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The David Trilogy #1
David: Rise
All anyone wants to hear about is the giant. For those who never knew the man, only his legend,it’s all they ever ask. Did he do this? Did he say that? Was he afraid? Was he beautiful?Do they think his life narrows down to this one thing,sums up in this single moment? Do they think running toward danger explains him? Clearly, they never knew him.So I will tell. But I will have to take you back there to make you understand.So begins Mark Buchanan’s trilogy of novels vividly recreating the life and times of David, a man of many contradictions – poet, killer, God-lover, adulterer, brigand, fugitive, war hero. It’s a tale told through many eyes, those who love David and those who don’t, in details both intimate and epic. Three thousand years after he lived, David: Rise reminds us why he still captures our imagination and rivets our attention.
258 pages, Paperback
Published March 18, 2020
About the author
Mark Buchanan
31 books219 followersMark Buchanan lives in Enderby, British Columbia, with his wife, Cheryl. They have three adult children, Adam, Sarah, and Nicola. He was a longtime pastor, an author of many books, and now serves as a professor at Ambrose University College in Calgary.
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
March 21, 2025
Great read about a great, complicated man
Long before I read the scripture accounts of David, I’d heard and used saying about his life without knowing their origin. Probably the most famous was “David vs Goliath” to indicate anything in society where good defeats evil against impossible odds, or someone small taking on a huge corporation, things like that. It wasn’t until I dove in and read for myself that I realized what a complex and fascinating life we have preserved in the Bible. I couldn’t believe this amazingly detailed story had always been available and I’d never learned it. The Bible fascinated me like no novel ever could. Now when I read it, I wonder what those characters who inhabited that time were like. What were Saul’s motivations for chasing David with single-minded deadly purpose? What was Joab really like? Why would a good man like David commit such an awful crime against Uriah? What changed Elian’s mind about his brother, and was he ever truly against him or just being an older brother? People interpret these different and it’s interesting to read fictional accounts and see why authors portray characters in a certain way.
With Amazon’s huge production “House of David,” many more will hopefully learn about this earthly ancestor of Jesus — a warrior poet, man after God’s own heart, womanizer, king, and prophet. His words are quoted by Jesus on the cross to point people toward the 1000+ years old prophecy He was fulfilling by His crucifixion, a death sentence that hadn’t even been invented when David wrote what we know as Psalm 22. I hope when people see the show or read books like this they’re inspired to go to the source material, the biblical account, to find out for themselves how God has preserved these amazing accounts. Delving into the Bible is fascinating and makes you realize that our souls thirst for these words.
While my own views on some of these characters differs from what the author presents in “David: Rise” I recognize that it is fiction and we each form views on characters like Jesse, Michal, and others from just a few verses. So I enjoyed thoroughly reading how someone else presents the characters and their motivations. This book reminded me of why I love reading scripture, and complemented (I admit, also kept me from often) my own reading. I can’t wait for the next part of the series. I highly recommend this novel and hope you enjoy it as much as I do. It covers the life of David from before his anointing to Saul’s death and David’s rise to King of Judah. The author does a great job of staying true to the timeline as much as we can know while fleshing out David and those around him. You might find some characters are different than you picture, but that’s the beauty of fiction — we can explore them while staying true to what we know, and it’s OK to disagree about details that aren’t explicit in scripture; if God thought it was important for us to know, we would. Our minds naturally try to fill in the rest. I think anyone who enjoys history, epic stories, or just good writing will find this book as riveting as I did.
Long before I read the scripture accounts of David, I’d heard and used saying about his life without knowing their origin. Probably the most famous was “David vs Goliath” to indicate anything in society where good defeats evil against impossible odds, or someone small taking on a huge corporation, things like that. It wasn’t until I dove in and read for myself that I realized what a complex and fascinating life we have preserved in the Bible. I couldn’t believe this amazingly detailed story had always been available and I’d never learned it. The Bible fascinated me like no novel ever could. Now when I read it, I wonder what those characters who inhabited that time were like. What were Saul’s motivations for chasing David with single-minded deadly purpose? What was Joab really like? Why would a good man like David commit such an awful crime against Uriah? What changed Elian’s mind about his brother, and was he ever truly against him or just being an older brother? People interpret these different and it’s interesting to read fictional accounts and see why authors portray characters in a certain way.
With Amazon’s huge production “House of David,” many more will hopefully learn about this earthly ancestor of Jesus — a warrior poet, man after God’s own heart, womanizer, king, and prophet. His words are quoted by Jesus on the cross to point people toward the 1000+ years old prophecy He was fulfilling by His crucifixion, a death sentence that hadn’t even been invented when David wrote what we know as Psalm 22. I hope when people see the show or read books like this they’re inspired to go to the source material, the biblical account, to find out for themselves how God has preserved these amazing accounts. Delving into the Bible is fascinating and makes you realize that our souls thirst for these words.
While my own views on some of these characters differs from what the author presents in “David: Rise” I recognize that it is fiction and we each form views on characters like Jesse, Michal, and others from just a few verses. So I enjoyed thoroughly reading how someone else presents the characters and their motivations. This book reminded me of why I love reading scripture, and complemented (I admit, also kept me from often) my own reading. I can’t wait for the next part of the series. I highly recommend this novel and hope you enjoy it as much as I do. It covers the life of David from before his anointing to Saul’s death and David’s rise to King of Judah. The author does a great job of staying true to the timeline as much as we can know while fleshing out David and those around him. You might find some characters are different than you picture, but that’s the beauty of fiction — we can explore them while staying true to what we know, and it’s OK to disagree about details that aren’t explicit in scripture; if God thought it was important for us to know, we would. Our minds naturally try to fill in the rest. I think anyone who enjoys history, epic stories, or just good writing will find this book as riveting as I did.
March 30, 2020
Mark Buchanan is one of my very favorite writers. His thoughts are fresh and his writing is beautiful. I had the chance to read an advance copy of this first novel in his trilogy on the live of David. It is so creatively put together--different voices, different time frames, all these different angles on the early life of David. Mark has studied David for years, from every angle possible (you should see his library just on this one Bible character!) so he writes with deep knowledge. But I've always loved especially Mark's use of language and imagery. On my second time through this gem.
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April 5, 2020Wow!
What a delightful complement to coffee and self-isolation.
Mark Buchanan has taken the factual from the historical record and spiced it with the probable, the human factor. Mark then mixes in the plausible; it really could have happened that way, and finished it off with the possible, who knew?
David Rise was a delightful read from start to finish. I could see what he was seeing and smell what he smelled. Masterfully laid and articulated, I was able to listen in on the events from the shadows and participate as they unfolded.
Thanks, Mark!
What a delightful complement to coffee and self-isolation.
Mark Buchanan has taken the factual from the historical record and spiced it with the probable, the human factor. Mark then mixes in the plausible; it really could have happened that way, and finished it off with the possible, who knew?
David Rise was a delightful read from start to finish. I could see what he was seeing and smell what he smelled. Masterfully laid and articulated, I was able to listen in on the events from the shadows and participate as they unfolded.
Thanks, Mark!
June 21, 2022
David:Rise by Mark Buchanan is brilliant, exceptionally well written and incredibly engaging.
Mark Buchanan has done a masterful job of taking the biblical story of King David and putting it into novel form. He wrote it from the different perspectives of the characters in David’s life. We hear from David’s first wife Michal, his soldiers, Jonathan, King Saul and from David’s perspective. Even though I am very familiar with David’s story there were still twists and turns in the novel that I didn’t expect.
What I appreciate most about this book is that Buchanan does not sugar coat David’s issues. If you have more than a devotional/ cursory understanding of King David you will be aware that he is deeply flawed as a leader, a father and a husband. He collects wives like a tyrant and devours his enemies with fervour and blood lust. Buchanan also does an incredible job of filling in the background struggles of growing up as a nobody in a family of brothers with a mother who is obviously dealing with some mental health challenges.
Without a doubt, Buchanan is a phenomenal writer. His words flow on the page and create entire worlds behind a familiar character.
In describing David’s struggle with his desire to both kill and save King Saul Buchanan writes,
"It would have been like killing a snake that had reared up to strike him.
And it would have been like killing his own father.
It would have destroyed his enemy’s body but raised his ghost. He would have been rid of Saul forever. And he would have never been free of him.”
I highly recommend David: Rise by Mark Buchanan to pastors, writers and anyone who is curious about the deeper and darker story of King David.
Mark Buchanan has done a masterful job of taking the biblical story of King David and putting it into novel form. He wrote it from the different perspectives of the characters in David’s life. We hear from David’s first wife Michal, his soldiers, Jonathan, King Saul and from David’s perspective. Even though I am very familiar with David’s story there were still twists and turns in the novel that I didn’t expect.
What I appreciate most about this book is that Buchanan does not sugar coat David’s issues. If you have more than a devotional/ cursory understanding of King David you will be aware that he is deeply flawed as a leader, a father and a husband. He collects wives like a tyrant and devours his enemies with fervour and blood lust. Buchanan also does an incredible job of filling in the background struggles of growing up as a nobody in a family of brothers with a mother who is obviously dealing with some mental health challenges.
Without a doubt, Buchanan is a phenomenal writer. His words flow on the page and create entire worlds behind a familiar character.
In describing David’s struggle with his desire to both kill and save King Saul Buchanan writes,
"It would have been like killing a snake that had reared up to strike him.
And it would have been like killing his own father.
It would have destroyed his enemy’s body but raised his ghost. He would have been rid of Saul forever. And he would have never been free of him.”
I highly recommend David: Rise by Mark Buchanan to pastors, writers and anyone who is curious about the deeper and darker story of King David.
October 23, 2023
Loved it. Grabbed me from the beginning. Very creative presentation of David’s early years. Yes, Buchanan colors outside the lines here and there, adding some details where scripture is silent. These seem to be reasonable possibilities, ways to understand some of the mysteries that are not explained.
Having just completed my own study of this period in David’s life, I found the work to be faithful to the biblical account. And I enjoyed the interesting characterizations that Buchanan imagined.
One note: there are no saints in this story. Buchanan portrays David as a very real man who loves God and is used by God. But the David in this book has some flaws even as a young man. Seems likely. Used well, this could probably lead to some good and helpful discussions!
Having just completed my own study of this period in David’s life, I found the work to be faithful to the biblical account. And I enjoyed the interesting characterizations that Buchanan imagined.
One note: there are no saints in this story. Buchanan portrays David as a very real man who loves God and is used by God. But the David in this book has some flaws even as a young man. Seems likely. Used well, this could probably lead to some good and helpful discussions!
April 4, 2023
A rare find - you could call it historical fiction, or "filling in the details" of a Biblcal story.
I've enjoyed Frederick Buechner's similar work with Son of Laughter, but this one is even more detailed, interweaving the stories of many secondary characters.
To be sure, the Biblical narrative of David spans more chapters than all of the patriarchs combined, rivaling even Moses and Jesus in terms of the amount of content available.
And Buchanan puts thus to good use, bringing to life many names, places, and events in the way that The Chosen TV series does for Jesus's disciples.
Looking forward to book #2!
I've enjoyed Frederick Buechner's similar work with Son of Laughter, but this one is even more detailed, interweaving the stories of many secondary characters.
To be sure, the Biblical narrative of David spans more chapters than all of the patriarchs combined, rivaling even Moses and Jesus in terms of the amount of content available.
And Buchanan puts thus to good use, bringing to life many names, places, and events in the way that The Chosen TV series does for Jesus's disciples.
Looking forward to book #2!
March 23, 2026
I love biblical fiction, and the way it helps me imagine MORE. Mark brings a wonderful nuance and perspective to the life of David, and the people who may have influenced or been impacted by him. I particularly loved the descriptions of Ruach, the Breath, the presence of Spirit.
Mark brings David to life, complete with compassion, intelligence and cunning. The first time I read the biblical passages of King David, I came away not liking him at all. He did some terrible things. Mark reminds me that he was indeed a man of deep emotions, but overall, he was a man who sought God.
Looking forward to continuing the story.
Mark brings David to life, complete with compassion, intelligence and cunning. The first time I read the biblical passages of King David, I came away not liking him at all. He did some terrible things. Mark reminds me that he was indeed a man of deep emotions, but overall, he was a man who sought God.
Looking forward to continuing the story.
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May 5, 2020Mark Buchanan is a real craftsman and wordsmith, which makes the reading of his books a real literary joy. David Rise lives up to Mark's reputation and standards of excellence. The best authors make writing look easy; it is anything but. This story has a great flow and is not just a third party narrative; it is told from a variety of perspectives by the people who knew David best. We don't all see another person from the same point of view; this technique gives the reader a much broader understanding of the man. This is a story that will stick with you for a long time. Enjoy.
June 14, 2020
With the release of David: Rise, Mark Buchanan takes his superb creative writing skills to a whole new level. In this historical fiction, Mark uses rich imagery and carefully crafted character development to paint a vivid picture of the rise of David from shepherd boy to King - using reasonable license to bridge gaps in the biblical narrative and illustrate transcendent insights and truths. This a must read for anyone wanting to gain a more rounded and striking picture of one of the Bible’s greatest leaders!
March 6, 2021
I have gained valuable perspective over the years from reading most of Buchanan’s books. They have been challenging and enlightening. This work of fiction about the rise of a simple shepherd to King provided the same things. I was drawn in by the depth of humanity in the characters as well as the descriptive writing, which in turn made me feel as if I was watching a movie, not just reading the pages. I am looking forward to the next in the trilogy.
July 10, 2023
The story of David’s life is a familiar one. Mark Buchanan brings it to life with rich details. He tells I through the eyes of the many people surrounding David: Micah, Joab.etc. and it brought new understanding to passages I was familiar with. I have anew understanding of how Avnet and Joan fit in the the story. David’s life is inspiring yet altogether human.
October 5, 2020
This book is amazing. Mark Buchanan is such a gifted storyteller and this comes through in every page of this gripping novel. The story, culture, and characters of King David’s rise to power come alive in such an incredible way. Highly recommend this book.
June 25, 2020
An excellent fictionalized account of David's rise to the throne.
June 21, 2024
There were nice things about it. Not super great read.
I was expecting more.
I was expecting more.
January 5, 2023
Amazing book on David and those around him. It brings you into his life and the life of the people around David.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews