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| Heartless |
Bethany House, 2010
Reviewed by Noela Nancarrow
Heartless Has A
Big Heart
‘Heartless’ is a remarkable and fascinating inspirational
allegorical fantasy, set within the different world of Parumvir and other
wonderful kingdoms each ruled by nobility. This enchanting and spellbinding
tale provides an absolute feast of intrigue, adventure, great peril, magic and
romance! And then… there’s the dragon. A
horrendously monstrous, reptilian-scaled and fire-breathing evil beast! This is
a tale filled with incredible characters and fairy-tale type creatures, and
layered with cleverly composed allegories.
In the Kingdom of Parumvir, we find that Princess
Una has come of age. Suitors of noble status journey from kingdoms far and wide
to pay their respects to her. But it is from the Unseen realm of Farthestshore
that the ‘remarkably unremarkable’ Prince Aethelbald arrives to declare his
love and intentions toward Una. He is however rejected by the Princess.
Furthermore, his warnings to her father King Fidel of a coming great and
terrible danger are not heeded. There is yet another one who is also rejected
by the lovely princess and one of those rejected nobility will become
dangerously revengeful. Feeling as if her dream of being swept away in love by
a prince was never going to happen, she was taken by surprise when an unexpected
admirer, captured her heart completely. He asks her to trust him when he had to
leave to help free his imprisoned people from the dragon. But can he truly be
trusted, and will she continue to trust him when he doesn’t return, and of what
cost will this trust be to her and to those she loves?
Meanwhile the menacingly evil and fiery Dragon is on
its way to Parumvir to claim Una, the ‘Beloved of my enemy’, a name he’d called
her in one of the terrible dreams she was plagued with after touching a dragon
scale at the 12 Year Market. It is Una’s kiss and heart that the Dragon seeks
to claim. But her father the King, her brother Prince Felix, Oriana Palace and
their city are also in the Dragon’s sights to destroy!
I loved the fantastic and unique elements
throughout, such as the 12 Year Market; Woodhaven – The Halflight Realm; and
the blind cat that seems to see and is more than what he seems! This riveting
and intricately crafted tale is also threaded with such inspiring allegories;
you will enjoy the thrill of discovering the Christian parallels as you read
this story and likely even discover more as I did when you ponder the
possibilities once you’ve finished. Some of them were so beautifully expressed;
it was emotional at times! As was the humble and beautifully significant
expressions of the Prince’s love.
Overall, Heartless is an entertaining and exciting story
of God’s love and sacrifice. There are also many thought-provoking messages of
encouragement we can take from this inspired fantasy tale. Una is challenged to
learn not to trust her feelings or that what she sees, but to trust what she
knows to be true, and to listen and obey that still, quiet voice in her spirit.
The message of trust is also eloquently explained. We feel Una’s terrible
despair at being betrayed, her isolation and loneliness when she becomes
different, and her overwhelming fear. However as demonstrated in Heartless, it
is when we place our unswerving faith in God in all circumstances that He will
bring that pure peace that passes all understanding!
Anne's books can be found at Amazon, CBD, Barnes & Noble, and other bookstores.
___________________________________________
GIVEAWAY: We are giving away a copy of any one of Anne Elisabeth's books this week (ebook only for international winners.) Leave your email address and answer the question.
QUESTION: Is there a time where you have
had to rest on pure faith and not what was in front of you?
Great review...sharing!
ReplyDeleteI am actually having to rely on pure faith in a situation right now....so HARD, let me tell you. I did have this book, but I recently switched from a Sony ereader to a Kindle Fire and now I no longer have some ebooks that I used to have, your books included. :( So, I would love to win one.
debsbunch5[at]jesusanswers[dot]com
Thanks DEBBIE and thank you so much for sharing also!
DeleteThat's unfortunate to have lost some of your ebooks with switching over. Hope you win it too! :)
It can be really hard at times like you say, and at those times, I like to pray for peace, because it is the peace that comes from the Prince of Peace that can carry us through the more difficult times. Praying your situation works out for you!
NOELA WOW!! What a great review, of all the books I've read I've never read a fantasy, but after reading your review maybe I should start now. Especially after seeing the name "Woodhaven – The Halflight Realm." That's the name of the street I live on. lol I'll have to read it now to see what that realm is all about, might like to live there instead! :)
ReplyDeleteI have been a Christian since I was five years old so there have been many times I've had to rely on faith to get me though. The times that stand out the most are when I had to have surgery to remove a tumor from under my jawbone near my temple, and then 2 months later my oldest son who was two had to have two surgeries, then worst of all my hubby found out he had cancer. The year was 1999 and when I look back over that year if it hadn't been for my faith in God and his provision for us we could not have made it through. God was faithful to us and Carlton has been cancer free for almost fourteen years.
Right now we are battling again, my hubby has developed heart problems (AFib) so once again our faith is kicking in and we are waiting on God's healing touch! We would appreciate everyone's prayers!
Lol TERESA!! There wouldn't happen to be some woods behind your house with an old bridge over a stream, would there?? :) Not sure you'd like to live there however, but it sure is a fantastic book to read to try out the genre!!
DeleteWith all that you've gone through, I'm so glad to hear you had God to bring you through that! When there's not much we can do except to stand on His Word and in faith, it's so comforting to know He is right there with us to carry us through. And you can bet I will be praying for you my sweet sister and your husband and that many others will to!!
A GrEaT review, NOELA! You really make me want to read this book. I have it on my Kindle, so why wait? lol My hubby also wants to read this, so I'm sure one of us will read it soon. :)
ReplyDeleteCool MARIAN!! Let me know who reads it first and what you guys think about it! Like you said, why wait? Beat him to it, lol. :)
DeleteAbsolutely fabulous review, NOELA!! ANNE must have quite an imagination and alot of intelligence to write a story like that!
ReplyDeleteI am having to rely totally on faith right now for some health issues, for the doctors have no answers. Some days my faith can seemingly move mountains -- other days I cry and feel hopeless. That's the way us humans are and I'm so glad God doesn't judge us according to our feeble faith at times.
Thanks DIANA and I agree about ANNE... there were quite a few times I would pause while reading to think, 'This woman is a genius'!!! :)
DeleteThe Lord does understand. On those more difficult days, just rest in Him and love Him. Sometimes I find it is through our faith 'in Him' by loving Him, that answers and help comes our way. He is a compassionate God! Praying for you!
Loved the review of the book I so want to read it. With my physical problems I live daily by FAITH God will heal me or give me comfort to get me through the painful days. The book really sounds interesting. Thanks for the giveaway.
ReplyDeleteBlessings
joeym11@frontier.com
Bless you, DIANA! I know you have alot on you and am praying for your healing. Didn't Noela do a wonderful job on this review? Hoping for a win for you, DIANA. I feel like I'm talking to myself which doesn't surprise me since I do it quite often. :)
DeleteIt sounds like a wonderful story, and I have been interested in trying a few fantasy novels. Thanks for your review, Diana!
ReplyDeleteYes, I have had to rely on faith instead of sight many times, and what comes to mind is moving to Kentucky from Dallas last summer. Everything around me said "no, this is a bad idea", but my spirit still cried "yes". We arrived just a few short months before my great uncle passed away and my grandmother's health began to fail. I know that God led us here to help in the nick of time, and I am continuing to trust Him for our every need.
Actually, GWEN, this is NOELA'S review--am just filling in for her while she catches some zzzzs in Australia. I'd LOVE to take credit for this awesome review, however! lol
DeleteI have been there and done that with the moving thing. I thought I was going to die when we moved from CA to SC, but I am so thankful now!! So glad God sees the WHOLE picture! And so thankful He got you where you needed to be in the nick of time!
I'm currently struggling with relying on faith rather than sight. We just moved to a new area and I'm trying to find the right church to attend. It's so easy to make judgements based on what I see rather than what God wants for me. I visit a new church each week and then will decide, with God's guidance, which one He wants me to join.
ReplyDeletecindialtman(at)gmail(dot)com
CINDY, thank you so much for stopping by! We will be praying that God will give you the guidance you need to see clearly where He wants you to be. That IS a very difficult decision to make, I know!
DeleteNOELA, You have done a fantastic job on this review!!!
ReplyDeleteYes, we have had to rely solely on our faith in the Lord (well, we do anyway but you know what I mean) and not what was in front of us several times. Years ago, when we were self-employed we went through a terrible time financially. No work was coming in. We had no money, none. Our checkbook was down to literal pennies and we had no groceries left. We gathered our children around the table, joined hands and my husband started praying. Before he was finished there was a knock on the door and our neighbor (who works for the DOT) asked us if we liked salad. There had been a wreck and the truck contained bag salads that couldn't be sold. We said yes, we loved salad. The trunk of her car was FULL! We had plenty to eat for days and days. During the same time, we prayed every day for work. We were kind of discouraged but kept praying and scanning the paper. Then one day a man knocked on the door and wanted to know if an electrician lived here. We said YES!!! After that, every few days a different person would come knocking, asking my husband to come and do work for them. Our faith is pretty secure in our Father. He has always provided for us :o)
You ladies rock!!!
Thanks so much ANNE! Btw, you rock too!! :)
DeleteYour testimony really made me smile!! I've been in exactly the same position and although it was difficult, probably like yourself also, I'm actually grateful we went through that because we got to put faith in action and see God's amazing and wonderful provision in miraculous ways. Lol, I just love the truck full of salads bit especially!
Thanks so much for sharing, and I pray your testimony will encourage and bless everyone who reads it!
Not only do you rock, ANNE, but you are also the bomb! Loved that testimony and appreciate you sharing it with us. And love how God provided healthy foods for you to eat!
DeleteNow I want to read this book, NOELA! Great review. I am praying that they put it on audiobook!
ReplyDeleteHa, thanks CARRIE!! I hope it gets onto audiobook for you as well so you're able to read it! There is SO much to be taken from this story.
DeleteYes I have several times! This sounds like a great book! Thanks for the chance to win it!
ReplyDeleteOWG
It sure is a great story MEGAN, and you are in with a chance to win it! :)
DeleteAs you said, there are often many times in our lives that situations come up where we need to look to the unseen and rest on our faith in God. Isn't it great that by knowing God, we can do that?!!
What a lovely review! Thank you so much, Noela. :) I'm so pleased to hear that HEARTLESS touched you and that you enjoyed the story of my poor little Princess Una! And thank you, everyone, for all your kind comments. I was so touched to see these tonight! My heart is full and happy. -- Anne Elisabeth
ReplyDeleteThank you ANNE, I'm so glad you were able to stop by to read my review and everyone's comments. I hope you enjoy the next two reviews as well! They were amazing stories and I look forward to reading the rest of this amazing series! God Bless!!
DeleteWe have been in that position many times--especially in the earlier years of our marriage and when our kids were young (we have 5 of them!) Probably one of the times that stands out most might be when I was diagnosed with breast cancer and began the scary journey of cancer treatments. God gave my husband a "vision" that "someone" needed prayer for a very serious condition, but God had it in His hands and all would be okay. This is what we clung to when we felt so uncertain about my future--we didn't know what the future held, but we KNEW it was in God's hands--this was about 18 yrs ago (19 yrs. in Nov). I'm so glad we serve such an awesome God--we just have to learn to keep our faith in Him and His capabilities. Sounds easy enough, but many times easier to say, than to live. ;-)
ReplyDeleteVicki OWG
Thank you for sharing your story with everybody VICKI. What a blessing that God gave your husband the vision and the word that He had it all in His hands and that all would be okay. I love it that along with His word, He gives us the extra support that we need to get through these really tough times.
DeleteYou're so right about all of us needing to come to the place where we learn to keep our faith in Him, His love, and His capabilities! And PTL that it's now been 18 years since your diagnosis, that's fantastic!!! :)
Three years ago, I had to step out in complete faith when my husband broke his neck and later that same year my mother was diagnosed with Alzheimer's.
ReplyDeleteMy husband recovered completely from his broken neck and my mother is now sitting at the feet of Jesus.
Janet E.
von1janet(at)gmail(dot)com
Oh my, JANET! What a dark time that had to have been for you. I don't know how people go through things like that without God. I'm so sorry for your loss, but praise the Lord for your husband's recovery! God is so faithful!
DeleteA story both my daughter & I will enjoy.
ReplyDeleteSometimes you just have to believe!!
OWG
I love how you put that MARY - 'Sometimes you just have to believe!' :) I wish you all the best in winning this book, I know you and daughter will just love it!!
DeleteIt has been a joy for me to read these reviews and testimonies this week, since I've been going through a trial of my own. Yesterday morning I had a partial mastectomy for stage 1 breast cancer. But God has blessed me with an outpouring of love, both through his comforting Spirit and through many praying and supportive friends. Not to mention my husband, who talks tough but acts lovingly. :-)
ReplyDeleteI don't need to win one of my daughter's books, but I'm so very proud of the way Anne Elisabeth uses her gifts to glorify God. Thank you, Noela and Carrie and all for this blog!
Jill Stengl
So wonderful to have you come by JILL, and I just love how God works all things in His wonderful timing. I'm so happy that these reviews and testimonies have blessed you with what you've been going through this week. We will be keeping you in our prayers as well. God bless you!
DeleteBy the way, you have every right to feel so proud of Anne, she has an incredible talent and God truly is glorified through them!!
JILL, I am praying for you! So sorry to read on FB about your difficulties! We're glad to have your sweetie girl on the blog this week and now that we know about this trial you are going through, we will keep you lifted up!!! Hugs!!!
DeleteWhen I was trying to get a house, and it kept falling through, I had to have faith that I would get one if it was God's will. It was a very frustrating time. shopgirl152nykiki(at)yahoo(dot)com
ReplyDeleteThank you for stopping by VERONICA! It can hard and even frustrating when things don't seem to work out but eventually aren't you glad when they don't! When we look back on things we can then see how God has helped us to work things out in a much better way for us than what we imagined! :)
Delete