many historical aspects of the story, a delightful bonus Snow White short story, and a teaser/outtake from "Guardian of Our Beauty."
Don't miss this beautiful book! I highly recommend it.
Included at the end of the book are several deleted chapters (which give deeper insight into the story and characters), a fascinating question/answer section in which the author explains many historical aspects of the story, a delightful bonus Snow White short story, and a teaser/outtake from "Guardian of Our Beauty."
Don't miss this beautiful book! I highly recommend it.
October 21, 2018
I loved this! It was clearly a variation of a story from the biblical book of Judges--Jotham and Abimelech--and done very respectfully, with the fairy tale/fantasy aspects woven in exactly right. And the language was formal but naturally so, not stilted in any way. Beautifully done. The story was engaging and the characters equally so. And I enjoyed the bonus content as well!
May 20, 2022
Five reasons to read this book:
1. We can always use more historical fantasy. Overpowered is heavy on the historical, low on the fantasy, but that’s fine. There’s just enough fantasy that it adds flavor and isn’t out of place when it does show up, but it’s also a small enough amount that even lovers of straight historical fiction can enjoy this.
2. It’s set in an era that doesn’t get enough love. As I said earlier, this is set in the time period of the Old Testament, specifically the book of Judges. Outside of the Books of the Infinite series, I haven’t seen much fantasy set in or inspired during this period, and I definitely haven’t read any other fairy tale retellings in this era!
3. The historical elements are very well done. Kathryn knows her stuff when it comes to ancient Hebrew culture and language, and it shows in Overpowered. Several elements of that culture, ones that don’t typically come up in your average Bible study, play significant roles in the plotline, which is pretty cool. She also draws on the original Hebrew for names of people and places, which I found super fun because that makes them less obviously recognizable. So throughout the book, I would read things and try to match them up with the accounts I’m familiar with, and then I had a very satisfying lightbulb moment when I realized what was up.
4. The characters are a very colorful bunch. I mean, what else can you expect from a ragtag group of fighters like this? Seriously, though: getting to know this group and learning their stories is really fun. I will admit that I got mixed up with the names a few times, but I think that might’ve been fixed for the final version.
5. The pacing and action is just spot-on. Overpowered isn’t action-packed, but it hits that sweet spot of just enough suspense that you just can’t put it down without being overwhelming, non-stop twists and battles and danger. (Thus why I definitely stayed up until midnight or one when I beta-read it.)
1. We can always use more historical fantasy. Overpowered is heavy on the historical, low on the fantasy, but that’s fine. There’s just enough fantasy that it adds flavor and isn’t out of place when it does show up, but it’s also a small enough amount that even lovers of straight historical fiction can enjoy this.
2. It’s set in an era that doesn’t get enough love. As I said earlier, this is set in the time period of the Old Testament, specifically the book of Judges. Outside of the Books of the Infinite series, I haven’t seen much fantasy set in or inspired during this period, and I definitely haven’t read any other fairy tale retellings in this era!
3. The historical elements are very well done. Kathryn knows her stuff when it comes to ancient Hebrew culture and language, and it shows in Overpowered. Several elements of that culture, ones that don’t typically come up in your average Bible study, play significant roles in the plotline, which is pretty cool. She also draws on the original Hebrew for names of people and places, which I found super fun because that makes them less obviously recognizable. So throughout the book, I would read things and try to match them up with the accounts I’m familiar with, and then I had a very satisfying lightbulb moment when I realized what was up.
4. The characters are a very colorful bunch. I mean, what else can you expect from a ragtag group of fighters like this? Seriously, though: getting to know this group and learning their stories is really fun. I will admit that I got mixed up with the names a few times, but I think that might’ve been fixed for the final version.
5. The pacing and action is just spot-on. Overpowered isn’t action-packed, but it hits that sweet spot of just enough suspense that you just can’t put it down without being overwhelming, non-stop twists and battles and danger. (Thus why I definitely stayed up until midnight or one when I beta-read it.)
June 12, 2019
Some Christian writers do truly know how to retell fairy tales with Old Testament-inspired elements and settings, that often aren't that evident if one isn't familiar with that history, and this was one of the most creative I've found.
October 29, 2018
Wow. Overpowered is amazing. What more can I say? I'll try to tell you what made it so great.
What I liked:
As crazy as this may sound, I've always loved the book of Judges in the Bible. It's full of so many unique stories. It was definitely an interesting time for Israel. I can never bore while reading that book. So, suffice it to say, I loved how this fairy tale felt just like a story out of Judges. I really recognized the stories of Gideon. And a lot of what happens in Judges 9 happened in the background of Overpowered. I loved that.
But even though this story was obviously heavily influenced by ancient Israel, I could tell it was clearly set in another world. And I didn't mind that. It allowed room for the author's story and for a made-up creature.
Normally I don't like many made-up animals, but I did like the Pazir quite a lot. I don't like were wolves, but that's almost what they made me think of (without the man-turning aspect). They felt very biblical and fairy tale at once. And fit the story.
I loved so many of the characters! I really loved Willow and all of his wise sayings. But then Proverbs is another favorite book of mine. Willow was perfect for the mood of this story.
I loved Yotam. He seemed a real gentleman.
I didn't find Snow/ Taliyah too feministic or too wimpy. She was perfect. I love when I can love a main character. I also adore her name. It's become cliche for a girl to dress as a boy, but I felt the author did very well with this. It didn't feel thrown out there, but great for the plot.
All of the men Snow stayed with were great, but I really enjoyed reading about Fig and Vine. They were interesting characters.
The villain was perfect.
I also really enjoyed the writing style. It flowed almost as Bible poetry. To me at, least. I loved the word choices. I loved how characters said Thus instead of Yes. And all the other neat cultural words.
I really loved the culture of the world.
I love that God was called the Overpowerer. Unique and true all at once.
If you can't tell, I very much enjoyed reading this book.
What I didn't like:
Normally the conversation was great. But I remember feeling it was stilted just a few times. But no examples of this stand out to me. It was rare.
The prologue set up the culture behind what was happening in that time with sanctuary cities for people who accidentally kill people. I've always found sanctuary cities fascinating, and while I enjoyed the prologue for that reason, I also found it unnecessary to the story as that bit of information eventually revealed itself anyways.
Also, while the last chapter in the book was OK, I think the ending would have been more satisfying had it ended in the previous chapter.
Many people will probably enjoy the interviews, snippets, and deleted scenes. To me it felt bulky and messy and out of place. I did found the original first chapter interesting but I'd picked up on all of that by reading the novella.
I'll also add that I LOVED the short story at the end of the book, The Man in the Mirror. I was a bit confused at the ending (who was the Captain of the Guard??? and who was really the man in the mirror???). But I found it a very cute and enjoyable read.
I feel that this author is very talented in combining biblical and fairy tale into intriguing imaginative plots. And so I rate Overpowered ✰✰✰✰✰ 5 Stars.
What I liked:
As crazy as this may sound, I've always loved the book of Judges in the Bible. It's full of so many unique stories. It was definitely an interesting time for Israel. I can never bore while reading that book. So, suffice it to say, I loved how this fairy tale felt just like a story out of Judges. I really recognized the stories of Gideon. And a lot of what happens in Judges 9 happened in the background of Overpowered. I loved that.
But even though this story was obviously heavily influenced by ancient Israel, I could tell it was clearly set in another world. And I didn't mind that. It allowed room for the author's story and for a made-up creature.
Normally I don't like many made-up animals, but I did like the Pazir quite a lot. I don't like were wolves, but that's almost what they made me think of (without the man-turning aspect). They felt very biblical and fairy tale at once. And fit the story.
I loved so many of the characters! I really loved Willow and all of his wise sayings. But then Proverbs is another favorite book of mine. Willow was perfect for the mood of this story.
I loved Yotam. He seemed a real gentleman.
I didn't find Snow/ Taliyah too feministic or too wimpy. She was perfect. I love when I can love a main character. I also adore her name. It's become cliche for a girl to dress as a boy, but I felt the author did very well with this. It didn't feel thrown out there, but great for the plot.
All of the men Snow stayed with were great, but I really enjoyed reading about Fig and Vine. They were interesting characters.
The villain was perfect.
I also really enjoyed the writing style. It flowed almost as Bible poetry. To me at, least. I loved the word choices. I loved how characters said Thus instead of Yes. And all the other neat cultural words.
I really loved the culture of the world.
I love that God was called the Overpowerer. Unique and true all at once.
If you can't tell, I very much enjoyed reading this book.
What I didn't like:
Normally the conversation was great. But I remember feeling it was stilted just a few times. But no examples of this stand out to me. It was rare.
The prologue set up the culture behind what was happening in that time with sanctuary cities for people who accidentally kill people. I've always found sanctuary cities fascinating, and while I enjoyed the prologue for that reason, I also found it unnecessary to the story as that bit of information eventually revealed itself anyways.
Also, while the last chapter in the book was OK, I think the ending would have been more satisfying had it ended in the previous chapter.
Many people will probably enjoy the interviews, snippets, and deleted scenes. To me it felt bulky and messy and out of place. I did found the original first chapter interesting but I'd picked up on all of that by reading the novella.
I'll also add that I LOVED the short story at the end of the book, The Man in the Mirror. I was a bit confused at the ending (who was the Captain of the Guard??? and who was really the man in the mirror???). But I found it a very cute and enjoyable read.
I feel that this author is very talented in combining biblical and fairy tale into intriguing imaginative plots. And so I rate Overpowered ✰✰✰✰✰ 5 Stars.
January 1, 2021
I read this book as a readaloud to my daughter. Once we got past the first chapter, we both loved it! Kathryn uses Hebrew names and places, so some of those were harder to pronounce for me, but once I got into it, I did not mind at all. (I prefer it when an author immerses the reader into the culture, which is what happened in this book.) The book is very loosely based on Snow White, but it is so much better than the Snow White. If you want to throw yourself into ancient Hebrew culture, read this book.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews