Review of The Prophetess

From the back cover:

"At last, the mystical figure of Deborah comes to life! Jill Eileen Smith gives vivid voice to the women at the center of Israel's victory over Canaan. A tale of strength and faith that bears relevance even today. Not to be missed!"--Tosca Lee, New York Times bestselling author

Canaan has ravaged Israel. The people are in hiding. All that stands between surrender and hope is one untested woman.

Deborah will never forget the day her father and brothers left to worship at the Lord's tabernacle--or the wails of her mother after finding their bodies at the city gates. The memories of Canaan's cruelty haunt her and all of Israel. Now in this dark time, the Lord calls on Deborah to lead His people away from the idols of other nations and back to Him.

Deborah never asked to be a prophetess or a judge over God's people. Still, she cannot deny His voice or the visions that accompany it. Can her family ever understand? Will her people believe God's calling on her life? And can the Canaanite menace be stopped?

With her trademark impeccable research and imaginative storytelling, Jill Eileen Smith brings to life the story of Israel's most powerful woman in this intriguing and inspiring novel.
 

My thoughts:

Wow. Just Wow.

This book was incredible. I highly recommend The Prophetess by Jill Elieen Smith.

Please remember that Biblical fiction is just that - fiction. It's based on hours of laborious research, but it's just one person's point of view and insight on a story that we know so little about.

But again. Wow.

There were actually five points of view in this novel - Deborah, Lappidoth, Jael, Barak, and Talya who was Deborah's daughter in the story.  Jill Eileen Smith truly made Deborah come alive. I loved seeing Deborah as a wife and mother who questioned her destiny and struggled with her family. She is very relatable!

I loved how the author added Talya as Deborah's daughter. Talya's storyline was expertly crafted, and added so much to the story. By the end of the story, she had grown tremendously, but she wasn't perfect. She was still human, selfish, stubborn, and a dash impertinent. However, I can't imagine the story without her.

We read so much in the Bible about the Israelites oppression, but I think we gloss over the words. We don't think about the pain and agony. The questions during the persecutions. The cries for deliverance. The depth of the victory afterwards. There was so much heartache, triumph, love, uncertainty, and destiny in this novel. Despite being set in the days of old, this novel is very relevant today.

I was given a copy of The Prophetess by Jill Eileen Smith from Revell in exchange for my honest opinion, which I have given.

See you guys again on March 1st! God bless you guys!

V. Joy Palmer