Review: The Centurion's Wife

Name: The Centurion's Wife

Author: Davis Bunn and Janette Oke

Genre: Historical fiction, Biblical fiction, Romance, Christian

Format: 📖 physical 

Publisher: Bethany House Publishers

What's it about? 

A sweeping saga of the dramatic events surrounding the birth of Christianity—And the very personal story of Leah, compelled into a betrothal she never wanted, drawn by a faith she expected...

When her family's wealth and power are lost forever, Leah is sent to Pontius Pilate in hopes that he might arrange a strategic marriage. But despite her betrothed's striking countenance and position, Leah deems life as a centurion's wife a fate worse than death. 

Head of the garrison near Galilee, Alban has ambitions that could one day see him at the seat of power—in Rome itself. Eager to prove himself, he takes on the assignment of a lifetime, one that will put his career, his beliefs, and his very life at risk. 

But when the death—and missing body—of an obscure rabbi compel Leah and Alban to search for answers, what they discover changes everything. 

IMPORTANT NOTE: What is written below is purely my own opinion! You might like certain parts of this book that I didn't like and vice versa. 

My Thoughts on...

The Characters

• I loved the deep character growth of both characters. 
• Both Leah and Alban felt like fully-fledged characters who were real. It felt as if they had real backstories and felt genuine. Even if I disagreed with what they did, every action they made felt like it came from an authentic place and felt natural. 

The Plot

• The plot flowed naturally and felt very realistic
• I loved how the romance elements were weaved naturally with the faith and character elements.  
• I also loved how they weaved in faith elements so seamlessly with the plot and the characters and how it felt so realistic and not preachy. 

Writing Style

• I loved that the writing was simple to understand and felt realistic. Like this is how the characters would have talked in real life.  
• The prose is so beautiful!
• I love the mood of this book! It's a bit light but has a 'solve the mystery' kind of feel. 

Final Verdict: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

I honestly loved this book! I loved how realistic it felt. It felt like the authors put so much detail and depth into the characters and plot, which was amazing! It was refreshing to read a story where the characters felt real and didn't feel like 3D stereotypes. I am so looking forward to reading the rest of this series!

You might like this if you like: 

• A slow-burn mystery intertwined with a romance plot
• Dual POV
• Stories set in the backdrop of historical events 
• Deep character growth