The Prophetess - Deborah's Story

January 11, 2016
Deborah, Old Testament judge and prophet, is the focus of the second book in prolific author Smith's (The Crimson Cord) Daughters of the Promised Land series. The story opens when Deborah, obeying her father's instruction to return home, is given in marriage to Lappidoth. In this tumultuous time, Sisera, a Canaanite, is terrorizing the Israelites. After their marriage Deborah has trouble respecting her husband because he tends the fields and works as a scribe, refusing to train as a warrior and fight Sisera. Ten years later however, after hearing a message from God, Lappidoth offers to teach Deborah how to read and write in order to fulfill her God-given role as prophetess. Smith entwines Deborah's story with the story of Barak, the leader of another clan who wants vengeance against Sisera. The telling of the two strands reads unevenly, with the formal, Biblical dialogue slowing the pace, especially in contrast ato the colloquial feel of the larger narrative. Smith, however, brings astute observation to the inner conflicts Deborah feels about Talya, her "beautiful, obstinate daughter," about her role as prophetess, and about her feelings toward Lappidoth. This is both a well-drawn love story as well as the wistful imaginings of early Israel.

Starred review from February 1, 2016
Deborah, a prophet and the only female judge in the Bible, is portrayed in Judges 4 and 5 and now takes center stage in the latest in Smith's Daughters of the Promised Land series, following The Crimson Cord: Rahab's Story (2015). As Sisera, a sadistic and powerful Canaanite general, wreaks havoc on the Israelites, it looks as though all will be lost. Deborah's prophecies, however, encourage her people to wage what should be by all rights a losing battle against the evil forces of a genocidal maniac. This thrilling retelling of how Deborah's faith and vision lead to victory is skillfully intertwined with the edge-of-your-seat story of the metalsmith's wife, Jael, who after being repeatedly threatened by Sisera, kills him in her tent. Readers, even those deeply familiar with the biblical tales of Deborah and Jael, will be swept away by the danger and suspense. Smith excels at writing fiction that brings women in from the margins of biblical history and allows their achievements to shine.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)