Harvest of Gold: (Book 2)
The scribe Sarah married Darius, and at times she feels as if she has married the Persian aristocracy, too. There is another point she did not count on in her marriage--Sarah has grown to love her husband. Sarah has wealth, property, honor, and power, but her husband's love still seems unattainable.
Although his mother was an Israelite, Darius remains skeptical that his Jewish wife is the right choice for him, particularly when she conspires with her cousin Nehemiah to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. Ordered to assist in the effort, the couple begins a journey to the homeland of his mother's people. Will the road filled with danger, conflict, and surprising memories, help Darius to see the hand of God at work in his life--and even in his marriage?
Reviews (217)
A bit forced, but still some good content
I loved Harvest of Rubies, so I had high hopes for Harvest of Gold. The excerpt at the end of Rubies tempered my expectations a little - a kung fu fighter in ancient Persia, really? - and I feel that kind of sums up the feeling I had throughout Harvest of Gold. Background: Rubies used the familiar romance novel plot of marriage-then-love as a background on which to build a much more meaningful story with deep theological applications that even I, as a never-married woman tired of the "Christian romance" genre, was really ministered to by. Gold also used a familiar background, this time of secret-kept-too-long-strains-marriage, on which to build a continuation of Rubies' storyline. But this time the theology felt less central to the story, and things seemed too visibly orchestrated / overly convenient for me to enjoy it as much - for instance, the timing of all the things that happen to allow the main character to keep on deceiving her husband when she knows she needs to tell him what's going on. Bottom line: Because of the point in the marriage relationship at which Rubies ends, I would still recommend reading this book; however, if you're content to leave them where they are at the end of Rubies, then read Pearl in the Sand instead of this book. It, like Rubies, is a much deeper book that ministered to me (though not as much as Rubies since my own past, sins, and lies I tend to believe line up more with the character from Rubies than from Pearl).
Worth the Wait
It isn't often that I read a book in which the hero is an endearing jerk for much of the story. Tessa Afshar created such a nuanced, well crafted, realistic character in Darius. I read Harvest of Rubies (still my favorite of the two) and I thought then that Darius needed to have some of the wind knocked out of his aristocratic, arrogant sail. In this book, we understand the reasons for his internal conflict and we watch him receive healing as he comes in contact with his mother's God. It is a wonderful story, replete with Biblical characters as we walk through the book of Nehemiah. I received much encouragement from the story of this great man of faith. Tessa Afshar can't write fast enough. I eagerly await her next novel.
Excellently written and in-depth historical novel
There was a focus on struggles and restoration and I enjoyed all the multiple storylines in this novel: the plot against the king, Sarah and Darius' relationship, and the rebuilding of the wall as in the book of Nehemiah. The author did a good job at using the material in the book of Nehemiah and writing a story with that as a plotline. This novel has a beautiful ending, which is more than I expected, given how deep the struggles seemed to run earlier in the novel. With the parallel of the rebuilding of the wall and restoring Jerusalem, the author does a good job at telling the story of Sarah and Darius' relationship. God is the one who provides healing for all, and this story truly shows the miraculous nature of this.
Awesome!
This book continues Darius and Sarah lives in Persia and then in Jerusalem, Damascus, then Jerusalem again with Nehemiah and the building of Jerusalem’s walls. Second and last book in this series. You really need to read both books in order to appreciate all the problems and resolutions in this book. Loved the ending.
Another excellent book from Tessa Afshar!
Harvest of Gold is the second book in Tessa Afshar's Harvest series. This book is set around the event of Nehemiah rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem. In it we continue to follow the story of Darius, Sarah, and of course, Nehemiah. Unlike Harvest of Rubies, we get to read the story from the point of view of all 3 main characters, something I immensely enjoyed. While I also liked reading the previous one from Sarah's view point, this one I felt had a little more depth. I liked knowing what was going on with each of them and what they were thinking. If Harvest of Rubies is Sarah's book, then this one is Darius'. We get to know and understand him better. Honestly, he isn't a very likeable character, at first. He is hard, bitter, and I didn't care for how he treated Sarah. As I continued reading, I still had a hard time caring for him, though I did like him a little more. I finally fell in love with him about halfway through the book, when we start to understand what drives him. Darius has a very high moral standard, so when Sarah doesn't tell him something important, he once again withdraws from her. I really wanted him to stand up and get it together, but that wasn't part of his character, yet. Even though I was rather apathetic toward him, I still enjoyed his journey. I was looking forward to seeing him redeemed and Ms. Afshar did an excellent job. Sarah was her usual self; spunky, sassy, and bold. I still adored her and her heart. There was one point when I wanted to shake her, but that just made her more real to me. I have to really care about characters for them to frustrate me that much. I believe the main spiritual themes of this book are forgiveness and surrender. Darius must learn both. He has spent most of his life refusing to feel or let others too close, but with Sarah in his life, breaking down his walls, he's struggling to maintain his distance. This alone makes him lash out at her when she makes a mistake. He lays all the blame at her feet and shuts down even further. He must learn to forgive, something that only truly works with the Father's help. He also must learn to surrender, which is a battle he fights through most of the book. I appreciated his struggle with both themes. Ms. Afshar doesn't try to gloss over either, but rather portrays both as the difficult issues they are. Sarah must also learn to surrender, both to God and to Darius. She has been taking care of herself for so long, that she has a hard time trusting Darius to make decisions regarding her well-being. The same is true of her trust in God. When she faces a trial, she asks, "where are You, God?" as we all do at some time or another. She doesn't understand why God would allow the circumstance and she struggles to surrender to Him, to trust that He knows best. I really enjoyed the secondary characters, Lysander, Roxanna, and Pari! While they really are secondary and we don't know them well, I fell in love with each of them. I wish Lysander and Roxanna would get their own book, but I believe Ms. Afshar plans to leave their story up to her readers' imaginations. The descriptions were so vivid! I often felt as though I was actually there, traveling with them, or viewing the city of Jerusalem for the first time. Ms. Afshar really brings history to life in all of her books and this one is no exception! Her stories draw you in and refuse to let go until the end, even the occasional frustrating character can't take away from her masterful writing. I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys Biblical fiction!
Just as good as Harvest of Rubies
I loved Tessa Afshar's Harvest of Rubies and was so excited to read more of Sarah and Darius' story. I'm happy to say that Harvest of Gold was every bit as good as Harvest of Rubies. I love Tessa Afshar's writing. I find it to be engaging, well-paced, emotional and inspirational. Her books never fail to move me to tears, and Harvest of Gold was no exception. Darius and Sarah are married, but he has not told her that he loves her. In fact, he is hot and cold with her, pushing her away much of the time, then letting his true feelings show at other times. I hated that for Sarah: I wanted her to feel loved and accepted by her husband. Much of Sarah's struggle was based on feeling God's love in the absence of her husband's love. I felt that Harvest of Gold was just as much Darius' story as it was Sarah's. Darius changes a lot during this book, and his journey to faith as well as his acceptance of his difficult childhood provided for a lot of character growth. The emphasis on parenting in Harvest of Gold really touched my heart. Now that I am a parent, I find myself drawn to characters going through trying parenting experiences. I enjoyed reading about the rebuilding of Jerusalem. It made the book feel very authentic, and while I know that Afshar writes fiction, knowing that her books are based on Biblical events makes them feel slightly educational (and I like that). I highly recommend Tessa Afshar's books. She consistently writes outstanding Christian fiction, and I have given her books as gifts and recommended them many times.
Fully satisfied!!
I had this book pre-ordered as soon I finished "Harvest of Rubies," and the day it was supposed to arrive, I checked my door seven times to see if UPS had dropped it off yet. It was well worth the wait, and, just like the first book, I've already reread it and it has already changed my life. (I promise I don't say that lightly.) There's plenty of mystery, humor, chemistry, history, and spiritual insight. I have never read a novel about Nehemiah, and it was so fascinating to enter and explore that world and time. The author takes more time to delve into Darius's history and character, and I loved seeing the journey of his relationship with Sarah, with all its pitfalls and victories. Sarah, aside from one foolish decision, was such an inspiration to me in my own marriage. The morning after finishing the book, at least four times I found myself saying something to my husband and then thinking, "Sarah would never have responded like that to Darius." Her love and respect and honor for him, even when he was not treating her well, have been so convicting and encouraging to me. (and I have a great husband!) It's probably impacted me more than most of the marriage books I've read and seminars I've been to! And of course, this book is packed with all kinds of spiritual insights and deep quotes (have I ever wanted to highlight a novel before?). It amazes me how Tessa Afshar can blend excellent fiction, witty dialogue, engaging characters, historical facts, and spiritual truths so well! I absolutely cannot wait for her next book!!
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I can honestly say that Tessa Afshar does her research. She is meticulous. Reading her books always make me dive into my bible and hunt out the stories that she writes about. The covers of her books are gorgeous!! Ok, into the book. Harvest of Rubies was the first book in the tale of Sarah and Darius, if you have not read it yet, I highly suggest you do so before reading Harvest of Gold, because it puts you in place to begin this book. Sarah and Darius really struggle to find their footing in this book and only through the grace of God, are they able to do so. Nehemiah, Sarah's cousin, plays a huge role in this book. He leaves his life of opalescence behind to follow God's lead. Being the Kings cupbarer, I guess you could say he led a large life, so long as you didn't drind a poisoned cup. :) It was amazing to see him keep his calm while rebuilding the walls and to bring enthusiams to the people to keep them encourage. Sometimes it took drastic measures but, they got the job done. Can't wait to read more of her books!
Review: Harvest of Gold
[Warning: May include some spoilers for the first book in the series, Harvest of Rubies.] I have been eagerly awaiting this release since I finished Harvest of Rubies last year! The continuing saga of Sarah and Darius has drawn me back several times, despite my [quite large] stack of "new" to be read books. I've read at least part of Rubies four or five times in the last year. Gold picks up quite soon after Rubies ended. The mystery and intrigue with a backdrop of rebuilding Jerusalem were all quite interesting, but at the heart of it Gold continues the love story begun in Rubies. My heart still ached for Sarah as she loved Darius but he was unwilling or unable to allow himself to truly love her back. Through their trials as they want to start a family. As he tries to decide if he can really trust her after that trust was thoroughly destroyed on their wedding day. As Darius struggles with his new post while trying to understand the people of his mother and his wife. I devoured the preview ecopy I received and did not even contemplate canceling my preorder of the paper version. I have not had a chance to reread it yet, but you can bet I will. Most of characters are fictional, but a few are not, including the prophet [and the cousin to fictional Sarah] Nehemiah. Most of it is filled with supposition and "fill-in-the-blanks" but those things are based on Tessa's meticulous research and are well-grounded. I was both happy and sad to see the saga of Sarah and Darius come to an end, but I am very much looking forward to her next release based on the story of Ruth [I've been asking for SOMEONE to write this for several years now :D]. Sadly, it won't come out for a while. In the meantime, I'll have to find time in my reading schedule to read Rubies and Gold again - back-to-back this time. Overall rating: 9.25 out of 10 stars Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an ecopy in exchange for my honest review.
Brilliant!
The story of Sarah and Darius continue. Sarah loves her husband and told him so but Darius refuse to say the word. His deeds, thoughts - she was his only wife (which was not the case those days) -were full of love but he did not recognise love. So despite Darius rejections of love Sarah keep on saying to him that she loves him. When she neglects to mention something very important to her husband he was furious and stays away from her for a very long time. Then a miracle happens with Sarah and him with a very beautiful ending. It was also very interesting to read about Nehemiah and the building of the walls. I simply love this author's books and buy them as soon as it is released, even without first reading a summary of the book - it is always excellent. Very few books have the depth of this author's books. You will enjoy it
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