The Centurion's Wife (Acts of Faith, #1)

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The Centurion's Wife (Acts of Faith #1)

3.93 of 5 stars 3.93 · rating details · 3,513 ratings · 322 reviews

Janette Oke has dreamed for years of retelling a story in a biblical time frame from a female protagonist's perspective, and Davis Bunn is elated to be working with her again on this sweeping saga of the dramatic events surrounding the birth of Christianity...and the very personal story of Leah, a young Jewess of mixed heritage trapped in a vortex of competing political ag...more

Paperback, 378 pages

Published January 1st 2009 by Bethany House Publishers

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Mar 31, 2009 Pygmy rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: christian_fiction, guilty_pleasures

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. A decent read that manages to be enjoyable despite random oddities and a bewildering ending.

The novel is based on the premise that the centurion in the Bible whose servant is healed by Jesus is directed by Pontius Pilate to investigate the death of Jesus and whether there will be a revolt against Rome. In the meantime, the centurion seeks the hand of Pilate's niece, who is partially Jewish, for a political marriage, though of course there is no doubt that they would fall madly in love.

I was int...more A decent read that manages to be enjoyable despite random oddities and a bewildering ending.

The novel is based on the premise that the centurion in the Bible whose servant is healed by Jesus is directed by Pontius Pilate to investigate the death of Jesus and whether there will be a revolt against Rome. In the meantime, the centurion seeks the hand of Pilate's niece, who is partially Jewish, for a political marriage, though of course there is no doubt that they would fall madly in love.

I was intrigued because the centurion's story is one of my favorites in the Bible, and also because one of my guilty pleasures is a romance where a girl on the side of Good (in this case, Jewish) falls in love with an enemy combatant. My hopes weren't too high though, since previous experiences with inspirational romances left me gagging from the saccharine improbability/unrealisticness of it all. The first couple of chapters, which introduced Leah, the Jewish girl, did nothing to disprove my prejudices, but once the centurion entered the story, the pace picked up and I found myself turning the pages to see how his investigations went.

***SPOILERS BELOW***

Regrettably, the story did finally return to the predictably dramatic formula that's always employed when unbelievers feature in Christian novels, although the authors managed not to make it too melodramatic. It may not be a problem to other readers; it's just that my conversion experience is about 170 degrees apart from how it is commonly portrayed in fiction, so ... it's pretty hard for me to relate. And induces fits of eye-rolling.

The ending super-flops when in the last couple of chapters, it's introduced that, oh no!! The centurion's life/position is in danger, as well as any who may be related to him! All of which is exciting and good, until Pontius Pilate growls out "You will hear from me!", the centurion is led away, and then the centurion and Leah proceed to have a happy happy wedding celebration and life-changing God experiences with such joyousness that it felt like the authors completely forgot that Pilate was going to screw them over Very Soon. The centurion is free to muck about in Jewish sectors with no guards. Where is the house arrest??

Other oddities include:

Why is the Jewish girl acting as a servant when she is Pontius Pilate's niece? Sure, her family's name and reputation were ruined, but if Pilate is going to be advertising her as part of the family, I would've thought she'd have a better position in the household.

The prevalent use of the words "mate" instead of "comrade/soldier-in-arms/something else that doesn't sound so Aussie or British", "lad" when I normally see plain ol' "boy", etc.(less)

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Mar 01, 2009 Debbie rated it 2 of 5 stars

When I pick up a fiction book written by Christians for Christians and it uses an account given in the Bible, I expect the novel to stick to the words and actions given in the Biblical account where the fiction story and the Bible account overlap. Unfortunately, this book doesn't. The Pentecost scene is severely chopped up to shorten it. As for the soldiers guarding Jesus tomb, Pilate puts two of his Roman soldiers under the High Priest's command to watch Jesus' tomb instead of the guards being...more When I pick up a fiction book written by Christians for Christians and it uses an account given in the Bible, I expect the novel to stick to the words and actions given in the Biblical account where the fiction story and the Bible account overlap. Unfortunately, this book doesn't. The Pentecost scene is severely chopped up to shorten it. As for the soldiers guarding Jesus tomb, Pilate puts two of his Roman soldiers under the High Priest's command to watch Jesus' tomb instead of the guards being temple guards (enough to "make the tomb as secure as you know how," which I've always assumed was more than just two men) under the command of the chief priests.

The authors also make the hero, Alban, the centurion with great faith ("I tell you, I have not found such great faith even in Israel.") yet strip him of his faith. In the Bible, the centurion believed that Jesus could heal his servant, sent Jewish elders to make this request, and then had Jesus heal his servant from afar because he understood that Jesus didn't need to physically be there to heal the servant and he didn't feel worthy of having Jesus under his roof. In the novel, Alban doesn't believe in Jesus, the elders offer to go to Jesus for him, and Alban accepts but doesn't want Jesus and his huge crowd of followers to enter his house so sends his second message to keep Jesus away. The novel still has Jesus commending Alban for his great faith even though Alban doesn't believe that Jesus is more than just a man who might, perhaps, be able to help since nothing else is. To me, this novel implies that Jesus either lied (saying the centurion had great faith when he didn't) or was ignorant (he thought the centurion had great faith when he didn't). Neither is consistent with the Jesus of the Bible.

I also had problems with some logic flaws in the novel. For example, they have Mary, Martha, and Lazarus living in a small house and so poor they can barely find food to put on the table each day. This is the family that regularly hosted Jesus and his followers (providing food and housing). The novel even stages a large post-crucifixion gathering of disciples at their house. So where did all the food and sleeping room for the guests come from?

The novel is fast-paced and full of period details that bring the story to vivid life, but I had reason to doubt some of those details. For example, they had Romans frequently drinking tea as an alternative to wine. Also, devote Jews in the novel fairly frequently referred to their God as Jehovah when speaking to Alban about him.

Much of the time, I felt distant from the emotional struggles of our hero and heroine. For example, Leah's full story of loss wasn't told until two thirds of the way through. I would have felt more sympathetic toward her fear of marriage if I'd known that information earlier. Also, the secondary characters didn't generally have much depth.

Several major loose ends were left hanging at the end, like Alban's fate (death, banishment, or whatever) and Leah is left in debt to a cruel, greedy man.

Basically, I wanted to like the book, but the flaws prevented me from really engaging in the story.(less)

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Jan 23, 2009 Janna rated it 4 of 5 stars

I love the idea of a book being written about non-Christians finding Christ during the period of Jesus' death, resurrection and ascension without ever actually meeting Jesus. Here we have Leah and Alban who are separately trying to find out what actually happened to the man named Jesus' body when it was "stolen" from the tomb and if his followers are a threat to Rome. We follow them separately on their journeys for truth knowing that they have been promised to wed each other after the truth is f...more

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Aug 05, 2012 Aimee rated it 3 of 5 stars

Since Leah's father lost his fortune in disgrace, her family has faced hard times. He forced her two older sisters into loveless marriages, and now Leah is a servant for Pilate's wife. As far as she's concerned, they get drastically worse when she learns Pilate has promised her in marriage to Alban, a centurion from Gaul. Leah has seen enough disappointment to expect the worst from the well-known soldier. Despite her misgivings, she tries to face the betrothal with a calm dignity. Then, all of J...more

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Jul 11, 2012 Savannah rated it 4 of 5 stars

I must confess. I only retrieved this book because it was free for Kindle at the time and I knew that Janette Oke was a 'clean' writer. I'd never read any of her work before and honestly had no idea what to expect. It sat in my Kindle library for a very long time, and then I suddenly decided I would give it a try. I figured it would be a nice read, not that it would altogether blow me away as it did.
I am a personal fan of the true story of Jesus and the cultural and historical facts surrounding...more

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Jun 30, 2011 Emily Michelle rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Fine, but not great. There's a lot of attention to historical detail, which I like, and the characterization is mostly decent, and it covers an interesting part of Christian history--the period between the crucifixion of Christ and the Pentecost, when the local and Roman leaders are trying to investigate and/or cover up the disappearance of Jesus' body from the tomb, and the believers know that Christ has risen but aren't yet sure what that means. The authors rather cleverly weave their original...more

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Aug 10, 2010 Cassandra rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: christian-fiction, historical-fiction

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Apr 06, 2010 Bruce Judisch rated it 5 of 5 stars

You'd expect a collaborative effort between two authors as accomplished as Mr. Bunn and Ms. Oke to be something special, something uniquely satisfying in both form and expression. The Centurion's Wife does not meet that expectation. It leaps far beyond it.

In form, the authors have done seemingly the impossible. They taken a historical era trodden upon by so many authors from so many angles and in so many ways that it seems there'd be no verdant literary soil left among all the typewritten footpr...more You'd expect a collaborative effort between two authors as accomplished as Mr. Bunn and Ms. Oke to be something special, something uniquely satisfying in both form and expression. The Centurion's Wife does not meet that expectation. It leaps far beyond it.

In form, the authors have done seemingly the impossible. They taken a historical era trodden upon by so many authors from so many angles and in so many ways that it seems there'd be no verdant literary soil left among all the typewritten footprints to sow, and yet they still created a fresh and intriguing story. The central characters are Leah, a niece of Pontius Pilate driven to servitude in his household, and Alban, a centurion from the conquered territory of Gaul. They have irreconcilable amibitions. Leah's precludes marriage, and Alban's necessitates marriage--specifically to Leah. Oh, it gets better. Leah is pushed by Pilate's wife to discover the means and intentions of the followers of the Christ her husband has put to death, and Pilate forces Alban to do the same. Neither Pilate nor Procula know of the other's scheme, neither Alban nor Leah know of the other's mission. But the servant's and soldier's divergent goals paradoxically force their paths to merge where they encounter an irresistable force: the lure of a fledgling Gospel, and a purity of love and acceptance among its adherents--the very community Leah and Alban are to spy upon.

In expression, such beauty flowing from a single pen wielded by two master craftsmen of the literary art is something to behold. As I read, I made a distinct effort to try to identify those passages where I thought Mr. Bunn was manning the keyboard, and those points where Ms. Oke nudged him aside to color the text in her own way. Huh uh. They wove the tapestry so skillfully, that even the most subtle shifts in shading melded together seamlessly. One story, one theme, one narrative born of two minds united by the same irresistable force that ultimately united their heroes.

The Centurion's Wife is the first book in the "Acts of Faith" series. The second, The Hidden Flame (2010) carries the story forward into the early days of Christianity, and promises to be as satisfying as The Centurion's Wife. Tell you what: I'll let you know. While you're waiting, get a copy of The Centurion's Wife. You won't be sorry.(less)

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Sep 30, 2009 Becky Kelley rated it 4 of 5 stars

The Centurion’s Wife
In The Centurion’s Wife by Davis Bunn and Janette Oke, a very lost servant in the Pilate’s household is to be wed to an ambitious Centurion, and finds herself questioning all she knows when the profit named Jesus is crucified. Davis Bunn and Janette Oke’s The Centurion’s Wife captured me with its rare writing style and uncommon way of expression among Christian books.
The Centurion’s Wife focuses on what Jews went through after the death of Christ through the characters of Lea...more The Centurion’s Wife
In The Centurion’s Wife by Davis Bunn and Janette Oke, a very lost servant in the Pilate’s household is to be wed to an ambitious Centurion, and finds herself questioning all she knows when the profit named Jesus is crucified. Davis Bunn and Janette Oke’s The Centurion’s Wife captured me with its rare writing style and uncommon way of expression among Christian books.
The Centurion’s Wife focuses on what Jews went through after the death of Christ through the characters of Leah, a young woman who became a servant in the Pilate’s household after loosing everything along with her family, and an eager Centurion named Alban. After Jesus’ body disappears from his grave the Prelate orders Alban to discover who took the profits body and why, and the answer Alban discovers is quite shocking. Meanwhile the Prelate’s Wife, Procula, orders Leah to find the profit’s disciples and discover all she can and report back to her. Soon the two are to be wed and each finds themselves lost and confused about their faith and beliefs.
Unlike most Christian Novels, Davis Bunn and Janette Oke’s style reflects more on historical fiction then on the change within the characters. Instead of focusing on how they feel during certain periods of time, they show how the characters react to their circumstances. They also switch from character to character, which, even though is quite fascinating, is an old technique. I personally like the mystery of what the other character is thinking.
Contrasting with many other books, this book does not focus on the personality of the characters, but rather what previous circumstances occurred in order to build up into their character. This makes the reader use their imagination on forming the characters personality instead of just reading about them. Leah, for example has a very quiet nature about her, but rather then explain that she is a silent person most of the time, the authors explained why she kept to herself rather then express her feelings.
The setting of the book is in Israel shortly after Jesus’s passing. This comes very interesting to me because I have always wanted to go to Israel. Not many books are written within this setting and made the book much more interesting.
I personally recommend this book because of it’s diversity among other Christian books and for its ability to force someone into thinking about their beliefs. The Centurion’s Wife is a very good book for deep thinkers.
(378 pgs) (less)

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Mar 23, 2009 Sheri Salatin rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: everyone

Shelves: favorites

Wow! What an awesome read this book was! Set just after the crucifiction of Jesus Christ through the his ascension into Heaven. This book follows a young woman Leah, neice to Pontias Pilate. She is betrothed (against her will) to a Roman Centurion, Alban of Gaul.
Alban is commanded by Pilate and Herod to find out what has happened to the "prophet" Jesus' body. They believe that the disciples stole it and they want to know if there is any sort of revolt planned. These are the terms that they give...more

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Oct 18, 2011 Marty Chester rated it 3 of 5 stars

I purchased this book because it's set in a era I write and also like to read and...it was free and I'd just gotten my e-reader. That said, I liked it more than I thought I would. Although I am a Christian, I prefer not to read Christian-based novels. I don't find them to be entirely realistic. However, this novel takes 'ordinary people' and inserts them into post-crucifixion Judea. The historical details were accurate, and the plot, structure and pacing were well done.

On the flip side, I found...more

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Feb 04, 2011 Doreen rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I knew going into this that it was going to be Christian fiction, so I'll admit, I was willing to give it a pass on being literary. And if I could split this book into two parts -- one for Alban's story and one for Leah's -- I'd definitely give Alban's half another star. But since the two are intertwined, and since the book has a really weird, random ending (I suppose since this is the first of the series, more on their fate is to follow: it's just such a strange end-point to choose, though,) I...more I knew going into this that it was going to be Christian fiction, so I'll admit, I was willing to give it a pass on being literary. And if I could split this book into two parts -- one for Alban's story and one for Leah's -- I'd definitely give Alban's half another star. But since the two are intertwined, and since the book has a really weird, random ending (I suppose since this is the first of the series, more on their fate is to follow: it's just such a strange end-point to choose, though,) I had to give this book the rating that equals "It was okay."

So the main problem I had with the book is that Leah is horrible. She's perfectly awful to Alban, but we're supposed to believe that he loves her regardless, and that he's so skilled at reading people (and her from her eyes alone, despite the fact that they've barely spent 20 minutes together, during which, as I've said, she's an utter shrew) that he understands why she's being so nasty to him. She's a total Mary Sue character, and boring, to boot. While Alban's characterization isn't much better, at least he isn't a jerk. And I haven't read a lot of Christian fiction, but this book had the most homoerotic undertones I've read in a long while. Meeting cute with your hands touching over a leek? Come on.

I did like the plot, though. It's intriguing to think of Romans being sent out to investigate the events that occurred immediately after Jesus' crucifixion, and their exposure to this strange new religious movement he founded. It's also a great depiction of Judaean/Jewish mores of the time, as well as of the ways God can touch the human heart. The way Linux helped Alban with the Herod-Parthian connection at the end was way too pat to be believed, though. No way was a manipulator as skilled as Herod going to be outwitted by such a transparent ploy.

My only other quibble was with the use of the occasional hackneyed phrase. I suppose the authors slipped in the catchphrases of evangelical Christianity in order to link this book to a larger message, but every time a character said something like, "Come and see," I rolled my eyes. So not a terrible book, though I think it would have been miles better if Leah hadn't been a central figure.(less)

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May 12, 2012 Zoe Jean rated it 2 of 5 stars

As a person who is fairly literate about worldly religions, I found this book to be too simple to inspire or impart new knowledge.

I do give kudos to the authors for the following; using Pilate and his wife Procula, along with an invented centurion and part Jewish slave girl as central characters, which was a brilliant seed for the story, but the seed failed to grow to its full potential...and...Mary Magdalene was not improperly protrayed as a harlot, and was recognized for her devotion to Jesus...more

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Jan 20, 2012 Melissa rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The Centurion’s Wife By Janette Oake and Davis Bunn

I have been reading Ms. Oake since I was in high school and she has never disappointed me. Wonderful crafted romances with the characters faith a main thread of the story. Her romances are not preachy, but show you important faith is in the lives of her characters.

In this new book, Ms. Oake and Davis Bunn explored the very beginnings of the faith.
The Roman Government is finding that crucified, buried, and now the body missing, Jesus of Nazareth...more The Centurion’s Wife By Janette Oake and Davis Bunn

I have been reading Ms. Oake since I was in high school and she has never disappointed me. Wonderful crafted romances with the characters faith a main thread of the story. Her romances are not preachy, but show you important faith is in the lives of her characters.

In this new book, Ms. Oake and Davis Bunn explored the very beginnings of the faith.
The Roman Government is finding that crucified, buried, and now the body missing, Jesus of Nazareth is more dangerous to them then he was alive. The followers of the Christ are reeling from the sudden lost of him, seeing him die and then finding his tomb empty has left them all a little lost and bewildered even though they have seen him since. Pilate and Herod, leader the Judeans, form a plan to find the threat level of a revolt in the group of followers.

Albus, the centurion that went to Jesus to ask his servant boy be healed but told him he didn’t need to come to the house to do so just say it was done and he would believe him, wants to further his career in the Roman army, he decided to start by asking for the hand of Pilate’s niece for wife figuring with her connections she will be able to help him move up the ranks. Leah, abandon by her father, who was betrayed by his partners and forced in bankruptcy and disgrace, and watched her two oldest sisters forced into loveless marriages where they were no more than chattel, doesn’t want to marry, she is content to be a maid to Pilate’s wife, a servant, for the rest of her days.

The plot Pilate and Herod form is that there will be a Judean betrothal between the two and the task to be completed before Albus can claim his bride is to find out 1) If Jesus of Nazareth is dead? 2) Where is his body? And 3) is there revolt imminent in his followers. Leah is sent to the follower’s courtyard where they gather, by her mistress, Procula – Pilate’s wife – to find out the same thing. Will the two of them find the answers they are sent for? Or will they each find a set of answers to those questions that might put them, and possibly the might of the Roman Empire at greater risk? A sweet, faith filled romance that resonates with the belief of the Messiah. A well crafted story that tales a captivating tale that draws you in so that you can’t let it go. A must read for any Janette Oake’s fans.(less)

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Oct 24, 2009 Kate rated it 4 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I picked up and finished The Centurion's Wife by Davis Bunn and Janette Oke this week.

I wasn't sure what to expect, but once I realized who the characters in the story were, I became quite interested. Leah is the niece of Pontius Pilate, who is working as a servant in his household until he arranges a favorable marriage for her. She learns she is to be betrothed to a Roman centurion named Alban, a natural leader with strong ambitions. Alban also turns out to be the Roman soldier who had sought o...more I picked up and finished The Centurion's Wife by Davis Bunn and Janette Oke this week.

I wasn't sure what to expect, but once I realized who the characters in the story were, I became quite interested. Leah is the niece of Pontius Pilate, who is working as a servant in his household until he arranges a favorable marriage for her. She learns she is to be betrothed to a Roman centurion named Alban, a natural leader with strong ambitions. Alban also turns out to be the Roman soldier who had sought out Jesus to heal his dying servant (from Matthew 8:5-13 and Luke 7:1-10). I found these choices for main characters to be very creative and interesting.

The story takes place in the days and weeks following Jesus's crucifixion. Pilate thought he had washed his hands of the whole affair, but when he learns that Jesus's grave has been unsealed and the body is missing, he begins to worry that the Jews are planning a revolt. He decides to use Alban, who has a good relationship with the Jews in the area, to try and find out what is going on, requiring him to learn what happened to Jesus's body before he can marry Leah. Leah is not thrilled about the idea of marrying, but she has little choice as Pilate chose to use her marriage to his advantage. Pilate's wife, Procula, is also worried about the Jews are planning and sends Leah to find Jesus's disciples to try to learn what she can. So, both Leah and Alban are trying to learn the same information, unaware of what the other is doing until near the end of the book. In the process, they begin to question all they thought they knew and come to believe that what Jesus's followers are saying is true.

The book really impressed me. I was impressed with the creative storyline, even though I already knew the biblical version. I really enjoyed the imagery and descriptive talents of the authors. I often felt like I was right there, standing on the top of a hill with Alban, or browsing through the marketplace with Leah. I was moved to tears in a few places as the main characters came to realize what was going on, and to see them come to the same conclusion, regardless of the danger to themselves and their futures.

I thought it was interesting to see this time period and these events through the eyes of Romans. Things were turbulent and confusing, there were rumors and gossip flying around, and there were dangerous people trying to prevent the truth from getting out. It was also interesting to see the questions that Jesus's followers had during the time. They all agreed that He had risen, but they didn't quite understand what it meant or what they needed to do yet. It really was a fascinating time to read about. I am familiar with the biblical accounts of this time, but this book (even if it is fiction) gave me a bit of a better understanding of what people were like in that time. The book personalized the events for me, pushing me to consider what it must have been like for the people living through those events.

I enjoyed the book. The one drawback that I found was the existence several typographical errors in the book--errors that were a bit distracting. Hopefully they do a better job in editing the second book of the series, The Hidden Flame, which is set to be released January 1, 2010. I am looking forward to its release. The Centurion's Wife leaves the reader hanging, wondering what Alban's fate with Pilate will be. I expect that it will be explained in The Hidden Flame. I give this book 4.5 of 5 stars, losing half a star for lackluster editing.(less)

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Jan 19, 2012 April rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Free Kindle download. I find it SO ironic that this book is titled The Centurion's Wife — the heroine doesn't actually become the centurion's wife until the very end. She isn't even considered his bride until well into the book. Mostly, she's a slave with very lofty beginnings.

But the title is even more misleading than that. You'd think from the title that this is some kind of historical romance set in ancient Roman times —you know, the polytheistic era with all the cool Roman togas and sandals....more

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Apr 17, 2011 Lala rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

What I liked:
-The premise of the story. It was mainly about the investigations on the missing body of Jesus.
-Pontius Pilate's perspective on what happened before and after the crucifixion.
-Some 'facts' about how it was like during that time period (the place, culture, people, etc).

What I didn't like:
-The premise was promising, but the storytelling and plot could be a lot better.
-It felt like stories that I am familiar with (from the bible) were inserted without proper lead-in a lot of the time....more

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Feb 04, 2010 Kandice rated it 2 of 5 stars

This started out great. I audio-ed it, and the reader had a nice voice, even though she did "voices" which I usually find distracting. The problem was that even though the beginning showed promise, it never got there. Generally a good book starts out good and then builds up. You can usually tell right away. This seemed like it would build up, it just didn't.

This was basically a re-telling of the aftermath of Jesus's crucifixion. I know the story from the bible and had no problem with the liberti...more

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Jan 24, 2011 Katie rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2011

This book was pretty good, the historical parts were really neat, and the whole story was written from two interesting perspectives the you don't normally get from this time period. I liked it. I'll read the other books in this series too (Amazon has been recommending this series to me for years, and apparently I should have been listening earlier).

Side note: The library only had this book in large print, and apparently large print takes a *seriously* long time to read. I thought the book would...more

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Apr 26, 2010 Ashley Ludwig rated it 4 of 5 stars

A tale told from the point of view of a Roman Slave, Leah, and her betrothed Centurion, Alban.

I've long been a Janette Oakes fan, and am new to Davis Bunn -- but as an inspirational, historical fiction author, I found myself drawn into the setting of early Christianity -- merely days after the Crucifixion. Together, these two authors paint a picture of sights, sounds, wonders, and relationships in a time of confusion, chaos, and overwhelming hope.

This one ended up being carried around to the po...more

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Mar 30, 2013 Kathy rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: audio, abridged, historical-fiction

My friend Olga recommended this book on CD to me just before Easter. I'll give 3 stars for the fiction part and bump it up to 4 because it helped me think about the Savior this week. A Roman Centurion is charged by Pilate to find out if the followers of Jesus are planning a revolt against the government after the cruxifiction. Meanwhile Pilate's wife has secretly ordered her servant, a young woman who has some Jewish heritage and is espoused to the centurion, to make friends with the disciples a...more

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Dec 16, 2011 Melissa rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: bible-based-fiction, historical-fiction, early-church, romance

I had a difficult time getting into this novel, not that the setting is uninteresting. For some reason, the characters felt a bit flat and lifeless, at least to begin with. A better delving into their backgrounds might have helped me to gain sympathy with and interest in the characters. Both main characters, Leah and Alban, go on missions for Pilate and his wife to find out more about the "dead prophet," Jesus, and if His followers pose a threat to the Roman empire, but both Leah and Alban seem...more

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Jan 03, 2010 rjp316 rated it 3 of 5 stars

This book I found to be ok. It was pretty slow reading. The entire book – 378 pages – took place in only about 50 days from six days before Passover to the Festival of Pentecost. Not too engaging but worth the read – almost did not finish the book.

I had a hard time believing that the main character Alban – was the centurion who Jesus referred to as a man of great faith. “I tell you, I have not found such great faith even in Israel." (Matthew 8:10 or Luke 7:9) but I this book he was not even a fo...more

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May 01, 2012 Debra Chapoton rated it 4 of 5 stars

Davis Bunn and Janette Oke take one little event in the New Testament, the healing of an unnamed boy by Jesus, and weave a story around him, the centurion who cares for him, the woman he's betrothed to, and numerous other characters such as Pontius Pilate and Herod. The story unfolds in the weeks just after the crucifixion when the centurion is tasked with finding out if the followers of Jesus are planning a rebellion. His betrothed, a woman he has never met, is sent by Pilate's wife to infiltra...more

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Sep 05, 2011 Carolyn rated it 4 of 5 stars

I loved this book. It's one of the best cheesy christian romance novels I've ever read, but I think that's mostly because the romance parts of it are downplayed. (I actually wish there had been more romance). It really made me realize though, that as much as people say "oh, if only I had lived at the time of Jesus, I would have believed", that's not true. Even people who saw it happen, or were best friends with the people who saw it happen, still had to struggle with the fact that it should have...more

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May 15, 2011 Becky Pinson rated it 4 of 5 stars

I had seen this book several times at Barnes and Noble and had it in the back of my head to read. The week before Easter, I happened to notice our library had it so i checked it out. I was very happy with the story line and how Davis Bunn integrated the Biblical story of Christ and his resurrection with how people at that time must have felt. The two main characters are out to find out the truth of who stole Christ's body, where it is, and if He was really dead. They discover the real truth alon...more

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Jan 17, 2009 Michelle rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: blog-tour-book, christianfiction, forpleasure, forreview, historicalfiction

About the book:

Janette Oke has dreamed for years of retelling a story in a biblical time frame from a female protagonist's perspective, and Davis Bunn is elated to be working with her again on this sweeping saga of the dramatic events surrounding the birth of Christianity...and the very personal story of Leah, a young Jewess of mixed heritage trapped in a vortex of competing political agendas and private trauma.

Caught up in the maelstrom following the death of an obscure rabbi in the Roman backw...more About the book:

Janette Oke has dreamed for years of retelling a story in a biblical time frame from a female protagonist's perspective, and Davis Bunn is elated to be working with her again on this sweeping saga of the dramatic events surrounding the birth of Christianity...and the very personal story of Leah, a young Jewess of mixed heritage trapped in a vortex of competing political agendas and private trauma.

Caught up in the maelstrom following the death of an obscure rabbi in the Roman backwater of first-century Palestine, Leah finds herself also engulfed in her own turmoil--facing the prospect of an arranged marriage to a Roman soldier, Alban, who seems to care for nothing but his own ambitions. Head of the garrison near Galilee, he has been assigned by Palestine's governor to ferret out the truth behind rumors of a political execution gone awry. Leah's mistress, the governor's wife, secretly commissions Leah also to discover what really has become of this man whose death--and missing body--is causing such furor.

This epic drama is threaded with the tale of an unlikely romance and framed with dangers and betrayals from unexpected sources. At its core, The Centurion's Wife unfolds the testing of loyalties--between two young people whose inner searchings they cannot express, between their irreconcilable heritages, and ultimately between their humanity and the Divine they yearn to encounter.

My review:

When I read a story, especially historical fiction, I want to be transported to another place. The Centurion's Wife does just that. But it's not just a story about Leah, the wife. It is just as much the story of Alban, the Centurion, who was originally from Gaul. He was sent by Pilate to find out more about the "prophet" Jesus, who was crucified, yet continued to influence all of Judea. Pilate was afraid of a Judean revolt, but what he didn't realize was that Jesus had come to live, and died, and then rose again to free mankind from their sins.

Alban was sent by Pilate to find out more about the man, Jesus, and at the same time Leah, his niece, was sent by Procula, his wife, to seek that very information. Each step in their search for truth was profoundly beautiful. Jesus influenced lives in ways that was difficult for them to comprehend, but still very real. The more they learned about Jesus, the more drawn they felt toward him. And His teaching was contrary to what they had both been taught their entire lives. I was on this journey with them and rejoiced as each slowly transformed their thinking.

The thing that thrilled me about this story was how the reader also needed to examine what to do with the man, Jesus. If he had indeed risen from the dead, what does that mean for them? The Centurion's Wife was engaging and profoundly spiritual. I loved the setting and the way the authors led the reader on a spiritual journey as well. I was deeply moved as the story concluded. This is the kind of story that leaves an impact on your heart and makes you think more about your faith. This book would also make an excellent supplement to a Bible study and would be a fabulous book for book clubs and reading groups to study. I plan to read the rest of this series because if the other stories are this amazing, they are not to be missed!

This book is definitely going on my favorite fiction list for 2009.

The Centurion's Wife was published by Bethany House and released in January 2009.
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Mar 28, 2011 Mandi Murphy rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2011, book-club-possibilities, kindle

My favorite thing about this book is the cast of female biblical characters. Mary Magdalene and the ever pragmatic Martha are among them. Women tend to be shielded from our view in the scriptures, and it was very nice to have them brought to life. Bunn and Oke turn them into very real, very beautiful people.

A Roman Centurion and a Judean servant in the home of Pilate, neither born as Romans but both claiming Roman culture for their own, are converted to Christianity just after the death of Chri...more

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Feb 21, 2011 TJ rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: clean, historical, kindle-archives

One's opinion of this book will be directly related to one's expectations of this book. That makes it a very difficult one to review. There seems to be two main goals to this story: 1- to show what life was like in the area of Jeruselem circa A.D. 33 and 2 - To further the Christian message by re-writing the Biblical accounts in the New Testament from a more personal view. Therefore, if you are expecting a plot driven story set amidst a biblical era background (as the synopsis suggests) you will...more

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Jun 04, 2012 Carolyn rated it 5 of 5 stars

This book takes you back to AD33 after the death and resurrection of Christ. It is a fictional story based on scriptural events and historical facts. The writing is such that it transports you to the dusty streets of Jerusalem and gives you a real understanding of that time. The story follows the lives of Alban, a Roman centurion full of ambition, and Leah, a handmaiden to Pilate's wife; both trying to find answers for different people and for different reasons. Alban has fixed his eyes on Leah...more

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About Davis Bunn

Davis Bunn is an internationally-acclaimed author who has sold more than six million books in sixteen languages. Honored with three Christy Awards for excellence in historical and suspense fiction, his bestsellers include; The Great Divide, Winner Take All, The Meeting Place, The Book of Hours, and The Quilt. A sought-after lecturer in the art of writing, Bunn was named Novelist in Residence at Re...more

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