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Love's Sacred Song (2012)

by Mesu Andrews(Favorite Author)

4.27 of 5 Votes: 5

ISBN

0800734084 (ISBN13: 9780800734084)

languge

English

genre

Romance

publisher

Revell

review 1: I had read Love Amid the Ashes, which was a story about Job's experience and I remember liking it. So, when I saw Love's Sacred Song, I gave it a shot. Soooo glad I did. In a nutshell, it is the story of the love that endures all between Solomon, the famous King of the Israelites, and one of his staggeringly numerous brides (one of, like, 600 or something). This seems an odd premise for a romantic novel (at least it did to me), but once you start reading it, you realize that the type of love that is described is agape love....the love that is described in 1 Corinthians 13. It is a kind of love that all followers of God are called to, but few evidence. Throughout the book, Solomon's treaty-bride, loves Solomon that way and it is truly inspiring. On the other hand, I ... morefound it very difficult to like the character of Solomon in this book and ultimately was never really able to do so despite his good looks, incredible power, diplomacy, charm and wealth. It would seem like a winning combination, but under it all was a selfish, faithless, weak man with mostly bluster to make up the core of him. Time after time, he threw away the greatest of gifts with both hands, he allowed himself to be distracted by politics, intrigue, lust and power. He not only allowed but seemed to seek distraction from the one earthly person who truly loved him and the God who sought to make him more than just wise. Definitely, his wisdom stopped far short of applying to himself. Really, I could hardly stop from disliking him until at some point I realized *I* am Solomon. I am the one who so often chooses the sparkly glitter of the world over the truth of love. I am the one who chooses distraction over peace. I am the one who runs from God when I have to choose between Him and the world. Kudos to the author for making that point subtly but clearly.I gave it a 4 (wish I could do 4.5) because I had minor issues with the flow of the book. It felt choppy at points with some plot twists dragged out and some rushed over. I found myself skipping ahead where it dragged and re-reading where it was rushed over to find out what I must have missed prior. Like I said, these were minor points and really did not distract at all from the "take-away" experiences of the book, which are below.****WARNING: MINOR SPOILER ALERT*************************************This is a minor part of the book, but I was struck at the end of the book at just how weak a character Solomon was. Not only did he push away the greatest of God's gifts while she was alive, but Arielah only lives four years in this story and he truly appreciates her for less than nine months of that short time. After her death, he continues to ignore the very foundation of his gifts, His Lord, and even manages to accelerate the pace until, thirty seven years later on his deathbed, he finally has the "aha" moment. I was further struck by how much grief, serious hurt (both physical and emotional) and betrayal he brought into the lives of those who loved him. Given, as stated above, how I saw much of myself in Solomon, I'll take it as a warning to slow down and open my eyes!All in all, a great book. Read it. :)
review 2: Love's Sacred Song is the third book I have read by Mesu Andrews and I have loved every one. At this point, Love's Sacred Song is a close second to Love In A Broken Vessel. I know this is fiction but Ms. Andrews has a wonderful talent that makes me think "Yeah, it could have happened that way" when the bible is silent. My biggest question about Solomon has always been; if he was so wise and the author of Songs of Solomon, how did he become an idol worshipper, have so many wives and raise his son so badly? Andrew's Solomon is so strong and weak that I got a glimpse of the answer to my questions. Throughout the story I kept thinking how could his treaty bride love him so much? Then it would dawn on me that God is so like that when I have been so consistently sinful and unfaithful. I would find myself being grateful that that kind of love is God's specialty and wanting to love Him back more faithfully. As is the author's practice, I am now in the middle of the accompanying bible study where she asks the kind of questions that make me leave the fictional account and settle into the truth of the bible. I'd recommend this book to anyone. less

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