Between the Wild Branches (The Covenant House, #2) by Connilyn Cossette {Book Review}

 **I received a complimentary copy of this book for consideration. All thoughts are my own. 

Ten years ago Lukio fled Kiryat-Yearim, where he'd been adopted by the Levite family who guarded the Ark of the Covenant. Feeling betrayed by everyone, he returned to his birthplace in Philistia to become a famous fighter. Now the champion of Ashdod, Lukio has achieved every goal with the help of his ruthless cousin. But just as he is set to claim the biggest prize of all, the daughter of the king, his past collides with his present in the form of Shoshana.

After a heartbreaking end to her secret friendship with Lukio, Shoshana thought to never see the boy with the dual-colored eyes and the troubled soul again. But when she is captured in a Philistine raid and enslaved

in Ashdod, she is surprised to find that the brutal fighter known as Demon-Eyes is Lukio himself. 

With explosive secrets and unbreakable vows standing between them, finding a way to freedom for both may cost them everything.

Connilyn Cossette (www.connilyncossette.com) is a Christy Award and Carol Award winning author whose books have been found on ECPA and CBA bestseller lists. When she is not engulfed in the happy chaos of homeschooling two teenagers, devouring books whole, or avoiding housework, she can be found digging into the rich ancient world of the Bible to discover gems of grace that point to Jesus and weaving them into an immersive fiction experience. Although she and her husband have lived all over the country in their twenty-plus years of marriage, they currently call a little town south of Dallas, Texas, their home.

Between the Wild Branches is the second book in The Covenant House series. While I had not read the first book, I found it to read okay as a standalone, though I do wonder if perhaps I would have gotten more out of it had I read the previous book first. 

Biblical fiction is not one of my preferred genres, but Connilyn Cossette is an author who certainly does the genre justice... while it certainly is a tougher one for me to get into, I cannot help but admire and appreciate her ability to draw the reader into this world so far different from our own. Her story-telling abilities are absolutely fantastic, and that is quite evident in this well written novel. While it may not be the first one I would reach for myself, it's certainly a worthwhile read. Fans who enjoy historical and Biblical fiction are sure to want to add this to their TBR, but I would certainly check out the first book first!