Synopsis
Lilith and Adam are equal and happy in the Garden of Eden. Until Adam decides Lilith should submit to his will and lie beneath him. She refuses - and is banished forever from Paradise.
Demonized and sidelined, Lilith watches in fury as God creates Eve, the woman who accepts her submission. But Lilith has a secret: she has already tasted the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge. Endowed with Wisdom, she knows why Asherah - God's wife and equal, the Queen of Heaven - is missing. Lilith has a plan: she will rescue Eve, find Asherah, restore balance to the world and regain her rightful place in Paradise.
Lilith's quest for justice drives her throughout history, from the ziggurats of Ancient Sumer to the court of Israel's Queen Jezebel, and to the side of a radical preacher in Roman Judea. In the modern age, as she observes the catastrophic consequences of a world built on inequality, Lilith finally understands what must be done to correct the wrong done to women - and all humankind - at the beginning of time.
Review
I was really excited about this book but unfortunately it was very disappointing. I was expecting a feminist story set in Eden with Lilith being feisty and strong, and changing the course of Eve's life (or womankind), but it was effectively a very long Bible story and felt very preachy.
It started off quite well, but is very much 'tell' and not 'show' and to such an extent that you feel patronised - I may not be religious, but I know the stories and don't need everything spelled out to me. The book also went through both Testaments, which was a bit unnecessary. You might as well just read the Bible!
It also kept skipping a fair few years at a time while Lilith was what, just sat around? Preaching about God?
I'm still not clear…
However I did enjoy the final line: 'What is there at the end? A better world? A better story?'
Trust me, there are definitely better stories out there.
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