Customer Reviews

Wisdom's Daughter: A Novel of Solomon and Sheba

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I did have a chance to see the galleys of this novel before publication last year and even give an opinion or two back to the author, and I thought then that this book looked to be very promising. Now, reading it in published form, I think "Wisdom's Daughter" is even better than India Edghill's previous book "Queenmaker"--the story of Queen Michal, Saul's daughter and David's consort.

In "Wisdom's Daughter", Edghill recreates the court of King Solomon and of Bilqis, Queen of Sheba. The author poses an answer to the riddle of the reason behind the Queen's long journey from far-off Sheba to Israel. What were the questions she wished to have answered that were so perplexing? It is rare that a queen would travel for months away from her realm and offer riches beyond imagination for information! Some have speculated that, in the Bible "all she desired" was to have a child by Solomon. Edghill proposes a far more intricate answer.

The writing is stylized though not overly florid, as befits the subject, and the imagery is rich and colorful. The stories of the other queens of Solomon are as interesting as Bilqis' own; a Sword Maiden from Troy, a sorceress who charms snakes to peer into the future, a breeder of tiny dogs, a Northerner whose blonde hair and pale skin is considered exotic and a princess of Cush (Nubia) who is "black but comely" as the Song of Songs states.

Bilqis is joined by Baalit, the splendid daughter of Solomon. She is brilliant and wise enough to rule as a Queen, but in Israel, her brothers, who are by and large quite inferior to her, will succeed to the throne. Characters from "Queenmaker" also make a reappearance, so this novel is in a sense a continuation of the first book. Howver, it stands entirely on its own as a novel. Together, they are fascinating historical fiction, more in the mythical style than in the factual, and filled with romance and adventure. A fine, pleasurable read. Recommended for those who love historical or fantasy fiction.

In Wisdom's Daughter, Edghill continues the saga of the women in the households of David and Solomon. Each of the wives and concubines emerge as memorable individuals. The author provides a strikingly original premise for the Queen's journey to the court of Solomon; my only criticism is that the ultimate outcome is predictable from an early point in the story, however, the lush descriptions of settings and the well developed characters more than make up for the lack of suspense. Some readers of her first novel (Queenmaker) objected to Edghill's depiction of King David; in this second novel, the primary characters are shown in a more sympathetic light. I was surprised to find how little is known about the real historical figure (the Queen of Sheba), and enchanted by the invented character in this book.

When I say that this book is sultry it is simply because it truly seems to bring to life the steamyness of love in Solomon's palace, the animosities between his many wives from various religions and cultures, and his slow-burning romance with the Queen of Sheba.

The history seems to me to be plausible and accurate, and straight off the author lets us know the exact biblical text which sparks her tale so as not to delude the reader as to what is fact and what is fiction. There are many tidbits about the unsettled living between the followers of Yahweh and those who worshipped other gods and even goddesses. I also gained a new insight into the politics of royal marriages as diplomatic manuevers.

What I found enjoyable was that the tale was at different points told from the perspectives of different characters: Solomon, the Queen of Sheba, Solomon's daughter, various of his wives, friends and leaders in the royal household. This led to an interesting play of deceptions, misunderstandings, hidden information, etc. which kept the ultimate plot twists and ending somewhat obscured from view, though not completely unpredictible. Much of this is told from the female point of view, which is refreshing in a world that was so dominated by men.

I admit that I finished this in 2 days as a summer read and didn't want to put it down. It was certainly more than worth the under $6 price I paid for it off of a bargain rack. I would recommend it to those who enjoy historical fiction, and in particular religious and Christian historical fiction. Similar books I've read would include Diamant's "The Red Tent" and to a lesser extent Wangerin's "Paul."

This is a great story of what could have, may have or may not have happened when the Queen of Sheba visited the court of King Solomon. I found the novel filled with wisdom and strength from both the female and male characters. It's a fresh and intriguing view of a world long past, with ageless truths sprinkled throughout its pages. In short, I highly recommend this book.

With the deaths of her daughter and granddaughter, Queen Bilgis of Sheba needs a true female heir to one day replace her on the throne. She prays to the Goddess she worships, who tells her that she will find the sire of her heir in the Land of Israel. Thus Bilgis treks to Jerusalem seeking the designated one.

In Jerusalem, King Solomon rules wisely over a land of milk and honey, but worries about who will replace him on the throne. The best candidate is his daughter Baalit, but females cannot rule Israel unlike Sheba. Bilgis and Solomon appreciate the wisdom they see in one another; Bilgis also sees astuteness in Baalit, who she feels should be named successor. As Solomon's wives battle behind curtains encouraged by the sanctimonious Prophet Alijah to influence the king to dump the pagan, Bilgis tries to persuade her lover that his teenage daughter should become the next ruler as she is the best suited of his children.

This insightful and believable retelling of the classic Solomon-Sheba match up brings to life the era yet places a mesmerizing spin on Queen Bilgis quest in seeking the King of the Jews. The comparison between the equal rights Sheba with its matriarchal primogeniture vs. the patriarchal Israel is an interesting perspective (perhaps too modernized for that era) while the court intrigue of Solomon's wives provides a glimpse of the personal agendas and thus the times. The most interesting gyration is that Alijah comes across as a holier-than-thou preacher warning the King about his tryst with the pagan and coaxing his wives to stir trouble. As with the QUEENMAKER, India Edghill puts a female twist to heroes of the bible.

Harriet Klausner

I loved the prequel, Queenmaker, and I love this even more. The writing was rich, the characters multi-faceted, the story strong and complex. Any reader and lover of history longing for different version of "herstory" should read this. (Of course, one should always start with The Red Tent, if looking for stories of the Old Testament.) I loved it so much, I had to read it again!!

This book is written very well; however, as a light read, it is hard to follow if you haven't read it for a few days.

There are too many characters, and the author jumps from one character's perspective to another. I initally thought this was a neat way to write the story, but when you like a certain character, you may not hear from or about that character for another hundred pages!

If you can sit down one weekend and read it, I'm sure it'll finish up great (I lost interest about 3/4 of the way through it, and didn't finish), but if you plan to read this over a few weeks--it is too drawn out and hard to follow!

I've read a few books about Solomon and Sheba but this gave me a completely different view on the story - Sheba's point of view. I read this book cover to cover and only put it down once to go to bed! I fell into the pages and became part of the story and afterwards felt like I'd been on an adventure myself. Perfect for the vacation I read it on.

Queen Bilqis of Sheba is past menopause and without an heiress to succeed her as queen. King Solomon of Israel is fair and just and wise, but dead in spirit, never having recovered from the loss of his first and favorite wife. His daughter, Princess Baalit, is blazing with ambition and restlessness, but destined only for a role as a subservient wife. When Bilqis visits Israel, the lives of all three characters are shaken. Along the way, the author seduces with lush detail, a large cast of characters, and a fascinating alternate perspective on figures from the Bible and folk legend.

I enjoyed every minute of this book, but I'm giving it only four stars because I still feel oddly emotionally distant from the major characters. Solomon/Sheba is one of the great love stories of the ages. Yet, in this novel, I don't really feel the strength of that love. I see how they are taken with each other intellectually, but the spark just didn't light for me. Maybe this is because the only character we really get inside of is Baalit, who is kind of a brat. Maybe it's because there really isn't much conflict or tension in the plot. I could tell the entire storyline from the first few chapters, and while there are events that threaten to disrupt the characters' lives, for the most part these events are averted before the tension really has a chance to build.

All the same, this is a lovely book, and I recommend it if you like feminist-leaning historical novels, as I do.

Oddly, the part that really choked me up was the story of Helike, Solomon's Trojan wife, who made vows of chastity to Artemis but was overridden when her father needed her to cement an alliance with Israel. She is a very minor character, but she's the one I ended up caring about most.

This is a lush, beautiful read of King Solomon's court. While I didn't care much for the heroine, Baalit, and thought her something of an annoying Mary Sue, the other narratives in the books, especially of Solomon's various wives and the dead queen Abishag, were much more interesting.

My only complaint is that you don't really see much of Jewish religious beliefs, such as dietary laws or other prohibitions, that would have existed at the time. At one point, Baalit mentions to her father that Bilqis, the Queen of Sheba, wants to marry her to her nephew Rabharin. Isn't there any concern that Rabharin isn't Jewish? Isn't Solomon concerned at the end that his daughter won't keep the Law?

Still, the book is a good read, and Edghill cleverly works in details from the various Sheba legends, such as having Bilqis (one of the queen's names) from the area of modern-day Yemen, but also having Solomon married to an Ethiopian princess named Makeda (another of the queen's names) and fathering a son (the future Menelik I) by her.