Book Review–The Wanderer’s Legacy

About the Book:

Book: The Wanderer’s Legacy (The Wanderer Series Book Three. It can be read as a standalone.)

Author: Natasha Woodcraft

Genre: Biblical Fiction

Release date: April 10, 2025

Adah lives trapped between the life she yearned for and the life she chose. Childless and desperate, she’s failed to produce an heir for her once-devoted husband, Lamech. As his love turns to obsession and control, Adah finds herself drawn to whispered legends of a mysterious Wanderer.

When Lamech takes a second wife, Adah’s world shatters – sending her fleeing to her family home. There, a fragile sense of freedom awakens long-buried hopes. But her body hides a secret that will propel her back into the heart of danger.

As survival becomes a daily challenge, can a legend offer her the salvation she craves? Or does someone else hold the power to help her dwell in safety?

My Thoughts:

I enjoyed The Wanderer Scorned so much that when I saw an offer to review The Wanderer’s Legacy, I didn’t hesitate to sign up. I was disappointed, when I started reading it, to find that it was Book 3 in The Wanderer Series, but as it turned out, reading Book 2 wasn’t necessary. This one stands alone well enough. 

I did not get into The Wanderer’s Legacy as much as I did the first book. I enjoyed it, but it didn’t grip me in the same way. I liked the way this author has imagined life before the Flood. We don’t have much information to go on, but what she has come up with sounds quite plausible. While I was reading the book, I went back to Genesis 4 and read again what the Bible has to say about Lamech and Adah and their family, and could see where Natasha Woodcraft has come up with her thoughts about their characters. 

It was quite intriguing—and alarming—to see the quick degeneration of humanity, from fairly moral even without a reverence for Yahweh, to utter degradation. And the cause? You’ll have to read the book to find out!

One passage I’ve been mulling over was when Chanoch, Adah’s great-great-something grandfather thought about when he was a young man and considering marriage. The thoughts there about whether the man or the woman should leave his/her family and become part of the other’s family have given me a lot to consider! It makes me think that the way most cultures view marriage, even Western Christian cultures, might be the reverse of what God intended at the beginning.

There are frequent references to s*xual activity, both within and outside of marriage. These are all discrete, no details, but it is obvious what is happening, as well as the repercussions when the marriage covenant is not honored. The way it is written, I would not have a problem with allowing someone in their mid teens to read the book.

The biggest issue I have with The Wanderer’s Legacy is an issue on which I differ from much of modern Christianity. That is remarriage after divorce. This book seems to condone it, even encourage it. That’s all I will say, for fear of giving spoilers!

Overall, I appreciate this book and series, and would love to read more of the author’s books. The pre-Flood world is an intriguing topic to speculate about!

WARNING: Increasing levels of s*xual immorality and violence throughout the story. Stillbirths/miscarriages described. Domestic violence, especially abusive behavior toward women in the last half. People killed a number of times. Not a pretty book, but my guess is that it is quite realistic.

I received a review copy of this book from the author, and these are my honest thoughts about it. Links may be affiliate links, which will benefit Esther’s website if purchases are made through them.

About the Author:

Natasha Woodcraft lives in the UK with her family of boys and menagerie of animals. She holds an honours degree in Theology and believes stories have power to communicate deep truth and transform lives. Her novels explore God’s redemptive purposes for ordinary, messy people living in biblical times.

More from Natasha:

I wrote The Wanderer’s Legacy because I believe stories have the power to communicate deep truths and transform lives, and Bible stories are no exception! Lamech, the first man to have two wives, features way back in Genesis 4, after Cain & Abel and before Noah. It’s not even a story, really, it’s a little poem stuck at the end of a chapter. What is it doing there, and what can it teach us about God’s goodness during a really dark time in humanity’s history?

That’s what this novel is about. It was an excuse to engage deeply with that story and the result is full of biblical truth that I hope will draw the reader closer to Jesus, understanding how his redemptive purposes are woven through the fabric of the whole Bible, even obscure little poems that almost feel like a sidenote.

Rather than telling you more, I’m just going to share the opening with you, to give you a taster…

“Adah presses her back to the pillar, squeezing into its evening shadow. Her heavy breathing is almost as loud as the heartbeat pummelling in her head. Surely someone will hear?

Her chance to escape diminishes with every moment of delay. She is a desert jerboa­ – alert, aware of every sight and smell, yet frozen in place as she awaits her predator’s pounce.

Azurak should be occupied. Her son arranged it when she pleaded with him on hands and knees, eyes streaming in desperation. But Adah is sure she hears him. His rasping breath and distinct blood-soaked-campfire smell linger, fusing her feet to the ground.

Unless it’s someone worse than Azurak. Perhaps her husband will find her.”

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