4 out of 5 stars
Share This Review
Love Letters to the Virgin Mary: The Resurrection of King David by David Richards is divided into five books. The book begins with a preface that talks about how imagination is more powerful than knowledge and about how the major religions exist based on each other's knowledge, including Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. It goes on to explain that a belief cannot be forced on anyone. This book is a love letter between King David and the Virgin Mary.
The author is someone who struggled to surrender his life to Jesus totally, and in the book, there are two narrators, one of whom talks about writing to Mariah, a woman he loves but who seems to be dead. This narrator is a Spanish soldier, full of admiration for his late lover; he writes letters about his life since the last time they saw each other and about events that reminded him of her; as a kid, the narrator played a lot of war games; and the second narrator, as a child, seems to have an imaginary friend in his head, Jesus, who he seems to talk to; what became of the first narrator after his wife and son were murdered? Did he seek revenge? How did both narrators find their way to Christianity and know Christ? Read this book to find out.
This book taught me many things, including how the Romans learned the art of war from the Greek Marcus, an emperor who is a man of foresight, and how enhanced sight and visualizing the battle ahead of time can help commanders discern their opponents' aim. One lesson I learned from this book is that "what we focus on, we become." I like how the author was open about his struggle with his faith and how feelings were expressed sincerely in this book.
The way the author painted the narrators discovering their faith is so beautiful; there was no rush at all, and we could see how their lives progressed until that point. The author's writing style is skillful and brilliant, and though the first chapter may feel confusing, as you read along, the whole book takes on a form and becomes engaging. It's amusing how the author combined a romance story, grief, and information about soldiers' daily lives.
There are a few things I didn't like about this book. The headings of the chapters and the grouping seemed a little confusing as well, switching from the Roman soldier perspective in the Spaniards to the life of David, who might be the one writing the letters. It took me a lot of time and patience to understand the book. The book seems to have been professionally edited, as I only spotted a few errors while reading it. I rate it four out of five stars.
I recommend it to readers who love the military or love reading about wars and the lives of soldiers in general. They will be fond of this book because it contains much information that centers on the lives of soldiers and warriors; there are also mentions of quantum physics in the book. Christians and non-Christians who are open-minded and don't mind reading about Jesus and the Christian faith will also like this book.
******
Love Letters to the Virgin Mary
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
