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maddiebusick's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Sexual assault, Physical abuse, Grief, Miscarriage, Torture, Murder, Sexism, Rape, Blood, Death, Domestic abuse, Gore, and Violence
Moderate: Cursing, Pedophilia, Pregnancy, Child abuse, Classism, Confinement, Death of parent, Rape, Religious bigotry, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Medical content, Misogyny, and Suicide
Minor: Alcohol, Deportation, Police brutality, and Slavery
maddieandthemoon's review
adventurous
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Sexual harassment, Rape, and Child abuse
vivelarevolution's review
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
I read this book as a teenager and loved it. I was a bit nervous to re-read it because my tastes have changed quite a bit, as has my religion-I'm converting to Judaism. I definitely did find a lot of odd and even anti-semitic inaccuracies scattered throughout the first 139 pages of this book, but none of them were bad enough to make me stop. What made me stop was so egregious I have absolutely no idea how I missed it on the first read.
This author has, for whatever mysterious unhinged reason, decided to depict Jesus as a fucking pedophile. Ana, the protagonist, is 15 when they marry. Since Jesus's age was left ambiguous, I read on for a bit, assuming that he might have been a bit older than her but surely not more than a couple of years. I was wrong. It's not long before Jesus's age is confirmed - he's at least 21.
I don't particularly care that the legal age of marriage in Rome was 12. We all know that shit is sick. Why someone would want to imply that marriage between a 15 year old and a 21 year old is not only acceptable but so freaking acceptable that they'll write about the founder of their religion doing it is incomprehensible to me.
Also, there is explicit sexual harassment and abuse of Ana by Herod in the preceding chapters. I thought their inclusion was strange despite the time period and general theme of rape culture in the book and I should've listened to that instinct. No way could this author have written a sincere and meaningful condemnation of rape culture while explicitly condoning and celebrating child marriage & rape.
This author has, for whatever mysterious unhinged reason, decided to depict Jesus as a fucking pedophile. Ana, the protagonist, is 15 when they marry. Since Jesus's age was left ambiguous, I read on for a bit, assuming that he might have been a bit older than her but surely not more than a couple of years. I was wrong. It's not long before Jesus's age is confirmed - he's at least 21.
I don't particularly care that the legal age of marriage in Rome was 12. We all know that shit is sick. Why someone would want to imply that marriage between a 15 year old and a 21 year old is not only acceptable but so freaking acceptable that they'll write about the founder of their religion doing it is incomprehensible to me.
Also, there is explicit sexual harassment and abuse of Ana by Herod in the preceding chapters. I thought their inclusion was strange despite the time period and general theme of rape culture in the book and I should've listened to that instinct. No way could this author have written a sincere and meaningful condemnation of rape culture while explicitly condoning and celebrating child marriage & rape.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pedophilia, Emotional abuse, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Misogyny, Adult/minor relationship, Sexism, and Child abuse
Moderate: Antisemitism
morganwiard's review
SO BORING. I tried SO HARD to get into it cause it had so many good reviews. Plus it was kind of retelling the Jesus story in a way that christians would think is blasphemous, but it was absolutely terrible. So boring and overall uninteresting. I need a quicker plot.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Sexism, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Confinement, and Sexual content
Minor: Slavery
emscozyreadingcorner's review
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
I randomly stumbled upon this book in the Goodwill bookstore and I was fascinated by the cover art. Upon reading the back and realizing that it was Biblical fiction, I knew I had to read it.
This book was by far and away one of my favorite books I've ever read. The main protagonist, Ana, is courageous and fierce. The author uses Ana's story to explore what it might have been like to be a feminist woman at the time of Jesus, yet she does not shy away from the idea that Ana has desires for things that are expected of her as well.
That is all I will say in the non-spoilery review of this. Just read it.
There are so many things I love about this book, but I'll start with Ana's relationship to the other characters, especially the women. Ana's changing perception of Tabitha throughout her life is my favorite. She goes from dislike to tolerance to considering Tabitha a sister. I thought that there was something so special about that, especially because Ana's dislike of Tabitha mainly stemmed from Tabitha's desire to get married as was expected of her, while Ana sought to escape marriage. As Ana went through her life, bearing witness to Tabitha's rape, later becoming Jesus's wife, she seems to grow a deeper understanding of and appreciation for Tabitha. Yaltha was also a favorite character of mine and I deeply appreciated that whilst we went through so many sadnesses in this book, Yaltha was given the happy ending of an old-age death. She provided so much humor and all the wisdom of a mother figure never given to Ana by her own mother. Ana's relationship with Mary and Salome as a mother and sister figure were also endearing. I cried as they held hands with Ana during the crucifixion and helped her to anoint her husband's body in the tomb.
The theme of found family was especially prevalent. Ana never felt as though her birth parents really cared for her; in fact, their trying to sell her to Antipas as a concubine was proof of that. But Ana was able to find a family who truly did care for her. Yaltha, Mary, Mary Magdala, Diodora, Tabitha, and of course, her husband, Jesus.
I enjoyed reading of Jesus as a human. He was the first to have an open acceptance of Ana as who she really was. He accepts her truth without question. When she says she does not wish to have children, he respects her decision. When she gets pregnant and suffers a miscarriage, he defies custom and comes to her when she is considered religiously "unclean." Ana's relationship with Jesus is a remarkable exploration of the prejudices seen in Christianity and a profound way of saying that Jesus would have accepted everyone as they were.
Ana's relationship with Judas was another point of intrigue. After he betrays Jesus and kills himself, Ana chooses to mourn the version of Judas she knew as a child. She understands that Judas hated Rome more than he loved Jesus, but does not forgive him for what he did. As someone who has family members I love but don't talk to because of differing beliefs among other things, I thought this was a touching testament to how we do feel when people we love wrong us. We choose to remember and mourn the people they were when they were kind.
Ana and Yaltha are a cunning and intelligent pair. Repeatedly, they find ways around the confinements set upon them by society. Their resilience and determination to find happiness in a world which seems to defy is is nothing short of inspirational. As Yaltha says, "Life will be life and death will be death."
For me, the ending was the sweetest part. Ana found a purpose and a happy life with Tabitha and Diodora. She was enough as she was. And I think that message is incredibly important, especially for someone who spent her life looking for her purpose and not knowing what it was.
This book was incredibly well-researched. It was driven as much by Ana's own self-discovery as it was by time. I thought that the character development and world building were well-paced and balanced with each other. I did not feel the need to rush through this book; however, I did feel the need to take my time with it and let Kidd's storytelling unfold. .
This book was by far and away one of my favorite books I've ever read. The main protagonist, Ana, is courageous and fierce. The author uses Ana's story to explore what it might have been like to be a feminist woman at the time of Jesus, yet she does not shy away from the idea that Ana has desires for things that are expected of her as well.
That is all I will say in the non-spoilery review of this. Just read it.
The theme of found family was especially prevalent. Ana never felt as though her birth parents really cared for her; in fact, their trying to sell her to Antipas as a concubine was proof of that. But Ana was able to find a family who truly did care for her. Yaltha, Mary, Mary Magdala, Diodora, Tabitha, and of course, her husband, Jesus.
I enjoyed reading of Jesus as a human. He was the first to have an open acceptance of Ana as who she really was. He accepts her truth without question. When she says she does not wish to have children, he respects her decision. When she gets pregnant and suffers a miscarriage, he defies custom and comes to her when she is considered religiously "unclean." Ana's relationship with Jesus is a remarkable exploration of the prejudices seen in Christianity and a profound way of saying that Jesus would have accepted everyone as they were.
Ana's relationship with Judas was another point of intrigue. After he betrays Jesus and kills himself, Ana chooses to mourn the version of Judas she knew as a child. She understands that Judas hated Rome more than he loved Jesus, but does not forgive him for what he did. As someone who has family members I love but don't talk to because of differing beliefs among other things, I thought this was a touching testament to how we do feel when people we love wrong us. We choose to remember and mourn the people they were when they were kind.
Ana and Yaltha are a cunning and intelligent pair. Repeatedly, they find ways around the confinements set upon them by society. Their resilience and determination to find happiness in a world which seems to defy is is nothing short of inspirational. As Yaltha says, "Life will be life and death will be death."
For me, the ending was the sweetest part. Ana found a purpose and a happy life with Tabitha and Diodora. She was enough as she was. And I think that message is incredibly important, especially for someone who spent her life looking for her purpose and not knowing what it was.
This book was incredibly well-researched. It was driven as much by Ana's own self-discovery as it was by time. I thought that the character development and world building were well-paced and balanced with each other. I did not feel the need to rush through this book; however, I did feel the need to take my time with it and let Kidd's storytelling unfold.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Gore, Grief, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Sexism, and Sexual assault
Moderate: Child death and Pregnancy
Minor: Mental illness, Suicide, and Domestic abuse
It's set during the time of Jesus and follows the life of Jesus. Click the spoiler tab for a list of scenes. No character names will be mentioned, but what happens to them specifically will be.emberysing's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
personally, it means a lot to me to read such a beautiful story get to the heart of my spirituality without traditional restraints. and it’s women! women women women finally in the narrative telling their stories their way! honestly, I have been starved of reading about women in this kind of spiritual context and <b>what for</b>.
overall this just isn’t my type of story, and I couldn’t really connect to the main characters as much as I would’ve liked to have. but there’s a lot of heart in the story. it’s wonderful storytelling.
overall this just isn’t my type of story, and I couldn’t really connect to the main characters as much as I would’ve liked to have. but there’s a lot of heart in the story. it’s wonderful storytelling.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Sexism, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Child abuse, Gore, Miscarriage, Rape, and Violence
v171's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
relaxing
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
What's the book version of Oscar bait? Pulitzer bait? What ever it is, this book is that. It was a very charming story, and emotional at times, but I couldn't help but feel that it was, as another reviewer put it, bible fan fiction. And I don't know that the author would necessarily disagree with that. The authors note was very honest and insightful into her concerns and thinking when deciding whether to write this story, and I found that refreshing to hear. I enjoyed how the characters were written and the over arching story was an interesting one.
But with that being said, I still just can't get over the thought that this was an easy capitalization on creating a feminist bible story, filled with headstrong, flawless women and modern motivations. I'm torn on the purpose of this story. It is clearly centered on Ana, the wife of Jesus, but it is so focused on her that Jesus is not present for the vast majority of the book. He only exists as someone to be, well, longed after off screen (off page?). One might argue that is the purpose of the story: focus on Ana as Jesus already has his own story. But to that, my response would be -- why make it about Jesus at all? What additional insights were we supposed to walk away with by making this a Jesus love story that he was hardly present in?
Would this have been a stronger story if it was not about the bible? No, probably not. As historical fiction, it fell flat because the characters felt far too modern, so maybe the only way to salvage it WAS to associate it with the bible. But I also didn't feel that this story challenged the reader to reconsider how they approach Christian texts. It was literally just bible fan fiction.
But with that being said, I still just can't get over the thought that this was an easy capitalization on creating a feminist bible story, filled with headstrong, flawless women and modern motivations. I'm torn on the purpose of this story. It is clearly centered on Ana, the wife of Jesus, but it is so focused on her that Jesus is not present for the vast majority of the book. He only exists as someone to be, well, longed after off screen (off page?). One might argue that is the purpose of the story: focus on Ana as Jesus already has his own story. But to that, my response would be -- why make it about Jesus at all? What additional insights were we supposed to walk away with by making this a Jesus love story that he was hardly present in?
Would this have been a stronger story if it was not about the bible? No, probably not. As historical fiction, it fell flat because the characters felt far too modern, so maybe the only way to salvage it WAS to associate it with the bible. But I also didn't feel that this story challenged the reader to reconsider how they approach Christian texts. It was literally just bible fan fiction.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Antisemitism, Child death, Child abuse, Death, Death of parent, Grief, Miscarriage, and Violence
Moderate: Blood
Minor: Forced institutionalization
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