Shelter of the Most High by Connilyn Cossette is book two in the Cities of Refuge series, book one was A Light on the Hill. I really loved A Light on the Hill but I honestly think I love Shelter of the Most High even more. I FLEW through this book. It was just so good! If you didn’t read my review for the first book, this is a Christian, historical and romantic fiction series. This review will be spoiler free. Let’s get into the synopsis and then my thoughts!

Synopsis

The daughter of a pagan high priest, Sofea finds solace from her troubles in the freedom of the ocean. But when marauders attack her village on the island of Sicily, she and her cousin are taken across the sea to the shores of Canaan.

Eitan has lived in Kedesh, a City of Refuge, for the last eleven years, haunted by a tragedy in his childhood and chafing at the boundaries placed on him. He is immediately captivated by Sofea, but revealing his most guarded secret could mean drawing her into the danger of his past.

As threats from outside the walls loom and traitors are uncovered within, Sofea and Eitan are plunged into the midst of a murder plot. Will they break free from the shackles of the past in time to uncover the betrayal and save their lives and the lives of those they love?

My Thoughts

As I said above, I loved this book. Eitan was a child in the first book and adopted by Moriyah. Shelter of the Most High picks up with him as an adult and alternates the point of view between him and the other main character, Sofea. Along with Sofea, there were quite a few new characters introduced. All of them were perfectly written and had plenty of depth; something that is crucial to my enjoyment of a story. Sofea especially had an unbelievably tragic backstory and I just couldn’t help but want her to have a happy ending. I loved the new characters but I was very happy that the characters from the first book were in this one as well. Often in series like this, characters from previous books will just be mentioned in passing but Moriyah and her family all had central roles in the main story. The characters and writing in general was just excellent.

This book isn’t based on actual people from the Bible but the amount of detail added in really brings to life the Old Testament time period. It’s apparent that Cossette is passionate about the time period and is highly educated on it. She even includes a lot of detail about the other cultures and religions that would have existed along side the Hebrews. Along with the historical aspect, there was also plenty of adventure and romance. It was one of those books that I just had to keep reading to see what was going to happen next. From the characters to the story line, this book was exactly what I enjoy.

I am loving this series so much and I can’t wait to read the next book, Until the Mountains Fall. That review will be up next week. Does this sound like a series you would enjoy as well? Let me know! Thanks for reading and have a great day!