On my YouTube channel, I review different Biblical fiction books I read each month. This month, I received a brand new release called Star of Persia by Jill Eileen Smith. And I finished it in record time- literally less than a day.
Star of Persia is a new take on Esther's story in the Bible. We all know Esther and how she saved her people from the wicked Haman but Jill Eileen Smith goes beyond the traditional story to give it a little more detail.
For instance, in the Bible we know that King Xerxes banishes Queen Vashti and then begins looking for another queen. But since he was a king, would it have been possible for him to already have other wives? I never thought of this possibility until I read Star of Persia. In this story, King Xerxes has other wives and obviously concubines other than Esther but she turned out to be his favorite.
At first, I thought not much could be added to the story of Esther into a book, but Jill Eileen Smith did a great job at weaving historical facts with the actual Biblical story.
From the Publisher
In an effort to complete a war his father had planned to win, King Xerxes calls every governor, satrap, and official in his vast kingdom to his palace in Susa to strategize and feast. When they finally leave, he decides on one more week of frivolity, which ends in the banishment of his favorite wife, something he never intended to do. But when he discovers Esther, Xerxes is sure he has a second chance at happiness.
In her wildest dreams, Esther could never have imagined that she would end up as queen of Persia. Yet she knows better than to become complacent. Another of Xerxes's wives is vying for position, and his closest advisor has a deep and dangerous grudge against Esther's adoptive father. Caught in the middle of palace politics, Esther will find herself in an impossible position: risk her life or consign her people to annihilation.
With her impeccable research and her imaginative flair, Jill Eileen Smith brings to life the romantic, suspenseful, and beloved story of Esther, queen of Persia.
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