A.D. 30 by Ted Dekker - REVIEWED!

About the Book:

Enter a sweeping epic set in the harsh deserts of Arabia and ancient Palestine.

A war that rages between kingdoms on the earth and in the heart.

The harrowing journey of the woman at the center of it all.

Step back in time to the year of our Lord…A.D. 30.

The outcast daughter of one of the most powerful Bedouin sheikhs in Arabia, Maviah is called on to protect the very people who rejected her. When their enemies launch a sudden attack with devastating consequences, Maviah escapes with the help of two of her father’s warriors–Saba who speaks more with is sword than his voice and Judah, a Jew who comes from a tribe that can read the stars. Their journey will be fraught with terrible danger. If they can survive the vast forbidding sands of a desert that is deadly to most, they will reach a brutal world subjugated by kings and emperors. There Maviah must secure an unlikely alliance with King Herod of the Jews.

But Maviah’s path leads her unexpectedly to another man. An enigmatic teacher who speaks of a way in this life which offers greater power than any kingdom. His name is Yeshua, and his words turn everything known on its head. Though following him may present even greater danger, his may be the only way for Maviah to save her people–and herself.

My Thoughts:

“Yeshua’s way was to abide only in forgiveness.  And he was the power of that forgiveness.” 

Ted Dekker has once again explored a life-altering truth from a most unusual perspective – from a female slave whose father has rejected her, but has, in the midst of a Bedouin war, reached out and tasked her with a mission that is far beyond her ability to complete.  However, along her perilous journey she encounters Yeshua. His words to her are life-giving and transformational in ways she is unable to comprehend immediately.

When I first began this novel, I had no idea how it could possibly lead to an encounter with Yeshua.  Maviah’s life was such an unlikely source of anything but heartache and pain! When Judah’s character was introduced, I began to think meeting Yeshua was a remote possibility, but even then Maviah, Saba and Judah composed a rag-tag trio faced with nearly insurmountable odds!  I never thought they would survive The Nafud!

You see, Maviah's journey is chronicled by what happens in each location she travels to during her journey.  Even that becomes significant during the course of the story.  From the details of traversing the dessert on camel, to the Bedu war that rages about them, each page of this story adds to the climax of the final encounter of Maviah’s journey.  Dekker has always amazed me at his ability to reveal profound truths in his stories, but A.D. 30 is the most amazing yet!  Words fail to express my gratitude of the insight and faith lived out in the life of Maviah.

Dekker offers a bit of insight into his own faith journey at the beginning of the book, and I truly believe A.D. 30 will enter the realm of timeless masterpieces of the 21^st century!  I encourage anyone who knows how to read to pick up a copy of this book TODAY!!  It’s that important!! I thank God for Ted Dekker’s obedience to record this story!  AMEN!!

About the Author:

Ted Dekker (born October 24, 1962) is a New York Times best-selling author of more than twenty novels. He is best known for stories which could be broadly described as suspense thrillers with major twists and unforgettable characters, though he has also made a name for himself among fantasy fans.

Dekker was born to missionaries who lived among the headhunter tribes of Indonesia. Because his parents’ work often included extended periods of time away from their children, Dekker describes his early life in a culture to which he was a stranger as both fascinating and lonely. It is this unique upbringing that forced him to rely on his own imagination to create a world in which he belonged.

After leaving Indonesia, Dekker graduated from a multi-cultural high school and took up permanent residence in the United States to study Philosophy and Religion. Upon earning his Bachelor’s Degree, he entered the corporate world and proceeded to climb the proverbial ladder. But his personal drive left him restless and, after many successful years, he traded corporate life for wide range of entrepreneurial pursuits that included buying and selling businesses, healthcare services, and marketing.

In the early nineties while visiting a friend who had just written a book, Dekker decided to pursue a long held desire to be a novelist. Over the course of two years he wrote two full length novels before starting from scratch and rewriting both. Now fully enamored by the the process and the stories, he realized that storytelling was in his blood and a new obsession to explore truth through story gripped him anew.

He sold his business, moved his family to the mountains of Western Colorado and began writing full-time on his third novel. Two years and three novels later his first novel was published.

Dekker’s novels have sold over 5 million copies worldwide. Two of his novels, Thr3e and House, have been made into movies with more in production. Dekker resides in Austin, Texas with his wife Lee Ann and two of their daughters.