Delilah: Treacherous Beauty (A Dangerous Beauty Novel)

**Actual rating: 2.5/3 stars. May contain spoilers***

Putting aside the fact that I rather enjoy stories, which take well-known myths or pieces of history and adds a bit of content and character to the legends, so I commend the author for doing that with the story of Delilah & Samson for attempting to bring history and personality to these two characters. Based off of what I know and understand about their connection, Delilah is believed to have been heartless and money-driven Philistine, (perhaps, even a Israeli who betrayed Samson for money) who tricked Samson into falling for her only to betray him. Where as Samson is portrayed as this powerful, physical and influential, protector/savior for the Israeli people who fell in love with a show more beautiful trickster.

However, Angela Hunt depicts the story of two young individuals from two different worlds are forced into some of the most unpredictable of circumstances; particularly, Delilah, in this case.

With that being said, I gave this book 3-stars based off the lack of progressive growth among the main characters, the decision to link Delilah’s lineage to Southern Egypt/Ethiopia and the sluggish pacing of the narrative which did not always grab or hold my attention.

Regrettably, it seemed as though it was longer than it needed to be. It also did not help the fact that for most of the book both Samson and Delilah’s personalities remain consistently the same, despite the passage of time: naive and passive, respectfully. It was bothersome to continuously watch Samson breeze past warnings and times for caution and to see Delilah’s character be passively lead and directed from one place to another, from Egypt to Gaza and to the Valley of Sorek etc. and never seem to be present.

Moreover, while some will object to Delilah’s lineage being connected to Southern Egypt/Ethiopia due to believability and accurately, my issue with it was on a different scale. In fact, I loved the idea. It was another reason I was interested in reading this book. Delilah in Hebrew is after all Layla, meaning darkness (be it a play or words or not in correlation to the woman’s skin tone). Whats more, research has proven that over and over and over again, Delilah’s background, lineage and original allegiance ties were never made clear. She seemed to be a “nobody.”

Subsequently, this brings the focus to one of the topics I tussled with while reading this book. With the amount of misogyny/ patriarchal disadvantages the women in this novel (and time period) faced, I felt it was entirely possible that the threat of slavery was something that could have been left out. As a result, it made me distrust the author's sincerity and treatment of Delilah's character.

As her ethic and religious background are never stated/clarified—though in all sincerity, she could have easily have been a Philistine—it begs the question, did the author decide to make Delilah (born in Egypt) of Ethiopian/Greek decent simply to play up (or exploit) the slavery plot point/possibility? After suffering at the hands of her stepbrother, Achish and the power he gained with the death of his father, and the loss of her mother, Delilah's story is arguably challenging/difficult enough and lacked the need for that aspect in the narrative.

I also had an issue with the author's push to make Delilah's character a "nobody." She grew up in Egypt; her parents were of Cush and Crete (Cretan) decent. That does not make her a nothing or nobody and I felt that the author lost sight of that.

This book was extremely well researched and it is incredibly clear that the author’s goal with this story was to humanize both Delilah and Samson and emulate that their story together may not have been as straightforward or as black and white as it is commonly believed. Overall, there is a love and empathetic connection between them in this book, but the story, in my opinion, was not something to rave about.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. show less

"Perhaps it was his use of the word half-breed, but in that shadowy chamber I realized why Achish hated me. I was not a mistress, not a slave. Not a Philistine, an Israelite, or even a Canaanite. Not a Cushite, not an Egyptian. Not worthy of any kind of respect or recognition.
"I was an other."

I wondered what kind of angle author Angela Hunt would take on such a notorious woman from the Bible in Delilah: Treacherous Beauty. And I respect the angle.

I'll admit I had a hard time deciding whether or not I would read this book. Though I've read and enjoyed many novels from this ChristFic publisher, it's not hard to see they don't put out many books with brown faces on the covers, especially books unrelated to slavery/the American Civil War. I show more wasn't exactly thrilled when, finally seeing a new release with a brown face, it was there to portray a figure widely regarded as nothing more than a seductress: a woman who must appear in the Scriptures only to warn people of the dangers of unfaithfulness, manipulation, and sexual indiscretion. Because there is a wider problem in the arts world concerning women of color being relegated to sex symbol roles—yeah. I wasn't sure if I'd read this novel.

Yet, considering this is an author whose work I trust, I eventually figured there had to be something deeper she'd be doing with this character. And the author does indeed humanize Delilah. She's not depicted as a perfect person, of course, but she's fully human. As is Samson. They're both outcasts, in different ways. And their artfully woven story is a human story.

Now, I do feel that in a couple places, Delilah and Samson don't make total sense. It seems their characterizations and the story's timing isn't always the most natural, as if the flow of the novel has an awkward time meshing with some of its necessary biblical points. Still, I accept that ancient stories won't always make complete 21st Century sense, and the way the author ultimately brings it all together in the last few chapters is what tipped me over into five stars. In tears.

It's a tragic story in so many ways, but its illustration of the impact of faith and love in imperfect people's lives gives this novel its power. show less

Whether it’s contemporary women’s fiction or Biblical fiction, I have found all of Angela Hunt’s novels to be excellent choices. Her writing style suits me, and she always has well-developed characters. So when it came to choosing a novel for a Faith And Fiction Bible study I lead, my first choice was Delilah: Treacherous Beauty. Taking a well-known story, Hunt has created a novel with a credible backstory and a lead character more human than the evil harlot most often depicted. My group found the book highly readable, and found it caused us to re-read the Scripture — a double win for us. We rate Delilah highly recommended.

I maintain that writing Biblical fiction is extremely difficult, more so than a more typical historical show more novel. The writer has to maintain authenticity and keep true to scripture while creating not a dusty commentary, but an intriguing and readable book. Hunt showed she did her homework in her depiction of the culture of the time of the Judges. Her re-telling of the Biblical narrative was faithfully rendered. She didn’t limit her story to only what was going on in Judges 13-16, but included details from other contemporary scripture creating a well-rounded view of the life and times of the characters. Characterization was excellent in Delilah. The story is told from the first person viewpoints of Samson and Delilah giving insight into their motivations and feelings. Yes this book is fiction and some liberty had to be taken, but I never felt anything was inappropriate or unbelievable. As a compliment to the Bible study, Delilah really was a great choice. Even the non-readers of the group enjoyed a fresh look at the Bible. And as stated above, this novel had us double checking what we read in our Bible. We had missed or overlooked some things, that proved to be important to understanding what God was actually doing. One member of my group stated that the story we learned as children was more complex than thought. And God does show up in this novel. Hunt weaves His presence and His truth throughout the book.

For fans of Biblical fiction, Delilah is a must read. It is part of the Dangerous Beauty series, but each book in the series is a standalone novel.

Highly Recommended.

Audience: adults.

(Thanks to Bethany House for a complimentary copy. All opinions expressed are mine alone.) show less

Please note that I gave this book 3.5 stars. I rounded it up to 4 stars on Goodreads.

All in all, an interesting spin at Samson and Delilah. I loved the cover and wish that I had loved the book too. The flow of the book was disjointed a bit anytime the POV switched from Delilah to Samson. And I can honestly say, I don't get why Delilah was attracted to Samson. Based on what I recall from the Bible and even in this book, Samson just wanted a woman, any woman, so I didn't get warm fuzzy feelings with him and Delilah. The whole book also read like this is what happens when you trust women, we just lie for own gain.

Since I have no idea what Delilah looked like in the Bible, and honestly I can't recall if it ever came up, I loved the idea show more of Ms. Hunt making her a mutli-ethnic character. When we first meet Delilah, she and her mother have moved to live with her mother's new husband. Not liking her new stepbrother, Delilah is concerned about how will the Philistines find her and her mother with their darker skin. After dealing with the unexpected death of her stepfather, Delilah and her mother are treated terribly all because of the color of their skin. Delilah is eventually given a chance to escape, and she does, and continues to cross paths with Samson.

I found the character of Samson to be kind of a cave-man. Our first introduction to him is him wanting to be married to a beautiful woman. After seeing one woman, he decides he will marry her and asks her father's hand in marriage. Even though his new wife is a Philistine and Samson's parents and his servant try to talk him out of it, he is hell-bent on making her his wife. I recall the Bible stories about Samson and he's never been my favorite Biblical figure. It was interesting to see these stories take place in this book though.

Other characters are not really given any depth I thought though. We have an old woman that Delilah comes to live with who ties to get her to see past her own need for vengeance. That whole thing left a bad taste in my mouth. Delilah is made to be in the wrong with wanting justice for her and her mother. And in the end Delilah kind of sort of agrees? I don't know. It was just weird.

The writing was good though I have to say that the flow was all over the place. The back and forth between Delilah and Samson's chapters did not really work. I wish that we had stayed focused on Delilah from beginning to end. It would have worked better I think. Anytime we transitioned to Samson's chapters I lost immediate interest.

I also didn't feel the love story aspect of Samson or Delilah in this one. I needed more development there. I also hated the fact that some of the characters in the book acted as if Delilah was in the wrong for what she felt she had to do, when she correctly mentions how Samson's own people were ready to turn him over to the Philistines.

I found the backstory to Delilah to be intriguing, but since I have never heard or read any books about this I just chalked it up to the author's imagination.

I think that most people who have read the Bible or heard of Samson and Delilah know how the story ends. show less

Delilah is such a mysterious character in the Bible: all we really know is that Samson loved and trusted her, and she betrayed him. I always thought it was strange that he would tell her the true secret of his strength after she attempted to trap him multiple times. Angela Hunt does a skillful job of giving this woman a backstory, motivations, and character. Her fear is real, her strength and determination are admirable, and her decisions are difficult but understandable. It’s a fascinating take on the story!

Meet "Delilah" in Angela Hunt's third book of the Dangerous Beauty Series. This is a fictional account of the Biblical Samson and Delilah. Hunt does a great job with building believable characters in her newest book. Delilah is a beautiful young woman living with her mother, step-father and step-brother in Gaza, enjoying a previleged life. But all changes with the sudden death of her step-father. Her step-brother, Achish, becomes head of the household, selling Delilah's mother into slavery and abusing Delilah. When Delilah escapes she vows to get revenge on the man who took advantage of her and free her mother. First, though, she must find a way to survive. And then she hears about Samson, Judge of the Isrealites... Hunt notes "Samson show more and Delilah were not heroes or villains.They were people...because people, with all their flaws, are what God uses to work His divine will (p. 341)." Enjoy this fast paced story of a man devoted to God and a woman devoted to revenge. Two people with a story whose paths cross to fulfill God's will. I received this book free to review for Bethany House Publishers and give my honest opinion. show less

Beauty is a curse

This is the second book I have read by Angela Hunt, and I am now a fan. This book was esquisite, moving and compassionate. She put Delilah on a new light, a more humane light, that of a woman caught up in a situation she had to find a way out of. She showed a daughter, mother and woman in love. It shows how the thirst for revenge can have a great impact on your life and others around you. Delilah's father had died when his ship sank.
Delilah's mother had just been married three months to a Philistine businessman who had shone her nothing but compassion and thoughtfulness, unlike his son, who never spoke a kind word. Delilah's stepfather, Adinai, died and her stepbrother, Achish, took over the estate. Delilah's mother show more couldn't prove Adinai had married her. Achish starting treating Delilah and her mother like slaves. Her mother was of Egyptian descent and her skin was black, Delilah was Egyptian and Crete descent and had skin the color of mud. He sold Delilah's mother as a slave and took her as his concubine. He begins to abuse her. How to escape from this prison. Who would help her? Travel along with Delilah and see where her life goes. While Delilah is going through changes in her life, Samson is also having problems, his marriage is ill-fated and his bride and father-in-law are killed. How do Delilah and Samson's life cross? What surprises are along the way? Pick up a copy today and be enthralled. You will not be able to put it down. The book cover is awesome, the raised lettering is so smooth. Keep up the good work, Angela. Looking forward to your nextbook.
I received a complimentary copy from Bethany House Publishing for this review. show less