Official Review: Acts of Hope by Martin Elsant

Okafor Prosper · Post by **Okafor Prosper** » 31 Jan 2021, 12:18

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Acts of Hope" by Martin Elsant.]

4 out of 4 stars

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Acts of Hope by Martin Elsant is a historical fiction story that is inspired by real-life events that happened in the 16th-century revolving around the harsh treatment of Jews by the Portuguese and Spanish Inquisitions.

In Martin Elsant's Acts of Hope, we follow Maria Lopes, who fled Portugal to England with her father, Diego, after threats on their lives by the Inquisition for exploring their Jewish backgrounds. Unfortunately, Diego dies from wounds he sustained in Portugal, despite the efforts of an English doctor, Will Ames, who was a Jew originally known as Guillen Jimenez and fled from Spain because of the Inquisition. Slowly, she gets closer to Will and gets acquainted with other Jews who practice their religion in secret. Eventually, Maria helps in rebuilding the Jewish city of Tiberias, where a lot of Jews seek refuge after escaping the Inquisition. However, threats around Tiberias, from the Bedouins, Fellahins, Franciscans, and the Zaydani Arab clan, mean that the Jews must continue to fight and protect each other.

The story explores an important period in history, and the author executes it brilliantly through the characters that raise a lot of thought-provoking questions and conversations around religion. Starring characters like Maria, who was just newly exploring Judaism; Will, who never passed on the opportunity to learn and teach more about Judaism; Ari, Maria's former love who was a Catholic but saw the need to end the Inquisitions for their unfair treatment of Jews; Ya'akov, a Jewish Pirate who got into his line of work to destroy and steal from the Inquisition for killing his family; and Aisha, a Muslim who was wrongfully banished by her clan and had to wrestle with forgiveness and vengeance, this story did not lack in intriguing, educative characters that were on their unique self-discovery journeys. This was also my favorite aspect of the story.

Amidst the horrors that were happening at that time in the story, the author found a way to lighten the mood through humor, especially when it came to Will and Maria. It was always fun immersing myself in their witty conversations. Also, it is worth noting that the story also explores a romantic relationship between Will and Maria. This relationship, together with their eventual meeting with Ari, Maria's former love, created a lot of suspense and uncertainty in the story, as I wondered how they would handle their feelings, considering that Ari and Maria never really got over each other.

With respect to editing, Acts of Hope is of the highest quality. I did not find any grammatical or typographical errors throughout the book. The book is also well organized with twenty-nine chapters, and the author did well to include a summary of the real-life events that inspired this story at the beginning of the book. These features helped me to understand the story easier and improved my reading flow.

All things considered, the book is exceptionally well executed and includes characters that I love and can relate to. The book is also well researched and offers the names of additional reading material on that period in history. I cannot think of anything I dislike about this piece. Therefore, Acts of Hope deserves the maximum rating of 4 out of 4. It is definitely one of the best historical fiction novels I have read in a while, and readers who enjoy this genre will have a blast with this book. Lovers of books that explore faith and love will also enjoy this novel.

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Acts of Hope
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Post by **Damian Keyes** » 02 Feb 2021, 00:28

Historical fiction novels are gradually becoming my favorite type of genre to read. I did not know about 16th centuries Portugal and the plight of Jews during that time. This book will give me a lesson by wrapping it in an amazing storyline. Thanks for this review!

sammygupta2919 · Post by **sammygupta2919** » 02 Feb 2021, 03:04

Well it's my first review. Well I think book was good but what I found more interesting is the love story of Will and Maria.... I would love to read more how will they overcome from it.

Serenity2010 · Post by **Serenity2010** » 04 Feb 2021, 11:41

This sounds interesting because bod the themes of the book. I like books with well developed characters. Thanks for an in depth review, Maria and Will caught my interest the most!

Gbemisola Akinremi · Post by **Gbemisola Akinremi** » 08 Feb 2021, 13:42

This genre is becoming something I'm loving, I'm particularly intrigued about this storyline. Will, Maria and Ari are characters I look forward to exploring. Thank you for a beautiful well detailed review.

María Andrea Fernández Sepúlveda · 21 Nov 2021, 11:09

I just wish in real life people with such different religious backgrounds would actually get along. I love historical fiction, and I especially like it when an author introduces witty or funny dialogues in between such a serious topic. This seems like a great book. Thank you!

Deval Sodha · Post by **Deval Sodha** » 21 Nov 2021, 11:12

This wonderful historical fiction story is inspired by real-life events that happened in the 16th-century. It revolves around the harsh treatment of Jews by the Portuguese and Spanish Inquisitions. The characterdevelopmentis brilliant.
The review is insightful.
Congratulations on Botd

Post by **Lorraine De Vos** » 21 Nov 2021, 11:18

Thank you for sharing your review with us. I’m not currently interested in this kind of historical fiction, so I think I will pass on this one for now.

tarafarah7 · Post by **tarafarah7** » 21 Nov 2021, 11:25

Complete with an explanation of the real-life events that inspired this story, today's BOTD is a historical fiction novel set in the 16th century, and it includes elements of romance, religion, and suspense. Readers of the genre will be fully engaged in the storyline and will appreciate the well-developed characters, who are each on their own journey of self-discovery. Thank you for the helpful review and keep up the great work!

Reema Aydieh · Post by **Reema Aydieh** » 21 Nov 2021, 11:29

I don’t go for historical fiction books but his book sounds interesting, the storyline makes you want to pick it up and read it.

Emerizx · Post by **Emerizx** » 21 Nov 2021, 11:32

Everyone living wishes is to be free to do his or her desires, it require a lot of courage to do that, owning to what maria and father Diego did in search in what they believe was encouraging. The review brought out the beauty of book.

Luu luu · Post by **Luu luu** » 21 Nov 2021, 11:40

It does not seem like my kind of book but I’ll give it a try because I just wan to see the final point of Will and Maria

Manang Muyang · Post by **Manang Muyang** » 21 Nov 2021, 11:41

That was a dark period in the history of Catholicism. I wish we could all live together in harmony, respecting each other's beliefs.

addicted reader · Post by **addicted reader** » 21 Nov 2021, 11:48

This sounds like an action-packed and interesting historical fiction novel about Maria. The cover of the book caught my attention. Thanks for providing this wonderful review. You really a glimpse of what the book is all about.

Pandora10 · Post by **Pandora10** » 21 Nov 2021, 11:50

I enjoy Historical fiction and from what I have read so far, this will be a story that I will enjoy. The characters are interesting and I enjoyed reading the summary of events that inspired this trilogy.