The Sheepish Scribe

Jewel of Persia by Roseanna White

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I stayed up reading way too late last night to finish this book. Wow! What a wonderful job of storytelling. It started a little slow, but picked up steam and never looked back. Roseanna White did a masterful job of weaving fact and fiction into a believable, engaging tale that was too good to put down. I started recommending it to others when I was less than half was into it!

This is the story of Queen Esther's fictional best friend, Kasia. Through her eyes we experience the royal court of Xerxes, with all its intrigue and dangers. We watch young Esther become a woman, we come to know and love Mordecai, and we witness the downfall of Amestris, known by her Hebrew name, Vashti, in the Book of Esther. We see the underside of lift at court, grittiness under the glory.

I highly recommend this book for older teens and up. It deals tastefully with the issues of infidelity, immorality, and harem life. It is historically accurate with issues such as executions and warfare without being overly gruesome.