As with Card's other biblical fiction, Rebekah tells the familiar story in a very real way. Card's strength is with his characters, with the very real and very familiar struggles they face that make them entirely real people. So many things that seem black and white in the Bible story—parental favouritism by both Isaac and Rebekah, numerous layers of deception, and so on—are put in the light of humans struggling with what they believe to be right and what they believe to be God's will.

Biblical fiction is just that—fiction based on the Bible. I know much of this book is made up. But Card writes these people so beautifully that I could wish it were not so.

This book was my favorite out of the Women of Genesis series. I wish I had the misfortune of needing to wear a veil over my face. :)

For fans of The Rent Tent, this is a good book to get your fill on historical, biblical fiction. While some of the dialogue (both outward and inner) could have been a bit shorter, I enjoyed reading this story and admire the way Card filled in the biblical outline with detail. The author's note in the preface explains that "the task in this novel was to show how good people can sometimes do bad things to those they love most." With generations and religions praising Abraham and Isaac, Sarah and Rebekah, this tale shows the humanity behind some of their actions that took place in biblical records.

Card builds a tale around Rebekah, daughter of Bethuel and wife of Isaac. Rebekah is drawn as a smart and strong character, wise beyond her years. She speaks her mind and from her heart, sometimes to her own peril. Rebekah's story surrounds her journey from her father's home, where she deals with certain familial issues with which she must come to terms, to finding her place in her husband's priestly family, testing her own faith and relationship with g-d along the way. Isaac is drawn as a good hearted man, who struggles with doing the right thing in the eyes of his father, his g-d, and his wife.

Once again loved this installment in the series, I really like the humanistic quality put into these eternal stories.

Great storytelling. I love how Card gave a lot of depth in the character of Rebekah. Although there were parts that it kinda dragged out but overall a good read

I am really enjoying The Women of Genesis series. Orson Scott Card really knows how to make you feel like you are in the place and time he is writing about and understand what the people in these times might have been feeling and thinking. It gave me such a deeper understanding of Sarah's story and now Rebekah's story.

This book was interesting, but it's hard to read fiction based on something that I only know about from the Bible. It was very different from what I expected and it made me think about that whole story a little differently. 6/14/2007

Rebekah's perspective of her life with her husband Isaac and as the mother of Jacob and Esau. The book is quite dialogue heavy. Way too much over explaining and going around circles in conversation. I was hoping to read more descriptive writing and feel there was a lot of missed opportunity on the story of Rebekah.

I love the liberty Card takes in giving biblical characters such as Isaac and Abraham very unique personalities. He writes Rebekah's character beautifully - fun book to read

An interesting take on the Bible stories and characters.

Rebekah, an Israelite woman raised by her father, has run the household since her mother's death. She is used to being in charge, making decisions, and settling disputes amongst servants. When a man comes to their camp with an offer of marriage to Isaac, a devout man of God, she decides to take the offer. She has never met him in person, but her faith is very important to her and she feels that this marriage will be an answer to her prayers. After all, it would be very hard to stay faithful if she were to marry an unbeliever.

As she gets to know her husband and his family better, she realizes that her take-charge personality is not as appreciated in her husband's circle as it was in her childhood home. She particularly tends to clash with Isaac's father, the patriarch and prophet Abraham. Then there is the trouble of her infertility. How can Isaac be the son of the promise, if she is unable to bear children?

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I appreciated the way Card brought these characters to life, giving them very real family tensions and backstories. It wasn't as I have imagined them to be, which probably accounts for my somewhat cool reaction to the story, but it was still enlightening.

Card built up a conflict between Ishamel and Isaac that felt authentic, with Isaac portrayed as the more studious, spiritual brother, and Ishmael as the more physically strong, outgoing one. In this version of the story, Isaac's less forceful personality led to utter lack of approval from his father throughout his life, which led to deep self-doubt even once he had become the prophet himself.

Anyway, like I said. Interesting.

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I liked this one better than “Sarah.” The characters were much better developed.

I'm loving this series for the way it is having me reflect on the people of Genesis in completely new ways. This is a wonderful follow up to "Sarah" and worth your time!

Card has a way of crafting his Bible stories in a deeply human way that still line up with the events in the Bible, but make so much more sense as to how they may have come about. The Jacob and Esau story has always been strange to me and the depth of character and motivation given here helped humanize the narrative that was really helpful and thought-provoking. Additionally, I appreciated thinking much more about Isaac and what kind of man he might have been like after experiencing what he did with Abraham. The role of Rebekah in the lives of these people was inevitably significant, and this story does a great job in offering up some suggestions for how she may have had the remarkable influence that she did.

I loved the backstory and depth given to Rebekah's story before she ever meets Isaac (about half the book I'd say), and it is just as interesting and page-turning as the later parts.

At times the character conflict feels a little repetitive but never boring.