Bread of Angels

Written by Tessa Afshar

Narrated by Rendah Heywood

Purple. The foundation of an influential trade in a Roman world dominated by men. One woman rises up to take the reins of success in an incredible journey of courage, grit, and friendship. And along the way, she changes the world. 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. Then unbearable betrayal robs her of nearly everything. With only her father's secret formulas left, Lydia flees to Philippi and struggles to establish her business on her own. Determination and serendipitous acquaintances-along with her father's precious dye-help her become one of the city's preeminent merchants. But fear lingers in every shadow, until Lydia meets the apostle Paul and hears his message of hope, becoming his first European convert. 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.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Recorded Books, Inc.
• Release date: Jun 6, 2017
• ISBN: 9781501959684

Tessa Afshar

TESSA AFSHAR’s books have been on Publishers Weekly, CBA, and ECPA bestseller lists and have been translated into many languages. Her Bible study, The Way Home: God’s Invitation to New Beginnings, won the ECPA Christian Book of the Year in the Bible Study category. Tessa’s novels have been the recipient of the ECPA’s Bronze Milestone, Christy, and INSPY Awards. She holds a master of divinity from Yale, where she was elected to serve as co-chair of the Evangelical Fellowship for one year. Tessa is a devoted wife, a mediocre gardener, and an enthusiastic cook of biblical recipes. Learn more at TessaAfshar.com.

Reviews for Bread of Angels

[vita coffey · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I liked this story it was very easy to listen too. It is not one of my favorite Ashfar’s stories. But I’m happy I listened to it! I’ve enjoyed most of her books and will probably listen to them all! Good Christian historical fictions! I did love all the Bible verses she inter twined into this story.

[Wends · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Beautifully written and narrated. I love how the story of Paul and Silas's time in prison was written into it.

[liz · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

this book was refreshing compared to her other books as it didnt focus so heavily on romance.

[Lisa Harness · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

So blessed! Undergirded with Scripture. Lydia’s life is strengthened by her father’s encouragement and the friends God sends.

[Maria Nicolas · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

the audiobook is great. I started with the hard copy and finished it in audio. best decision ever!

[Donna Larson Christian · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is another excellent book. Well read too. Thank you for making the scriptures come to life so well.

[sashig-751155 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Lydia comes alive

Another wonderful story from an author who knows how to write biblically based stories. Loved this story of Lydia, the maker and seller of purple. I enjoyed the style of writing and that it is faithful to the story in the Bible,while obviously expanded with creative license. The characters and the scenes are written well, and bring the story to life. Most of all, Afshar weaves in gospel gems so effortlessly into the story. Now getting ready to read Harvest of Rubies.....

[stardust_fiddle · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This was my first book by Tessa Afshar, but it definitely won’t be my last. “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. She is remarkable not only for her conversion to Christianity and for her hospitality, but also for being an unmarried yet successful businesswoman. 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. Although she perseveres, fear continually dogs Lydia throughout her life, along with a sense of guilt and shame at the secrets she keeps. Her story is one of a gentle, industrious life, and yet her heart cannot find true peace. 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. “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. 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. I would highly recommend this book to anyone interested in women of the Bible and in Christian fiction in general.

[beautyinthebinding · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

As a young woman who grew up in the shadow of her father, a master of making purple dye, Lydia is competent in dye making. Yet her fear holds her back from embracing the complete process without her father's help. After her father is injured, Lydia must face her fear and fulfill customer orders alone. Once recovered, Lydia's father entrustes her with his precious formula secrets. Far too soon, Lydia finds herself on her own with few assets other than dye making knowledge. Through past connections and ambition, Lydia restarts with a dye business of her own in Phillippi. Yet fear follows Lydia to her new home, until one man brings an astounding message of freedom. Read more in Bread of Angels by Tessa Afshar.Bread of Angels is the latest stand-alone fiction novel by Tessa Afshar. I enjoyed the small tie-in to her previous novel, Land of Silence, but reading Elianna's story is not necessary to enjoy Lydia's. I felt that Afshar held closely to the narrative regarding Lydia in the New Testament book of Acts though the back story of where Lydia came from and why she eagerly embraced Christianity is fictional. I enjoyed Lydia's thorough character development and commend the author for bringing Lydia to face her fear rather than concocting an escape. As usual, Tessa Afshar's writing style was beautiful and the plot flowed well. I especially enjoyed the post-conversion part of the book when it seemed the author really focused in on themes regarding fear and the power of the work that Jesus accomplished for all believers. I'm still trying to wrap my mind around some of the excellent messages in this book. I recommend Bread of Angels by Tessa Afshar to fans of Biblical fiction. Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

[lamb521 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Title: Bread of AngelsAuthor: Tessa AfsharPages: 400Year: 2017Publisher: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.My rating is 5 out of 5 stars.Lydia is the teenage daughter of a merchant who has perfected the art of making purple dye for textiles. He is not too successful as a business man as he prefers to spend his time perfecting his art instead of managing his accounts. As a result, Lydia and her father are not financially secure. Their products are of excellent quality and the competition seeks her father’s formulas for dye making. In an underhanded plot, her father is branded a criminal and they are forced to leave the land generations of their family has inhabited, the only city they have known and not practice the only trade they know.By chance, Lydia meets a young, homeless, Jewish woman who she befriends. They become best friends and Rebekah begins to tell Lydia about God. Lydia heretofore has only known Greek or Roman gods. As Lydia and Rebekah try to survive in a new city in a trade with few women dyers and none owned by a woman, Lydia begins to put a tentative trust in Rebekah’s God. Then Paul, Silas, Luke and Timothy arrive in town and Lydia’s life is changed forever.I love Tessa Afshar’s books! They have a way of developing characters that draw me into their lives from page one until the end. Her characters are full of life and interesting. I don’t know that without her outstanding writing ability I would have been much interested in reading about how to make purple dye, but Tessa’s skills piqued my interest and I learned quite a bit! I also liked the historical look at the life of a woman in Thyatira and Philippi. The character of Rebekah was so interesting and I would love to see her get her own story. I highly recommend any of Tessa’s books as they are all outstanding. Readers won’t be disappointed or feel like they have wasted their time with her books; they will treasure them.Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255. “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

[nadinec.keels · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

With the potential for greatness, Lydia is poised to become a notable expert and seller of purple in a Roman world, despite her being a woman--and an unmarried one, at that. But it will take more than success in her trade to free her from deep-seated fears that threaten to be her undoing in Bread of Angels, a novel by author Tessa Afshar.I don't have many "I'll read any novel with his/her name on it" authors, but this author is one of those for me. I got what I was expecting here: a rich and touching story, delving deeply into the life of the heroine in a historical/biblical setting. While this book is certainly a standalone, if anyone may be interested in or plans on reading the novel Land of Silence by Afshar sometime, I'd recommend reading it before this one, for possibly spoiler-ish reasons.Now, I'll admit I enjoyed the first two-thirds or so of this novel more than the final parts. Recognizing Lydia from the Bible, I knew the renowned apostle Paul would be a part of this story. But I've seen it before in a different book by another author too, when Paul's presence onstage practically nudges the main character into more of a minor role while Paul is there. Lydia seems to fade somewhat with the incoming of new characters in the later scenes, and as the story stalls a bit in the midst of their increasing Scripture and faith discussions, it felt for a while like I was reading a different book than the one I'd started. It also appears the story runs out of time for some major events and rushes to tie them up with a few short summaries in the last chapter.Still, I'd gladly recommend this novel to fellow readers of Biblical Fiction, and I'm keeping my eyes open for more from this author._________________Tyndale House provided me with a complimentary copy of this book for an honest review.