Love Amid the Ashes by Mesu Andrews ~ Review

My Review:

A beautiful story of redemption, loss, and love.

This is a intriguing read that explores the mystery around the life of Job. Much of the inspiration behind this story comes from the histories hinted at in non-cannon texts and the lore of the time. I loved seeing how it all came together, placing Job as a contemporary of Jacob and Esau, taking into account the patriarch longer life spans and the political repercussions of the familial conflicts and how it affected later generations. So while this book explores things that cannot be 100 percent verified, I think it does a credible job of bringing the story together while also showing due reverence for the material.

This story is unique in many ways and Mesu Andrews deftly navigates the terrain, showing Job to be a righteous man, fair master, friend, and faithful husband, encompassing multiple love stories over the course of the book. Nogahla is absolutely delightful, I loved her forthright honesty and genuine concern for others. Dinah is a woman hardened and wisened by her experience, challenged to step out in faith, and I admired her hunger for the word of God. This author is a master of creating characters, writing realistically flawed people, making me come to care for characters that I really didn't want to like as much as I did, while also creating engaging arcs of growth that had me cheering for them.

Overall, I loved that this book took risks, but also showed reverence, while also wondering what Job's life and times might have looked like. This is well researched, with compelling characters that are human, flawed, and struggle just like we do. I have read many books by this author and it was amazing to go back to this first book that started it all, as she has become one of my favorites! I'll be honest I had my doubts about how a book about Job would be, but I should have known that Mesu Andrews could pull it off, because this book is beautiful and bittersweet in all the right ways, with a powerful message of God's goodness and how he redeems his people.

I bought this book with my own money, opinions expressed are my own.