In the Shadow of the King (The Unveiled)

by Melissa Rosenberger

[phyllish]

A fresh look at the life of Jesus

As hard as growing up in the shadow of a sibling who mostly pleases their parents would be, just imagine having an older sibling who was perfect. Literally AND figuratively!!

While I have never contemplated what this would be like, I'm so glad that author Melissa Rosenberger did! This poignant account speculates what it would have been like to be the younger sister of the Son of God.

When I first saw the description, I was intrigued, though I have to confess to being a little skeptical. This was quite a daring undertaking for any author, especially for a debut novel! It didn't take long before my husband was barraged with my gushing about just how much I was loving the story. He commented after the fifth or hundredth time, "I guess this is going to be on your Best of the Year list, isn't it?"

There was so much to love about this story! First of all, an extremely unique perspective. While I imagine I would have adored an older brother as much as I did my older sister, it would have been difficult living in Jesus's shadow. "Just once, I'd like to see you eat your vegetables like Jesus does!" "Jesus always keeps his things picked up, why can't you do that?" "You never see Jesus shirking his chores, now do you?"

The path Hannah chose made so much sense, even though her other siblings remained content living their lives in the way they had been raised. If the author had Hannah remain in Nazareth, we would have lost the perspective of the family she married into, and that would have changed everything!

Honestly, I didn't like Hannah's whining and self-centered attitude at all yet it was necessary for the story. I was so enthralled, though, I believe that if there was no repentance by the conclusion, I would have still loved it. Fortunately, for her and us, she did change and her life lessons, though extremely painful, were powerful.

I was so impressed with the conversations throughout the book. I've read stories where the author attempts to give background and teach via conversations that felt forced and unnatural. And there have been those where this technique worked. However, I don't remember another book where it was done so well!

As for "Best of the Year"? In the Shadow of the King is absolutely a candidate. So I encourage (heartily) anyone who enjoys Biblical fiction to snatch this book up and see why I feel this way.

Read my full review at Among the Reads


I was given a copy of this book. I was not required to give a favorable review nor was any money received for this review. All comments and opinions are my own.