THE TRIUMPH OF DEBORAH

Author: Eva Etzioni-Halevy ISBN: 9780452289062 2/2008 HISTORICAL Publisher: PENGUIN
Time Period: Ancient Israel

In ancient Israel, war is looming. Deborah, a highly respected leader, has coerced the warrior Barak into launching a strike against the neighboring Canaanites. Against all odds he succeeds, returning triumphantly with Asherah and Nogah, daughters of the Canaanite King, as his prisoners. But military victory is only the beginning of the turmoil, as a complex love triangle develops between Barak and the two princesses. Deborah, recently cast off by her husband, develops a surprising affinity for Barak. Yet she struggles to rebuild her existence on her own terms, while also groping her way toward the greatest triumph of her life.

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

THE TRIUMPH OF DEBORAH is the third in the historical fiction novels by Eva Etzioni-Halevy about prominent females depicted in the Bible and their stories. The previous two, THE SONG OF HANNAH and THE GARDEN OF RUTH, are both favorites of mine. You do not need to have read the other two, as this is set years before either book takes place, to understand the events of the book.

I will admit that going into DEBORAH I knew very little about the lady. She had been mentioned, briefly, in both books as the 'famous prophetess', but that is all I really knew. Biblical studies have not been one of my past times, but recently I have become very much enamored with fictional accountings of famous biblical women.

DEBORAH does not let a fan of Etzioni-Halevy's previous works down. Richly detailed, researched and written as believably as can be written about long dead figures of the past, DEBORAH is definitely a wonderful third book. Etzioni-Halevy makes Deborah's struggles, personal and otherwise, seem as if they could easily be transplanted in modern times. Who hasn't had to deal with a relationship that turns sour or a friendship no one else approves of or understands?

I only found that it was not as engrossing as HANNAH (with its bitter love feud between two friends turned wife-sisters) or intriguing as RUTH (the past and present mirrored each other so well). I enjoyed the book and I am definitely looking forward to more from Etzioni-Halevy. I wish I had been able to read this first, since it feels the weakest of the three and though it doesn't matter within the context of the books, chronologically DEBORAH falls first, with HANNAH second and RUTH third.

Alexandra Cenni