Star of Persia by Jill Eileen Smith

About:

Love. Duty. Fear. Courage. In the court of the king, which will prevail?

In an effort to complete a war his father had planned to win, King Xerxes calls every governor, satrap, and official in his vast kingdom to his palace in Susa to strategize and feast. When they finally leave, he decides on one more week of frivolity, which ends in the banishment of his favorite wife, something he never intended to do. But when he discovers Esther, Xerxes is sure he has a second chance at happiness.

In her wildest dreams, Esther could never have imagined that she would end up as queen of Persia. Yet she knows better than to become complacent. Another of Xerxes’ wives is vying for position, and his closest advisor has a deep and dangerous grudge against Esther’s adoptive father. Caught in the middle of palace politics, Esther will find herself in an impossible position: risk her life or consign her people to annihilation.

My thoughts:

I love Esther’s story. I did a Bible study several years ago and learned so much about this wonderful woman. I have also read other Biblical fiction accounts of her story but each one has its own spin and I find them all interesting. Of course, anything by Jill is always captivating.

Reading the first part of this book the author shows us the great love the king has for Vashti. I just couldn’t imagine what I knew was to come, yet it did come and all the heartache with it.

Esther is living her life and deals with heartache and disappointment as well. Things are not going as she had planned. And then the unimaginable happens, she becomes queen.

What happens next is a wonderfully put together story that Biblical fiction lovers will thoroughly enjoy.

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A copy of this book was given to me. All opinions are my own.