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4.33 AVERAGE
4.33 AVERAGE
Historical Christian Romance. I liked this book, the characters were great, the story interesting. Overall a great read.
Francine Rivers retells the history of the book of Hosea in the Bible. The author describes how God asks Michael Hosea, a farmer, to marry a prostitute, Sarah. However, Rivers writes this book with the prostitute’s perspective.
Sold to prostitution when she was only 8 years old, Sarah doesn’t know another life but of abuse and hatred. Michael, faithful servant of God, keeps himself pure for his marriage and prays to God for a wife. When he sees Sarah in the streets of California in 1850, God clearly tells him that Sarah is his wife.
Hosea would do anything to talk to her and spends all his gold by visiting her in the brothel she “worked” to have only half an hour of conversation with her. Sarah, hopeless and used to receiving wedding proposals from numerous men, doesn’t believe in Hosea and much less in his God.
Hosea insists.
Spends all his gold.
Sarah doesn’t accept marrying him but gets extremely intrigued by the fact that someone could spend all his gold to only have half an hour of conversation with her. Until one day, when Sarah is terribly beaten by an overseer of the brothel. Michael took her out of there, paying for her price to the brothel’s owner and marries Sarah. As it was the only option that Sarah had, she finally accepts this marriage and starts living miles away from the brothel.
Michael looks after her wounds because she was very hurt and with broken ribs without being able to walk. But in Sarah’s heart there was only one idea: go back to the brothel and collect the gold she deserved and have a free life from Hosea or any other man, having the freedom that she willingly craved.
Michael noticed how hard it was to talk to Sarah for she had many emotional wounds. It was just like if there was a wall between both of them. He talks to her about God but for her God is an old bearded man that has a stick ready to beat you when you do something wrong. Hosea tells her the reason why his name is Michael Hosea, being a reference to the prophet Hosea from the Bible. He even tells her that the prophet’s wife ran away and was adulterous but Hosea loved her.
As it was expected, Sarah runs away. She goes back to the brothel and realizes that it was totally destroyed by a fire. Not knowing what to do, Sarah goes back to her life as a prostitute. Shortly after, Michael finds her and brings her back home. Sarah thought he would give up on her, but he loves her and keeps himself faithful to the wedding vows.
Sarah tries to do everything to please him because she feels guilty for having run away. She learns how to cook, take care of the crops and other chorus. She cleans the house continuously as if all the effort she puts towards it was not enough.
Time goes by and Michael helps a Christian family, the Altman, and they start living with him. Sarah has the opportunity of having real friendships and falls in love with the children from this family. Unfortunately, Sarah never feels she deserves Michael’s love but learns how to love him and compares herself to this family, for she couldn’t bear children and this fact makes her miserable. It was very hard to see the Altman so happy and know that she would never be able to give Hosea children.
The oldest child of the Altman, Miriam, becomes Sarah’s best friend. Miriam likes Michael a lot and Sarah finds herself in jealous of her and thinks that Miriam should have been Michael’s wife, because she is pure and could have children.
Sarah runs away again.
Sarah never feels “worthy” and is afraid of the feelings aroused by Michael. But she decides not to go back to prostitution and looks for a job in the city of Sacramento. God puts in her heart to enter in one of Michael’s friend’s shop. He decides to help her and offers her a job in his shop. Soon Michael comes to bring her back home. In his heart he was sure she could change one day and would be able to understand all the love he feels for her.
Sarah goes back to the farm but her feelings do not let her understand that she is worthy of Michael. Hosea becomes her god and she admires him a lot. She starts getting ready to run away once again, but this time for good. Michael perceives what she is planning and talks to God about it but he realizes that she has to take a decision in her life and does not prevent her from running away. She goes back to the place where she used to live when a child, San Francisco.
This time she has an encounter with God. She remembers everything that Michael tried to teach her about God and that she was unable to understand. Her conversion opens her eyes to what she really wants to do in life: open a shelter for women that have no condition to survive, preventing, then, that they turn to prostitution. With the help of many people, she opens that “House of Magdalene”, taking care of many women, teaching them how to read, write, cook and run a small business.
3 years are gone and Sarah thinks that Michael has already given up on her and is already married with Miriam, who could make Michael’s dreams come true. But Miriam’s husband goes after Sarah and finds her in San Francisco, convincing her to go back to Michael.
Sarah goes back.
But when she returns, she is another person. The wounds of the past were healed and now God is the only Lord in her life. She is afraid of Michael’s rejection but he is right there waiting, with arms open wide and all his love for HER.
They start a church and God gives Sarah the power of bearing children (and many children): 4 kids. She visits the “House of Magdalene” once a year and all the time that she takes a walk in San Francisco port she goes back holding the hand of a girl and takes her to the shelter.
This story makes reference about the Love of God for His people. God loves His people although they turn away from Him repeatedly. Maybe what is most impressive about this story is to know how God loves us with an immeasurable love and many times we don’t feel “worthy” of this great love.
Sarah needed to have an encounter with God.
God never gave up on her and made her see how He loves her. God never gives up. God always waits. God heals the wounds. God is patient. God doesn’t love you less because of your mistakes. God always gives you a new chance. God’s mercy are renewed every day (Lamentations 3:22,23). God wants to write a love story with you. God wants to fix your feelings. God wants to give you hope. God wants to give you peace. God wants to give you a much better life, in His arms. God attracts you with human laces, of love.
The beautiful exchange of God: your life for His love represented on the cross with the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ for you.
To God all the glory.
Larissa Fauber
Sold to prostitution when she was only 8 years old, Sarah doesn’t know another life but of abuse and hatred. Michael, faithful servant of God, keeps himself pure for his marriage and prays to God for a wife. When he sees Sarah in the streets of California in 1850, God clearly tells him that Sarah is his wife.
Hosea would do anything to talk to her and spends all his gold by visiting her in the brothel she “worked” to have only half an hour of conversation with her. Sarah, hopeless and used to receiving wedding proposals from numerous men, doesn’t believe in Hosea and much less in his God.
Hosea insists.
Spends all his gold.
Sarah doesn’t accept marrying him but gets extremely intrigued by the fact that someone could spend all his gold to only have half an hour of conversation with her. Until one day, when Sarah is terribly beaten by an overseer of the brothel. Michael took her out of there, paying for her price to the brothel’s owner and marries Sarah. As it was the only option that Sarah had, she finally accepts this marriage and starts living miles away from the brothel.
Michael looks after her wounds because she was very hurt and with broken ribs without being able to walk. But in Sarah’s heart there was only one idea: go back to the brothel and collect the gold she deserved and have a free life from Hosea or any other man, having the freedom that she willingly craved.
Michael noticed how hard it was to talk to Sarah for she had many emotional wounds. It was just like if there was a wall between both of them. He talks to her about God but for her God is an old bearded man that has a stick ready to beat you when you do something wrong. Hosea tells her the reason why his name is Michael Hosea, being a reference to the prophet Hosea from the Bible. He even tells her that the prophet’s wife ran away and was adulterous but Hosea loved her.
As it was expected, Sarah runs away. She goes back to the brothel and realizes that it was totally destroyed by a fire. Not knowing what to do, Sarah goes back to her life as a prostitute. Shortly after, Michael finds her and brings her back home. Sarah thought he would give up on her, but he loves her and keeps himself faithful to the wedding vows.
Sarah tries to do everything to please him because she feels guilty for having run away. She learns how to cook, take care of the crops and other chorus. She cleans the house continuously as if all the effort she puts towards it was not enough.
Time goes by and Michael helps a Christian family, the Altman, and they start living with him. Sarah has the opportunity of having real friendships and falls in love with the children from this family. Unfortunately, Sarah never feels she deserves Michael’s love but learns how to love him and compares herself to this family, for she couldn’t bear children and this fact makes her miserable. It was very hard to see the Altman so happy and know that she would never be able to give Hosea children.
The oldest child of the Altman, Miriam, becomes Sarah’s best friend. Miriam likes Michael a lot and Sarah finds herself in jealous of her and thinks that Miriam should have been Michael’s wife, because she is pure and could have children.
Sarah runs away again.
Sarah never feels “worthy” and is afraid of the feelings aroused by Michael. But she decides not to go back to prostitution and looks for a job in the city of Sacramento. God puts in her heart to enter in one of Michael’s friend’s shop. He decides to help her and offers her a job in his shop. Soon Michael comes to bring her back home. In his heart he was sure she could change one day and would be able to understand all the love he feels for her.
Sarah goes back to the farm but her feelings do not let her understand that she is worthy of Michael. Hosea becomes her god and she admires him a lot. She starts getting ready to run away once again, but this time for good. Michael perceives what she is planning and talks to God about it but he realizes that she has to take a decision in her life and does not prevent her from running away. She goes back to the place where she used to live when a child, San Francisco.
This time she has an encounter with God. She remembers everything that Michael tried to teach her about God and that she was unable to understand. Her conversion opens her eyes to what she really wants to do in life: open a shelter for women that have no condition to survive, preventing, then, that they turn to prostitution. With the help of many people, she opens that “House of Magdalene”, taking care of many women, teaching them how to read, write, cook and run a small business.
3 years are gone and Sarah thinks that Michael has already given up on her and is already married with Miriam, who could make Michael’s dreams come true. But Miriam’s husband goes after Sarah and finds her in San Francisco, convincing her to go back to Michael.
Sarah goes back.
But when she returns, she is another person. The wounds of the past were healed and now God is the only Lord in her life. She is afraid of Michael’s rejection but he is right there waiting, with arms open wide and all his love for HER.
They start a church and God gives Sarah the power of bearing children (and many children): 4 kids. She visits the “House of Magdalene” once a year and all the time that she takes a walk in San Francisco port she goes back holding the hand of a girl and takes her to the shelter.
This story makes reference about the Love of God for His people. God loves His people although they turn away from Him repeatedly. Maybe what is most impressive about this story is to know how God loves us with an immeasurable love and many times we don’t feel “worthy” of this great love.
Sarah needed to have an encounter with God.
God never gave up on her and made her see how He loves her. God never gives up. God always waits. God heals the wounds. God is patient. God doesn’t love you less because of your mistakes. God always gives you a new chance. God’s mercy are renewed every day (Lamentations 3:22,23). God wants to write a love story with you. God wants to fix your feelings. God wants to give you hope. God wants to give you peace. God wants to give you a much better life, in His arms. God attracts you with human laces, of love.
The beautiful exchange of God: your life for His love represented on the cross with the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ for you.
To God all the glory.
Larissa Fauber
3.75 ⭐️
Not my favorite, not the worst.
It’s probably my least favorite genre, so that in general wasn’t great but it was well written and a good story of redemption. That God loves you no matter what you’ve done or been through.
Not my favorite, not the worst.
It’s probably my least favorite genre, so that in general wasn’t great but it was well written and a good story of redemption. That God loves you no matter what you’ve done or been through.
I kept seeing this book pop on blogs I read as a must read. I really liked the story and the message. If you like romance novels with a Christian bent you would like this one.
I would give this book more than five stars if I could! Amazing, amazing book! I can't say enough about it.....tears your heart out at times and then fills it up completely. As busy as I am, I read this book in less than a week because I could barely put it down. A MUST READ!!
Book club book. Reading this book was like groundhog's day-I felt like I was reading the same chapter over and over. Rinse and repeat. 2 stars because of the author's message.
This book leaves me with tears in my eyes. Such a beautiful, ageless redemption story, and one of my favourite books of all time.
I had added this to my TBR list long ago because it had such an incredibly high rating, though I have outgrown traditional romance, and Christian fiction isn't usually my cup of tea either. Then one of the tasks on a challenge I am doing this year was to read a romance. Seemed like the perfect fit. While it seems to me that the book could have been a little shorter, I am reminded that the Lord said seventy times seven, and that is a lot too. So now I have to go to the Bible and read Hosea, and my eyes still hurt because I cried pretty much straight from 12 til 2:30 today.....and yes, I recommend it!
dark
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes