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Customer Reviews for B & H Publishing Group Havah: The Story of Eve

B & H Publishing Group Havah: The Story of Eve

Experience the epic dawn of mankind through the eyes and heart of Eve---the woman first known as Havah. Made by God in a manner like no other, she lived in utter paradise until one fateful decision changed everything. Now all humanity suffers for her mistake. Discover what she felt when all innocence crumbled. 384 pages, softcover from B&H.
Average Customer Rating:
4.591 out of 5
4.6
 out of 
5
(22 Reviews) 22
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Rating Snapshot (22 reviews)
5 stars
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15 out of 15100%customers would recommend this product to a friend.
Customer Reviews for Havah: The Story of Eve
Review 1 for Havah: The Story of Eve
Overall Rating: 
3 out of 5
3 out of 5

Date:March 1, 2013
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Army Mom
Age:45-54
Gender:female
Quality: 
4 out of 5
4 out of 5
Value: 
4 out of 5
4 out of 5
Meets Expectations: 
2 out of 5
2 out of 5
Havah is the story of Eve. After reading the first novel by this author I was really looking forward to this book.
The first few chapters were beautifully and creatively written. I loved the authors take on how she considered Eden to be both of the land and the animals and how Adam and Eve interacted with all of it. I wish she had spent more time there, but the majority of the book focused on the fall and it's aftermath. And while I can't fault her for her take on the way she believed that things could have been, she seemed to make it very dark very quickly (and maybe rightly so,) but for three quarters of the book it was very depressing. Adam and Eves relationship seemed to be great one day and spiraling out of the control the next day and it never seemed to get better or ever even out. There were a few bright spots, but they were to few and far apart.
There was nothing wrong with the writing itself, or the editing, I just didn't want to read so intently what I go through everyday, the sin in this world, the heartbreak and the heartache. Just my opinion.
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Review 2 for Havah: The Story of Eve
Overall Rating: 
5 out of 5
5 out of 5

What's Lost Can Be Found

Date:November 16, 2012
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Amber McCallister
Age:25-34
Gender:female
Quality: 
5 out of 5
5 out of 5
Value: 
5 out of 5
5 out of 5
Meets Expectations: 
5 out of 5
5 out of 5
Havah is a wildly passionate, honest, and grace-filled look into the life of the first ancestors of all human, Adam and Eve. This story will change the way you look, think, and evaluate their life and fateful decision that lead to the fall. You will honestly think twice before judging them as harshly as you have before because you will see just how easily the same decision could have been made by us if we were in their shoes.
After reading this book, you will understand how Eve's decision was both made by her and also a push from Satan to make this new human face fall from grace as he did. However, to our delight and to Satan's dismay, God didn't leave us without a way back to Him. Instead He planted a hope in Adam and Eve and planned for a future event which would give us a way back to God and His grace. Praise be to our loving and merciful God, He did just that, but it would be in His time! Adam and Eve didn't live to see the restoration of the human race back to God, but they did live long enough to understand that God' time was theirs and God had NOT turned His back on them despite their sin. He still over them and watched over them. He just couldn't be as close to them as He was before the fall because He can't look on sin.
What effected me the most from reasing this book as the degredation of the connection\relationship that God shared with Adam and Eve as well as the relationship between Adam and Eve before the fall. Even the relationship of Adam and Eve with the animals before and after the fall really hit me as something I never really thought of before. It really killed me to "watch" how these relationships went from perfection to what we define today as a normal relationship with God, other humans, and the animals around us. This really grieved me and made me hope for and long for that perfect communication\relationship that this book lays out before the fall. On, how I hope it is truly like that when we get to Heave. My heart so longs for that perfection, that connection, that level of awareness that I cried every time conflict came up between Adam and Eve and amongst their children that highlighted the loss of deterioration of that once close relationship. I can't image how I would even begin to deal with the loss of such a magnificent gift if I were I were in Eve's place.
Every life has a story as some day, and the life of Eve is one story that could fill books too numerous to count if we humans knew all of the details. I think our love of her story would turn to desperation and perhaps we wouldn't work so hard to destroy each other, but instead work harder to bring each other close to Christ in order to restore as much as possible, via Jesus's sacrifice, the previous perfect state of love and relationship with our Creator that existed before the fall. Perhaps then we would truly understand how much God loves and cherishes both the mail and female gender as they were both extracted from His own nature. Perhaps then this world would not be so fertile a playground for Satan and his demons. Perhaps we would trample him under our feet more and team down this strongholds in our lives. Perhaps then the body of Christ would once again clothe herself in the purest white and cleanse her heart and be who God intended her to be.
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Review 3 for Havah: The Story of Eve
Overall Rating: 
5 out of 5
5 out of 5

Very interesting book

Date:December 19, 2012
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Flower
Location:Trinidad and Tobago
Age:35-44
Gender:female
Quality: 
5 out of 5
5 out of 5
Value: 
5 out of 5
5 out of 5
Meets Expectations: 
5 out of 5
5 out of 5
I really enjoy this book! I will surely recommend this book to a friend.
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Review 4 for Havah: The Story of Eve
Overall Rating: 
5 out of 5
5 out of 5

Date:April 23, 2012
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AddLibrarian
Age:25-34
Gender:female
Quality: 
5 out of 5
5 out of 5
Value: 
5 out of 5
5 out of 5
Meets Expectations: 
5 out of 5
5 out of 5
I heard about Tosca Lee for a long time before I finally read Havah. In it, Eve tells her story from the moment of first consciousness to death. There is definitely a reason for the hype. Sensual and lush, Havah isn't typical biblical fiction. Lee doesn't avoid or dance around adult situations or themes. But what really stands out is Lee's gorgeous writing. You'll never view the story of Adam and Eve, the Garden of Eden, or the fall of mankind the same way!
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Review 5 for Havah: The Story of Eve
Overall Rating: 
4 out of 5
4 out of 5

Good Story Line

Date:June 6, 2012
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Puddie
Location:Las Vegas, NV
Age:35-44
Gender:female
Quality: 
4 out of 5
4 out of 5
Value: 
5 out of 5
5 out of 5
Meets Expectations: 
4 out of 5
4 out of 5
I enjoyed the story line and the characters. The book overall was a good read and met my expectations. Was very entertaining and will share with my friends.
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Review 6 for Havah: The Story of Eve
Overall Rating: 
5 out of 5
5 out of 5

Really holds interest! Thought provoking.

Date:May 29, 2012
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Judy Hess
Location:Swords Creek Va
Age:Over 65
Gender:female
This was an excellent book. I thought it portrayed the depth of emotions that Adam & Eve must have felt after realizing the terrible thing they had done. I could feel the sorrow & desperation that had come into their perfect world. The desperation we all experience when we are no longer in a good relationship with God. I had never really thought of the pain & sorrow that they must have gone through. It caused me to be more thankful for God's plan of salvation for us today.
+1point
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Review 7 for Havah: The Story of Eve
Overall Rating: 
5 out of 5
5 out of 5

Good reading

Date:May 27, 2012
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Ma23
Location:OH
Age:55-65
Gender:female
This was a good read good - I would recomend it to a friend
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Review 8 for Havah: The Story of Eve
Overall Rating: 
5 out of 5
5 out of 5

Intriguing.

Date:May 25, 2012
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Anu2
Brought the story of creation to a personal level...I can identify with Havah, especially the years following exile. Really enjoyed it and made me wonder if I would have been any different, in her situation. I loved the relationship between Havah and her son, a mother's love, hope, expectation.
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Review 9 for Havah: The Story of Eve
Overall Rating: 
4 out of 5
4 out of 5

A Tale of Eve

Date:December 23, 2011
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The Phantom Paragrapher
Location:Tauranga, New Zealand
Age:18-24
Gender:female
Quality: 
4 out of 5
4 out of 5
Value: 
4 out of 5
4 out of 5
Meets Expectations: 
4 out of 5
4 out of 5
In the beginning , God saw that the world was empty so he created Man in his own image , God then saw that Man would be lonely, so he put the man to sleep and with one of the man's ribs he created a companion for man and called her woman. Who were these people ? Man's name was not Tarzan but Adam and Woman's name was not Jane but Eve. However after reading Havah, I discovered that Havah in fact is another name for Eve. In most novels that we read about the Creation and the beginning times, they tend to be from Adam's perspective but it was great to finally read a story from Eve's perspective as she comes across life in the Garden of Eden, the birth of her two sons Cain and Abel , the temptation to eat the fruit off the Tree of Life - what was going through her mind when the serpent ( satan in disguise) tempted her to pull the apple from the tree and take a bite and of course handing it over to Adam to take a bite. Then of course, what happens next is the disappointment by God who then proceeds to exile them from the Garden of Eden into the big bad world of Reality. What I never noticed from reading the bible and the Adam and Eve story is the lengths that Eve went to in order to try and get back into God's good books as she really did care for him and his ways and wanted to follow life his way. Though of course, to me the story of Adam and Eve does show that even though we were made in God's image , we are after all human and subjected to sin , but unlike those times before Jesus we are able to ask for his forgiveness and repent for the sins and be allowed back from exile into his kingdom.
Havah by Tosca Lee is a great read and an amazing biographical tale of Eve also known as Havah. It spins the tale of her walk with God through the good times and the bad.
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Review 10 for Havah: The Story of Eve
Overall Rating: 
3 out of 5
3 out of 5

This is the first book I've seen written about Eve

Date:December 9, 2011
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DeeDee
Location:Bloomington, IN
Age:55-65
Gender:female
Quality: 
3 out of 5
3 out of 5
Value: 
3 out of 5
3 out of 5
Meets Expectations: 
3 out of 5
3 out of 5
It is written in an interesting style, which makes it easy to fill in information not directly stated.
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Review 11 for Havah: The Story of Eve
Overall Rating: 
5 out of 5
5 out of 5

A Novel Made to be Absorbed

Date:October 7, 2011
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Christy Janes
Age:25-34
Gender:female
Tosca Lee has got to be one of the most talented authors in Christian fiction today. It has been such a long time since I read a novel with as much depth as this one had. Normally, I fly through books as so many of them have similar storylines and plot devices, but I found myself slowly and methodically reading this book, absorbing each and every page.
This book changed my perceptions of those early days from Genesis that I am familiar with. Tosca's ability to convey the joy of Adam and Eve's time in the garden was contrasted extremely well to their sudden flight after eating the fruit, along with their subsequent wonder of how they would survive. And while it's not the norm for Christian fiction, I appreciated Tosca going the extra mile in describing the love shared between Adam and Eve as husband and wife. It seems that lately this has been frowned upon by some Christian readers, but I found it to be completely natural and added that extra bit of realness to the story.
Not only is Havah a great addition to Christian fiction, it is a wonderful addition to the genre of Biblical fiction that is growing by leaps and bounds. I have found that these novels help me in my understanding of Biblical truths, and I always find myself going to the original source and comparing both works side by side. It is my belief that Tosca has found her niche with the Biblical fiction genre, and while I'm sure her newest novel with Ted Dekker is great, I'm eager for her next solo novel in the works called Iscariot.
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Review 12 for Havah: The Story of Eve
Overall Rating: 
4 out of 5
4 out of 5

Very different, but good!

Date:April 12, 2011
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girlsmama
Location:Edgewood, WA
Age:45-54
Gender:female
Quality: 
5 out of 5
5 out of 5
Value: 
5 out of 5
5 out of 5
Meets Expectations: 
5 out of 5
5 out of 5
Havah: The Story of Eve by author Tosca Lee was truly a very different read for me. Now when you hear the word "different" ,sometimes a negative connotation is stirred up in your mind. But that really is not the case here-I really just mean it as different as in not the same as other's writing. It took me a little bit to get into this book, but I'm really glad that I hung in there because as things began to unfold I really believe that the author Tosca Lee explored some very interesting themes as to what Eve's life might have been like before and after the fall. Writing a story like this is a little tricky because you fight the whole "we know what's going to happen" angle. But Tosca Lee's writing really captures you and you can't help but hope that somehow Eve won't take the apple from the serpent or that Cain might decide that he didn't have to kill Abel after all. But true to the story these things do play out and lots of other tough life drama like jealousy, strife, sickness,shame and regret all come into the story in deep and heartbreaking ways. Tosca Lee is a new author for me and her writing is very passionate. Her early writing in the story describing life in the garden was very ethereal and creative. There were a few times that I felt like the word choices made me go "huh?", and sort of momentarily took me out of the story. However, that was just near the beginning, so I found it kind of interesting that it felt like the writing style changed as the story went on which was very unique, after the fall there seemed to be a shift, which makes total sense to me- From paradise to a fallen world. I would like to explore some of Tosca Lee's other writing, it definitely is not run of the mill and I applaud her for taking on this story, what an undertaking and she really took a lot of risks in her writing- very different.
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Review 13 for Havah: The Story of Eve
Overall Rating: 
5 out of 5
5 out of 5

Extraordinary

Date:February 18, 2011
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Dayle
Location:Louisiana
Age:35-44
Gender:male
Quality: 
5 out of 5
5 out of 5
Value: 
5 out of 5
5 out of 5
Meets Expectations: 
5 out of 5
5 out of 5
An extraordinary work. Quite possibly the best I've read.
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Review 14 for Havah: The Story of Eve
Overall Rating: 
5 out of 5
5 out of 5

Date:December 20, 2010
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aobibliophile
Quality: 
5 out of 5
5 out of 5
Value: 
5 out of 5
5 out of 5
Meets Expectations: 
5 out of 5
5 out of 5
And God created man to His own image: to the image of God He created him male and female He created them. - Genesis 1:27 (1899 Douay-Rheims Bible)
"Wake" said the One Who Is and so begins the incredible saga of Havah - the woman we call Eve.
anyone familiar with the biblical account of creation and the downfall of man will find something so remarkable and fresh in Havah's story - from her awakening and union with Adam, the encounters with the serpent, the fateful eating of the forbidden fruit, the banishment from the Garden , the early days of exile to the birth of her children and descendants.
in her own words, i relived the dawn of mankind and was transported to a time and place where everything was as it should be - perfect, pure, beautiful and at peace. through her eyes, i witnessed the dire consequences brought about by one choice which altered the course of history forever.
i read this book in one sitting and i was reluctant to take leave of Havah and her world. aside from my Bible, never has another book touched me more deeply or brought me to tears. i was mesmerized by its vivid imagery. i savored with gusto the prose and poetry that flowed in every page. i honestly cried over Havah's triumphs and heartbreaks. i was truly moved beyond my expectations.
this book is meticulously researched , craftily written, richly detailed and superbly told! Tosca Lee's fertile imagination has gifted us with an extraordinary novel that speaks to all men and women of every generation and belief. if there is a work of fiction that needs to be read and cherished for a lifetime, it is Havah - The Story of Eve - a creature bestowed with the honor and privilege of being the first woman and the mother of us all.
Disclosure of Material Connection: i received an Advance Reader's Edition of Havah - The Story of Eve from the B&H Publishing Group through NetGalley.com i did not receive any payment in exchange for this review nor was I obligated to write a positive one. all opinions expressed here are entirely my own and may not necessarily agree with those of the author, the book's publisher and publicist or the readers of this review. this disclosure is in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255, Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.
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Review 15 for Havah: The Story of Eve
Overall Rating: 
5 out of 5
5 out of 5

Excellent

Date:November 26, 2010
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Abbie
Location:Texas
Age:25-34
Gender:female
Meets Expectations: 
4 out of 5
4 out of 5
This is certainly one the most imaginative and thought-provoking novels I have read to date. Tosca Lee accomplished an amazing feat in writing a novel from Eve's perspective that is still in line with the scriptural telling of the story of creation, fall, and the life after. If you have ever wondered how must have felt, what her life was like - you'd enjoy this book.
"Wake!" with this simple command the novel opens its doors to an amazing adventure, an invitation into Eve's life. An invitation to the beginning - life in the garden, a new relationship untarnished with sin (the wondrous state of marriage unsullied by the filth of the sinful world - in its most beautiful natural state), the fresh and inhibited relationship of God (called the ONE) and mankind - in it's perfect state. The richness of descriptive elements makes this story bound off the pages in full color in your minds imaginative eye.
I had never really taken time to contemplate the pureness of life before sin - how wondrous this must have been. A time of perfect, untarnished union with the Lord. A marriage free of temptation, shame, feelings of inadequacy or guilt - just sheer pleasure in knowing each other completely - neither person having anything to hide, withhold or fear.
Nor had I ever thought about the fact that God's most beautiful angel Satan (the angel of music and beauty) was possibly there deceiving Eve one encounter at a time, slowly leading her to the taking of that which was forbidden. That she was enchanted by his beauty and slick tongue, that she was led astray by his 98% truth and 1% lie. But then how true is that of us - one little fox ruins the entire vineyard. My heart cried out at the recounting of the fall - how Eve states, "I ate. I, who had come second went first. I, who had followed in the steps of every living thing before me, walked ahead. Perhaps my hands trembled as I held it out. Perhaps I already knew. Either way, I ate then gave it to him. He ate." WOW! My breath caught in my throat as I read it written in such a way. Never had I allowed myself to actually imagine this portion of scripture to allow the impact of the action to come to rest fully on my consciences in such a shocking heavy way. In that one moment creation became dull with the entrance of sin - things changed forever.
The remainder of the novel follows the life of Eve outside of the garden in what she calls the "slow death". For the first time all life around her, all creation was in the process of dying. Even now this is what we see - and her heart longed to find a way back to the beginning to a time where there was no word for death or pain. To a time when all creation existed together in perfect harmony a constant beautiful song raised to the Father of it all - and a daily communion with Him whose hands created it all. A relationship with God that was not a struggle to maintain - no enemy to fight - surrounded by peace and beauty unexplainable. This life outside Eden is one of firsts of all kinds - some good, some bad. Again, Tosca Lee's brilliant use of descriptive words and images wakens the reader's imagination, stirs the soul, pricks the heart - awakening that awareness deep in ones self that there is something better, something we are missing, something lost that must be restored. It is as if the reader is there in the midst of it all, experiencing the deep emotions of joy and anguish.
This is an excellent book for adults. I would not recommend it to youth because of some of the graphic details.
Thank you B&H for this review copy.
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Review 16 for Havah: The Story of Eve
Overall Rating: 
5 out of 5
5 out of 5

Date:September 6, 2010
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Shellie
We all have heard the story, read the account in Genesis. The story of Adam & Eve. The story of a man and women who changed the history of all mankind with one decision. With the one choice which cast them into a fallen world and set forth all the events which followed. In Havah Tosca Lee gives Eve a voice. A voice which tells of paradise, of love, of temptation and ruin. A story told through the eyes of a women who lived in the world with no separation from The One. Through the eyes of a women who made a choice for which she paid so dearly for. Through the eyes of a women who watched her relationship with The One, with Adam and with the world around her change in ways she never imagined. Through the eyes of a women who bore children and watched them grow, watched them changed and watched them suffer and watched them learn to love. Once I picked up this book, I was unable to put it down until I had devoured it from cover to cover. Havah The Story of Eve is captivating and fascinating. Tosca Lee has shown such an amazing ability to tell a story and make it seem so real. Its as if Tosca Lee reached into the mind of this woman Havah and pulled out the memories, the thoughts, the pains and the joy she really felt. My amazement with the incredible writing only increased the more I read. Havah The Story of Eve is a must read. A story that will grab you and hold you, until you reach the last word, your mouth watering for even more. It is rare to find books you could read again, but this is one of those. **I received this book for the purpose of reviewing from Tosca Lee/B&H Books. I was not required to write a positive review. All of the opinions expressed are my own.**
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Review 17 for Havah: The Story of Eve
Overall Rating: 
5 out of 5
5 out of 5

Date:August 25, 2010
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kirfil
Thoroughly researched but written poetically, I felt I was walking alongside Havah as she explored Eden, and as she was exiled and searching for answers. I was brought to tears at several points during the book, realizing the pain of Havah's life after the garden, as she sought reconciliation through the One that promised to strike the serpent's head with the Seed of the woman.
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Review 18 for Havah: The Story of Eve
Overall Rating: 
5 out of 5
5 out of 5

Date:August 15, 2010
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Christy Lockstein
Havah by Tosca Lee is the intelligent and poignant tale of the first woman on earth, Eve. From those first days in Paradise to the hard-scrabble early days of the exile to raising a brood and then finally dying as the Great Mother of everyone living on earth, Lee takes Havah through every stage of her life. Her first breath and steps are taken in wonder and joy as she learns the name to each animal and plant and lives in complete harmony with the adam and the One who made her. But she is intrigued by the serpent who lives near the succulent fruit of the tree of knowledge. Adam has told her that they must never touch much less eat the enticing fruit, but the serpent tempts her with its beauty and her own ego. Lee's description of the Fall is both terrifying and heartbreaking as seen through Havah's eyes. Her loss of connection with both her mate and her Creator leaves her reeling and lost. In the new world, the two must fight daily for existence, and although the birth of their many children eases some of the burden, it also creates new turmoil as their children are also tainted with sin. Kayin, their eldest, is weighed down by the expectations of his mother that he will crush the head of the serpent, returning them to their paradisaical life in the valley. Lee takes the reader through stories heard endless times about Adam and Eve and makes them truly come to life. Most Christian fiction books aren't written this intelligently or with as much passion. Her version of Paradise lost if completely believable and will bring new understanding to readers about the first woman and how her sin has effected us all to this very day. I will never read the first four chapters of Genesis the same way again.
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Review 19 for Havah: The Story of Eve
Overall Rating: 
3 out of 5
3 out of 5

Date:August 15, 2010
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Edna Tollison
Havah is told from the perspective of Eve, and from the opening lines Tosca Lee. All of the events are here: the garden, the fall, the story of Cain and Abel. But it is not the story you heard in Sunday school. Lee holds nothing back in her story as she explores the relationship between Adam and Eve and their rugged lifestyle. Eve's firsthand account of the fall is emotional, bringing yet more vitality to another familiar aspect of this story.As the story unfolds Tosca Lee gives some insight into some of the questions that has always surrounded Adam and Eve. How many children did they have and how was the Earth populated? What was their relationship really like and how did they interact with God? Everypart of this story is backed by careful research and study, and even if you don't agree with Tosca Lee's viewpoint, you have to admire her for trying to re-explore this time in history.The book was sent to me by Nordskog Publishing for Review
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Review 20 for Havah: The Story of Eve
Overall Rating: 
5 out of 5
5 out of 5

Date:July 31, 2010
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Kari
This book was so great! Tosca Lee is such a gifted writer and I will ready ANYTHING she has in print. I highly recommend this book!
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