The story of Jezebel in the bible deals with a religious woman who was smart, deceitful and manipulative and she used her ways to get what she wanted at the expense of others.  God deemed there was no redemption for Jezebel and she would befall a terrible death because of all the wrong she did.  Jacquelin Thomas takes this bible story and reworks it for modern times and her character is just as cunning as the bible told.  JEZEBEL is made modern which makes it is understandable and tangible for even those who don’t know the story of Jezebel.

Jessie Belle meets her husband Traynor when he comes to her small town to preach at the revival services at her father’s church.  She is immediately taken with the young preacher and in a whirlwind they proclaim their love and marry, against the wishes of Traynor’s father and aunt.  Traynor is smitten and he knows Jessie Belle will be a good wife and refuses to hear any negativity about her character. 

In all appearances Jessie Belle is a good wife and mother, but what Jessie Belle wants Jessie Belle gets.  She doesn’t care about the consequences or who will get hurt in the process as long as her dreams are realized that her husband is the most powerful preacher in the country and they have all the material trappings to accompany it.  Jessie Belle had to do a lot of scheming, conniving, manipulation and some down right shameful things in order to make everything happen the way she wanted them to.  Eventually, Traynor realized the lovely young woman he married was not the wife he thought her to be; in fact he didn’t like what he saw, because his wife reminds him of the story of Jezebel.  Will Jessie Belle's fate be the same as Jezebel’s?

Jacquelin Thomas brought to vibrant life a bible story and placed it in reference to contemporary times and she makes the story accessible to all readers.  Even with the preaching, bible verses and other reminders of Christianity, it wasn’t a preachy story.  It spoke of truth and the consequences of one’s actions.  The character development was done very well, as much as I disliked Jessie Belle, she was genuine.  The pacing in the first section was a bit slow, but it was done to define Jessie Belle as a person.  The book is broken into several sections:  Her Character, Her Triumphs, Her Tragedy and Her Redemption.  When I finished this book I felt I could truly speak on the story of Jezebel and relate it to my peers where they would understand and take away its true message.  I highly recommend this book. 

Reviewed by Cashana Seals
of The RAWSISTAZ™ Reviewers