Iscariot

A Novel of Judas

By: Tosca Lee

Narrated by: Jason Culp

Acclaimed New York Times bestselling author of The Books of Mortals series brilliantly adapts the life of Judas Iscariot into a dazzling work of fiction—humanizing the man whose very name is synonymous with betrayal.

Based on extensive research into the life and times of Judas Iscariot, this triumph of fiction storytelling by the author of Havah: The Story of Eve revisits one of biblical history’s most maligned figures and brings the world he inhabited vividly to life.

In Jesus, Judas believes he has found the One—the promised Messiah and future king of the Jews, destined to overthrow Roman rule. Galvanized, he joins Nazarene’s followers, ready to enact the change he has waited for all his life. But soon Judas’s vision of a nation free from Rome is crushed by the inexplicable actions of Nazarene himself, who will not bow to social or religious convention—and seems, in the end, to even turn against his own people. At last, Judas confronts the fact that the master he loves is not the liberator he hoped for, but a man bent on a drastically different agenda.

Praised as “an absolute must-read” (New York Times bestselling author Ted Dekker), Iscariot is the story of Judas, from his tumultuous childhood to his emergence as the man who betrayed Jesus. But even more, it is a singular and surprising view into the life of Jesus that forces us to reexamine everything we thought we knew about the most famous—and infamous—religious icons in history.

Excellent

I habe listened to it 3 times since purchasing..Great story, and great narration! A must read

Compelling and Beautifully Written

I was so engrossed with this story. I normally avoid period pieces, as well as anything with biblical leanings however Tosca Lee is so gifted that this novel could take place at any time and in any place. The language was effortless. The story was so compelling, even the most familiar stories from the bible took on a new life for me. It renewed my interest and my faith. This is a must-read. This is a beautifully written work that engages from start to finish. There are wonderful moments of incredible warmth and deep sadness as it speeds along to what most can admit is the tragic conclusion of the ultimate story of love and betrayal.

Cultural context

This book did a great job of offering cultural context and insight into the time of Jesus. Under constrictive Roman rule, so many people put themselves forward as saviors from oppression. There was so much conflict and upheaval within the society. Judas was a product of that. He leaned on his own understanding, much as many of us do today. His history is complicated. This book did a nice job of giving context to his possible thoughts and motives.

This is the first

This is the first book by Tosca Lee I've ever read... or BEEN read, listened to it on audible. I am so excited to read everything else she's authored. Everything. This book is a great work. It is brilliant, so great that I'm sort of at a loss for what to say in this review, I rarely write them. Its just that it came as a surprise to me - I judged it by the cover, and in the most shallow way possible, I thought it would be something very different. I bought it because of the subject. I love the story of Judas, how challenging it is, and how it demands that we move away from dualistic thinking if we want to really understand it, and how understanding it is the key to understanding the entire book. Also, of course, its a beautiful, heartbreaking story. So I got it because of that. What I found when I listened was that I was being yanked out of my studio where I listen to books while I work, and placed in the Middle East of the 30's AD. She brought it to life in a way that I have never experienced before, it was teaming with life! The many intertwined dimensions of life, social life and private life, and there wasn't a single moment where she ejected me out of this time travel by using some contemporary perspective or word, or even cadence. I was transported and held there. Everything was so deeply researched - the houses, the temples, cities, roman occupation, the politics, the micro-politics, the laws, the Biblical laws, the growing of the food and the serving of the food, gender dynamics, class dynamics, burial, clothing, boats, aging, crucifixion, mass crucifixion, names, the Bible, the found books, everything. Every hope and expectation, the entire perspective was that of a jewish man in the 30's AD. And she's such a wonderful, generous writer so it feels a as though she is leading you by the hand and showing you everything, but she isn't she, she's a religious, conservative, traumatized, jealous, terrified, heartbroken, adoring jewish boy and man, guiding the reader through the streets. Even in the horrific moments of crucifixions and fires, she doesn't revel in brutality in any way, but she doesn't shy away until the reader fully understands the effect that is being had on the witness.
I listened to the book from start to ending in one day because I couldn't integrate myself back into my life without finishing the story. I don't know how she did this, and she certainly wasn't obligated to in any way, but she decided that she was going to leave us off from the story of Judas Iscariot with our hearts soaring. Thank goodness too, because she has spent the last hour giving us terrible anxiety, as though we didn't know what was going to happen, and then making us sob. How she filled this book with surprises and suspense, while telling the most re-told story in the world, it's amazing. Can you imagine watching Judas leading the troops to the garden and thinking "no no no, don't do it" and thinking that he might somehow decide not to? All the while feeling heart broken tenderness for Judas, who you are also angry at. She complicated this story in a way that illuminates its hidden richness.
I want to add that I read a review here that complains that nothing happens in the childhood segment of this story. I don't know why this person wrote that, what the motives were for writing an angry lie, but trust me, there isn't any truth to that at all! The book began in a childhood that was rocked with event after event. I have a hard time imagining what more this person could wish for, not that anyone would wish the events of this childhood upon anyone. I have the feeling that that review tells us more about the abilities of that reader to understand the suspense filled events that were churning in the dialogue, often just under the understanding of the little boy who's perspective we are taking. And that reviewer hadn't been able to read to the point where the implied violence and fear of living under Roman occupation explodes and becomes overt, and almost unbearable.

The reader in the audible version of this book was wonderful. He did such fantastic job of also keeping us fastened into the world that Tosca Lee created for us. I could listen to his voice all day long. ...And I did!

Heart wrenching story so beautifully told...

I loved everything about this book, start to finish. It was biblically accurate but added so much more depth to characters. Tosca Lee really brought them all to life.