Tessa Afshar never fails to amaze me with her ability to grab me by the heart with her stories. She seamlessly draws me into the minds of her characters and, at the end of the book, I have gone on a journey with them of discovering who they are, who God is, and even, who I am.
The prophet Nehemiah’s cousin can speak numerous languages, keep complex accounts, write on rolls of parchment and tablets of clay, and solve great mysteries. There is only one problem: she’s a woman in a man’s court.
In her early childhood years, Sarah experienced the death of her mother and her father’s subsequent emotional distance, and she came to two conclusions: God does not care about me, and my accomplishments are the measure of my worth.
Catapulted into the center of the Persian court, Sarah is working too many hours, rubbing elbows with royalty, and solving intrigues for the Queen. Ironically, it isn’t failure—but success—that causes Sarah to lose her only source of external validation.
Sarah soon learns that she has something of worth to offer beyond her ability with languages and sums; her very being proves to be a blessing to others, particularly the aristocrat Darius, whom she is given to in marriage.
Sarah and Darius’ story continues in Harvest of Gold. Darius may be able to learn to love his wife, but can he ever learn to trust Sarah and her Lord?
This book took me on a journey of discovery, just as Tessa’s other books have. I loved getting to know Sarah and cringing and laughing as she blossomed from an awkward “nerd”, so to speak, into a confident young woman. Seriously though, those wedding preparation/wedding scenes… that was painful to “witness”. I wanted to shout at her, “NO! Don’t do that! This is not going to end well!” You’ll just have to read the book for yourself to know what I mean.
I was pleased with the direction Sarah and (the dreamy) Darius’ relationship took, but I wanted more! I wanted to shake Darius so badly and tell him to get his act together! Thankfully, though, their love story continues in Harvest of Gold so I am sure to get the more solid happily ever after I so desperately want to see. Now to just my hands on that book so I can find out for sure!
More than anything, the message of this book touched my soul. The concept of Sarah’s life—and all of our lives—being like a grape vine, pruned back when necessary in order to produce greater fruit was something I needed to hear. I’ve heard the same analogy used before, of course, but it hit home in a special and needed way this time. The following quotes will give you a glimpse of this beautiful and profound message.
“The vine needs to suffer. Going down into this earth-fighting to survive among the stones, among the lime rock—this is what gives it its aroma. Its taste. Its unique character. These grapes will create a wine few other vineyards can compare with not because their life was easy, but because they had to struggle to survive.”
“Pain is part of this life. No one can escape suffering. Not the vine, nor we humans, as you well know, my lady. But what if we are like the vine and that affliction only makes us better?”
“Consider my lady, I’m the gardener and I know what the vine needs in order to thrive. You only see the stripping, but I cut the vine in order to restore it. I take away from it to enrich it. You hold in your hand a withering branch and that’s all you see now, but I know that I have given the vine a more abundant life.”
Harvest of Rubies, Tessa Afshar
If you’re a fellow Biblical Fiction fan, or want to give the genre a try, I highly recommend this Harvest of Rubies! 5/5 Stars!
[…] Tessa’s second book, Harvest of Rubies, is about the fictional cousin of Nehemiah (the jewish man/cupbearer the king of Persia sent to rebuild Jerusalem) and her journey to becoming the queen’s chief scribe and then the wife of a handsome and powerful Persian nobleman. I just read this one in July of this year, and I absolutely loved it! You can read my review HERE. […]