Chasing the Lion (Sword of Redemption) (Volume 1)

By Nancy Kimball

Description:

For as long as Jonathan Tarquinius can remember, everyone has wanted something from him. His half brother wants him dead. His master’s wife wants his innocence. The gladiator dealers want him to fight—and die—for their greed. Rome’s most famous prostitute wants his love. And the gentle slave girl who tends the wounds on his body and the hidden ones on his soul longs for him to return to his faith. What Jonathan wants is simple. Freedom. But God wants something from Jonathan too—something more than anyone would ever imagine.

The young warrior’s journey will push him to the limits of human endurance and teach him that true freedom is found within. The greatest battle Jonathan must ever fight will not come in the arena, but deep within himself as he is forced to choose between vengeance and mercy—with the fate of an empire and the life of the woman he loves hanging in the balance.

Book Takeaway:

There is no life too far gone for the Lord to redeem, and no situation too hopeless that the Lord cannot bring beauty from.

Awards:

Why the author wrote this book:

The absolute worst season of my life inspired Chasing the Lion. At the time the rug had been yanked from beneath me, my personal and spiritual life were in shambles, and I was floundering, in spite of the tremendous love and support from close family and friends. Through a God-thing, I heard about NaNoWriMo where novel writers pledge to write a book in a month. It was a big, crazy, goal but I’d always wanted to write a novel and more importantly, wanted to prove to myself that I could still set my mind on something and accomplish it.

At a little café on my lunch break, I brainstormed all the things I love and maybe the story I wanted to tell in the process. The movie Gladiator, the computer game ROME: Total War, and the story of Joseph from the bible began to swirl in my brain until I had one question looming.

What if Joseph, when his brothers sold him into slavery, and things started going from bad to worse for him, what if he hadn’t remained faithful to the Lord? Would God have relentlessly pursued Joseph to accomplish His greater plan, or simply raised up another in Joseph’s place? And out of that question, I saw a young man—with a divine purpose for his life but struggling with his identity and making sense of his circumstances. A man who would endure an epic journey to answer that question—if our hero abandons his faith, what happens then? How far will the Lord pursue him, and how? This emerging character, a young Roman noble betrayed into slavery, would become the man readers know and love as Jonathan Tarquinius.