Bathsheba by Angela Hunt

Bathsheba by Angela Hunt ISBN-13: 9780764216961 Paperback: 368 pages Publisher: Bethany House Released: September 1, 2015

Source: ebook review copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

Book Description, Modified from Goodreads:
After sending his army to besiege another king's capital, King David sees Bathsheba, a loyal soldier's wife, and forces himself on her. Her resulting pregnancy forces the issue. The king murders her husband and adds her to his harem. Bathsheba struggles to protect her son while dealing with the effects of a dark prophecy on the king's household. Combining historical facts with detailed fiction, Angela Hunt paints a realistic portrait of the beautiful woman who struggled to survive the dire results of divine judgment on a king with a divided heart.


My Review:
Bathsheba is Biblical fiction. The author clearly spent a lot of time researching the biblical text and learning about the culture behind the story. She wove this information into the story to help explain the "why" behind certain scenes. The author carefully followed what we're given in the biblical record but filled out the story with what can reasonably be inferred from that record. Having carefully studied the story previously, I agree with the direction she took the story for the very reasons she gave at the end.

The story is about a woman struggling to deal with what life threw at her, who matures through the pain, and who finds peace. The story followed Bathsheba's life from her marriage to Uriah to David's death. Bathsheba is devastated by her rape, but what could she do? He's the king! The loss of her husband and firstborn child force her to struggle with her faith and with forgiving David. Her life is impacted by David's decisions, and so are her fellow wives and David's sons. The characters and their reactions to the various situations felt realistic. The main characters had both good and bad traits, and the author suggested reasons why they acted the way they did.

There was no bad language. The sex (and rape) scenes were not physically detailed, but it was clear from the lead-up what happened. Overall, I'd highly recommend this as one of the best biblical fiction I've read in a while. It's accurate enough you could even use it as Bible study companion as it showed events from much of David's reign in order and prompts you to think about how those events impacted the people involved.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.


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