Isaiah's Daughter: A Novel of Prophets and Kings, (Paperback)

The name Hephzibah appears only two times in Bible scripture but this book by author Mesu Andrews will soon make Hephzibah very well known because she has created a fictional background story that will take your breath away! Yes, Isaiah's Daughter is Biblical fiction so I appreciate that Andrews started each chapter with scripture that would allow me to refer back to the Bible as I read her story. When we first meet Hephzibah she is an orphan who had witnessed the murder of her parents. This young girl who will become Isaiah's daughter and the future Queen of Judah is now a servant in the household of Isaiah the Prophet. Isaiah is a teacher and one of his students has also suffered a great tragedy; Hezekiah saw his brother offered as a human sacrifice to pagan gods by their own father and he has become catatonic. Isaiah believes that these two young people can help each other and he sets forth a plan to make this happen. This book relates their relationship, first as friends who comfort each other, and then as two people who fall in love and it tells how Isaiah further helped them by adopting Ishma and renaming her Hephzibah so that she would be deemed worthy to marry Hezekiah. There is, however, so much more in Isaiah's Daughter! The evil reign of King Ahab is explained in depth and becomes even more disturbing as we read about all of the idolatry. We are also given glimpses of the goodness of his son Hezekiah who wants to correct the sins of his father by turning the people back to worshipping the one true God. We feel Hephzibah's concern as she offers her support to her husband while dealing with her inability to give Hezekiah a child. And we are reminded of the prophesies that foretold the birth of a Messiah. Isaiah's Daughter is truly an epic work of Biblical fiction and the 384 pages are overflowing with Bible history. There is evil, there is danger, and there is hopelessness. But there is also hope and there are two beautiful love stories. There is the romantic love between Hezekiah and Hephzibah and the overpowering love that God had for His children then and continues to have for all of us today! Reading Isaiah's Daughter reaffirmed my belief that our Heavenly Father is a loving and forgiving God and I often read it through eyes filled with tears. Yes, there were tears for the sadness but there were also tears for the moments of great joy!! I received an advanced copy of this novel, which I chose to review; the opinions expressed here are my own.

"Songs are written of sons, but daughters are left to whispers. So, gather near, friend, to hear of a daughter beyond imaging." ~Mesu Andrews Isaiah's Daughter, a novel of history, prophecy, and fiction intricately woven to tell the story of King Hezekiah, his queen Hephzibah, the prophet Isaiah and the land of Judah, Andrews paints a vivid fictional picture of what Hephzibah's life may have been like as a child under the wicked King Ahaz and then as the wife and queen of the faithful King Hezekiah. After the first pages I was hooked. I carried the book with me everywhere not wanting to put it aside. As I finished the last page, I found I was not ready to say good-bye to the characters. I had lived with Hephzibah through prophecies, wars, conspiracies, espionage, everyday life and heartache. I had cheered Hephzibah and Hezekiah when their faith failed them and rejoiced with them when God rewarded their faithfulness. Andrew's understanding of the scriptures brings the world of Queen Hephzibah, the Lord's delight, alive for readers.