Janice Broyles

If you enjoy Biblical fiction this book is the second book of a series telling the tale of David (yes the David with the slingshot that killed the giant) and Michal. If you are not familiar with Bible stories then this is a tale of love found lost and found again.

Prophecy holds that David will be the next King after Saul and he swears his loyalty yet Saul feels threatened by David’s mere presence. He does not believe David when he says he is not out to usurp Saul only to honor him but Saul is falling into madness. Even when David joins the family through marriage it does not seem to calm matters – in fact it seems to exacerbate them. Soon David is in real danger. Despite Michal’s love for her husband and her father she cannot reconcile the two of them and soon she is forced to follow her father’s edicts and David is sent away.

Ms. Broyles brings the ancient world to vivid life with her descriptions and characterizations. I did not realize this book was part of a series and did not feel any lack for not having read the first book. I was only slightly familiar with the story of Michal and knew only the beginning and end of David’s story. This book certainly fills in the middle. The time period is brought to life from life in the desert to the wars of the time and the madness of King Saul. It’s at heart a love story dealing with the trials of trying to stay together when everything is pulling you apart.… (mehr)

David is such a fascinating person in the Bible. The young shepherd boy who believed that he could slay the giant Goliath, so he did. A young man who was able to calm King Saul with his beautiful music. The young soldier who became so popular with the people that King Saul feared that David would replace him in their affections. Now, as this story begins, it is 1019 BC and it is the wedding day of David and Michal, King Saul's youngest daughter. This is a marriage of love but it soon becomes apparent that their love and their marriage is doomed because of KIng Saul's deep hatred of his new son-in-law.

Author Janice Broyles has been able to create a fascinating re-telling of this biblical account that is related in 1 Samuel. David, at twenty-two, is forced to flee Palestine and leave his beloved wife; and even though they plan to reunite, obstacles constantly prevent this from happening. Broyles admits in her author's notes that even though she is true to the biblical account, it is from her imagination that many of the events in this book find life. And even though I have read many times how David was forced to run for his life, I was completely drawn in with the fictional details and David, Michal, and Saul's suspected thoughts. David longed for his wife, he feared for his life, and he wondered why God was allowing all of this to happen. Even when he had the chance to kill Saul, David believed that 'I am not God, and I will not take Saul's life into my hands. I will not do it. I will become King when the Lord determines it's time. And not one second before.' (p. 263)

The Runaway Heir is a story of love, hate, and fear; of deep faith, extreme loss, and the ability to forgive. It also reaffirms what we already know: that God sometimes allows circumstances to occur because of the future that He foresees.

This is intriguing biblical fiction and even though it is the second book in the David saga, it can be read as a standalone. I look forward to reading the next book, The Anointed Heir, that is due in 2020.

I received a copy of this book from the author and HFVBT Blog Tours but was under no obligation to write a positive review. These are my own thoughts.… (mehr)