Bathsheba: Reluctant Beauty by Angela Hunt

What do you know about Bathsheba from the Bible? Well, I didn't remember much---just that David risked everything to have her as his wife. And that she was the mother of Solomon, Israel's wisest king. Most people think of David as the main character in the David and Bathsheba story. Many think of Bathsheba as a "hussy" or perhaps a pawn in the king's hand. But Angela Hunt shows us a different perspective. She tells the story from the point of view of Bathsheba and of Nathan, the prophet who publicly condemned David for his adultery. The reader gets to know Bathsheba, her challenges and struggles as a woman of God reconciling what happens to her with the will of God and the future of Israel. It's balancing act for Nathan between his concern for Bathsheba and the king and the directives he receives from God.

Bathsheba has been aware of her extraordinary beauty since childhood. Prophet Nathan has admired her from afar. He takes an interest in the unfolding story, not just as the king's prophet, but as a person interested in her welfare. The story has everything a fiction reader could want---romance, intrigue, conflict. I like that the author portrays Uriah, Bathsheba's husband, as an honorable man and a good soldier. I also enjoyed getting to know Bathsheba as a daughter, mother, wife, and woman of influence. She had more than beauty. She had substance.

Angela Hunt is an excellent writer of historical fiction, weaving the fictional elements with the Bible facts in a masterful way. She truly knows how to make the story come alive. This is the second in Hunt's Dangerous Beauty series. The first was Esther, and the third will be Delilah. I can't wait to read the next one!

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Bethany House Publishers. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255  : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

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