The prince of darkness is a gentleman. So begins Francine Rivers' best-selling book Redeeming Love. Like all of her books that have come before, I was instantly immersed in this one. The author paints a real-life picture of what life might have been like for women in 1850s California Gold Country. The story is a retelling of an Old Testament story of a prophet who was told by God to marry a harlot who runs away from her husband to go back to her old life. In the bible, Hosea buys her back. I won't say what happens in this version, though, because I want you to read it!
Redeeming Love was often heart-breaking but it was also very poignant and touching. It was a very captivating read with a wonderful ending. This story helps the reader to see how God is using our circumstances and even our worst mistakes to turn them around for good and to weave them into a beautiful tapestry. It's the story of God's unconditional, redemptive, and all-consuming love.
California’s gold country, 1850. A time when men sold their souls for a bag of gold and women sold their bodies for a place to sleep.
Angel expects nothing from men but betrayal. Sold into prostitution as a child, she survives by keeping her hatred alive. And what she hates most are the men who use her, leaving her empty and dead inside.
Then she meets Michael Hosea, a man who seeks his Father’s heart in everything. Michael obeys God’s call to marry Angel and to love her unconditionally. Slowly, day by day, he defies Angel’s every bitter expectation, until despite her resistance, her frozen heart begins to thaw.
But with her unexpected softening comes overwhelming feelings of unworthiness and fear. And so Angel runs. Back to the darkness, away from her husband’s pursuing love, terrified of the truth she no longer can deny: Her final healing must come from the One who loves her even more than Michael does…the One who will never let her go.
You can read the first chapter of Redeeming Love here.
Special thanks to the wonderful people at Blogging for Books for providing me with a copy of this book for review.
Romance is my fav genre!
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