Naomi B. (tripleguess) reviewed on 3/5/2011 + 48 more book reviews

I read this series years ago. While there is a fair amount of brutality and depravity in the story, and it seems at times to delight in rolling in these things and then dusting off its front and guiltily quipping "That's bad!", those would not be my main caution to parents purchasing them for their children.

My biggest worry about the series is the two unhealthy principles it endorses, knowingly or unknowingly.

1) "Extra holy people return to abusive situations."

This is the implication of the heroine's actions in returning to the master who fed her to the lions. If you just keep throwing yourself back into the situation, back into the arms of the person who so mistreated you, why this is so contrary to common sense and normal humanity that it's got to yield results in the end.

Having practiced this myself in real life, I can swear to the fact that it does yield results -- bad ones. Returning to abuse encourages abuse. As Jan Silvious says, why put God in the position of making some disaster work for good when you can avoid it altogether? We are not the saviors of mankind -- Christ is. He said, "When men persecute you in one city, flee to another" and his apostles said "If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone." It's not always possible. Whether the author realizes it or not, the story implies that remaining in or returning to an emotionally and/or physically dangerous situation is the most spiritual thing you can do. Read "Foolproofing Your Life" for a Biblical look at what God says about staying around dangerous people who have already refused to change their ways.

2) "If you just keep waiting for that unsaved boyfriend, he will eventually be saved and you will both live happily ever after."

This has "recipe for disaster" written all over it. Missionary dating is the worst idea the church has ever seen. Yet the story implies that, by hanging around such a situation -- or, at the very least, not actively extricating yourself from it (and such a situation is rarely willing to let you just walk away), you are in fact encouraging your unsaved romantic interest toward salvation. Need I detail how destructive this idea can be to the mind of a naive young Christian girl? How it predisposes her to be taken advantage of by smooth-talking unbelievers who know to exhibit just enough "interest" in church and God to keep her stringing along until she winds up pregnant or trapped in an unequal marriage?

Two very big cautions all over these novels. I think it would almost be better to read historical novels NOT written from such a supposedly "Christian" point of view.

Back to all reviews by this member
Back to all reviews of this book
Back to Book Reviews
Back to Book Details