The story of Esther has always been one of my favorites. In a, A Reluctant Queen, Esther is thrown into the middle of balancing her loyalty to her husband, the King, and her Jewish culture.
This book differs from the Biblical tale. The author does mention the drastic changes at the end, and I am just going to review this book based on the content in it.
The story does have some moments that would have caused me to want to give it five stars, but there were other things that kept me back from granting it as many stars as it could receive. The book is a beautiful story about Esther, and how her life as the Queen changed her. Any person who reads this, especially women, might find familiar moments they have encountered whether that be over the fears of growing up, or the sacrifices that come with a family. The book has some very inspiring moments, and the affection in the book does meet the expectations of romance it advertises. Whenever the story focused on the struggles Esther was encountering it was highly interesting for me to keep reading.
The faith difference between Esther, and Ahasuerus was not mentioned as much as I think a difference like that would be. Even though Esther does acknowledge that she has distanced herself from her faith, she does not seem to consider how his faith has impacted her. Another bit about the book was that their is way too much description. I know that description can be easier to write, but I believe personally dialogue carries the story way further. I tend to zone out when I have to read about what people's clothes, or the landscape looks like after several pages. I also wish the story had focused more on Esther since the title, and summary hint that this is her story. I felt there were too many chapters that took the focus off what the story claims to be centered around, which is her love story.
Overall I would recommend this book, but if you expect to receive an easier to read version of the book of Esther, then that is not what this book will offer you. I found this book to have moments that were inspiring to me. It gave me insight on to some historical facts I had not known, and possibly how Esther's personality was.
This complimentary copy was provided by Booksneeze in exchange for a review.
This book differs from the Biblical tale. The author does mention the drastic changes at the end, and I am just going to review this book based on the content in it.
The story does have some moments that would have caused me to want to give it five stars, but there were other things that kept me back from granting it as many stars as it could receive. The book is a beautiful story about Esther, and how her life as the Queen changed her. Any person who reads this, especially women, might find familiar moments they have encountered whether that be over the fears of growing up, or the sacrifices that come with a family. The book has some very inspiring moments, and the affection in the book does meet the expectations of romance it advertises. Whenever the story focused on the struggles Esther was encountering it was highly interesting for me to keep reading.
The faith difference between Esther, and Ahasuerus was not mentioned as much as I think a difference like that would be. Even though Esther does acknowledge that she has distanced herself from her faith, she does not seem to consider how his faith has impacted her. Another bit about the book was that their is way too much description. I know that description can be easier to write, but I believe personally dialogue carries the story way further. I tend to zone out when I have to read about what people's clothes, or the landscape looks like after several pages. I also wish the story had focused more on Esther since the title, and summary hint that this is her story. I felt there were too many chapters that took the focus off what the story claims to be centered around, which is her love story.
Overall I would recommend this book, but if you expect to receive an easier to read version of the book of Esther, then that is not what this book will offer you. I found this book to have moments that were inspiring to me. It gave me insight on to some historical facts I had not known, and possibly how Esther's personality was.
This complimentary copy was provided by Booksneeze in exchange for a review.
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