Book of Longings by Sue Monk Kidd

This is a story of what might have been - historical fiction about a great love, a spiritual calling and politics. Before Jesus was proclaimed the Messiah, he was a quiet carpenter, fisherman or anything else that would put food on the table for his family and he was in love with a fiercely independent scholar named Ana. This is their imagined life. Ana is portrayed as one of the first feminists who bucked tradition and had a formal education and wrote. She had a voice, she needed to be heard and she was loved by a quiet man who was called by his God to serve in ways she could not fully understand. It is a beautifully realized world full of love, devotion, family as well as secrecy, powerful figures and politics. It is a spiritual journey no matter the religion you honor. I found this woman's point of view in a world where women had little or no say in their lives fascinating.