When Heaven Weeps (Martyr's Song, Book 2)

When Heaven Weeps, is a love story dually set in a Balkan village near the end of World War II and America in the late 60's. The story of ex-Serbian solider Jan Jovic and his courage to learn why loving is dying. The story of Helen, a drug and sex addicted prisoner of her needs and the struggle to receive unconditional love. Finally, it is also the unforgettable story of Ivena, who as a young mother watched her child and most of her village die simply to fulfill a twisted soldier's game. This very game of death and love played expertly first by Ivena's daughter, then by Helen and Jan, knits this novel into a masterpiece of Christian fiction.I picked up this book to read because of three things. One was this sentence on the back, "dive into a romantic thriller like none you've ever read. Drink deeply of a love that will bring a tremor to your bones. Go ahead, it's your turn to play the game. But remember... There is a price. And no one could possibly prepare you for that price." I love books based on relationships and I am absolutely fascinated by thrillers. I had no idea what I had begun. This book not only fulfilled my thirst for a relationship based book with a thrill aspect but it delivered. It changed my thinking. It tightened my belief system. It left me asking months after I read this book "Do I believe and live what I say I believe."Secondly the author's note at the beginning of the book shared a very critical letter written by someone regarding this authors first book in the Martyr's Song series. The criticism was based on bringing an experience from the bible into present day perspective. I had not read the book but was intrigued by the idea of the author being satisfied with this criticism. And finally, I had gotten a little bored with standard formula Christian romantic fiction. I wanted something new. I wanted something that affected me like Perretti's "This Present Darkness." I received more than I bargained for and found myself changed with a closer walk with Christ as a direct result of the questions this book of fiction posed. This is not a book for teens, this is not a book you can read for a few minutes and lay aside. Prepare yourself time because you will not want to put it down, unless it is to catch your breath.

For a Christian to ignore this work would be like an ice skater ignoring the ice. I must admit, it blindsided me -- I never expected to read something like this coming out of a Christian publisher. But it's wonderful! Powerful. Leads the reader back to the passionate love found in the death of Christ, but does so in a contemporary story.I won't go into the story as its available above. Let me just say that every woman should read this novel. And every man who's never experience the full power of a romance that brings tears to your eyes. Don't get me wrong -- this isn't a woman's book and more than it's a man's book. It's simply a riviting thriller in which LOVE takes center stage. Caution, there is violence and some drug use here, but they are critical elements. Now THIS would make an incredible movie! I read a couple of Dekker's newer bestsellers before digging back to this one. What a find!

OK, I gushed over Heaven's Wager--and rightly so. I'm not backing down one inch. But if Heaven's Wager was brilliant, When Heaven Weeps is a supernova, the single brightest star in the sky.This story just explodes off the page. Dekker must've been on some kind of weird spiritual high to write this thing. What a volatile mix: a (ah hum) "lady of the night," a Really Bad Guy who's her lover, a whacked-out war hero--what an unlikely trio of characters, especially in a "Christian" novel. Yet almost in biblical fashion, almost like those gripping stories of God-forsaken Hebrews struggling to find their way that pepper the Old Testament, this story is larger than life.I don't want to give anything away; I'd rather have you encounter it firsthand with little or no idea of what's going on from a plot perspective. That's always the best way. But listen, Dekker--and how he did it, I have no idea--majorly trumps Heaven's Wager. Sometimes an artist stumbles with his sophmore effort. Not here. All the promise so lavishly on display in Heaven's Wager bursts into full flower here. I can't wait to read whatever he's gonna do next.

OK, I enjoy a good tear-jerker every once in a while, but boy oh boy, I wasn't ready for this one!! It's definitely a ten-hanky book--that's the maximum score I'm aware of. When Jan . . . well, I don't want to give away the story, but some INCREDIBLE things happen near the end of the book. And at the start of the book. And in the middle of the book, for that matter. This may be the most incredible story of redemptive love in the history of literature. Don't, I repeat, DON'T miss out on it!

I enjoyed Dekker's first book, but felt he was pushing a little, still stretching his wings. Boy, this book takes flight and never comes down. Dekker tells a gripping story and peoples it with characters we love or hate. On top of the captivating tale, he manages to weave in a powerful symbol of God's love and sacrifice for His Bride, the Church. Usually, this type of symbolism becomes heavy-handed and overpowers the use of a real plot and believable dialogue. Here, Dekker pulls it all off with masterful ease and entertains us just long enough for us to let our guard down...then he slams his point home. I've read few novels this well-written.Some minor glitches: one character pulls on Nikes years before they were developed (I grew up in Eugene, OR...I should know). Big deal, right? But it did remind me it was all a story right in the middle of getting hooked. Dekker also loves to say "spiked." As in "his heart spiked." This started to jump out at me after a while. Last complaint...my copy was missing pages 313-344! A printing error, I guess. And right in the middle of the last quarter of the book...aggh. Once I found a complete book, I was greatly relieved.Don't miss this book. Don't miss this author's writing. And don't miss the point. "When Heaven Weeps" it's because God loves His people and will do whatever it takes to prove that love. Ted Dekker does his best to weave a beautiful and suspenseful tale. I'll have to read this one again.