Book Review- Behold the Dawn

Behold the Dawn by K.M. Weiland
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I am a major history nerd, so historical fiction is right up my alley. My favorite book is "Pearl Maiden" by Sir Rider Haggard, an author who wrote historical fiction that is both riveting and deep.

I mention Haggard, because "Behold the Dawn" very quickly brought his medieval book "The Brethren" to mind. Coming from me, considering BTD to be similar to one of his works is a huge compliment to Weiland.

The setting to BTD felt gritty and authentic. It was hot, sweaty, dusty, and bloody. I did occasionally have a hard time picturing the landscape, but the characters were often on the move, thus leading to ever-changing landscape.

The characters; such a fantastic cast of characters. Some grew more than others over the story (I fell in love with the sidekick), while others were consistent, providing a balance and steadiness that kept the others in line. The protagonists were appropriately human, they felt fear, anger, hurt, betrayal, guilt, etc. You felt what the characters felt very deeply.

The villains! Aha! One of the only things that can make a good set of protagonists even better is an equally well-written cast of villains. Weiland did a masterful job at this. I shivered and despised these villains more than I do for most writers. Well done!

This book was wonderfully lengthy, I appreciate it when a writer values their readers enough to give a very long book. There is just a depth of entering into the story that cannot happen in shorter titles. Also, there were moments in this book that could have been handled with far less class, but thankfully, Weiland is a classy writer. I appreciated the way she handled a few subjects with dignity and grace.

My one critique of this book was that during the fighting scenes, I was often confused as to who was standing where, and how the action went down. I had to reread those scenes and play them through in my mind. It is not a major hindrance however, and everything else was well done.

At one point in this book, Weiland put in a "plot twist" of sorts that angered and saddened me deeply. I took to social media to complain, and like the mature adult that I am, I took a break from reading the book. Before, I mentioned how much BTD reminded me of Sir Rider Haggard's "The Brethren". Amusingly enough, the same thing happened to me years ago when I read TB. I was convinced something terrible had happened. In agony, I threw the book down and began to cry. I had invested far too much of my soul into that story to see it end so. My brother picked up the source of my sorrow and read a few pages past where I had stopped. "Keep reading." He said. I did, and sheepishly discovered that all was in fact well, and I had merely thrown in the towel too early. I bring this story up, because I literally did the exact same thing with Behold the Dawn. That "plot twist" that left me outraged? Aha, ha, ahem....keep reading.

A satisfying ending, should Weiland ever do a follow-up book featuring the same characters, or perhaps starring the sidekick (I'm rooting for Option 2), I will eagerly devour it. I recommend this book to fans of historical fiction, sweet romances, and redemption.

View all my reviews

Book Review- A Stand At Sinai (The Promised Land Series)

Jarah, Ezra, Ada, Eitan and all our other friends from A Cry From Egypt join us again in one of the most thrilling eras in history. A Stand At Sinai takes the Israelites from the crossing of the Red Sea, through battles with the Amalekites, an Israelite wedding (wonder who?), the giving of the Ten Commandments - and the temptation of the Golden Calf.












I waited eagerly for this book for two years. Granted, it was out earlier than that, but unfortunately, this author does make it a little difficult to have easy access to buy her books. However, even after two years of waiting, I was not disappointed with the end result.

A Stand at Sinai picks up just a few weeks after the end of A Cry From Egypt. The Israelites are beginning their long journey through the desert wilderness. This book is at least twice as long as its predecessor, which was fully necessary in order to flesh out the story properly.

Just like with the ACFE, A Stand at Sinai takes you out of the sky and puts you on the ground in the Israelite's sandals. I think that many of us read the account of the journey from Egypt to the Promised Land with disgust towards the nation of Israel, their fickleness, and their short memories. We think, "How on earth could you turn away from God after all that He has done for you?" I have often thought that I wouldn't have been that foolish and fickle, I believed that I would have stayed strong.

But here's the truth: I wasn't there. I wasn't the one walking for hours on end in a hot, thirsty desert. I wasn't hungry, I wasn't scared. I didn't lose loved ones to attacks from the Amalekites. And to top it all off, many of the older generation turned away from God. It terrifies me to the core of my being to imagine what it would be like to have many of the trusted elders in your life, the people you have always relied on to be strong, suddenly turn away from the God they taught you to trust.

The Hebrew people were just that, they were people. They were inconsistent, they were foolish. Sometimes they were brave, and sometimes they were cowards. They were hungry, they were thirsty, they wanted to provide for their children. They wanted a place to call home. Welcome to the human race, for this is all of mankind. If I had been in their sandals, whose to say what I would have done. I really hope that I would have made the right choice, but a bit of reality has since taught me that I would have had to struggle and fight to make that good choice.

Auer yet again puts you right in the situation with Jarah and those around her. Jarah struggles so much in this book. Her faith is stretched to just about every limit there is. She desperately wants to do the right thing, to be a support to her family, and she dreams of a future in the Promised Land. I understood many of her struggles personally, having faced my own version of them. There is quite a bit of character development and growth that takes place in all of the characters in this book, particularly the younger generation. Several strong characters in particular take very defined stands for their faith, even after they have been dealt terrible blows, they continually turn their face towards Yahweh and resolve to follow Him, even if it breaks them.

I was deeply inspired by this book, and I felt that it came at a very pertinent time in my life. Many of my young adult peers are being tempted with the world, and some are falling away from their faith with God and running eagerly into the dark arms of the world. Its scary. I have sometimes asked myself the question, "If there was a room full of people, both strangers and beloved friends and family alike, and I was the only one who was willing to stand with God, would I be able to do it? Even if it meant walking alone in terms of human fellowship." The thought of being like the younger characters in this book who are losing their elders is even scarier.

And yet, just like the characters of the book, I keep coming to this conclusion: where else is there to go besides God? He is Almighty, the Alpha and the Omega, I AM, He is Yahweh. Where else would I go? The answer is no where. When hardship strikes, when trials come, when the pain deepens, there is no where to run to but to the Lord.

One of the most magnificent scenes of this book takes place at the foot of Mount Sinai itself. The moment when Yahweh descends upon the mountain and speaks to His people. I have a deep desire to experience something like that. Can you just imagine what it would feel like to have the ground tremble, and to hear loudly the voice of God? It is so awesome.

My only critique of this book is yet again the cover art. The artwork is beautiful, but it gives this book the feeling of a children's book. And while children could certainly read and enjoy this book, the story and writing is capable of entertaining and feeding a wider age range. I think the author may be limiting her audience with the cover art.

I highly recommend this book to anyone. It is so rich, it will encourage you in your faith, and it will give you that earthy and full-detailed picture of what it would have been like to experience this event firsthand.

Check the book out here on Amazon, or on Hope Auer's website. You can find this gifted author on Facebook and Twitter.

Book Review- A Cry From Egypt (The Promised Land Series)

Jarah was a slave in Egypt. It was a dangerous place to be. The work was exhausting and her family was torn between the gods of the Egyptians, and the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. And her brother....would his Ada be given in marriage to an Egyptian in the palace? Would they ever be free?

Adventure, excitement, love, and faith come together when Jarah and her family find themselves at the culmination of four hundred years of history.














I loved this book! Growing up I learned about Moses and the Plagues in greater depth. I was utterly fascinated at the intricacies of this monumental time in history. Discovering that each plague had a specific meaning involving one of the Egyptian gods made me even more in awe of the incredible intelligence of God.

As wonderful as history books and the Biblical account are of this unique period of history, most of them are an overhead view. A big picture look at this memorizing story. A Cry From Egypt takes you out of the sky and puts you right on the streets of Ramses and Goshen.

Jarah is a very sympathetic and relate-able character. I have never in my life experienced the kinds of hardships that she and her family endure. Pain, hunger, being beaten within an inch of their life. Having no power over their own lives. Still, somehow, Auer managed to create a connection between my 21st century struggles as a Christian trying to follow God with those of a 12 year old slave girl in B.C. Egypt, who is struggling to seek and follow Yahweh.

Another incredible aspect of this book is the plagues. In all other accounts, we only get the big picture of what the plagues would have been like. Bloody river, frogs, flies, bleh! Even one of my top movies The Prince of Egypt relegates the plagues to a montage scene with some really epic music. But we never really get to feel firsthand what it would have been like to experience the plagues.

But through Jarah's eyes, and the eyes of her family and friends, we finally get an on-the-ground perspective of what the plagues would have been like. I found myself full of compassion for the Egyptians and Israelites both. For the Israelites, because they were still affected by what happened to the Egyptians; what with Pharaoh increasing their workload, and suffering great cruelties upon them. For the Egyptians, because they suffered and lost so much because of their leader's hardened heart. Auer does a wonderful job of humanizing the Egyptians, and you feel their pain deeply.

My only critique of this book would be the cover art. It is very clearly hand done, which while not bad, it does give the book more of a homemade, unprofessional feel. If I didn't know that this book was such a treasure on the inside, I would be tempted to pass over it as a half-way finished work of art. The phrase "don't judge a book by its cover" really isn't applicable in the world, because guess what, we do judge books by their covers. If I see a polished cover that excites me, I am for sure going to make an effort to read that book. But if I see something that looks amateurish that fails to create emotion in me, I will pass the book over. I do not mean anything offensive personally to the artist, the artwork is not bad in general, but for this context, I believe it cheapens the book and lessens the appeal.

I recommend this book to children and adults alike who love historical fiction and want to dive more deeply into one of the most awesome stories of the Bible! You can find it here on Amazon, or, on Hope Auer's website. You can also check her out on Facebook and Twitter.