The Thief - Giveaway and Review

The part about being a book reviewer that I love the most besides reading amazing books, is discovering talent I would have never discovered before, which leads me to authors whose ability to write does more than simply tell a story. They take you there by the hand and create a place so vivid and rich in details that you feel like you are part of the story itself. That is just what I discovered when I picked up Stephanie Landsem's latest novel, The Thief. It is the second book in her Living Water Series and after reading this one, I will DEFINITELY being going back to read The Well.

Stephanies's writing style is like that of best selling author Tosca Lee who takes a simple character found in the Bible and takes us on the journey of just how they arrived to that historical point in the story we all remember them from but now they aren't just a supporting character, they are the part of the headliners.

Stephanie begins the novel of The Thief with the character known simply as Mouse, a young boy who makes his living in Jerusalem stealing jewelry, coins and whatever he can lay his hands on to support his family. His older brother Cendron has been born blind and barely makes enough begging to help support his family. His father spends all his time, losing money playing dice and getting drunk, while their mother drinks herself into a stupor and fails to even cook and clean. Without Mouse's thieving, the family would be out on the street and hungry.

Mouse's ally is an elderly man named Dismas who takes Mouse under his wing and teaches him how to work the system to avoid getting caught. If you are caught stealing, you are publically flogged and cast out. If you use a knife or rob at night, it means death by stoning, something Dismas and Mouse have to make sure that doesn't happen to them. While spending the day, stealing, Mouse sees a crowd of people enter Jerusalem with a man they believe to be a prophet with claims he can heal the blind and sick. Cedron vows to do whatever it takes to see this man they call Jesus to see if he can in fact heal him of his blindness so he can help provide for his family as a believer in God. But when things don't go according to plan for Mouse, he vows to find a way to give up his life of stealing before he gets caught.

I received The Thief by Stephanie Landsem compliments of Howard Books, a division of Simon and Schuster Publishers for my honest review. I did not receive any monetary compensation for a favorable review and the opinions expressed in this review are strictly my own. I literally was transported to the streets of ancient Jerusalem during the Feast of Tabernacles and became on the people witnessing everything that happened. It was so life-like and real I had a hard time believing I was simply reading a novel in the comfort of my living room. I can only hope a screen-writer grabs this one and turns it into a movie because it is simply that great. If you ever wanted to read a truly exceptional novel about living in Jerusalem as the famed thief from the Bible, you will definitely want to pick this one up. Trust me! YOU DON'T want to miss this one. I easily give this one HANDS DOWN 5 out of 5 stars!!! I can't wait for her next novel The Tomb coming soon.

For more information about The Thief, Stephanie Landsem or where you can pick up a copy of this novel today, please click on the links below:

The Thief by Stephanie Landsem

You can also find Stephanie Landsem on Facebook to stay up to date with all her latest novels.

To read more reviews on The Thief, please visit Howard Book's website. 

Now the best part, thanks to the generosity of Howard Books, they are providing a giveaway copy of The Thief to one lucky follower of my blog, Reviews From The Heart. Here are your guidelines to enter:

1. "Like" Howard Books Facebook page so you don't miss out on any of their amazing books!

2. "Like" Stephanie Landsem's Facebook page! Trust me you will LOVE her novels!

3. Be a resident of the US or have a US shipping address. Please No P.O. Boxes.

4. If you have a Twitter account, make sure you follow Howard Books and "Tweet about this giveaway using @Howard_Books @stephlandse in your tweet!

5. Leave a comment below telling me why you'd love to win a copy of The Thief along with your email address. You can use the words (at) and (dot) instead of the symbols. But if I don't have your email address, I can't notify you if you're the lucky winner. Trust me, you don't want to miss this one!

I will notify the winner by email once the giveaway ends on March 10th to give you plenty of time to enter. .Remember you gain an entry for every one of the guidelines you complete and you can enter as many times as you'd like. Simply leave comments on Howard Books and Stephanie Landsem's Facebook if you have already "Liked" them.