Thomas and Tasmin, twin siblings hired to oversee a wedding feast in Cana, worry when the host runs out of wineuntil a guest tells Tasmin to have the servants fill the pitchers by the gate with water from the cistern. Reluctantly, she obeys and is amazed when rainwater turns into the finest wine ever tasted in Cana. When Thomas impulsively decides to follow the teacher from Nazareth, he and Tasmin argue since the twins have been together since the womb, Tasmin can't accept losing her brother to some magician prophet. Aided by Jude, younger brother to Jesus of Nazareth, she decides to follow the Nazarene's group and do whatever she must to mend the fractured relationship and bring her brother home. Daughter of Cana
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The moment I saw Daughter of Cana on Goodreads and , months before it released, my inner bookworm began salivating. Angela Hunt has proven again and again she can spin a Scripturally accurate, engrossing, and creative Biblical fiction story. Daughter of Cana does not disappoint.
At first, I wondered how Angela would handle the risk of main character Tasmin; we know Thomas had a twin but that person is never mentioned in the 66 books of Protestant Scripture, nor even the Apocrypha as far as I know. (Then again, it somehow escaped me that while Thomas' name means twin, he might have actually had one, so there you go. I guess I felt like since Thomas was the only one mentioned, he must've been an only child from that family. Silly me). Anyway, I was a little skeptical, but Angela builds a good case for Thomas having a twin, and a twin sister at that. Tasmin herself is a multifaceted, sympathetic character, and one unique to her culture. That is, she doesn't seek out marriage or even friendship. She's introverted. She feels out of place in general society. I could identify with that, and so enjoyed her journey on that level. Moreover, I enjoyed seeing her journey as a disciple's sister.
More about that Angela does a wonderful job of portraying what it might have been like to live in Jesus' time and choose whether to believe in Him or not while He was still physically on earth. I think a lot of modern Christians make the naive assumption that because we are on the NT side of the cross, the decision to follow Jesus should be a no brainer. What we I included forget is that Jesus was God and human at once. He asked people to do or say things that made no sense to them. He taught in parables and spoke of the Kingdom of God in ways that might be obvious if you're a twenty first century Christian who grew up in church, but if you were a first century Israeliteyeah, I could see thinking Yeshua was crazy or a troublemaker. Thus, why it is so gratifying to see Tasmin and Jude's journeys as they physically follow Yeshua and the others, but also follow the trail to spiritual renewal. Tasmin's revelations about Yeshua are probably some of the best parts of the book.
I've focused a lot on Tasmin, but the other characters pop off the page, too. The actual Biblical characters, like Yeshua, Mary, and Thomas are in line with Scripture and beautifully rendered. The addition of fictional characters like little Yagil add some needed flavor and authenticity of human experience. The healing of Yagil is one of my favorite scenes, especially seeing him sitting on Yeshua's lap. As for Jude, he too is a multifaceted character who's a pleasure to get to know. I enjoyed seeing him interact with Tasmin, because while romance is involved, they have an unconventional relationship. I also enjoyed seeing him with Yeshua and his brothers and sisters, getting to know these characters as real people with personalities.
As is often the case with a book like this, it's the little scenes that make the plot work and form a cohesive, enjoyable story. Daughter of Cana hits the high points between Jesus' birth and crucifixion and resurrection, including those three (the way Mary tells the birth story is excellent). However, we also get to spend time on smaller instances that lend us insight into who Jesus and His followers might have been as people, which I loved. I loved seeing the disciples interact as a family, and Tasmin and Jude learn from the people they met on their travels.
Although I understand and agree that there was nothing untoward about Tasmin and Thomas' relationship, I did sometimes feel they were too close, mostly because of what I found out about their mother. As for that, it works within the story, but I don't feel it was needed or given the time it deserved. That is, Tasmin makes a big deal out of the fact that she can't accept Yeshua for who He is because of her guilt and yet when she does come to believe in Him, she seems to automatically accept removal of her guilt is part of the deal. I also wonder if the story of the twins' mother was taking too much of a liberty, although the disciples did of course have childhoods, families, and shaping incidents. Anyway, that's kind of a nitpick.
The final verdict? Daughter of Cana is a different, yet faithful and engrossing tale of Jesus' ministry, perfect for Easter and Passover season. Read and enjoy. Daughter of Cana I’ve read all of Angela Hunt’s books. She is a remarkably talented writer. She closely follows the timelines in the Bible. I highly recommend her books. Be prepared. Once you begin you’ll not be able to put them down. I’m anxiously awaiting her next book. Daughter of Cana I cannot even express how amazing this book is! 8 loved walking the roads with Jude and Tasmin. I began to feel I too was one of the many they adopted as they traveled after Jesus and the 12. Seriously, Angela Hunt never disappoints! Never! Ps. Loved the footnote about Jude’s grandchildren! Thanks for another great read and Bible lesson. Daughter of Cana Everyone who loves Biblical fiction should read Daughter of Cana by Angela Hunt. This story explores the doubtful mindset many had about Yeshua being the Son of God because of where He came from and familiarity. But the beautiful thing about this story is that His Truth still won the hearts of those who loved HaShem, and there is a scene that gave me chills and brought tears to my eyessomething Mary, the mother of Jesus, said to her son Jude. This is a very powerful story and beautiful portrayal of how Jesus' Love and Truth softens the heart of even the most staunch of doubters. Daughter of Cana Good telling of the New Testament stories of Jesus. I am not finished yet with the book but I fear that Jesus' brother, Jude, will come to faith by the end of the story. Not sure that happened until after the resurrection. Also she referenced a coffin where Jesus raised a boy from the dead. The problem is that I do not believe that coffins were used in Judea at that time. They were in Egypt. Little details like that can spoil a story for me. But it is a relatively quick easy read.
Now that I have fully finished the book I must revise this review. Angela Hunt handled the rest of the story very well and with accuracy. Her timeline of the crucifixion to the resurrection is unorthodox but actually accurate and logical, scriptural. My criticism in that first paragraph has evaporated and my rating has gone up significantly. It was very well written and scripture and history handled well. I will never give a written review again before I finish the book! Still am not sure about the coffin thing, but that is minor. Daughter of Cana
Not enough story and a lot of copying of scripture which wasn't always accurate. Sadly I was disappointed in this book. Had looked forward to reading it but not what I thought it would be. Daughter of Cana Loved this story made me feel connected back to the times of Jesus walking around but from the perspective of women. I've always tried to imagine what life must have been like for women at the time as they are just not elaborated upon in the Bible, this book did better than my imagination. Thank you Daughter of Cana I loved this book. It was so easy to read and flowing, yet it opens up the bible passages it's based on so much. It helps to see characters who you often put on a pedestal as normal human beings. It helped me to understand scriptures that I'm very familiar with, come alive . Tasmin and Judes portrayal of the life of yeshua was a beautiful One. I feel that i know and understand the passages this story was based on better after reading this book. Daughter of Cana I pre ordered this book because I've recently read a few books by this author that I enjoyed. There are a couple of niggles like her using the Hebrew words God and the Holy Spirit. Some of the scenarios I found unlikely like how Tasmin traipsed around Israel for weeks (instead of the planned day) while leaving her sickly father in the care of an aunt. I think I was irked by the fact that they didn't let anyone know. I could really nitpick but I don't want to because the second half of the book was so good.
Essentially Tasmin is the twin sister to Thomas the disciple. When he left home to follow Yeshua (see what I mean), Tasmin was determined to bring her brother back home. Despite witnessing Jesus (sorry) turn the water into wine, she didn't believe in Him. Jude is Jesus's brother and he wants to fetch Jesus home to help in the family carpentry business. His mother had gone off with Jesus too and left the brothers to fend for themselves at home (they were adults). Tasmin and Jude team up to go and search for their siblings and fall in love along the way. The falling in love wasn't romantic but I didn't mind. I loved the pursuit of Jesus and the last 8 chapters redeemed the book for me. Daughter of Cana Writing mainly from Tamsin’s perspective (Judes future wife) Angela Hunt explains how so many, having heard Jesus’ words and seen His miracles still did not believe who He was! Even his own brothers failed to recognise Jesus as the Messiah until he rose from the dead! It is helpful that those who have not seen and yet believed can see why some people refuse to be convinced even when the truth is clearly before them.
By Penny Callaghan Daughter of Cana