Yet her fear holds her back from embracing the complete process without her father's help. Read moreĪs a young woman who grew up in the shadow of her father, a master of making purple dye, Lydia is competent in dye making. I would highly recommend this book to anyone interested in women of the Bible and in Christian fiction in general. Each chapter begins with an epigraph, a quotation from Scripture, which serves as a chapter title of sorts and which correlates to the action in the novel while also further grounding the work theologically. “Bread of Angels” quickly drew me into Lydia’s story, and her sometimes harrowing experiences lent a touch of suspense to the narrative that made this book a difficult one to put down. One day, however, she meets some visitors to Philippi, and as her story coalesces with those of the apostles, she realizes-in more ways than one-what she has been missing.

Her story is one of a gentle, industrious life, and yet her heart cannot find true peace. Although she perseveres, fear continually dogs Lydia throughout her life, along with a sense of guilt and shame at the secrets she keeps. At the tale’s opening she is a teenage girl working with her father to create the purple dye that he has perfected, but storm clouds soon appear on the horizon, and Lydia’s life is forever altered. She is remarkable not only for her conversion to Christianity and for her hospitality, but also for being an unmarried yet successful businesswoman. “Bread of Angels” is a stunning work of Christian biblical fiction, providing a rich backstory for Lydia, a seller of purple cloth who is mentioned in Acts 16. This was my first book by Tessa Afshar, but it definitely won’t be my last. Still, Lydia can't outrun her secrets forever, and when past and present collide, she must either stand firm and trust in her fledgling faith or succumb to the fear that has ruled her life. But fear lingers in every shadow, until Lydia meets the apostle Paul and hears his message of hope, becoming his first European convert. Determination and serendipitous acquaintances - along with her father's precious dye - help her become one of the city's preeminent merchants. With only her father's secret formulas left, Lydia flees to Philippi and struggles to establish her business on her own. Then unbearable betrayal robs her of nearly everything. But before she was Lydia, the seller of purple, she was simply a merchant's daughter who loved three things: her father, her ancestral home, and making dye.

And along the way, she changes the world.

One woman rises up to take the reins of success in an incredible journey of courage, grit, and friendship. The foundation of an influential trade in a Roman world dominated by men.

Bread of Angels by Tessa Afshar