Harvest of Rubies by Tessa Afshar

Definition:

The prophet Nehemiah has a cousin who can speak several languages, keep complex accounts, write on rolls of parchment and tablets of clay, and solve mysteries. This cousin is catapulted into the center of the Persian court -- working long hours, rubbing elbows with royalty, and completing high-level tasks as a scribe for the queen. Not bad, for a woman living in a man's world.

My Opinion:

This book started out somewhat slow. I didn't understand why Sarah felt so unloved throughout the book, and how far people had to go to show her that they cared. Also, I was bored with the work that she did under Queen Demaspia. It didn't intrigue me at all. I would say that I finally started getting into the book about a third of the way through when she went to live at her husbands estate.


I loved Bardia, Shushan, and Pari. The three main servants in the story, they all seemed like realistic friends and co-workers. They had formed a family like bond while living in Lord Darius's house, and to see how Bardia and Shushan brought Pari and Sarah in as their own from the beginning was heart-warming. Plus, I loved how we learned about Darius's loving side through his servants stories of him rather than by him first hand in the beginning. That way we knew he wasn't normally a brooding man, but one of honor and respect.


I love awkward scenes where the two main characters are forced to be in each others presence. Everything goes completely wrong at first in humorous ways, then we see their relationship settle into something serious that slowly develops into attraction. I believe those are the most romantic stories. Stories like: A Bride Most Begrudging by Deeanne Gist or A Passion Redeemed by Julie Lessman.


A little slow in the beginning but worth it in the long run!


Stars: 4