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for agesand up, Onesimus is a Greek slave boy who is adamant about getting his freedom, But he begins to hear of Jesus Christ and the way he sacrificed his life, He tries to push thoughts of Him away, but yet he keeps hearing more about him, When his master's son is crippled for life partly by Onesium, he is more then ever wanting to flee, His master, Philemon, becomes a disciple of Christ and soon his son follows in his footstep, The question for Onesimus is whether he is willing to serve Christ and be a slave for the rest of his life.
This book was amazing! I loved it, The only reason I didn't rate itis because I usually reservefor my favoritests An Old Fashioned Girl, The Anne of Green gables series, etc.

I would definitely recommend this to Christian tweens and teens, It is a little dramatic and a little violent in some parts, I haven't read this in years, but when I was younger I read it several times, I loved most of Patricia St John's books, but particularly this one, It gave so much to this story of Onesimus and I loved how she created a whole story out of a few lines in a small book of the Bible.
Whenever I looked at Philemon that's the book I seem to recall it being from with my family or in church after reading this, I was always very interested and felt this secret joy about my expanded insight into a possibility of Onesimus' life, and related with the book much better thanks to this story.
Lovely historicalBiblical fiction tale about the slave Onesimus, The ending brought me to tears, Great for tweens and teens, I believe I've read this book three times, This time was a bit different than the others, I am at the end of my pregnancy, and the discomfort is keeping me from sweet sleep, However, waking up to read a few chapters of Twice Freed certainly made the lack of sleep more bearable, Patricia St. John is one of my favorite authors! This book is very different from the others she has written, Onesimus, from the Bible is the main character in this book, His emotions and personality come to life as you get a front row seat to watch him grow up, The message of redemption brings so much hope and reminds you that no matter what you've done in your past, Christ's sacrifice is sufficient to cover it all.
This theme is beautiful and straight out of the Bible, Ephesians:"In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of Gods grace"

There are two options for you, as the reader.
The first and incorrect option is to accept this as complete truth, The second option is for this book to point you to the word of God for the truth, Patricia took quite a bit of creative liberty, but the book of Philemon is onlyverses long, so much has to be assumed or speculated.
I recommend this book for anyone overyears old and who will be motivated to read the book of Philemon after reading Twice Freed.
Have you been freed Twice Freed is one of my very favorite books, I would recommend it for anyoneand up who loves historical fiction with a Christian focus in this case, biblical fiction as well.

Honestly, it's hard for me to express the many reasons that I love this book without waxing a wee bit poetic.
Still, I'll try to lay it all out in a clear and concise fashion, my short summary at the bottom has very mild spoilers, so I tagged it
The first thing that struck me about this book was the clearness and beauty of the author's descriptions of everything without going into unnecessary details, she sets the stage for each scene, drawing you in and making you feel as if you, too, know what it's like to climb steep canyons on a blistering July afternoon, fight in a gladiatorial arena, or listen to the enigmatic Jew, Paul, as he spreads

a new message of repentance and life.
She captures the inner longings and stirrings and rebelliousness of the human heart in a way that is entirely truthful and captivating.
Strength, weakness, freedom, and joy are interwoven in a triumphant chorus, Few other books that I have read realize so well the quote by Augustine, "Our hearts are restless, until they find their rest in you.
"
In addition, this book helped me understand Paul's missionary journeys and letters to the churches of Asia Minor much more clearly, and Patricia St.
John's attention to historical detail ensures that the historical and biblical events are seamlessly interwoven with the rest of Onesimus' story.

Overall, this book is well written captivating, emotional, historically accurate, and filled with the most triumphant truth I've seen yet in a work of fiction.
Read it. below, the aforementioned summary
Onesimus, a slave living near Colossae in Asia Minor, chafes at his servitude and longs for better things.
His feelings only intensify when he meets a highclass girl a few years younger than himself, who seems to have a great appreciation of the wonders and freedom of nature.
After a series of climactic events, he runs away, resolving that one day he will be rich and free and will win her hand.
As the story unfolds, he discovers that his freedom is not what he'd expected, and that true freedom can only be found in servitude to Christ.
I found this book to be a wonderful piece of historical fiction! It really helped me immerse myself into the time period of the Apostle Paul and the Roman empire.
It's told from the perspective of a young man who is a slave of a wealthy family, and the book journeys with him on his "quest" to obtain freedom.
Characters from the New Testament such as Aquila and Priscilla make appearances, and of course Paul, It is rich with historical detail, giving insight into the everyday normalcy of the pagan gods of that era, and highlights the beginnings of Christianity.
What a great resource to read alongside the New Testament! This just wasn't as good as the other things I've read by this author.
It was disjointed and just not for me, I'm surprised that this is used as a “text” for the ACE curriculum, Yes, the Biblical setting and characters were built well,

But the plot could have been streamlined so much more, There were several chapters that were so slow, especially at the beginning,

Also, there were a few times when we got a few thoughts and feelings from other characters, even though the rest of the chapter and the entire book were all in a thirdperson limited perspective from Onesimus.


I did like how Eirene's name meant “peace, ” I liked how often we saw Paul, one of my favorite Bible heroes, I liked the symbolism.

I just wish the ending had been a little more satisfying, We just needed a bit more resolution after all the tension,

Favorite quotes:
“'Well, I don't want to love or forgive my enemies,' said Onesimus with quiet finality, and the two boys fell silently until they reached the town.
” p.

“'But Jesus Christ can set you free today,' replied the man, and his voice rang with triumph, 'He can free you from your discontent and your hatred, Tell me, does your hatred make you happy'” p,

“But now Something had happened, He seemed to be seeing the whole world with eyes that had been opened, The colors of the sky were fairer, the scent of the acacias more poignant, and the coldness and weariness of the boy at his side suddenly mattered.
Could it be that the love of Christ, mysterious and /imperceptible as the coming of dawn, was already beginning to warm and lighten the deep darkness of his broken heart” p.


“'As Christ died and suffered for your sin, it is forgiven, my son, He bore it He made peace by the blood of His cross, ' 'Yes,' whispered Archippus, 'I know, But I want you to forgive me, too, ' 'I do forgive you, my son,' said his father, But Onesimus, remembering the rods, was silent, ” p.

“Among these were two or three keeneyed rabbis with their Pentateuchs and scrolls of history tucked under their arms.
These had been but old stories of dead mean and but revered words from the past until they had suddenly discovered Christ blazing out from every parchment.
” p.

“'Peace, peace, Mistress Eirene,' he called softly after her, 'One day we shall most certainly meet again, '” p.

“It was his last hour of idle freedom, Tomorrow Philemon would set him to work in real earnest, and he would be glad of it, He was tired of doing just what he pleased and then he remembered that this was freedom! Just to do what you pleased for the rest of your life and to call no man your master! And he began to wonder, for the first time in his life, how much he would really enjoy it.
” p.

“There was a light in his master's eyes that Onesimus had never seen before, He still did not understand, but he knew that Archippus had grown to patient, disciplined manhood and in spite of his lameness Onesimus would never despise him again.
For the first time in his life he gazed at hi with respect, ” p.

“He thought he had escaped from Christ and His people, but here he had tumbled right into the middle of them again.
” p.

“'For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
' And maybe not distance either, not land or sea, thought Onesimus with a little shudder, He had fled thousands of furlongs from the voice of that love, and yet he could not get away from it.
” p.

“ he suddenly realized what liberty really meant: freedom to bow to the dictates of love and to give yourself to it voluntary slavery.
Apart from the discipline of love, freedom was a dreary wilderness without compass or direction, a desert full of mirages, promising everything but yielding nothing.
” p.

I borrowed a copy for my son's ACE curriculum, I was not compensated for this review, All opinions are my own, as was the decision to write this review, This is a wonderful book that imagines what Onesimus' story might have been like, I've always been intrigued by the short book of Philemon and I really enjoyed reading Patricia St John's idea of what the circumstances might have been like.
This is not a light read, as St John puts so much into her books with a strong Christian message, I would highly recommend this for young teens looking for a thought provoking read,
.