“Unless we have something worth dying for, Atretes, we’ve nothing worth living for.”
Hadassah and her family got caught in Jerusalem when the Romans attacked it. Her father, who was brought back to life by Jesus, ventures out every day to spread the Gospel of Christianity. One day, he doesn’t come back. Julia’s mother, brother and sister are left to fend for themselves and their mother has just starved to death when the Romans come to their door, killing her brother and capturing herself and her sister. Her sister doesn’t survive the night. Hadassah is taken as a slave and finds herself serving a daughter in a prominent family in Rome. Despite herself, her master’s brother starts finding his way into her heart.
A friend of mine recommended A Voice in the Wind to me as one of her very favorites. It took me a while before I got to it, but it was a book I had a hard time putting down. It’s the first book in the Mark of the Lion series. I had not read any Francine Rivers books before this one and I was actually surprised a bit by the content. Most novelists who are labeled as Christian writers shy away from hard topics, but Rivers shows Rome in a very real and true light in this book.
Hadassah tries to hold tight to her Christian beliefs while serving in a pagan household and community. Her master, Julia, faces and arranged marriage while Julia’s brother, Marcus, enjoys parties and many women. When Julia starts falling for a Gladiator named Atretes, Hadassah finds it harder and harder to serve without mentioning her faith. Christians are seen as wanting to overthrow the government and are often taken to the lions in the arena for sport.
I would highly recommend this book, but it is for adults. It has Christian themes, but is honest about the world the characters live in. Paganism, adultery, abortion, slavery, drunkenness and savagery are part of the storyline of Rome. (There is also a relationship between a man and a boy in the book.) It is not a light Christian book, but I would put it in the historical fiction category. I will be reading the rest of the series soon to find out what happens next.