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Shelter of the Most High (Cities of Refuge) by Connilyn Cossette - Sofea and her cousin Prezi are exploring the sea caves around their island home of Sicily when they are captured by pirates. They discover that everyone in their village has been murdered, and they are taken prisoner. When they are able to escape, they wind up on a remote beach, injured and helpless. Sofea is still determined to anything to save her cousin, so when a small group of soldiers find them and appear to be wanting to help them, Sofea goes along, even though she doesn't understand their language and doesn't really trust them.
Eitan is a young man who has lived with his adoptive family in Kedesh, a Hebrew city of refuge, for most of his life. He chafes against the ruling of the high priest that keeps him and his mother Moriyah inside the city, even though the city walls protect them from the man still seeking their lives as vengeance. His father Darek and his army scouts bring home two young women in need of shelter, and Eitan is drawn to Sofea, despite the language barrier between them.
Sofea assumes that she and Prezi are to be slaves for the family, and that it's likely they will eventually be sacrificed to the local gods. To her amazement, she learns that they consider the two girls their guests and part of the family. As she learns the language, and learns to love and trust Eitan, he shares his secrets with her, and they plan to marry. But when the girls are taken from the city by someone they thought they could trust, they find themselves part of a murder plot. Eitan breaks the rules of the city of refuge to find them. Can he stop the plot and find both girls before the blood avenger claims his life?
This is the second book in the Cities of Refuge series, and does follow characters introduced in A Light on the Hill. Eitan was a young boy in that story, and Moriyah and Darek were the leads. Although this a sequel, it's not necessary to have read the first novel in order to enjoy this one. The story is told in chapters that alternate between Sofea's and Eitan's point of view and their perspectives. Through Sofea's eyes, we see the contrast between the honor, justice, and mercy of Hebrew worship of their God and the selfish and cruel practices of the pagan culture she came from. The historical setting is unique and a time period that isn't often featured (the period between the conquest of Canaan and the time of the judges), so I found the insight and context fascinating.
From the publisher:
The daughter of a pagan high priest, Sofea finds solace from her troubles in the freedom of the ocean. But when marauders attack her village on the island of Sicily, she and her cousin are taken across the sea to the shores of Canaan.
Eitan has lived in Kedesh, a city of refuge, for the last eleven years, haunted by a tragedy in his childhood, yet chafing at the boundaries placed on him. He is immediately captivated by Sofea, but revealing his most guarded secret could mean drawing her into the danger of his past.
As threats from the outside the walls loom and traitors are uncovered within, Sofea and Eitan are plunged into the midst of a murder plot. Can they uncover the betrayal in time to save their lives and the lives of those they love?
by Connilyn Cossette - Sofea and her cousin Prezi are exploring the sea caves around their island home of Sicily when they are captured by pirates. They discover that everyone in their village has been murdered, and they are taken prisoner. When they are able to escape, they wind up on a remote beach, injured and helpless. Sofea is still determined to anything to save her cousin, so when a small group of soldiers find them and appear to be wanting to help them, Sofea goes along, even though she doesn't understand their language and doesn't really trust them.Eitan is a young man who has lived with his adoptive family in Kedesh, a Hebrew city of refuge, for most of his life. He chafes against the ruling of the high priest that keeps him and his mother Moriyah inside the city, even though the city walls protect them from the man still seeking their lives as vengeance. His father Darek and his army scouts bring home two young women in need of shelter, and Eitan is drawn to Sofea, despite the language barrier between them.
Sofea assumes that she and Prezi are to be slaves for the family, and that it's likely they will eventually be sacrificed to the local gods. To her amazement, she learns that they consider the two girls their guests and part of the family. As she learns the language, and learns to love and trust Eitan, he shares his secrets with her, and they plan to marry. But when the girls are taken from the city by someone they thought they could trust, they find themselves part of a murder plot. Eitan breaks the rules of the city of refuge to find them. Can he stop the plot and find both girls before the blood avenger claims his life?
This is the second book in the Cities of Refuge series, and does follow characters introduced in A Light on the Hill. Eitan was a young boy in that story, and Moriyah and Darek were the leads. Although this a sequel, it's not necessary to have read the first novel in order to enjoy this one. The story is told in chapters that alternate between Sofea's and Eitan's point of view and their perspectives. Through Sofea's eyes, we see the contrast between the honor, justice, and mercy of Hebrew worship of their God and the selfish and cruel practices of the pagan culture she came from. The historical setting is unique and a time period that isn't often featured (the period between the conquest of Canaan and the time of the judges), so I found the insight and context fascinating.
From the publisher:
The daughter of a pagan high priest, Sofea finds solace from her troubles in the freedom of the ocean. But when marauders attack her village on the island of Sicily, she and her cousin are taken across the sea to the shores of Canaan.
Eitan has lived in Kedesh, a city of refuge, for the last eleven years, haunted by a tragedy in his childhood, yet chafing at the boundaries placed on him. He is immediately captivated by Sofea, but revealing his most guarded secret could mean drawing her into the danger of his past.
As threats from the outside the walls loom and traitors are uncovered within, Sofea and Eitan are plunged into the midst of a murder plot. Can they uncover the betrayal in time to save their lives and the lives of those they love?
By the same author: A Light on the Hill, Wings of the Wind, Shadow of the Storm, Counted With the Stars
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by Alan Noble - should be finished this one this week, but I'm having to do quite a bit of skimming since it's a library book.
by Kory Stamper
by David Crowder
