The Mystery of Martha

By: Eliza Harrison

Narrated by: Eliza Harrison

Length: 9 hrs and 13 mins

Publisher's Summary

Two timelines, one truth....

Two women, two millennia apart with seemingly unconnected lives - one from the Lake District in England and the other from Bethany in Palestine. Both experience loss and betrayal, which engender feelings of fear and uncertainty about what the future holds.  

Martha from the Lake District faces challenge and change in 2,000 A.D. as her deepest insecurities are exposed. But supported by her partner Ben, she discovers the mystical Aramaic teachings of Yeshua that offer her a pathway to self-realization and freedom.

In 30 A.D. Martha of Bethany has Yeshua as a friend and guide. From a place of tenderness and vulnerability, she witnesses the last three years of his life as he embodies the ultimate mystery and power of love, which inspires her own journey to awakening. 

These two stories weave together seamlessly until finally they converge in a hauntingly beautiful tale of revelation and redemption.

©2019 Eliza Harrison (P)2019 Eliza Harrison

A timely story

The Mystery of Martha is a superbly written novel about friendship, faith and life that will stay with the listener or the reader for a long, long time after it ends.

Following two story arcs of two women divided by 2,000 years, The Mystery of Martha is, at the same time, immersive and thought-provoking. 2,000 years ago, one of the women had a true friend in Jesus, whereas in our time, the other woman discovers his teachings and tries to make her way through all the tribulations of modern life using them as guidance.

I can only imagine how much research has gone into this project, but the end result is a clear work of love and passion on the author’s part. Add to that the fact that Eliza Harrison has also recorded the audiobook version of The Mystery of Martha and it’s clear to everyone how much she wanted to tell us this mesmerizing story in person.

I deeply respect all the authors who are going the extra mile and record their work for those who listen to audiobooks, and, as such, I am really grateful that I could experience The Mystery of Martha in Eliza’s own friendly and soothing voice. I have a lot of narrator friends and I know how much work goes into an audiobook production, so I sincerely congratulate Eliza for her devotion to the story and for the time she invested into bringing us this great performance.

The Mystery of Martha is perfectly suited for those looking for a meaningful story, driven by lifelike characters and peppered with historical events. I highly recommend this to everyone, regardless if they are religious or not. I consider The Mystery of Martha to be a timely release, offering a great opportunity to those in need of guidance and comfort during these troubling times.
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Excellent book to relax and take in

The novel, The Mystery of Martha is obviously a thoroughly researched work of fiction. It is so well written that it is hard to grasp the difference between fact and fiction. At times I had to ask myself, "Did this really happen in the Bible? The major premise of the book is about everday life in a time which was much simpler that ours is presently. And how finding the teachings of Jesus are applied to he modern life of the second Martha. The story flashed between the lives and happens of the two Martha's and creates a story of comparisons and similarities. The two women of the same name separated only by time and space allows the reader glimpses of these women's lives. Their struggles with family life, friendships, and belief systems.

Again the time devoted to developing this story is evident. I am certain that this book is one that the reader will enjoy even if you are not of the Christian faith. As a Christian myself, it was difficult to totally lose myself in a book that I felt at times contradicted my beliefs. However I did have to continue to tell myself that this is fiction. I did listen to this book in audiable and found it to be easy to follow as the reader's voice was so pleasant to listen to.

In my opinion The Mystery of Martha this book can be read by many readers. However, the more mature in age adult reader would find it most appealing.

Beautifully Written, Beautifully Read

Eliza Harrison did a beautiful job writing and researching this book. As a person of faith, it was refreshing to hear the people from the Bible come to life in a new way and linked to modern times. Harrison did a beautiful job bringing characters to life and painting the background of their circumstances. I loved hearing her read the book, soothing, clear, and vibrant. I'm going to recommend this book to my book club! Perfect for those who like historical fiction and stories of what happens when two worlds intertwine.

Two Stories written as one

The best way to enjoy a story is by hearing the author read their work to you. The inflection, tone, and flow are listened to in the manner that they were written. I must admit the story took a little longer to get into. Still, the characters began defining themselves with each word, and it draws you in further.

These two women are separated by the expanse of time but are experiencing the events of life, the pivotal decisions, and difficulties in stride with one another. The attention to detail is not lost across both periods, and you are drawn in with rich details. While the story is deeply wrapped in religion, you have not pulled away from the actual story that is being told. I enjoyed this read, and I would recommend it to others.

A Journey of Faith and Self Discovery

I really loved listening to Eliza Harrison read her own book, "The Mystery of Martha." Her accent and pronunciation of the Hebrew words in the story are just so soothing and full of meaning. So much work went into writing this book of two Marthas, both on a journey of self-discovery and faith. I have heard the story of Mary and Martha so many times, but this depiction just felt so relatable. Martha is courageous, curious and trying to find her faith alongside her unwavering in faith sister and brother.

Aren't we all trying to find our way? Perhaps that is what Harrison hopes to convey with the journey of modern-day Martha, as she finds her path within her relationships (romantic and familial), herself (meditation and healing) and courage to live her destiny. I really loved watching her come into her own, as she develops the confidence to live openly as herself. I loved how the stories intertwine and how the story unfolds.

Religious or not, this book reads so smoothly. If you are looking for a book that is historical fiction, includes a bit of self-discovery and is an escape from the day to day... I would highly recommend this one.

Wonderful parallel, great reader

First off, the author should definitely read all of her novels. Soothing and crisp at the same time, her reading was phenomenal.
Second, I would definitely suggests this to anyone who enjoyed the Women of the Bible series by Orson Scot Card. Similar to that series in it's past portions, but still a religious awakening in it's modern parts, I think this would be a great suggestion for a Bible book group. It may be hard to sell to non-believers, but even an atheist would enjoy the modern portions as a journey towards self discovery.
I highly enjoyed this book.

The Mystery of Martha

I usually enjoy when an author narrates their book because I feel like only they really know the tone and feeling behind the words they’ve written were, whereas a narrator doesn’t always. The narrating of this book was lovely. Eliza‘s voice was so smooth and calming. The stories of two Martha’s, 2000 years apart, were both so compelling. I found it interesting that while this was a biblical story it was not one that felt like a religious read. I quite enjoyed this audiobook and don’t hesitate to recommend it.

A story of healing and happiness.

Eliza Harrison has written a beautiful story of two women named Martha. The modern day Martha is living on a farm in England. She is experiencing the battle of finding the balance between work and relationships. My first impression of this Martha is that she is ambitious. She has a busy life on the farm but also wants to open a studio for meditation and yoga. Her life gets complicated with loss and the feeling of belonging somewhere. In her struggles to find love and happiness she turns to the teaching of Yeshua. Yeshua is the Aramaic name for Jesus Christ. Through her learning she develops a new meaning for her life, a realization of hope and self awareness. The background on the English countryside is depicted with warmth, sunshine and greenery.
The Martha from 2000 years ago is set in 1st Century Palestine. Here this Martha gets to experience the first hand accounts of what Yeshua teaches. It is a different kind of relationship. It is a one on one friendship and guidance. Martha too has struggles of despair and acceptance. She gets to witness the last few years of Yeshua’s life. She learns to embrace the love, loyalty and understanding of happiness. It is only this journey that she connects with Martha of present day. I really enjoyed the descriptions of Palestine. You could hear the atmosphere, smell the spices and visualize the day to day family life and how very different it is from today.
Eliza Harrison as a narrator was fantastic. The sophistication but also warm in her voice was very appealing. The English accent brought a sense of location which I truly liked. She narrated with such passion and emotion it was hard to stop listening and pick it back up later. I also really liked that even though this is loosely based on the teaching of Jesus Christ it is not a religious book. It is just a story of two very different women with the same path on using Jesus’s guidance on love as a way to change ourselves. I adored this book and enjoyed listening to it. I would recommend it as a good read or listen.

Amazing intertwined Story

I loved listening to this audiobook. A tale of two Martha’s from different generations and eras that shows the power of just how much things change, the more they stay the same. I enjoyed the Biblical aspect of this book; however, it may be a bit of a turn off for some listeners. This audiobook Is so intimate in details and draws the listener in to a whole new world. It’s very easy to get lost in this story at times in the transitions between each Martha’s stories. This is okay though due to the similarity between the two characters. The narration was well done. The pace of the story was pretty steady. I would highly recommend this audiobook to anyone wanting to listen about Martha from the Bible and how a modern day Martha are similar.

Two women, two centuries

The Mystery of Martha is a smart and beautiful tribute to women of all eras. The author eloquently illustrates that many women throughout thousands of years of history have all struggled with some of the same challenges: self-worth, love, loss, betrayal, faith, impossible decisions...and this story of two women named Martha who existed 2000 years apart amplifies these emotions. We all face seemingly impossible challenges and decisions in our lives, and this book is a fine example that reminds us that we are not alone: someone else, somewhere in the world or somewhere else in time, has or is going through this same thing and trying to figure things out. It's a fantastic story (or they are fantastic stories, if you prefer to look at it from that perspective) that was inspiring as well as captivating. I appreciated all the descriptions, the attention to details in characters and settings, and the writing style of the author. My only hesitation in rating this was the pace: I felt the story dragged a little here and there, but it wasn't a deal-breaker at all. I also really enjoyed the quality of Eliza's narration of the book as well, as I've heard authors voice their own audiobook and it was disastrous.