Geraldine Brooks

Based on the story of King David, traces his journey from an obscure shepherd to a hero and king before his fall.

The Secret Chord

“A page turner. . .Brooks is a master at bringing the past alive. . .in her skillful hands the issues of the past echo our own deepest concerns: love and loss, drama and tragedy, chaos and brutality.” – Alice Hoffman, The Washington Post A rich and utterly absorbing novel about the life of King David, from the Pulitzer Prize–winning author of People of the Book and March. With more than two million copies of her novels sold, New York Times bestselling author Geraldine Brooks has achieved both popular and critical acclaim. Now, Brooks takes on one of literature’s richest and most enigmatic figures: a man who shimmers between history and legend. Peeling away the myth to bring David to life in Second Iron Age Israel, Brooks traces the arc of his journey from obscurity to fame, from shepherd to soldier, from hero to traitor, from beloved king to murderous despot and into his remorseful and diminished dotage. The Secret Chord provides new context for some of the best-known episodes of David’s life while also focusing on others, even more remarkable and emotionally intense, that have been neglected. We see David through the eyes of those who love him or fear him—from the prophet Natan, voice of his conscience, to his wives Mikhal, Avigail, and Batsheva, and finally to Solomon, the late-born son who redeems his Lear-like old age. Brooks has an uncanny ability to hear and transform characters from history, and this beautifully written, unvarnished saga of faith, desire, family, ambition, betrayal, and power will enthrall her many fans.

A Novel

Cindy Lieberman

So disappointed! I could not even finish this book, I was so uninterested in the characters and their story. Like other reviewers I had high hopes, having really enjoyed People of the Book (5 stars) and Caleb's Crossing (4 stars). Perhaps I just don't enjoy books about the particularly brutal and barbaric biblical epoch. I was able to finish Alice Hoffman's The Dovekeepers but didn't love that one either, despite both these authors' exceptional writing skills. It's Back to the Future for me (ie science fiction).

The Secret Chord

Reviews