Iscariot: A Novel of Judas

Awesome book well written. Brings out many life changing questions. Must read for all.

I've read various versions of the "Judas Story" but this is the best researched and beautifully written one that I've ever come across.
It took me back to Judas as a child. I could relate to his dreams of being accepted and loved. The rule of the Romans is shown through a child's eyes and then through the adult's. But it isn't just about rebellion. This book shows a man with a man's dreams and ambitions. It is about friendships that Judas forms and where they lead. He both loves and is frustrated with his family and their problems. He is a man with the wish to "fit" somewhere.
The author took me on a history lesson that felt more like a trip in time. For the first time I really felt I understood the values and customs of the early Bible stories. I've read the Bible my whole life and am a devoted Christian but didn't find anything to offend me in this book,
It is more of a Jewish history than a Christian one.
In this book I learnt the atmosphere around the time of Jesus with the different fractions. Some Jews were trying to live with Rome. Some trying to rebel. Some were hoping for a miracle and to have the whole situation changed in a instant. A lot like today.
Not that this book is a history text book. It is filled with tension, drama and fun. I felt I knew all the characters personally and was upset to let them go when the story was over.
Mostly it shows there is no black and white answers. No good or bad. Just choices that are made and what it is to live with the consequences.
Judas is shown as a human with human failings and even if the intention was right, the outcome can still go wrong.
I'd recommend this book to anyone interested in historical fiction. It uses some of the Bible stories as a backdrop but doesn't preach. Nor does it say that Jesus was the Son of God or not. It is the story of the man Judas, not Jesus. So don't be put off if you aren't a Christian.

One of the reviewers had stated that this book didn't feel real and that the disciples didn't feel real and couldn't see how they went on to start a church because they didn't have enough faith. I feel the exact opposite, yes this book does show the disciples as human beings who struggled with faith as much as we do in this present age, but to me this added to the believability of this book. We have each read the gospels and we know the story and therefore we think we would have acted differently had we lived, walked, talked with and seen Jesus ourselves...however this book shows how real people without a glimpse into the future would act. More importantly I felt the character of Judas was very real. Through this story I felt his doubts, his longing for a Messiah, for someone to fight for him and for his people, to bring down the Romans with a crushing blow, to bring down the hypocrites in the temple...and his dissapointment when that did not happen. Tosca Lee does an extraordinary job in this story and it moved me to tears because it made me look at myself and all my doubts and I saw the Judas in me. It made me see that I too could have been Judas. The ending was good too but I was hoping for something a bit different, but that is the writer in me seeing a thousand different possibilities. Overall, I loved this book and look forward for more stories from this author...oh, and I highly recommend this one! It is definatly one of Tosca's best so far!