Hadassah: One Night with the King

I was surprised by how much I liked this audiobook. I even listened to it a couple of times.

The book was written with a "Christian" audience in mind, the authors are not well know, and reviews on Amazon.com were mixed so I didn't expect greatness. However, the book works as a historical novel.

I liked the characters and the action kept moving. The narration was excellent; it was very easy to listen too and helped to keep the story moving along.

I enjoyed listening to this story and I learned a bit about Queen Esther. I would definitely recommend this audiobook. If you liked this, try any Tracy Chevalier book, Orson Scott Card's Women of Genesis series (Sarah, Rebekhah), and "The Red Tent".

I was so moved by this story. The book of Esther came alive. I could hardly stop listening.

This was the first historical fiction novel I have listened too and although it was probably wonderful for some, it dragged for me. As it is based on the life of Queen Esther, the story could not be changed much to add more intrigue, so I found that the author filled up the hours with tons....and I mean tons....of descriptions. Every pillar, every wall, every floor, every garment, every piece of jewelry and not once but over and over again. Granted the story picked up about half way through, but even "The night with the king" was anticlimactic (no pun intended).
The narrator was good match for this reading. She did a very good job.
I did learn more about the Story of Esther than I knew before, that is for sure. I guess that would be the saving grace for this book. I came out knowing more than when I went in.
The beginning of the book seemed to go on forever before anything good happened. We finally got into the meat of the plot after about 4-5 hours of listening. I can't tell you how many times I almost put this audio book away, but I decided to persevere just so I could say I read it. I can tell you, that had it been a book I was actually reading and not listening to, it would have made it back to my shelf long before chapter 10 (I think there is something like 46 or so chapters).
I've read mostly glowing reviews about this book, unfortunately I can't join in with that same sentiment.

This is a great work of spiritial fiction. Many of the information closely compares to the Bible, but is told in a way that will interest you in the historical times. Spiritually motivating and reminds you of the stories told to you in Sunday school. Great narriator too!

What a joy! The book was well written and had the perfect narrator. It was a combination of romance and History. It was a tale I did not want to end. It brought the past and present together nicely.

A little bit of mystery. A little bit of history. A little bit of bible. A little bit of religion. A little bit of middle east. Wrap it all together and you have a good listen. Yeah, a little bit of sex too.

I enjoyed this book and found the story of Queen Ester to be compelling. If you like historical fiction it is a good audio book.

I really enjoyed this book. The story of Queen Esther has always been one of my favorites, and this brought it to life for me.

Although this book does follow the text of the book of Esther and tries to answer some missing questions, it does not appear that the authors did much research in the Jewish commentaries of the book or on the observance of Purim. I particularly disliked the continued references to the sign of the twisted cross, an obvious attempt to connect Haman with the Nazis. I also disliked calling the capital Susa instead of Susan and the mispronunciation of Vashti's name.
However, there was at least one midrash (about Haman's daughter) that was included and I did like the adding of the historical context. It was a little weird to hear about Esther and Xerxes instead of Esther and Ahasuerus, but I understand that. I also found it interesting the development of characters that are only briefly mentioned in the Megillah. (But again, the midrash that one of the characters was really Haman is ignored.)
I had hoped that this book would be appropriate for our synagogue book group, but I cannot recommend it. But it has motivated me to learn more about traditional midrashim about Esther.
Also, the comparison to "The Red Tent" falls very short because of the book's perspective.

I have always enjoyed the biblical story of Queen Esther. This portrayal brings her character, her life and times and the Jewish customs and lifestyle to a renewed vitality and consideration of the ages old story. I was so happy to find that their was a sequel to this book to listen to as well.