I have read more Christian novels than I can count.
According to Goodreads, I’ve read over 1,500 in the last ten years (and that’s just a drop in the bucket of all the novels published in the last ten years).
Most of the novels I read are good. Many are excellent. Few last in my memory beyond me writing my book review. The ones I remember longer tend to be the ones that make it to my end-of-year “Best of …” list.
Despite the fact I write contemporary Christian romance, the novels I remember tend to be historical Christian fiction from authors like Elizabeth Camden, Gabrielle Meyer, Roseanna M White, and Francine Rivers.
On that basis, it’s perhaps no surprise for me to decide my favourite Christian novel is Echo in the Darkness by Francine Rivers
Echo in the Darkness is the second book in her Mark of the Lion trilogy. In many trilogies, the middle book is the weakest (the “saggy middle” writers dread).
But it’s my favourite because it focusses on my two favourite characters in the series, Marcus and Hadassah, and their protracted romance. Marcus is a Roman and not a Christian, but journeys to Israel to discover more about Hadassah after he believes she has been killed in the arena. There he learns to forgive his sister (who he blames for Hadassah’s death) and find God’s forgiveness for himself. I love strong salvation stories, and Marcus’s journey to faith was compelling reading.
Equally compelling was Hadassah’s story back in Rome (and perhaps Ephesus. It’s been a while since I read it, so some of the details are hazy). She works with a healer and finds herself back in Marcus’s family home, caring for his mother.
Echo in the Darkness is, first and foremost, a Christian novel. It’s set in a fascinating period in history–the Roman empire shortly after the fall of Jerusalem–and it incorporates the history and customs of the day into a wonderful Christian romance with a good deal of light suspense.
The writing style might be a little dated, but there is a reason Echo in the Darkness (and many more of Francine Rivers’s books) have remained on bestseller lists for decades.
