Havah, the Story of Eve by Tosca Lee

Occasionally, I volunteer to read a friend's book, they send it, and I recommend it if I like it. Tosca Lee sent me Havah, and I loved it from the moment Eve--Havah-- heard, Wake.

Suddenly, Havah's senses were filled with all the luscious sensations of a glorious world, a perfect man, all a perfect gift from God--to His creatures and to Himself.

Tosca Lee took a short and powerful Bible story we've all heard a thousand times, and with her anointed imagination and much research, she created a wonderful, moving novel.

She heightened emotions we all would feel in this setting, by showing the sinless purity of it all, the glory of the presence of God and the freshness of His perfect, untainted Creation. And she placed these emotions in this first woman so childlike in this heavenly place. Everything around Havah was more lovely than anything we could ever imagine. Including this amazing creature so like her, yet so different, her man.

Together, they explored and discovered that world and each other, the joy of sinless love, of gorgeous and functional plants, awesome and affectionate animals, and the regular, tangible presence of the Creator. All was love, beauty, discovery, astonishment, delight. Worship.

Then Havah encountered another beautiful and enticing creature--the Serpent. With the first question recorded in the Bible, he made her doubt. Yea, has God really said?...
And soon the story turned dark. Eve went from complete, carefree joy to desperate despair, blame, guilt, terror. She called God's name and He did not answer.

I love Bible prophecy, and have concluded that we are in the very last days before the Second Coming of Christ. Revelation 3 shows seven churches, and the last one before the voice says Come up here is the Laodicean Church. Among the interpretations of this is the belief that this is a literal time period. And it follows that that would be now. If so, much of today's church is poor, wretched, miserable, blind, and naked. People suffer because of it, and so do animals.

The Bible says Creation waits.

And of course, it started with Adam and Eve.

With her beautiful prose and deep emotion, Tosca made it all so real, my heart broke. Tosca did not overplay this. But when Havah found sweet animals suffering and dead and swarms of flies, after all that beauty, joy and perfection, I had to put the book down for a long time.

The exquisite beauty of the Garden of Eden was polluted. All because Eve had to have her way and eat that fruit. And Adam did not stop her. She was deceived. He disobeyed. He joined her. Then he blamed God:

That woman you gave me.

Because the Serpent hated them so. (You can read more about the feelings of the Fallen Angels in Tosca Lee's amazing Demon.)

Finally, months later, I had to know how Tosca handled the rest of the 900 years of Eve's life.

And I was captivated by her depiction of the joys and challenges of family relationships--what was it like to be married to Adam? Of love and (necessary) incest, survival skills, practical arts, and new homesteads for offspring, and finally, new cities and foreign, false gods. All from venerated Mother Eve.

I rejoiced for her at the end. An end we all desire.

I do recommend this amazing book for mature youth on up.