Behold the Man: A BookLook Blogger Review

The most recent book I have been reading to review is from Bodie and Brock Thoene. Although they are a well-known writing team among Christian fiction circles this is the first book I've read by them. Behold the Man is the third in the Jerusalem Chronicles series which recounts the tumultuous time in Israel's history during Jesus' ministry. I have not read the previous two books, but this one covers the end of Jesus' ministry here on earth.

The Roman occupation is central to understanding much of what Scripture tells us about Jesus' ministry and this is an excellent book to help get a grasp of what was happening and what it meant for both the Jews and the Romans. There is a great amount of historical detail included. It is evident that the Thoenes spent extensive amounts of time researching in order to make sure this story aligned with biblical accounts and non-biblical historical sources.

I had a very hard time getting into the story. It felt a bit slow at the beginning and was filled with so much historical reference I felt I needed to spend some time looking up the names and references in order to really understand it. I love historical fiction, but it is hard for me to enjoy it if limited knowledge of a certain period prevents me from fully understanding it. This one thing frustrated me. I enjoyed the portrayal of actual historical characters. 

If you like historical fiction that delves very deeply into the historical period in which it is set both culturally, politically, and socially, you will most surely enjoy this book. It is well written and accurately presented even though it is fictional. Personally I was not a huge fan of the weightier material.

Disclaimer: I received this title from BookLook Bloggers in return for an honest review. I was not compensated in any other way. I was not required to write a positive review.