A collection of works of art depicting the story of David and Bathsheba. For those who don't know, this is a Biblical story where King David looks down and sees Bathsheba, the wife of one of his military men, bathing. He so desires her that he begins an adulterous affair with her, an affair that results in pregnancy. To try to hide this, David first tries to get Bathsheba's husband to sleep with her during a furlow. When that fails, he sends the commander an order to but Bathsheba's husband in the thick of the fighting and then desert him so that he is killed. ( )

I really enjoyed Uvi Poznansky’s Rise to Power, so there was no way I would miss the chance to read A Peek at Bathsheba, second in her David Chronicles. It’s a wonderful story, well able to stand alone, and gorgeously, lyrically told. Those familiar with the Bible account will know where King David is coming from and going to. But every twist and turn of this plot feels fresh and new as David truly comes to life, an old man recollecting past mistakes; a king with many wives and honest loves and needs; a father who never quite knew what a father should do; and a man who, in volume three, will most surely be In Search of Redemption.

Author Uvi Poznansky has a wonderful talent for making the Biblical real, turning classic heroes into their humanly flawed counterparts, and rendering them totally fascinating. By the end of the tale, readers will feel they have truly sat at David’s feet, listening to him speak.

By turns cynical, sad, excitable, eager, foolish, wise, and maybe even driven a little mad by circumstance, this great king leads his people, sometimes leads his armies, and tries to lead his family into legacy. Meanwhile his prophet reminds him of God’s decrees, memories remind him of friendships past, and soldiers remind him of who they think put him on this throne. Faith is a lithesome thing in this tale, hard to grasp yet always waiting to threaten from the wings. And the victor writes the history, or at least the victor employs the historian.

Familiar Bible phrases echo, from psalms and from further afield, turned sometimes to God, sometimes to love. “How much nagging can a man take from his wives?” David wonders, even as he writes, and the twin roles of warrior and poet twist his words. Told with powerful sympathy and irony, a nicely prophetic touch, and plenty of earthy, human emotion, this novella has a classic feel blended with a wholly new approach. It’s beautifully researched, gorgeously rendered, and enticingly provocative in its blend of familiar and new. And it’s highly recommended.

Disclosure: It was free and I couldn’t resist it. ( )