Christian Fiction Devourers discussion

One of the books we will be reading and discussing in October is Harvest of Gold by Tessa Afshar.

Goodreads Summary:
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.

I'm just getting ready to begin this one.

I have this one on my shelf and hope to start it this week as soon as I finish my current read.

I have just started this one. I really enjoyed Harvest of Rubies so hope this one will be good too!

Looks like a good book!

Really enjoying this one. Had to force myself to stop reading last night and go to bed since I will have my grandson all weekend!

Good to hear, Loraine!

Have fun with your grandson! :)

This was a really good book! I wish I still had the copy of it I read. Its been several weeks now since I read it. I'm sure as the discussion gets under way I'll want to refer back to it :).

I have enjoyed the history, the biblical knowledge and the characters..it is a well written book that I have enjoyed.Would recommend to people that like women of the bible type of stories.

I just finished this and really enjoyed it. But now I wish I had read Harvest of Rubies first as I think it will be a little bit spoiled by what I know happened in Harvest of Gold. Excellent biblical fiction and historical detail.

I'm finished and it was fabulous! Look forward to the discussion.

I finished it last night! I really enjoyed it :) I hope to post some of the discussion questions later on today.

Tessa is really good at balancing the elements of the story - historical details, action, romance - it all blended really well together.

Random, but did anyone think that Roxanna & Lysander need their own story?? I know I'd read that one!

I would definitely read Roxanna and Lysander's story!! Would read Nehemiah's story as well.

For those that read Tessa's latest novel, How did this book/series compare to In The Field of Grace?

Personally, I didn't enjoy In the Field of Grace as much. It was a good read, and I still gave it 4 stars. I'm not sure why it didn't resonate as much with me, especially since I really love the story of Ruth.

Did you guys like how the story didn't just focus on Sarah and/or Darius but also switched occasionally to Nehemiah?

Definitely! I really enjoyed the part Nehemiah played and learning more about him.

I found the aspects about rebuilding the wall and the opposition they faced to be really interesting. I can't imagine standing up to all of that doubt and discouragement the way that Nehemiah, the workers and their families did.

I loved the inclusion of Nehemiah and the rebuilding of the wall. I found that to be one of the most interesting parts of the book. I'm sure the neighboring areas didn't want to see the Jews regaining strength anymore than the areas around Israel like that country's strength and endurance today.

Staci wrote: "I would definitely read Roxanna and Lysander's story!! Would read Nehemiah's story as well.

For those that read Tessa's latest novel, How did this book/series compare to In The Field of Grace?"

I agree Stacy. Both would make great stories.

One aspect I really liked in this story is all of the insight into Darius's character - he is so closed off in much of the book, and I loved the details about his childhood.

(view spoiler)[I can't imagine being such a young child and being forced to leave my family - and how hard that must have been for his parents, but more so for his mother. It was easy to see how that might have led him to "turn off" his feelings. (hide spoiler)]

I really enjoyed this book. And I definitely think Roxanna and Lysander need their own story...lol. I haven't read Field of Grace so I don't know how they compare but I did read Harvest of Rubies first and it definitely helps lay the groundwork for Harvest of Gold. I did enjoy the inclusion of Nehemiah in the story. His courage and faithfulness in the face of opposition was encouraging.