Until the Mountains Fall

Connilyn Cossette writes Biblical fiction that is fascinating to read.  In Until the Mountains Fall, she takes the culture of the post Egypt Israel and weaves into it the parable of the prodigal son. 

Rivkah has been sold into a levirate marriage to her late husband's younger brother.  She can only remember the times he was a pest while she was hanging out with his older brother.  Her father is the head priest of their city of refuge, but Rivkah rebels as hard as she can, up to running away. 

For five years, her father and her husband's brother, Malakhi, wait for her to come home.  When some priests from another city are bringing a woman convicted of killing her baby, one of the priests hands Rivkah's father a note that was passed to him by a Jewess enslaved to a trader.  She takes care of his market booth. The note is the first clue her father and Malakhi have had in five years.

The prodigal part is played out to the very letter of the story Jesus told.  When Rivkah returns, her sister Lailah resents her and the attention she is getting. 

I love the interweaving of the Old Testament and New Testament to make this story spark.  This is a five star book, with two thumbs up, and a rescue from slavery. 

I want to thank Bethany House and NetGalley.com for providing the galley I read for this review.