When author Robert
Whitlow writes a book, I want to read it.
That’s why I was excited at the opportunity to read his newest book Promised
Land and I loved it.
Readers are reintroduced
to characters from his last novel Chosen People. Hana Abboud, a Christian Arab attorney from
Israel who is living in the United States, her husband Daud Hasan a Christian Arab
from Israel, friend and colleague Jakob Brodsky, and dear friends Ben and Sadie
Neumann. While reading this book, I felt
like I was being reunited and catching up with old friends.
The story begins with
Rahal Abaza in Qatar, five years earlier he had a jarring experience that set
his life on a new course that will intersect with Daud and Hana. Hana is at home and awakens for her night
watch, a time of prayer, reading Scripture and worship. While she does not know the specifics of all
that’s going on with her husband Daud, she is praying for him while he is in
Egypt on a mission for the CIA. He will
need those prayers for what he’s about to encounter.
From the get-go, Promised
Land is off and running. There’s
a lot of suspense, intrigue, and action, but it doesn’t interfere with the development
of characters or take the place of an interesting storyline. It’s well balanced.
My favorite thing about Robert
Whitlow’s writing is how he develops characters. Hana is one of the most interesting
characters. It’s fascinating to see and
consider what it’s like to be an Arab Christian who is from Israel. You would think that there might be conflict,
but Hana is a very gracious woman who takes her faith seriously. She loves her family and is a faithful
friend. I found Daud intriguing and felt
on edge with all the situations and people he encounters. Jakob is an interesting fellow. He always seems to take on cases that look
impossible and that will require a lot of work and research to see if they will
pan out. Ben and his daughter Sadie…absolutely
love them.
I don’t want to spoil the
story about what happens, so I’ll leave it with a brief intro into the
storyline and characters. But I hope that
you will pick up a copy of Promised Land by Robert Whitlow. It’s the second book in this series but is a
good stand-alone book. You may want to
go back and read Chosen People so you can have a richer
connection with the characters.
Robert Whitlow is a gifted writer.
He tells a good story and develops rich likable characters. I highly recommend Promised Land
by Robert Whitlow. If you like action,
suspense, intrigue, and interesting likable characters you will like Promised
Land.
I would like to thank Thomas
Nelson Publishers and NetGalley for the opportunity to read Promised
Land by Robert Whitlow. I
was provided with a free copy of this book and was under no obligation to give
a favorable review.
