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Thief of Corinth Tessa Afshar 9781496428660 Books

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Thief of Corinth Tessa Afshar 9781496428660 Books

Thief of Corinth is a wonderfully engaging and swift-paced Christian historical fiction that drops you into its reality where you follow the scent of cloves, pine, sandlewood, and rosemary, feel the heat of summer baking the city, and follow the exploits of a young woman, Ariadne, as she finds truth and love amidst the backdrop of family and friendships, athletic competitions, and the visit of an apostle. Tessa Afshar’s novel opens with Ariadne accidentally sighting her father as he sneaks off during the night. Following him, she witnesses him breaking into a villa, then fleeing, chased by the owner’s guards. Even as Ariadne aids her father in a daring escape, she is drawn into his deception and finds she has a talent for theft and a desire for the feeling of control and freedom that it brings.

For Ariadne greatly desires the freedom her father offers. Her grandfather is forcing her into marriage with a brute, and her mother is cold, distant, and critical. Thief of Corinth is a map of one woman’s journey to ultimate freedom. When Ariadne escapes to her father’s home, letting someone else pay the price for her freedom, she finds herself shunned and belittled by the young women of her father’s social circle. But Ariadne doesn’t mope and whine about her fate, she embraces her life as a thief, making choices that could cost her and her father their freedom and their lives. And it may cost the love of a man she’s come to admire. Thieving is the life she has chosen, but it might not be a choice she can live with. It will take time and the help of friends, family, and those she thought were enemies, but Ariadne is going to discover what it takes to free a thief.

Ariadne’s gymnastic skills and fleetness of foot are just a few of the skills needed to inveigle her way into the homes of the high and rich members of society, seeking where their wealth is hidden so that she and her father can return in the cover of night to steal it away. But someone knows that her father is the Honorable Thief and blackmails them. How deep does the corruption go? Can she and her father escape the net of the blackmailer? Are friends closer than she thinks? Can she ever be truly free again?

Through it all, we know that Ariadne takes responsibility for what she’s done and the consequences, and I absolutely love that accountability. As Ariadne says, “Yet the final blame, as you and I know, dear Paul, rests with me. It was I who chose as I did. I could have taken the wounds of my early life and turned them to healing. Instead, they became my excuse to do as I wished.” And admitting responsibility is the start of an incredible journey.

I loved this book so much! Thief of Corinth is an indelibly rich and fulfilling story, the world-building is incredible, and I finished it just wanting to dive into the next book. This is the first book I’ve read by Tessa Afshar, but she’s now on my favorite authors list, and I’ll be reading more. Highly recommended for anyone who loves historical fiction, stories of redemption, Biblical stories, or tales of strong women coming into their own.

Trigger warning: There is a scene of the aftermath of violence against a woman and brief discussion of another instance. Both are brief, not overly graphic, and easily skimmed past; just putting that out there as a heads-up.

I received this book as an Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) through NetGalley. My opinions are my own.


Tags : Thief of Corinth [Tessa Afshar] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. First-century Corinth is a city teeming with commerce and charm. It’s also filled with danger and corruption―the perfect setting for Ariadne’s greatest adventure.<br/><br/>After years spent living with her mother and oppressive grandfather in Athens,Tessa Afshar,Thief of Corinth,Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.,1496428668,Christian - Historical,Romance - Clean & Wholesome,Romance - Historical - Ancient World,Brothers,Christian converts from Judaism,Christian fiction.,Compassion - Religious aspects,Corinth (Greece) - History,Corinth (Greece);History;Fiction.,Fathers and daughters,Forgiveness - Religious aspects,Historical fiction,Mothers and daughters,Paul,Religious fiction,Thieves,Thieves;Fiction.,FICTION Christian Historical,FICTION Romance Clean & Wholesome,FICTION Romance Historical Ancient World,Fiction,Fiction-Christian,FictionRomance - Clean & Wholesome,FictionRomance - Historical - Ancient World,GENERAL,General Adult,LIGHT ROMANTIC FICTION,United States,christian books; christianity; christian historical romance; wholesome romance; clean romance; first century; biblical times; ancient world; danger; corruption; adventure; athens; corinth; secrets; bravery; redemption; paul; thief; action; crime; salvation; early christianity; faith; hope; conversion,christian books;christianity;christian historical romance;wholesome romance;clean romance;first century;biblical times;ancient world;danger;corruption;adventure;athens;corinth;secrets;bravery;redemption;paul;thief;action;crime;salvation;early christianity;faith;hope;conversion,FICTION Christian Historical,FICTION Romance Clean & Wholesome,FICTION Romance Historical Ancient World,FictionRomance - Clean & Wholesome,FictionRomance - Historical - Ancient World,Fiction

Thief of Corinth Tessa Afshar 9781496428660 Books Reviews

Wow I really enjoyed this book! I hesitated as I was not interested in a story about a thief, but this is such an unusual plot!
A young woman develops her physical abilities, leading to roof burglary's as she attempts to save her family from ruin.

The relationships of the main characters all ring true - its a beautiful story.
Don't let prejudice keep you from enjoying this one!
LOVED this story! From the first time she walked on the page to her bittersweet “Hopeful-Ever-After” ending, heroine Ariadne grabbed me, and I could do nothing but follow her on this journey ) She reminded me of some special young people in my life and maybe, in a few small ways, of my own history. Powerful storytelling & beautiful writing! So, so good!!!

Thief of Corinth is an exciting, thoughtful, poignant must-read. For me, Ariadne has become my Bible-times Anne of Green Gables or Jo March. I ordered a copy of this book for my classroom & look forward to introducing my students to her.

The only good thing about finishing this book is that it has been out for a while. So I’m hoping the next Tessa Afshar novel will be coming soon. AND dare I hope that we will have some closure for Theo?? Yes, I know he’s not real but still . . . )
You know an author is pretty spectacular when she's able to make you really feel for the main character after having read only 16 pages into a book! That's exactly what Afshar did in Thief of Corinth, the author's most recent Biblical fiction release set in the time of the New Testament.

The heroine, Ariadne, is a teen at the beginning of this novel, and Draco is a man her grandfather has arranged for her to marry. Ariadne walks in on Draco right after he had brutally had his way with a slave girl who was even younger than Ariadne. The grandfather is nonchalant about the incident and still says Ariadne must marry Draco; Ariadne is outraged over this command and says so; Ariadne's mother is furious at her daughter! for being rude to her grandfather and she strikes Ariadne's face so hard that later it leaves a bruise.

Oh, how I experienced Ariadne's own disbelief, anger, and emotional hurt over that—especially since she was a young teen, at an age when one feels everything 100 times more acutely than an adult. The author continued to make me sympathize with Ariadne, and care more and more about her, as well as several other characters, with each turn of the page. This was most impressive because of the author's brevity.

Afshar has the craft of writing down so well that she only has to use a few paragraphs of narrative and limited lines of dialogue for each new scene in order to make readers feel like they are right there in Corinth, experiencing the same heartbreak, happiness, loneliness, anger, love, fear, uncertainty, excitement, or remorse that each and every one of the characters feel.

The author's beautiful and descriptive writing also helps to create scenes that evoke emotion all throughout this novel. Afshar's poetic voice in Thief of Corinth places her in the same league as lyrical master Amy Tan, author of The Joy Luck Club.

Some of my favorite lines of that type of prose were
-"My brother … enfolded Father in his arms. They had much to say to each other, those two men. Months of silence and hurt to bridge. But for those first few moments, embraces did the speaking."
-"I looked up at the sailor who had saved us, a man the size of a city gate with a complexion the warm hue of cinnamon bark."
-"Sometimes silence booms like thunder, carrying too many revelations for the mind to absorb. Shock had rendered us immobile."

Depicting emotional scenes isn't Afshar's only talent with descriptions—she also shows skill describing setting. Readers will clearly see the villas and buildings of Corinth, and feel as if they are right there in the first century, walking alongside the characters in this famous Biblical city.

One item to take note of, but something that did not detract at all from this fantastic story, is that the heroine Ariadne isn't a real Biblical figure. Several other people in this novel are though, like Dionysus, the Apostle Paul, Priscilla, and Aquila. There also are some minor characters in the book based on true historical figures, such as a man named Hermesianx who entered his daughters into the Isthmian Games, and Luis the Butcher, who really did have a shop in Corinth.

I think Thief of Corinth is a novel that both believers and those who are not Christians will enjoy, because believer or not, almost everyone can relate to many of the characters in the book, and to several situations such as wanting to please a parent, longing to be accepted and loved, and desiring to do what you think is best.

I was first introduced to Afshar's writing this past summer when my book club read her 2010 debut novel Pearl in the Sand, that is set in the times of the Old Testament. This is a fictionalized story about the real Biblical woman Rahab, a Canaanite prostitute who later married one of the leaders of Israel. Thief of Corinth is set in the times of the New Testament.

Afshar impressed with me Pearl in the Sand, which is why I rated that novel 4 stars, but the author really wowed me with Thief of Corinth, which is why I give this book 5 stars. I will recommend this novel to my family and friends, and I look forward to reading other books by this author.
Thief of Corinth is a wonderfully engaging and swift-paced Christian historical fiction that drops you into its reality where you follow the scent of cloves, pine, sandlewood, and rosemary, feel the heat of summer baking the city, and follow the exploits of a young woman, Ariadne, as she finds truth and love amidst the backdrop of family and friendships, athletic competitions, and the visit of an apostle. Tessa Afshar’s novel opens with Ariadne accidentally sighting her father as he sneaks off during the night. Following him, she witnesses him breaking into a villa, then fleeing, chased by the owner’s guards. Even as Ariadne aids her father in a daring escape, she is drawn into his deception and finds she has a talent for theft and a desire for the feeling of control and freedom that it brings.

For Ariadne greatly desires the freedom her father offers. Her grandfather is forcing her into marriage with a brute, and her mother is cold, distant, and critical. Thief of Corinth is a map of one woman’s journey to ultimate freedom. When Ariadne escapes to her father’s home, letting someone else pay the price for her freedom, she finds herself shunned and belittled by the young women of her father’s social circle. But Ariadne doesn’t mope and whine about her fate, she embraces her life as a thief, making choices that could cost her and her father their freedom and their lives. And it may cost the love of a man she’s come to admire. Thieving is the life she has chosen, but it might not be a choice she can live with. It will take time and the help of friends, family, and those she thought were enemies, but Ariadne is going to discover what it takes to free a thief.

Ariadne’s gymnastic skills and fleetness of foot are just a few of the skills needed to inveigle her way into the homes of the high and rich members of society, seeking where their wealth is hidden so that she and her father can return in the cover of night to steal it away. But someone knows that her father is the Honorable Thief and blackmails them. How deep does the corruption go? Can she and her father escape the net of the blackmailer? Are friends closer than she thinks? Can she ever be truly free again?

Through it all, we know that Ariadne takes responsibility for what she’s done and the consequences, and I absolutely love that accountability. As Ariadne says, “Yet the final blame, as you and I know, dear Paul, rests with me. It was I who chose as I did. I could have taken the wounds of my early life and turned them to healing. Instead, they became my excuse to do as I wished.” And admitting responsibility is the start of an incredible journey.

I loved this book so much! Thief of Corinth is an indelibly rich and fulfilling story, the world-building is incredible, and I finished it just wanting to dive into the next book. This is the first book I’ve read by Tessa Afshar, but she’s now on my favorite authors list, and I’ll be reading more. Highly recommended for anyone who loves historical fiction, stories of redemption, Biblical stories, or tales of strong women coming into their own.

Trigger warning There is a scene of the aftermath of violence against a woman and brief discussion of another instance. Both are brief, not overly graphic, and easily skimmed past; just putting that out there as a heads-up.

I received this book as an Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) through NetGalley. My opinions are my own.