The Hidden Prince By Tessa Afshar

The Hidden Prince

by Tessa Afshar

Publisher: Tyndale

ISBN: 978-1-4964-5822-3

Being a HUGE fan of Tessa Afshar's, when the opportunity arose to review her newest release, The Hidden Prince, I was all in! The author sent me her book as part of her launch team.

Summary:

From the bestselling author of Jewel of the Nile comes the thrilling tale of a woman who feels she has no future but soon discovers the fate of nations may rest in her hands.

The beloved daughter of Jewish captives in Babylon, Keren is sold into Daniel’s household to help her family survive. She becomes Daniel’s most trusted scribe, while taking lessons and swordsmanship training alongside Daniel’s sons and their best friend, Jared.

But after a tragic accident changes the course of her life, Keren finds herself in a foreign country, charged with a mysterious task: teaching a shepherd boy how to become a lord. When she overhears whispers that hint at his true identity, she realizes she must protect him from the schemes of a bloodthirsty king.

Jared cannot forgive Keren. Still, he finds himself traveling over mountains to fetch her back to the safety of home. When he discovers the secret identity of Keren’s pupil, Jared knows he must help protect him. Love battles bitterness as they flee from the king’s agents, trying to save the boy who could one day deliver their people from captivity.

My Review:

If you love being whisked away into a story, The Hidden Prince is the book for you!

This historical fiction story set in Biblical times was fantastic! I honestly can't get enough of this author's writing. There are so many layers to the story that have deep truths about God as well as our human nature. I thoroughly enjoyed the Biblical people who appear in the story to keep that thread of her writing, but the historical part really grabbed my attention.

We meet Keren as she begins to serve as a scribe for Daniel. An element I really enjoyed in this story was the humor. Keren wasn't one for domestic chores so as she tried to find her place in his home, it was no surprise she became his scribe. As the story progresses, you witness how God's plan unfolds in her life and the lives of the other main characters. How, even when we can't see what's ahead He can! I love how we experience this as readers through the characters lives.

We also get to know Jared, who ends up learning next to Keren. Their story is unexpected and is an incredible example of God bringing beauty from ashes. Through both of them, readers are reminded that God sees the end results of the various circumstances that happen in our lives as well as our own choices.

The shepherd boy Keren tutors is a kick in the pants. I think there were a couple opportunities with his storyline where he could've been taught, in a broader view, of the danger of some of his choices. Aside from that, his straightforward honesty adds levity to some of the seriousness of the story. You can see something great lays before him.

Forgiveness and redemption are powerfully part of this story. Also to imagine, in a fictional sense, everything that "needed" to transpire to impact the future of the Jews who were captive in Babylon was eye opening. While we're going through different experiences and moments in our lives, some may have an impact on future generations that we're unaware of. Seeing that so clearly in this fictional story was a great reminder of how we should try to live our lives and to trust the Lord when it seems impossible. 

About the Author:

Tessa Afshar is an award-winning author of historical and biblical fiction. Her novel Daughter of Rome was a Publishers Weekly and ECPA bestseller. Thief of Corinth was an Inspy Award finalist, and Land of Silence won an Inspy Award and was voted by Library Journal as one of the top five Christian fiction titles of 2016. Harvest of Gold won the prestigious Christy Award in the historical romance category, and Harvest of Rubies was a finalist for the ECPA Christian Book Award in the fiction category. Tessa also recently released her first Bible study and DVD called The Way Home: God's Invitation to New Beginnings, based on the book of Ruth.

Tessa was born to a nominally Muslim family in the Middle East and lived there for the first fourteen years of her life. She then moved to England, where she survived boarding school for girls, before moving to the United States permanently. Her conversion to Christianity in her twenties changed the course of her life forever. Tessa holds a master of divinity from Yale University, where she served as cochair of the Evangelical Fellowship at the Divinity School. She worked in women's and prayer ministries for nearly twenty years before becoming a full-time writer. Tessa speaks regularly at national women's events. She is a devoted wife, mediocre tomato grower, and chocolate connoisseur. Visit her website at tessaafshar.com.