What Am I Reading Now?

I finished Mark of Royalty while I was on vacation in Utah, the night before I attended the LDS Storymakers Writers Conference. Instead of starting another book on my Kindle, I got sucked into the LDS Sorymakers Conference bookstore and bought a print copy of Abinadi, by Heather B. Moore. (Yes, I know, kind of defeats the purpose of carrying a Kindle with me, but they weren't selling Kindle books in the bookstore.) Abinadi is based on a scripture story in the Book of Mormon, and I'm going to be honest ... I have a hard time with fictionalized versions of scripture stories in general, because I tend to have already sort of rewritten the stories in my own head when I read them. Not the basic facts, but you know, what I think the people looked like, what they might have been thinking or feeling during the actual scripture story, etc. So it's hard for me to give up my own "vision" to read someone else's, but I've heard tons of good things about this book, so I wanted to give it a try. (The one exception with scripture-based novels for me was The Chariot of Israel, and that was because the author somehow managed to strike a chord of how I had already pictured Elijah in my own head, so I didn't get jarred every time Elijah appeared on the fictionalized pages.)

Here's the back cover blurb for Abinadi:

Raquel has a secret. As the daughter of one of King Noah's priests, she enjoys a luxurious life and the admiration of powerful men. But her heart belongs to a commoner, a man with no earthly wealth but rich heavenly gifts. When King Noah demands that Raquel join his harem, she flees the only life she has known and marries her secret love. His name is Abinadi. The couple finds abundant joy in their community of believers and in their firstborn son. But when the Lord calls Abinadi as His prophet, their faith is tested to the outermost limits. Abinadi's commitment to the Lord requires them both to give their all—even unto death. Yet if Alma, the newest priest in King Noah's court, chooses to overcome his troubled past and cleave unto the truth, their sacrifice may yield rich fruit. With vivid detail and poignant emotion, this historical novel pulls readers into a fiery tale of love, courage, and faith that is difficult to put down and impossible to forget.


Stop by on Tuesday to read a Tuesday Teaser from Abinadi. (And yes, when I finish this book, I'm going to finally finish reading King John, by W.L. Warren!)