An unevenly paced historical novel aimed at a Christian audience.
In Cottrell’s (Visions and Dreams, 2011, etc.) novel, lost scrolls tell the story of a Greek woman’s unwavering faith and rise to power.
Two college students discover 20 ancient scrolls, written by a Jewish man named Silvanus at a time when much of the world was under Roman rule. In them, he documents a range of political and cultural events in the first century, from the mundane to the extraordinary; his family acquires money and safety by running a guesthouse for Roman travelers, and they travel frequently to make money as traders “of all sorts.” Silvanus also devotes a good deal of space in his scrolls to the birth of Christianity. His family members are Jesus’ contemporaries, and they become converts and evangelists of the new religion. Silvanus’ plucky sister, Rachael, often takes center stage in the narrative as she grows into a scholar, preacher, and businesswoman. Her fearless nature, intelligence, and beauty eventually make her the most powerful woman in Greece, even as she remains devoted to her persecuted Christian faith. Rachael and the rest of Cottrell’s characters embody Jesus’ biblical declaration that “with God all things are possible,” and the novel seems to echo his characters’ evangelical mission, which will likely limit its appeal to Christian readers. Rachael is indeed a fascinating character. However, Cottrell offers no notes that separate fact from fiction or any background on his historical research; as a result, readers may wonder if Rachael is an actual historical figure or an analogue of one. The larger issue for readers, though, will be the book’s lack of narrative momentum. The novel reads very much like a journal, with no overarching tension or specific direction; as a result, the plot drags at times, particularly during long sequences depicting travel and trade. The abrupt ending, when the scrolls run out, leaves readers to guess at Silvanus’ and his family’s fates.
An unevenly paced historical novel aimed at a Christian audience.Pub Date: Dec. 31, 2016
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: 212
Publisher: Christian Faith Publishing
Review Posted Online: May 31, 2017
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A deeply satisfying novel, both sensuously vivid and remarkably poignant.
Norwegian novelist Jacobsen folds a quietly powerful coming-of-age story into a rendition of daily life on one of Norway’s rural islands a hundred years ago in a novel that was shortlisted for the 2017 Man Booker International Prize.
Ingrid Barrøy, her father, Hans, mother, Maria, grandfather Martin, and slightly addled aunt Barbro are the owners and sole inhabitants of Barrøy Island, one of numerous small family-owned islands in an area of Norway barely touched by the outside world. The novel follows Ingrid from age 3 through a carefree early childhood of endless small chores, simple pleasures, and unquestioned familial love into her more ambivalent adolescence attending school off the island and becoming aware of the outside world, then finally into young womanhood when she must make difficult choices. Readers will share Ingrid’s adoration of her father, whose sense of responsibility conflicts with his romantic nature. He adores Maria, despite what he calls her “la-di-da” ways, and is devoted to Ingrid. Twice he finds work on the mainland for his sister, Barbro, but, afraid she’ll be unhappy, he brings her home both times. Rooted to the land where he farms and tied to the sea where he fishes, Hans struggles to maintain his family’s hardscrabble existence on an island where every repair is a struggle against the elements. But his efforts are Sisyphean. Life as a Barrøy on Barrøy remains precarious. Changes do occur in men’s and women’s roles, reflected in part by who gets a literal chair to sit on at meals, while world crises—a war, Sweden’s financial troubles—have unexpected impact. Yet the drama here occurs in small increments, season by season, following nature’s rhythm through deaths and births, moments of joy and deep sorrow. The translator’s decision to use roughly translated phrases in conversation—i.e., “Tha’s goen’ nohvar” for "You’re going nowhere")—slows the reading down at first but ends up drawing readers more deeply into the world of Barrøy and its prickly, intensely alive inhabitants.
A deeply satisfying novel, both sensuously vivid and remarkably poignant.Pub Date: April 7, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-77196-319-0
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Biblioasis
Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2020
The best-selling author of tearjerkers like Angel Falls (2000) serves up yet another mountain of mush, topped off with...
Talk-show queen takes tumble as millions jeer.
Nora Bridges is a wildly popular radio spokesperson for family-first virtues, but her loyal listeners don't know that she walked out on her husband and teenaged daughters years ago and didn't look back. Now that a former lover has sold racy pix of naked Nora and horny himself to a national tabloid, her estranged daughter Ruby, an unsuccessful stand-up comic in Los Angeles, has been approached to pen a tell-all. Greedy for the fat fee she's been promised, Ruby agrees and heads for the San Juan Islands, eager to get reacquainted with the mom she plans to betray. Once in the family homestead, nasty Ruby alternately sulks and glares at her mother, who is temporarily wheelchair-bound as a result of a post-scandal car crash. Uncaring, Ruby begins writing her side of the story when she's not strolling on the beach with former sweetheart Dean Sloan, the son of wealthy socialites who basically ignored him and his gay brother Eric. Eric, now dying of cancer and also in a wheelchair, has returned to the island. This dismal threesome catch up on old times, recalling their childhood idylls on the island. After Ruby's perfect big sister Caroline shows up, there's another round of heartfelt talk. Nora gradually reveals the truth about her unloving husband and her late father's alcoholism, which led her to seek the approval of others at the cost of her own peace of mind. And so on. Ruby is aghast to discover that she doesn't know everything after all, but Dean offers her subdued comfort. Happy endings await almost everyone—except for readers of this nobly preachy snifflefest.
The best-selling author of tearjerkers like Angel Falls (2000) serves up yet another mountain of mush, topped off with syrupy platitudes about life and love.Pub Date: March 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-609-60737-5
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Crown
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2001
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