About the Book

Book: The Struggle for Love

Author: Marilyn T. Parker

Genre: Biblical Fiction

Release date: November 2, 2021

Two sisters married to the same man. A man who loves only one.

Leah didn’t want a marriage without love. A strong and capable woman, she had determined to live a life of service as a midwife, bringing other women’s children into the world, allowing her father to breach tradition and betroth her beautiful younger sister first. But that was not to be.

Forced by her father to pose as her sister, Leah goes to Jacob’s wedding bed. When Jacob awakens to find Leah instead of the beautiful Rachel, he tells Leah that he will provide for her and do what a husband must, but she will never have his love.

Rejected by her husband and her relationship with her beloved sister broken, will Leah be able to keep her faith in the God of Abraham through the tragedies to come? Will Jacob see Leah for the woman she truly is? Will these two wives of the patriarch mend their relationship before it’s too late?

Enjoy this beautiful story of a woman overlooked by history but not by God. In Genesis 29:31 the scripture says, “When the Lord saw that Leah was not loved—” God was watching over Leah. And He’s watching over you.

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My Thoughts:

The story of Leah from the Old Testament was one in which my heart always went out to. The woman who was not loved by her husband and overlooked because of the beauty of her sister. But God saw her, and He gave her the blessings of children.

I really felt the author did justice to her story. We know Leah was unloved, forced by her father do deceive Jacob, to constantly be in odds with her sister, and to have to share her husband with Rachel. All of this plus knowing Jacob did not love her. The author does take some fictional liberties but dives deeper into more of the emotional ramifications of what may or may not have happened. It was a very good 'what if' story and I think we can all agree Leah was certainly not one to be envied.

We are given various characters point of views, especially Leah's and Jacob's. All the major happenings are in the story and the story grows from there. What was Leah feeling, what was Jacob feeling, and what in the world was going on in their minds? Could God have brought all of His promises about without all the deceit? Yes, yes, I believe He could, but unfortunately people are going to be people.

I enjoyed this very detailed fictional account of Leah, her walk-in life, her love for her husband, her sister, the other concubines, her sons, and her daughter Dinah. Hers was not an easy or necessarily happy road, but she walked it in faithfulness and let God use her for His greater glory.

I was provided a copy of this novel from the author. I was not required to post a positive review and all views and opinions are my own.

About the Author

Marilyn has worn many hats in her life: school teacher, pastor’s wife, mother of four God-loving children, and best of all—Grammy! She is presently the older member of a mother/daughter blogging duo with her wonderful daughter, Rebecca. They co-author Persevering Women, a blog full of inspiration to help women live above their circumstances.

Four years after becoming a widow, Marilyn married Peter Parker. Yes! She’s Mrs. Spiderman! Marilyn says she is truly married to her superhero.

When Marilyn and Peter are not traipsing around the country in their RV, they reside in Buckeye, Arizona with their monster dog, Mimi (don’t let the cute name fool you!). Marilyn’s greatest desire is that her work bring glory to God.

More from Marilyn

When I was seven or eight years old, I entered a writing contest for elementary students sponsored by the local newspaper. I won! Actually, I won two years in a row. I still remember some things about those stories. I remember that one was about a little girl who was so poor, she had to use fall leaves to make Christmas cards. Uh, kind of got my seasons mixed up there—but the storyline must have been good! That was the beginning of my writing career!

So why do I write biblical fiction?

Can’t people just read their Bibles? Yes. Of course. But years ago, when I was reading through the book of Genesis, studying the lives of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, one of Jacob’s wives caught my attention.

Genesis 29:31 When the Lord saw that Leah was unloved—

God was watching Leah. Can you imagine it? The God of the Universe leaning over the portal of heaven to get a better view of an unloved woman! I was hooked on the story right then. The scriptures were scant, but the story was hiding there in subtle hints. As I fleshed out Leah’s life from the Word, I fell more in love with the God who originally wrote her story. The Great Storyteller who knew both Leah and me before He laid the foundation of the earth, and who wrote our stories with love, promising us the best of all happy endings with Him.