This was an interesting account of the biblical figure Daniel. Told using information, biblical scholarship, and an engaging storytelling format, it brought this period alive. It fleshed out all the figures of the story, some of whom are sparingly mentioned in the Bible but are important to the events of the story. I enjoyed this book and it reminded me of the type of storytelling in Ted Dekkar's A.D. 30 series.

This is the third book I've read by from Mesu Andrews and once again she never ceases to amaze me with her creative talent in bringing biblical characters and stories alive while staying true to the Word of God. Of Fire And Lions is a story of faith and survival, told from the POV of Daniel and his wife, Abigail/Belili during the Babylonian captivity. This story spans over many years where it begins with the aging Daniel and Belili, with stories of their younger selves woven into it.

The story building is amazing! I always enjoy how Ms. Andrews creatively build/fill in the stories surrounding the true biblical stories which makes them believable. Her talent in weaving together facts and fiction is phenomenal. There are quite a lot going on during the Babylonian captivity. Here, we get to read about the stories of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego in the fiery furnace, Daniel in the lions' den and Nebuchadnezzar's transformation.

In a nutshell, this is one awesome read! I always look forward to reading her books. The atmospheric writing, mellifluous storytelling, well-developed characters and well-researched content renders Of Fire And Lions a must read for any historical fiction fans!

My favourite quotes:
Our service to God isn't about comparing ourself to others, my son. It's about measuring obedience to our individual calling.

Only Yahweh can work in a heart to help those we love to believe. We must simply love them with an honest and transparent heart.

Rumors are often lies begun with a seed of truth.


***I received a complimentary digital copy of this book from WaterBrook & Multnomah through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All views expressed in this review are my own and was not influenced by the author, publisher or any third party.***

Of Fire and Lions is my first read by Nesu Andrews, and I can happily say I can't wait to read more from her .

This is not only a biblical story which centers around Yahweh, it is a story of love, loss, survival, and faith .
A book that can be enjoyed by any person regardless of their relegius views. The author does a great job of retelling an age old biblical story and turning it into a sweeping saga full of research, beautiful imagery and depth rooted charachters.

Everyone know the story of Daniel and the lions but you have never heard the story quite like this.

This book is a novelisation of the story of Daniel and Abigail from the bible. It covers the time from their removal from Jerusalem, to the return of Jews to Jerusalem 70 years later.

The author takes a biblical truth view to research and deciding which information to give preference while writing this, as is explained in the notes at the end of the book. She has worked hard to show how faith in God can overcome any problem including a fire pit and a den of lions! The transformation of Nebuchadnezzar was handled well.

This was the 1st biblical fiction I have read and it didn't grab my attention, in a similar way that I can have problems with historical fiction based on established characters. I find that the need to fit to established events can overpower the narrative of the story.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC.

Another Amazing Book By Mesu Andrews!

I have never read a book By Mesu Andrews that I did not completely love… and this one is no exception!

Although I have done a comprehensive 12-week bible study from Beth Moore on Daniel, read Daniel for Dummies (yes it was a real book but can’t find it anymore), and studied the topic of Daniel’s life in detail, there were so many new things that I discovered about Daniel’s life through reading this book.

While most kids in Sunday school have heard the stories of the three men in the fiery furnace and Daniel in the lion’s den, Mesu Andrews has a real gift for being able to put the reader in the middle of the Bible Story to experience it. You will feel all the emotion of the events as they are happening. You will see nuances you have never seen before.

The story of Daniel starts when he was just a teen (about 15 years old) and he is taken from the royal family in Jerusalem and brought into captivity for an intensive three-year training period to eventually be put in service to the King. He faithfully serves four different Kings and it is not until the age of about 80 years old when he is thrown into the lion’s den for his “supposed disloyalty” to King Darius. Finally, Daniel has even won over King Cyrus who finally allows the Jewish people to return to their homeland (and pays the bill).

Although I had read about Daniel’s integrity from an early age (when he chose not to eat of the King’s food that might have been offered to idols), this was just the smallest glimpse into the integrity with which Daniel lived his life. He faithfully served King Nebuchadnezzar although he had watched the destruction of the Jerusalem temple and the plunder of all of the holy items that were taken. The King had killed many in Daniel’s royal family (or had certainly not been gracious to them). Yet, Daniel continued to honor the role he had been given and continued to serve this King faithfully despite the horrific things he had experienced as a result of this King’s decisions.

Despite the honor that Daniel should have received for his actions and wisdom in ruling the kingdom, he continued to humble himself in all occasions and point to the glory of his God. What a lesson for today about how to live humbly in a broken world, how to live justly among the unjust and how to hold fast to your faith and the principles of your God.

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley.com and the publisher in exchange for my fair and unbiased review.

This book opens by introducing us to Abigail, a mother to a large family, yet somehow shunned and estranged from them--all while living under the same roof. Her faithful companion and servant Mert is sure that things would be different if Abigail would just share her life story with them. But Abigail's not convinced. We also meet Daniel, Abigail's husband, who within minutes is dragged off to interpret a dream for King Belshazzar. The rest of the family seated at dinner is left shocked and distressed, especially since Daniel and his wife are now elderly.

After a couple chapters, we are thrown back in time to Jerusalem and Abigail's childhood in the court of the king. In the chaos that marks the court, Temple, and the years of Jewish history, she is soon an orphan--her life spared by the command of her mother to hide in the Temple. As Babylon takes Judah captive, Abigail must learn a new way of life, that of a servant to four boys: Daniel, Hananiah, Michael, and Azariah. While knowing what was expected of female servants in serving young men, Abigail fears her role, but knows it's the only way to survive. Daniel's kindness slowly wins her trust, and her intelligence leads him to instruct her in all that he's able to learn.

The God of the Israelites faithfully protects Abigail, even when she's separated from her friends, attacked by temple men and forced into pagan temple work. While in today's century professing Christians might turn their backs on God, Andrews shows how that could happen differently back in Daniel and Abigail's time, and Abigail ends up as a high priestess to Mithra, a pagan god.

I love Andrews attention to detail in her books. The names of the pillars of the temple, the bread in the Holy of Holies, the curtain decorations, the cherubim, and the Ark of the Covenant especially. Andrews addresses the controversial topic of eunuchs throughout Of Fire and Lions, because it is part of royalty life. I like her take on it, and while Daniel chooses to marry, his three friends have a revelation from God, as to what being a eunuch really means. Andrews weaves the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego's trial by fire, and Daniel's own personal testing in the den of lions. The history regarding King Cyrus and King Darius was very interesting, and Andrews explains a bit more of in the notes at the end of the book. She also does an excellent job allowing kings to be kings in all authority (whether right or not), while also demonstrating that God works through them in providing mercy to the Jews--whether that takes place in everyday court life or in the return of the Jewish exiles to rebuild Jerusalem.

Another story of hope and redemption through pagan kings, friendships with queens, wicked priests and temple workers, plagues and health, secrets and vulnerability, and war and miracles. Just like the Jewish captivity had an end for God's people, so our captivity here on earth and in these bodies has an end when the Son of David returns to claim his throne.

Of Fire And Lions by Mesu Andrews is the story of Daniel. Daniel is one of my favorite Bible characters. The cover of this book was also a huge draw. It’s beautiful. I’ve never read any books by this author before, but will be looking for some of her books now.
This book begins with Daniel and Belili/Abigail in their old age, but has the story of their younger selves and adventures throughout their lifetimes woven into it. It focuses on their lives and how decisions and actions play such an important part in our lives. There is regret, sorrow, feeling of inadequacy, but there is also forgiveness, love, hope and above all, the everlasting love of Yahweh spread throughout. I wasn’t sure how the author was going to bring this historical fiction to life without taking lots of liberties and making it just a story. She did an excellent job and makes me want to go back and read Daniel and study more. Overall, an excellent job and I would highly recommend this book.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The views expressed here are my own opinion.

"Of Fire and Lions" is another great Biblical fiction novel penned by Mesu Andrews, this time it is based on the book of Daniel in the Old Testament.

The majority of the book is told through the eyes of Belili (the fictional wife of Daniel). Belili (or Abigail) is one of the young people who is taken into exile to Babylon, along with Daniel and his friends.

The book begins with Belili and Daniel in their old age, having lived many decades in Babylon. As they look back over the years and remember their past, we get to learn about their experiences of living in exile and the cost of being faithful to God in a land where he is not worshipped as the one and true God.

Belili is such a relatable character. We see her as a child and her early encounter with God which forges her personal faith, but then because of circumstances against her, we see how she drifts away from God for a time. However, God always has his hand on her and draws her back to himself.

Belili carries a lot of guilt and feels she’s made so many mistakes as a mother and for many years she is unable to forgive herself. She is not so different from many of us who carry guilt relating to our own parenting.

Towards the end of her life, she realises her mistake in failing “to trust Yahweh’s power and sufficiency in both their lives [the lives of her children] and my own.” What a good lesson for us all to learn – to trust God with our lives and the lives of those closest to us.

She feels she has failed to convince her children to place their faith in God. But Daniel lovingly reminds her that it is Yahweh who does the convincing. It is our role as parents, to love them. This is a good reminder for each of us who are parents. We cannot make our children choose to follow God for themselves but we can unconditionally love them and keep praying for them.

Belili goes on such a journey of faith, with ups and downs, much as we all do. Towards the end of her life, she learns to love God above everyone and anything else whatever the cost. She surrenders herself to God. I wonder if you and I can say the same?

One conversation between Daniel and his son-in-law, Shesh, which spoke to me was when they were talking about the return of the Jews to Jerusalem. Shesh believes Daniel should be the one to lead them home and says, “Who in Babylon has been more faithful than you?”

Daniel’s reply is this, “Our service to God isn’t about comparing yourself to others, my son. It’s about measuring obedience to our individual calling.”

This is something each one of us would do well to learn and remember. Let’s not compare ourselves to anyone else, let’s just concentrate on being faithful to the calling God has given us.

I enjoyed reading the imaginative retelling of events from the book of Daniel, such as when Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego are thrown into the fiery furnace and when Daniel spends the night in the den of lions. Another account which made me think completely differently is Mesu’s interpretation of the time when King Nebuchadnezzar is punished by God by giving him the mind of a beast and living as a beast.

The character list at the beginning of the book is helpful. Especially if you’re like me and easily forget who is who. The Readers Guide at the end is useful if you wish to read this in your book club.

In my opinion, this book is definitely worth reading. It will help you to better understand some of the events in the Bible and the history of that time. I believe it can also help you in your own journey of faith in God.

LOVE LOVE LOVE this books. I am a newer Mesu Andrews fan, but really enjoyed her take on Daniel. She had me constantly going back to the word to verify different things, and it really ignited in me a desire to study this portion of scripture on my own.

The story of Daniel through a different view was insightful and inspiring. I know it helped me to see things differently in what they faced but also in what I am currently facing in my life. God is the same yesterday, today and forever.

This author always writes incredible books. The stories are always ones that invoke so many emotions. I would always highly recommend any book written by this author.

Of Fire and Lions provides a unique look into the biblical stories of Daniel and the Hebrews captivity by the Babylonians. At first keeping up with the dual narratives of flashing back to the beginning was confusing especially in trying to learn and keep up with the characters, but it provided a unique look into the characters helping thoroughly develop their story.

Stay with it for a bit to learn the story and characters — I put it down after a few chapters but tried again and didn’t want to put it down.

The novel has a rich message of God’s sovereignty even in the midst of dark and difficult times; while also bringing the reader into a personal look at a popular biblical story.

Of Fire and Lions by Mesu Andrews, a well written and enjoyable novel. This book is draws us into the story of Daniel from both his and his wife's perspective. We get an up close look at what his fears, his joys, his successes, and his failures might have been. If you are a fan of Historical and Religious fiction, don't miss this novel.

Another outstanding Biblical Historical read, the story continues and draws you in just like the others in this series. Looking forward to more Biblical Historical books by this author. This story is about Daniel and his life and loves. How him and his family served the King of Babylon after he was captured, how he met his wife and many others who brought this story to life. I had a hard time putting it down, as with all this authors books, I laughed, I cried, and wanted more.

I tend to read mostly non-fiction books, but this book kept my attention from the first page! I enjoyed reading this fictional account of the prophet Daniel's life. It included all of Daniel's story that is recorded in the Bible, but it also added a fictional family to the story. I really connected to the main character, Daniel's wife (Abigal/Belili). I was encouraged that despite the many challenges that she faced, her faith ended up being stronger than ever. It also was interesting to read about the different kings and Daniel's relationship with each of them. I would recommend this book if you are interested in Biblical fiction, and are looking for an intriguing page-turner to enjoy!

What do 🔥 and 🦁 have in common? I really didn't know. Well, I was operating on no sleep {little people needed mom}, so all I saw was Mesu, the Author. I immediately requested a copy through NetGalley. When I was approved and started reading, I was a bit hard on myself for not knowing that obviously I was about to read Daniel's story. I'm privileged to be able to share ny review with you.

I love the way Mesu Andrews does her research and then crafts a beautiful, believable story, of what might have been. History and scripture are well represented, and then brought to life right in front of me.

Abigail as the main character made for an excellent experience. A 9 year old captive in the first exile, whose faith wavers between the proof she has seen, and the fear/survival instinct that we all have. The flashes of courage and wit, mixed with love, betrayal, and hope tore me up, and inspire me at the same time.

And Mert, well, wait till you get to meet Mert. She's the best! Egyptian slave in Babylon, serving Jewish masters (yes, the irony here is good!). Her care of her charges is great, as is her fortitude. Though she's going to steal your heart for sure.

While I hope I would stand firm like Shadrach, Meshach and Abednigo, I could not say what I would do in the situations this group of exiles and friends faced. Part of why I enjoy reading fiction, the really good fiction that draws me in to center stage, is that I get to practice. When trials come, I have experienced many heart-rending battles, and maybe will be able to stand a little more firmly that i might otherwise.

I highly recommend this book with the note that Abigail is both attacked and ends up serving in a temple for a time. There is nothing graphic, but it may be difficult if you have experienced force before.

This book was received as an ARC from Waterbrook in exchange for an honest review. Opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are completely my own.

We are familiar with Mesu Andrews' books and they are all like reading a tale from the Bible come to life but Mesu Andrews does it in such a unique way that not only does the story come to life but it is easily relatable and understandable. This feels like a story that was hidden in the original Bible in the book of Daniel and now that it has surfaced, let the adventure begin. This book is the perfect book to have someone read that has difficulty relating to some of the scriptures in the Bible and that loves a book with a lot of action and adventure. This book really made the Bible fun to read.

We will definitely consider this book for our Christian Fiction section at our library. That is why we give this book 5 stars.

A well written novel based on the Old Testament story of Daniel. The author evidences a great deal of research in presenting a novel like account of the life and times of the prophet. Daniel lived during the tumultuous times characterized by the rule of Nebuchadnezzar over the city state of Babylon and his conquests of much of the known world. The novel begins as the young girl Abigail is taken prisoner by the invading army of the Babylonians conquering Jerusalem and taking her and many others captives. They are being brought to Babylon as slaves. Along with her are five young men including Daniel and four of his friends. Daniel takes a liking and interest in Abigail starting a lifetime of love between them.
Ms Andrews does not gloss over the miracles attributed to Daniel's times and caused by the one god, Yahweh, that was worshiped by his people. There is the survival of his friends thrown into a blazing furnace and the later survival by Daniel of being thrown into a pit with several hungry lions. He is brought to Babylon in order to be trained to govern under the sway of Nebuchadnezzar along with other selected Hebrews as a means of assuring the rule of a wide variety of men selected from Babylon's conquests. This is seen as a means of assuring loyalty to Babylon and is a far reaching belief going beyond the period being looked at.
Ms Andrews, as is her practice, has done a good deal of research into the period surrounding Daniel's life both by close reading of the book of Daniel and other prophets of that era as well as other surviving works available at present day. Literary license allows the author to resurrect conversations that possibly could have taken place based on events depicted. As an historical work the recreating of the world of about 500 B.C. is truly an engrossing project. The book is made into both a captivating novel as well as the creation of life lived in another and stranger period. The novel is by any definition a mesmerizing read and an all nighter for the reader.

I have to say this was one of the best Biblical Fiction books I have read. It challenged me and encouraged me. I really enjoyed the insights into the life of Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abendego. Their lives in captivity had to be hard. And this fictional story sprinkled with facts was done very well. Any book that steers one to the Bible to learn more has done well. I received a copy of this book from NetGalley. All views are my own.

Well. I am not an expert on Daniel, but it appears to me, this author did her research and did a commendable job presenting the biblical story.. It took me a long time to read this book ~ days! So I recommend that if you choose to read it and I do recommend it, you allow yourself time.
The story is set in 6th century Babylon., so the culture is different. It might take a couple of chapters to become accustom to the names of the characters in the story, although there is a character list in the beginning of the book. I do believe this is a clear story about the faithfulness of Yahweh to His people and Daniel's strong faith in his God. Daniel's faith gave him the courage he needed to face any experience while in captivity. I especially liked the author's telling of Daniel in the lion's den. Daniel's faith inspired me to face difficulties with courage! The story is well-written, however at times I thought the chapters ended abruptly. 4.5 amazing stars!


I received a complimentary copy of the book from Waterbrook & Multnomah through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.