catholicamanda's review
4.0
Once they escape from slavery, Demetrios and Elezar become caravan drivers in Judea and Galilee. Demetrios comes across as a bit greedy. He always seems to want more. That is understandable from his past as a slave who was never given enough of anything. Throughout the book, Demetrios struggles to get over his past. His father sold him into slavery. His master was vicious, brutal, abusive. He had to kill his master to save his own life. His master was a Roman and the Romans were quick to bring criminals to justice. Demetrios is right to be scared of what would happen if the Romans discovered his crime.
While Demetrios is a Gentile, Elezar is Jewish. Elezar hears word of a miracle-worker, a teacher some are calling the Messiah. Elezar goes to see this person himself. When he returns from listening to Jesus of Nazareth speak, he informs Demetrios that he will be joining Jesus’s followers. Demetrios feels he is being abandoned. This is made worse when Elezar reveals that he confessed his sins to Jesus and told him everything he and Demetrios had done. Demetrios is terrified that Jesus will take this knowledge to the Roman authorities. He believes that his only option is to catch up with Jesus before he arrives in Jerusalem for Passover. However, things don’t happen the way Demetrios believed they would.
This is an interesting story of the time of Jesus told by an outsider, a Gentile, a former Roman slave. I enjoyed the book. It kept me interested. The characters were very believable and relatable.
I received this book for free via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.
This review first appeared at CatholicAmanda.com.
While Demetrios is a Gentile, Elezar is Jewish. Elezar hears word of a miracle-worker, a teacher some are calling the Messiah. Elezar goes to see this person himself. When he returns from listening to Jesus of Nazareth speak, he informs Demetrios that he will be joining Jesus’s followers. Demetrios feels he is being abandoned. This is made worse when Elezar reveals that he confessed his sins to Jesus and told him everything he and Demetrios had done. Demetrios is terrified that Jesus will take this knowledge to the Roman authorities. He believes that his only option is to catch up with Jesus before he arrives in Jerusalem for Passover. However, things don’t happen the way Demetrios believed they would.
This is an interesting story of the time of Jesus told by an outsider, a Gentile, a former Roman slave. I enjoyed the book. It kept me interested. The characters were very believable and relatable.
I received this book for free via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.
This review first appeared at CatholicAmanda.com.
urlphantomhive's review
2.0
Read all my reviews on http://urlphantomhive.booklikes.com
Due to complete coincidence I ended up reading two books about the life of Jesus during the Easter weekend. This was the first of them.
Having escaped his Roman master, Demetrios and another slave try to make a better life for themselves.
In which, completely against my own expectations, they succeed. Really, is it that easy to become a master after you were a slave? It's a shame not more people tried to do this.
The historical setting was quite nice. But that's about it. Demetrios was a very annoying character to read about. He literally doesn't seem to know what he's doing or why. On top of that I didn't really like the writing. Especially in the beginning I couldn't focus on the story because of it.
This book just wasn't for me, I'm afraid.
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!
Due to complete coincidence I ended up reading two books about the life of Jesus during the Easter weekend. This was the first of them.
Having escaped his Roman master, Demetrios and another slave try to make a better life for themselves.
In which, completely against my own expectations, they succeed. Really, is it that easy to become a master after you were a slave? It's a shame not more people tried to do this.
The historical setting was quite nice. But that's about it. Demetrios was a very annoying character to read about. He literally doesn't seem to know what he's doing or why. On top of that I didn't really like the writing. Especially in the beginning I couldn't focus on the story because of it.
This book just wasn't for me, I'm afraid.
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!
melanie_page's review
3.0
Review originally published at Grab the Lapels. Thanks for reading!
NOTE: Jeanne Lyet Gassman was previously interviewed at Grab The Lapels.
Blood of a Stone is a novel set during the “Jesus movement,” or the rise of Jesus as a prophet. Yet, the novel is told from the point of view of a Gentile named Demetrios, who was sold into slavery when he was 18. After killing his master, Demetrios and fellow slave Elazar pretend to be regular guys and set out to start a business with money they’ve stolen from their dead master. But when Demetrios’s secret past as a slave and murderer is threatened, he will travel all over Palestine to murder the one who could expose him: Jesus. Although I experienced some confusion about how much time passed and there was a lack of suspense in some plot points, Blood of a Stone is a highly descriptive novel that can change your vision of violence.
Many of Lyet Gassman’s descriptions are fierce, inciting shivers and repulsion. Demetrios is forced to kill his master, Marcus, because he is being whipped to death:
“How many times did Marcus strike him? Twenty? Thirty? Demetrios lost count. Blood blisters burst into streams. Strips of cloth and raw skin caught in the leather strap; a faint red mist clouded the air.”
I’ve seen people whipped in movies, so I’m always getting a fictitious version, of course, but it seems like being whipped causes little red lines. Here, though, Lyet Gassman gives me more heady images to hang onto: blood blisters, red mist, and skin actually being caught in the whip. Such images are not ones I’ve fathomed before, leaving me speechless in the face of extreme violence.
After Demetrios has decided he must stop Jesus from exposing his secrets, Demetrios follows the prophet with the plan to murder Jesus as soon as the man is alone. Instead, Demetrios sees a woman–a leper–appear just as’s about to attack with a dagger. She, too, has followed Jesus, but with the request to be healed. Again, Lyet Gassman crafts descriptions that are strong enough to cause a physical reaction in the reader:
“Oblivious to her deformity, Jesus never even glanced at her stumps, but reached out instead for the veil that shrouded her features….Tragically, her face, too, had been ravaged. Her skin was pitted and marked by former scars, like a sloping pasture eroded by rainfall. Her lips, disfigured by a missing flap of flesh, were twisted into a perpetual snarl. When she attempted to smile, she exposed decaying teeth set in putrid, infected gums.”
One visceral fear of my own is the possibility of losing a limb, and this lady is falling apart, so I had quite a strong reaction. Even that word–“flap”–disturbed me.
It becomes obvious that things are pretty dangerous, and the hope of excellent medical treatment isn’t even an option. After an attack by bandits leaves one character near death, Lyet Gassman gives those vivid, horrifying descriptions again:
“When Demetrios leaned close, he noticed the pupil was dilated; the eye focused on a place high above Demetrios’s shoulder. Demetrious waved the flies away from [name omitted]’s face. A large purple bruise swelled across [name omitted]’s right cheek. Clots of dried blood blackened the flesh around his nose….The back of [name omitted]’s skull was soft, pulpy and [the] blood soaked through Demetrios’s clothes.”
That word, “pulpy,” stuck with me as I continued to read. I kept thinking of orange juice, and the soft squishy matter we find in the bottom of our glasses. “Pulpy” indicates that nothing is going to be okay for this dying person, and should Demetrios cradle this person’s head too tightly, I imagine it would crumple into a bloody mess.
One aspect of Blood of a Stone that I didn’t find as compelling was the sense of suspense Lyet Gassman tries to, but doesn’t quite, create. Elazar, the other slave in Marcus’s home, is a Jew, while Demetrios is a Gentile. This doesn’t bother them, but when Elazar hears the King of the Jews has finally come, he decides to part ways with Demetrios. Feeling abandoned, Demetrios tries to retrieve his friend and convince him that following Jesus and abandoning their business as caravan drivers is absurd. During one meeting, though, Demetrios learns some terrible news: Elazar has told Jesus of their crime, that Demetrios killed Marcus and Elazar helped hide the body. Now Demetrios feels threatened. Should Jesus tell the Roman authorities, Demetrios could be killed for his crime. Later, Demetrios discovers that Jesus has raised a man from the dead. Panic sets in: what if Jesus decides to raise Marcus from the dead to seek revenge on his murderer? This is when Demetrios decides: he must kill Jesus. Although I knew this was meant to be an intense moment in the book (and a turning point that will cause Demetrios’s narrative direction to alter), I felt no eagerness to read forward at a speedy pace. I know what’s going to happen: Jesus will be crucified. There was a moment when I wondered if Lyet Gassman would change the story, but quickly dismissed the thought.
There are several attempts to kill Jesus. First, Demetrios follows him to a river where Jesus is speaking to people. The descriptions are good: “Demetrios pressed his palm against his breast to quiet the rapid beating. Again, he touched the hilt of his knife. It, too, vibrated beneath his fingertips. A sting of death waiting to come to life.” Yet, I did not feel a sense of suspense. I patiently waited for something to prevent Demetrios from murdering Jesus, and something did. A second attempt is made later, but Demetrios is interrupted by the leper woman. Once he sees Jesus perform a miracle, Demetrios cannot kill Jesus, for he truly appears to be a prophet.
However, Lyet Gassman does effectively create a suspenseful plot point when Demetrios, having held and watched [name omitted] die due to that pulpy skill, he gets the idea that Jesus can come and bring [name omitted] back from the dead! Here, I got pretty excited. I didn’t like when [name omitted] died and felt pretty bummed, and having Jesus resurrect this person would not too dramatically alter the story of Jesus that we all know.
Another concern I had was with the timeline of Blood of a Stone; I never knew exactly how much time had passed. We’re told that Demetrios is 18 when he becomes a slave, but the novel is so long. I was always cognizant of how slow travel is without cars (and there’s a lot of travel) and how much time would need to pass for Demetrios and Elazar to set up a business. Then, there’s the rise and death of Jesus. By the end of the novel, I had no clue how old Demetrios was, which always bothered me to a small extent.
With many harrowing, bloody scenes that brought to life the violence, Blood of a Stone is a novel that may make you turn away in horror. You may not feel drawn in in a way that has you turning pages at break-neck speed to find out what happens next, but some surprises are in store for the reader. And, I imagine that any Christian would find this novel a fascinating read thanks to its atypical perspective and themes of guilt and forgiveness.
NOTE: Jeanne Lyet Gassman was previously interviewed at Grab The Lapels.
Blood of a Stone is a novel set during the “Jesus movement,” or the rise of Jesus as a prophet. Yet, the novel is told from the point of view of a Gentile named Demetrios, who was sold into slavery when he was 18. After killing his master, Demetrios and fellow slave Elazar pretend to be regular guys and set out to start a business with money they’ve stolen from their dead master. But when Demetrios’s secret past as a slave and murderer is threatened, he will travel all over Palestine to murder the one who could expose him: Jesus. Although I experienced some confusion about how much time passed and there was a lack of suspense in some plot points, Blood of a Stone is a highly descriptive novel that can change your vision of violence.
Many of Lyet Gassman’s descriptions are fierce, inciting shivers and repulsion. Demetrios is forced to kill his master, Marcus, because he is being whipped to death:
“How many times did Marcus strike him? Twenty? Thirty? Demetrios lost count. Blood blisters burst into streams. Strips of cloth and raw skin caught in the leather strap; a faint red mist clouded the air.”
I’ve seen people whipped in movies, so I’m always getting a fictitious version, of course, but it seems like being whipped causes little red lines. Here, though, Lyet Gassman gives me more heady images to hang onto: blood blisters, red mist, and skin actually being caught in the whip. Such images are not ones I’ve fathomed before, leaving me speechless in the face of extreme violence.
After Demetrios has decided he must stop Jesus from exposing his secrets, Demetrios follows the prophet with the plan to murder Jesus as soon as the man is alone. Instead, Demetrios sees a woman–a leper–appear just as’s about to attack with a dagger. She, too, has followed Jesus, but with the request to be healed. Again, Lyet Gassman crafts descriptions that are strong enough to cause a physical reaction in the reader:
“Oblivious to her deformity, Jesus never even glanced at her stumps, but reached out instead for the veil that shrouded her features….Tragically, her face, too, had been ravaged. Her skin was pitted and marked by former scars, like a sloping pasture eroded by rainfall. Her lips, disfigured by a missing flap of flesh, were twisted into a perpetual snarl. When she attempted to smile, she exposed decaying teeth set in putrid, infected gums.”
One visceral fear of my own is the possibility of losing a limb, and this lady is falling apart, so I had quite a strong reaction. Even that word–“flap”–disturbed me.
It becomes obvious that things are pretty dangerous, and the hope of excellent medical treatment isn’t even an option. After an attack by bandits leaves one character near death, Lyet Gassman gives those vivid, horrifying descriptions again:
“When Demetrios leaned close, he noticed the pupil was dilated; the eye focused on a place high above Demetrios’s shoulder. Demetrious waved the flies away from [name omitted]’s face. A large purple bruise swelled across [name omitted]’s right cheek. Clots of dried blood blackened the flesh around his nose….The back of [name omitted]’s skull was soft, pulpy and [the] blood soaked through Demetrios’s clothes.”
That word, “pulpy,” stuck with me as I continued to read. I kept thinking of orange juice, and the soft squishy matter we find in the bottom of our glasses. “Pulpy” indicates that nothing is going to be okay for this dying person, and should Demetrios cradle this person’s head too tightly, I imagine it would crumple into a bloody mess.
One aspect of Blood of a Stone that I didn’t find as compelling was the sense of suspense Lyet Gassman tries to, but doesn’t quite, create. Elazar, the other slave in Marcus’s home, is a Jew, while Demetrios is a Gentile. This doesn’t bother them, but when Elazar hears the King of the Jews has finally come, he decides to part ways with Demetrios. Feeling abandoned, Demetrios tries to retrieve his friend and convince him that following Jesus and abandoning their business as caravan drivers is absurd. During one meeting, though, Demetrios learns some terrible news: Elazar has told Jesus of their crime, that Demetrios killed Marcus and Elazar helped hide the body. Now Demetrios feels threatened. Should Jesus tell the Roman authorities, Demetrios could be killed for his crime. Later, Demetrios discovers that Jesus has raised a man from the dead. Panic sets in: what if Jesus decides to raise Marcus from the dead to seek revenge on his murderer? This is when Demetrios decides: he must kill Jesus. Although I knew this was meant to be an intense moment in the book (and a turning point that will cause Demetrios’s narrative direction to alter), I felt no eagerness to read forward at a speedy pace. I know what’s going to happen: Jesus will be crucified. There was a moment when I wondered if Lyet Gassman would change the story, but quickly dismissed the thought.
There are several attempts to kill Jesus. First, Demetrios follows him to a river where Jesus is speaking to people. The descriptions are good: “Demetrios pressed his palm against his breast to quiet the rapid beating. Again, he touched the hilt of his knife. It, too, vibrated beneath his fingertips. A sting of death waiting to come to life.” Yet, I did not feel a sense of suspense. I patiently waited for something to prevent Demetrios from murdering Jesus, and something did. A second attempt is made later, but Demetrios is interrupted by the leper woman. Once he sees Jesus perform a miracle, Demetrios cannot kill Jesus, for he truly appears to be a prophet.
However, Lyet Gassman does effectively create a suspenseful plot point when Demetrios, having held and watched [name omitted] die due to that pulpy skill, he gets the idea that Jesus can come and bring [name omitted] back from the dead! Here, I got pretty excited. I didn’t like when [name omitted] died and felt pretty bummed, and having Jesus resurrect this person would not too dramatically alter the story of Jesus that we all know.
Another concern I had was with the timeline of Blood of a Stone; I never knew exactly how much time had passed. We’re told that Demetrios is 18 when he becomes a slave, but the novel is so long. I was always cognizant of how slow travel is without cars (and there’s a lot of travel) and how much time would need to pass for Demetrios and Elazar to set up a business. Then, there’s the rise and death of Jesus. By the end of the novel, I had no clue how old Demetrios was, which always bothered me to a small extent.
With many harrowing, bloody scenes that brought to life the violence, Blood of a Stone is a novel that may make you turn away in horror. You may not feel drawn in in a way that has you turning pages at break-neck speed to find out what happens next, but some surprises are in store for the reader. And, I imagine that any Christian would find this novel a fascinating read thanks to its atypical perspective and themes of guilt and forgiveness.
fiction_aficionado's review
3.0
I will admit, I initially judged this book by its cover (which looks a little amateurish to me) and did not have high expectations. The opening chapter was a little awkward, but after another chapter or two I was surprised to find myself becoming invested in Demetrios’ story. The reason I have only given this book three stars (and I would probably give it three-and-a-half stars if I could) is because I felt short-changed by the ending. I had barely even registered the resolution before I came face to face with the discussion questions, and felt that this lessened the impact of the book’s message of forgiveness and freedom in Christ because the reader wasn’t given a chance to experience the follow through. I also felt the ‘how’ and ‘why’ of the resolution was a little nebulous in contrast to the strong portrayal of guilt’s burden throughout the rest of the book.
A few notes about the book: Firstly, Demetrios is a Gentile who pays homage to the god Mercury for most of the novel. He does not have a great understanding of the Jewish religion and his response to Jesus was very much in keeping with his circumstances and character, driven by fear, guilt, and a lack of understanding about forgiveness. Secondly, there are some scenes which readers may wish to be aware of prior to deciding whether to read the book, such as a visit to a prostitute (her seductive manner is portrayed, but nothing more), and a visit to a sorceress which involves animal sacrifice and incantations, etc. There is also some violence, particularly between Demetrios and his master early on in the novel, and the crucifixions at the end of the novel. I thought these scenes were appropriate for the storyline and were written in a way that evoked appropriate emotional responses without being overly graphic, but they may not suit some readers.
The basic story is this: Demetrios, a gentile boy who is about 19 years old at the beginning of the novel, is a slave in the household of a retired Roman general named Marcus. He flees the household after killing Marcus in self-defence and together with Elazar, Marcus’ Jewish slave, establishes himself as a trader and caravan leader, eventually settling in a new city called Tiberias located on the southern coast of the Sea of Galilee. But no matter where he goes Demetrios’ past haunts him. When Elazar comes to tell Demetrios that he wants to leave their business to follow Jesus of Nazareth, Demetrios feels betrayed. But that is nothing compared to how he feels when Elazar admits that he has also confessed the crime that forced them to flee their master’s home. Initially fearing that Jesus will hand him over to the Roman authorities, Demetrios quickly becomes concerned that Jesus has a much worse punishment in mind for him: Raising his Roman master from the dead in order that he may exact his own revenge. After a visit to a sorceress he is convinced there is only one way to stop Jesus of Nazareth: He must assassinate him.
While the ending of this novel was the bigger let down for me, I also found the beginning of the novel a little difficult to settle into. Although otherwise told from Demetrios’ point-of-view (in third person), the opening paragraphs are narrated by an omniscient narrator who is watching a scorpion approaching Demetrios unawares (I could almost hear David Attenborough reading the text as a voice-over with suitable dramatic flair). To me, it felt like a contrived ‘dangerous situation’ to hook the reader, particularly as it resolved fairly quickly and shifted our focus to the real point of the scene: A conversation overheard by Demetrios between his master and Elazar. But then this brief exchange leads into Demetrios recalling the day more than a year ago when his father had sold him to Marcus, a memory which actually forms the most substantial part of the chapter, and I couldn’t help but feel that the story would have had a smoother start had it simply begun with this event. As it was, I found myself a little lost as to what was actually happening to Demetrios in his present, and it took me a little effort to form a linear understanding of the events leading up to the final confrontation between Demetrios and his master.
As I said, though, the bulk of the novel was well written with some good evocative writing. I also enjoyed the touch of romance woven through the story. Although Jesus himself is not a major character in the novel, the events do intersect with his ministry and crucifixion, and from this point of view, readers who enjoy historical fiction set in this time will quite possibly enjoy the novel. I just felt that the ending left me a little unfulfilled, preventing me from recommending it more highly.
A few notes about the book: Firstly, Demetrios is a Gentile who pays homage to the god Mercury for most of the novel. He does not have a great understanding of the Jewish religion and his response to Jesus was very much in keeping with his circumstances and character, driven by fear, guilt, and a lack of understanding about forgiveness. Secondly, there are some scenes which readers may wish to be aware of prior to deciding whether to read the book, such as a visit to a prostitute (her seductive manner is portrayed, but nothing more), and a visit to a sorceress which involves animal sacrifice and incantations, etc. There is also some violence, particularly between Demetrios and his master early on in the novel, and the crucifixions at the end of the novel. I thought these scenes were appropriate for the storyline and were written in a way that evoked appropriate emotional responses without being overly graphic, but they may not suit some readers.
The basic story is this: Demetrios, a gentile boy who is about 19 years old at the beginning of the novel, is a slave in the household of a retired Roman general named Marcus. He flees the household after killing Marcus in self-defence and together with Elazar, Marcus’ Jewish slave, establishes himself as a trader and caravan leader, eventually settling in a new city called Tiberias located on the southern coast of the Sea of Galilee. But no matter where he goes Demetrios’ past haunts him. When Elazar comes to tell Demetrios that he wants to leave their business to follow Jesus of Nazareth, Demetrios feels betrayed. But that is nothing compared to how he feels when Elazar admits that he has also confessed the crime that forced them to flee their master’s home. Initially fearing that Jesus will hand him over to the Roman authorities, Demetrios quickly becomes concerned that Jesus has a much worse punishment in mind for him: Raising his Roman master from the dead in order that he may exact his own revenge. After a visit to a sorceress he is convinced there is only one way to stop Jesus of Nazareth: He must assassinate him.
While the ending of this novel was the bigger let down for me, I also found the beginning of the novel a little difficult to settle into. Although otherwise told from Demetrios’ point-of-view (in third person), the opening paragraphs are narrated by an omniscient narrator who is watching a scorpion approaching Demetrios unawares (I could almost hear David Attenborough reading the text as a voice-over with suitable dramatic flair). To me, it felt like a contrived ‘dangerous situation’ to hook the reader, particularly as it resolved fairly quickly and shifted our focus to the real point of the scene: A conversation overheard by Demetrios between his master and Elazar. But then this brief exchange leads into Demetrios recalling the day more than a year ago when his father had sold him to Marcus, a memory which actually forms the most substantial part of the chapter, and I couldn’t help but feel that the story would have had a smoother start had it simply begun with this event. As it was, I found myself a little lost as to what was actually happening to Demetrios in his present, and it took me a little effort to form a linear understanding of the events leading up to the final confrontation between Demetrios and his master.
As I said, though, the bulk of the novel was well written with some good evocative writing. I also enjoyed the touch of romance woven through the story. Although Jesus himself is not a major character in the novel, the events do intersect with his ministry and crucifixion, and from this point of view, readers who enjoy historical fiction set in this time will quite possibly enjoy the novel. I just felt that the ending left me a little unfulfilled, preventing me from recommending it more highly.
juliechristinejohnson's review
4.0
When I was a child, my father read to me an epic story of the life and times of Jesus Christ. I think it must have been Fulton Oursler’s 1949 classic The Greatest Story Ever Told. We tried all the churches in our family, from the staid liturgy of Lutherans to the sweaty rollick of Pentacostals, and I’ve read many versions of the Bible, heard all the stories, told in a myriad of ways. Although longer a Christian, I am—and will always be—fascinated by early Christian history, that turbulent period when politics and religion collided and the teachings of one man, Jesus of Nazareth, gave rise to a faith that changed the course of human past and present.
Jeanne Lyet Gassman’s debut novel, Blood of a Stone returns to that first century with a stunning attention to detail and an unexpected, fast-paced plot. Rather than focusing on the man who would become known as the Messiah, the author takes us on a journey with the lowest of citizens: Demetrios, a slave. In choosing a character who climbs from the bottom rung of the social caste, Gassman exposes the layers of Palestinian culture and society: from the aching isolation and despair of a leper colony to the gross display of Roman excess to the crowds of the hopeful and devoted massing around a prophet whose fate is doomed.
The cast of characters in Blood of a Stone is our window into a world of merchants, nomads, prophets, Jews and Romans. Most fascinating to me were the intellectual journeys made by Demetrios’s companion Elazar, a Jew who first follows, then rejects Jesus, and Tabitha, a biblical figure who comes to play a central role in Demetrios’s story. Gassman indicates in the Author’s Q&A that if she were to write a sequel to Blood of a Stone, it would be a continuation of Tabitha’s story. I’d be the first reader in line!
I do not accept the mythology that is the Bible, yet I am acutely aware of the force of history it represents. Jesus of Nazareth walked this earth, teaching a philosophy of compassion, the original Social Justice Warrior. Blood of a Stone presents the world into which Jesus was born and martyred, showing how his teachings may have been received and interpreted by Palestine’s rich tapestry of cultures. Written with passion and compassion, it is a lovely, impressive debut.
My thanks to Tuscany Press for providing an Advanced Reader Copy for review.
Jeanne Lyet Gassman’s debut novel, Blood of a Stone returns to that first century with a stunning attention to detail and an unexpected, fast-paced plot. Rather than focusing on the man who would become known as the Messiah, the author takes us on a journey with the lowest of citizens: Demetrios, a slave. In choosing a character who climbs from the bottom rung of the social caste, Gassman exposes the layers of Palestinian culture and society: from the aching isolation and despair of a leper colony to the gross display of Roman excess to the crowds of the hopeful and devoted massing around a prophet whose fate is doomed.
The cast of characters in Blood of a Stone is our window into a world of merchants, nomads, prophets, Jews and Romans. Most fascinating to me were the intellectual journeys made by Demetrios’s companion Elazar, a Jew who first follows, then rejects Jesus, and Tabitha, a biblical figure who comes to play a central role in Demetrios’s story. Gassman indicates in the Author’s Q&A that if she were to write a sequel to Blood of a Stone, it would be a continuation of Tabitha’s story. I’d be the first reader in line!
I do not accept the mythology that is the Bible, yet I am acutely aware of the force of history it represents. Jesus of Nazareth walked this earth, teaching a philosophy of compassion, the original Social Justice Warrior. Blood of a Stone presents the world into which Jesus was born and martyred, showing how his teachings may have been received and interpreted by Palestine’s rich tapestry of cultures. Written with passion and compassion, it is a lovely, impressive debut.
My thanks to Tuscany Press for providing an Advanced Reader Copy for review.
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