My review of This Scarlet Cord by Joan Wolf

About the book:

A chasm lies between Rahab and her beloved Sala that can never be crossed. Though Sala rescues young Rahab from slave bandits, he knows he can never fall in love with a Canaanite. His belief in the One True God prevents them from a future together. Rahab's beauty gains royal notice, and she is selected to entice the King during the annual sacred marriage reenactment praising their pagan god, Baal.

But when the King suffers a heart attack and dies, Rahab is saved from the humiliating act. Her despair drives her curiosity about Sala's One True God. Could He accept her . . . even love her?

Deceit and pride stand in the way of Rahab's happy ending. Only God can use these events to tell the larger story of forgiveness and redemption.


My review:

Well, this was certainly different from what I expected. I enjoyed the love story in this book, though the characters seemed younger than they actually were for the last two thirds of the story. It was a different take on the Bible's account so I had to wrap my mind around a different version. I appreciated the conflict and how the author set it up, but because it was so different than the Biblical account when it came to Rahab's relationship with Sala (Salmon) it was harder for me to enjoy this novel.

On the plus side, there was a Romeo and Juliet feel to the story. However, because people familiar with the Biblical account know it contains an expected happily ever after, it's anticipated in this novel as well, therefore genuine angst is harder to evoke when reading this novel. For people who enjoy various takes on Biblical fiction this is sure to please. People who like more of an exact retelling when it comes to the actual facts may have difficulty with this one. I guess I expected it to be a bit edgier based on the description and it ended up being quite mild in tone. That said, it still covers some interesting beliefs. All in all, I enjoyed it.

This Scarlet Cord was published by Thomas Nelson and released in July 2012.