Harvest of Rubies | Tessa Afshar

Okay, so, my taste is eclectic--here’s a curveball after all the YA fantasy I’ve been reviewing. A 2013 inspirational historical Christian novel. You get Persian intrigue, a Jewish female scribe, a forced marriage, and a struggling, not-put-together heroine. 

Amazon’s summary:

The prophet Nehemiah's cousin can speak numerous languages, keep complex accounts, write on rolls of parchment and tablets of clay, and solve great mysteries. There is only one problem: she's a woman in a man's court.

In her early childhood years, Sarah experienced the death of her mother and her father's subsequent emotional distance, and she came to two conclusions: God does not care about me, and my accomplishments are the measure of my worth.

Catapulted into the center of the Persian court, Sarah is working too many hours, rubbing elbows with royalty, and solving intrigues for the Queen. Ironically, it isn't failure—but success—that causes Sarah to lose her only source of external validation.

Sarah soon learns that she has something of worth to offer beyond her ability with languages and sums; her very being proves to be a blessing to others, particularly the aristocrat Darius, whom she is given to in marriage.

What I love about this book:

How relatable Sarah is. She’s not super confident in being a woman (especially as she’s mostly around men), and she’s also not the thin blonde/brunette that everyone thinks is gorgeous, thank you very much. (she def likes to eat!) She is insanely smart and perceptive, and I love her nerdiness. She’s super eager to help others and isn’t afraid to roll up her sleeves to get the job done.

Sarah’s character arc and deep struggle inside her faith. This isn’t the “is God real?” kind of story, and I'm relieved, because I’m so burned out with the shallowness of those. Gimme a real talk faith story, something I can glean from and apply to my life TODAY....and this book hits it. I first read this earlier in the year, and I keep returning to the middle of this story, where I've bookmarked specific pages, and letting the scene of the vineyard and the gardener speak to me. A second time.  <3 But anyway, key truths in this story:

• The power of suffering and how God uses it (especially if we partner with him in the midst of it).
• Learning that striving to death to be accepted is an empty and exhausting pursuit, especially since we are already deeply and radically loved and accepted by God…and then, learning to walk in that reality once we’ve learned it.
• Being a person of character, integrity and love, even when someone you care about thinks the worst of you.

The character and her inner landscape became the true setting for the book. Yes, you get the Persian worldbuilding with royal politics and the Persian and Hebrew culture (not as in-depth as a fantasy), but for me, this story is really about Sarah’s heart, the renewal of her devotion to God, and the healing of her heart.

Sarah and Darius’s romance. It is achingly slow sometimes and really hard because of things that happen, but I appreciate that this forced marriage isn’t immediately happily ever after. Both characters really have to learn to trust each other and it takes time to learn who someone truly is…I just love it. And they’re just sweet…ly enemies kinda. Lol. Just read it. It’s clean and fade-to-black when they are married. <3 

Stars:

5 stars, fo sho’.

I’m excited to read the sequel, Harvest of Gold, once it is delivered to my local library. <3 Amazing story, Tessa Afshar! Thank you!