I noticed a lot reviewers didn’t care for this book but I am the exception. I did like it and am interested in seeing how these future books play out. It does make you think . Thanks to Netgalley for the early copy

The book is about what happens on Earth in the end of the times. It was a good readings but i can’t say it’s a page turner. I n my opinion some of the characters are not so deep and believable. Although the concept is very interesting I’ve expected more from this book. Overall a good book, but not a memorable one.

The Time of Jacob's Trouble by Donna VanLiere is a story of the earth in the end times. When millions of people suddenly vanish, the ones left behind are afraid, confused, and unsure of what happens next. The story focuses on three people: Emma, Elliot, and Zerah. Emma is a physical therapist working with a patient who vanishes under her touch. Elliot is a Jew standing in a cemetery when the graves erupt. Zerah lives in Israel, where he researches disease. Each of them will discover that Jesus is the answer, that He has taken His children home with Him. How this affects their lives will remain with them always.
I enjoyed this book. It is very scary to think about those who will be left behind when Jesus does return. I was encouraged by the characters in the book also, how they didn't stop looking for answers.
At the end of the book were several chapters about the end times, as per the Bible. I think that is great, but the story was just left off, without an actual closing. That was my only problem and the reason for my rating.
I received a free copy of this story for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

It is to be noted that there are two parts to this book, a novel, and a study guide.

PART I - The Novel

In the spirit of the Left Behind series and with a touch of Joel C. Rosenberg, The Time of Jacob's Trouble is a story of upheaval and confusion, with millions missing and a world on the brink of war this book could have had the potential of being something great. There were some elements of hope, but in the end, it felt like the story had been rushed and it fell flat.

Told in multiple points of view, the story skips back and forth between the main characters, countries and the political rhetoric of the pending singular world government. I found this to be confusing as one minute you were reading about a character in New York and the next you were in Israel or a political forum in Europe (or where ever it was).

I tried to like this book, but . . . I'm left with the feeling that it had been done before. The plot was weak, the characters lacked development and the abrupt ending of the novel portion of the book left me frustrated.

PART II - The Study Guide

The second portion of The Time of Jacob's Trouble is an in-depth study of the Biblical book of Revelation that the story is based upon.

I recommend having a Bible handy as you read through this portion of the book as it is heavy with information and verses that you will want to take the time to read for yourself.

I found this portion of the book to be well thought out and well researched.

Final Thoughts:

If the author had put as much effort into character and plot development for the novel portion of this book as she did for the study portion, it would have been a good book to pick up.

The Time of Jacob's Trouble was a disappointing read for me and I think it would have been better to have been either two separate books - or for the study guide to be a singular book.

I received a free digital copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book was a tear jerker. I couldn't imagine dealing with some of the stuff the protagonist had to deal with. I didn't realize when I requested this ARC that it had very strong religious undertones. That is not something I usually lean towards in a book, but it was over all enjoyable.

I enjoyed reading this book. I found parts of it quite sad. Looking for loved ones and trying to get in touch during a major catastrophe is heartbreaking. Though this book is essentially about Jesus and The Rapture I think it's also a good mystery book. Whether you have Faith or not it's a very good story.

What if everything changed in a moment. It was a normal day nothing out of the ordinary until people started disappearing. No one knows where they have gone everyone is afraid. No one has answers and it seems like the world has gone mad. But there are people that have been chosen to spread the word and to let everyone know that all have a chance to accept that their savior is waiting for them. But not everyone wants to believe that the people that disappeared were believers. Can the chosen spread the word and help others accept what is coming? A good read.

I think it was the cover that attracted me to this book however once I started reading and got to about 20% I just wasn't invested and for now its a DNF. I might come back, but given it couldn't hold my attention I have my doubts.

Not what I exoected. This book is very much like The Left Behind Series. I think it was well written but not my type of book. I think the author was skillful in her Bible study but was look forward to her more heartwarming stories.

The Time of Jacob’s Trouble is not what I expected, nor was the writing the Donna VanLiere that I’m used to.

A typical day at work turns into a nightmare for Emma Grady when her favorite patient and several colleagues vanish in front of her. What could make so many people vanish in a moment? And not just in New York, but all over the globe?

Do you remember the Left Behind series from the early 2000s? As a believer those books packed a punch. To me they were an easier way to see what the Bible describes in the book of Revelation. The Time of Jacob’s Trouble seems to be VanLieres way of doing the same thing. But this book did not work for me or pack the same punch the Left Behind series did. The characters lacked depth and their stories and how they are written felt jumbled and without flow. Then suddenly, the book just stops! I was not expecting a cliff hanger! What I didn’t know when I started this book was that it is the first book in a series.

Why did my Kindle say there was nearly two hours left in the book when I reached the end of the story? Because the rest of the book is segments titled Where in the Word? The best way I can describe these segments are as Bible study material. VanLiere dives into the scripture surrounding the events in the fictional chapters she has written. I did not read these segments because I was not prepared for them. Their inclusion was such a shock to me. I wasn’t prepared to study the end times as told in Revelation in depth. My head was completely in the fictional characters and what was happening to them.

While this did not live up to my VanLiere expectations, it was still an okay read. I’m not sure how this book is classified, but it seems better suited for a Bible study group to experience together. I’m not sure that I’ll read the next book, but I’ll probably read the fictional portion only and skip the study material if I do decide to continue the series.

I didn't get along with some of the characters. When I requested the book for review I was expecting something else and few minutes into reading I came across something I didn't quite agree with.

The story is fast paced and talks about end time. Tells the story of individuals and their search for answers, what happens during the time of the rapture. The biblical references were okay; those caught my attention.
I liked the setting in Israel. The author's writing style and description was easy to follow and understand.
My favorite quote: Somehow, God is friend to both her mother and Mrs Ramos, and somewhere deep inside she wishes she could be like them.

I received a copy of the book from Netgalley and this is my honest opinion.

While this book The Time Of Jacobs Trouble was not exactly what I was expecting, it was still a wonderful, edge of your seat, type read.

This is not a typical read for me but I wanted to try something new and unfortunately, it fell short. The storyline and characters did not captivate me nor keep my interest. I thought it would be like reading the Left Behind series but this seemed more like I was in sunday school.

If you liked the Left Behind series, you will love this book. I love how the author put the bible verses at the back of the book to dig deeper into what happens in each chapter of this book. This is a wonderful edge of you seat read and I can't wait to read the next book in this series. Thank you Harvest House Publishers via NetGalley for the ARC copy of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.

The story about those left behind after the rapture isn't new and it's not even remarkably gripping. Their conversions are sudden and they're running through the whole bible within a few days. There's a lot of telling instead of showing.
It is obvious that the purpose of this book isn't to tell a gripping story with psychological depth, but to illustrate biblical prophecy.
The appendix is as long as this first part of a trilogy.
I'm not really looking forward to the other two parts.

The Time of Jacob's Trouble by Donna VanLiere.

I received this ARC in return for an honest review.

If you are a fan of the Left Behind series, you will love this book. It is nonstop, edge of your seat, can't put it down action from the beginning. I was not disappointed!

It begins with Emma, a physical therapist, trying to get everyone in her apartment building to go to the basement. There is an attack on the city and everyone needs to get to safety. The author then jumps back to one week earlier. This is where the story begins. There are three main characters in this book: Emma, Brandon, and Elliot. Their stories/point of view are told throughout the book. The characters eventually merge into a group, along with other survivors.

The theme of the book is the Rapture and what comes after, such as war, famine, and violence. This band of survivors (those not take with the Rapture) find the Truth and try to save others physically, mentally, and spiritually.

The true jewel of this book is that there are options throughout to read the biblical facts behind the story in that chapter or to continue on with the story. Should one choose to continue with the story, there is a whole section in the back of the book that gives biblical reference to each chapter. While the fictional book itself is an amazing read, knowing the facts behind it are extremely important.

I highly recommend this gem and will be anxiously awaiting the next book in the series.

Let me brutally honest here; this is not a novel. It is a biblical exploration of the end of times with an exceptionally weak narrative to try to pull it together. The characters are two dimensional cut outs, the events are implausible at best even taking into account the revelations of Scripture, the reactions of everybody cut and dried in a ridiculously black and white fashion. Essentially what VanLiere has done is take paragraphs from the Bible and construct a thin tale around them supposedly depicting the second coming of the Lord. If there was more meat on the bones than repetitive Scripture hurled at you in paragraphs constantly throughout the novel, it would be have more chance of standing up to scrutiny, but it doesn't.

You follow three main characters; Emma, Elliott and Zerah and the first problem of many is that they are all essentially the same character, they all have the same thoughts and concerns and they all do more or less the same thing. It doesn't help that none of them are fleshed out in detail. All of them have difficulty initially understanding what is going on, but all become Bible fanatics within a remarkably short time and are willing and able to extol about the second coming at great length to anyone who will listen and quite a few who won't. The relationships across the novel are all made of the same thin cardboard, whether it is a relationship with family, friends or a partner. All of them have the other side of the relationship not believing for one reason or another and all of them are guilty of being so aggressive in their beliefs that they successfully push the people they should care for most away from them. But of course it isn't seen this way because they are the good guys and those who don't believe are the bad ones.

Never is this more openly seen than when Elliott opens his mouth on street corners or in a church or well, in any variety of different places to preach the same thing every single time. He is protected by the strength of Jesus and yet as soon as he starts to preach other people get mindlessly angry, start attacking him, charging him, even shooting at him. There is no rationale behind this other than the blatant message that if you don't believe fully and completely you must be ridiculously aggressive and have an immediate impulse to shout, scream, rage and strike out at those who are. That is not how most people are, it is not how most people behave and yet the author is completely incapable of depicting individuals on a gradation of greys, instead insisting on hammering her point home in absolutes and no in betweens. Humanity is a wonderful mess of various shades of grey, with very few people being all of one or the other and that is not shown here at all. It makes for a poor set of characters to go along with the thin as hell narrative. It caricatures everything, making it a mockery of the very points it is trying so hard to express.

It also doesn't help that there are virtually no cultural references here; part of the novel is apparently set in Israel, but if not for the fact that you are told you are in Israel you could be forgiven for thinking you were still in New York City. It's all bland and vague, with nothing that leaps of the page at you. This is true for the general writing style as well; there is a whole lot of tell rather than show. You are informed that someone is feeling an emotion, but there is nothing in their behaviour to back that up, except of course for the all too frequent occasions when non-Christians go mental and start screaming and shouting for absolutely no reason. When combined with the repetitive nature of the text - you are told again and again that characters are reading the Bible, the same Biblical passages are explored by every character and often multiple times, the same basic dialogue happens again and again and again - it makes for a really poor experience that is utterly marred by its two dimensional nature.

And then 35% percent of the book is an actual look at Scripture. VanLiere just cuts off the admittedly weak narrative without even attempting to offer any form of resolution and yoiu are chucked into a Bible class, one that has been referenced many times throughout the novel at the end of chapters or sections: Want to know more about the scripture? Go to page __ 'Where In The Word' for further details.

So, thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the free ARC copy but I promised an honest review and here it is. As a Christian and an avid reader, all I can say is that this is beyond poor. The story is weak as hell, the characters are cardboard cut-outs, there is so much repetition it is ridiculous and you find every other page interrupted by a biblical passage.

I thoroughly enjoyed this exciting book about the Rapture! I felt as if I was there when a funeral was being done and the woman’s body disappeared and other graves blew open and their occupants were whisked up to Heaven!
Those who were left behind had to find out what happened to their loved ones and how they were going to survive the chaos of a world where governments had toppled and a world leader was being groomed.
Elliott, an Orthodox Jew, is called by God to proclaim the Gospel to his area, he is also supernaturally protected from death.
Read the book for yourself to see how a world survives without Christians, you will find many similarities to out time.

This was well written and I was impressed with the helps at the end of the book for those who are not familiar with what the Bible teaches about the end times.

This was....an interesting premise that just didn't really play out that well for me. It has a whole section at the back that includes the Biblical explanations for the various components referenced.