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Redemption Over Shame
A Certain Man is a searing, lyrical reimagining of the woman at the well, following a fierce Samaritan woman’s battle for freedom, faith, and healing in a world that seeks to break her. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?
Actually, the inspiration came from the phrase that Jesus used to start several parables. “There was a certain man…” There are Bible scholars who teach that this was a sign to those listening that He was about to speak a true story of real people. I began to contemplate who these people would have been and what their back story would be. So the kernel of the story actually began with Samuel. Then my imaginings expanded to who he would have loved.
How did you balance historical authenticity with creative liberty, especially in reimagining familiar Gospel moments?
I never want to sacrifice Scripture for story. So when Jesus is “onstage” in the Bible, I do not add to His words. But, for instance, the Bible says that Jesus stayed in Samaria for two days after He met the woman at the well. So then this period is open for fiction. Even so, I am careful that He does not teach something that is not found elsewhere in scripture. Sometimes, like the encounter with the woman at the well, the narrative is very sparse and seems to jump from topic to topic. So here I used Mara’s thoughts to try to “fill out” the story. Jesus of course knows her thoughts and answers her. The challenge is to stay authentic to the intent and meaning of scripture without making Jesus a two-dimensional character. He was fully human and fully divine… and that is compelling.
What were some themes that were important for you to explore in this book?
The book explores themes of faithfulness, loyalty, and freedom particularly for women in a culture that often considered them chattel. Further, the hero and heroine must learn to forgive others and each other, choose good over evil, and redemption over shame.
Mara’s journey is steeped in trauma and spiritual transformation. How did you approach writing those darker, more intimate scenes?
The times of the Bible were scandalous and treacherous. While I did not want to include any gratuitous violence or sexuality, I did want the story to ring true in a tasteful way that dealt with very real issues. While there are humorous and lighter moments I wanted the reader to be brought into the times as they were. I believe “there is nothing new under the sun” and that the struggles of my characters to speak to hearts today.
The woman at the well has often been considered to be a loose woman, a harlot. But Jesus says she had five husbands. It is only the sixth man who is not her husband. What would make her give up on marriage, give up the security of a husband supporting and protecting her? I tried to read between the lines of scripture and use research of the time period to flesh out a plausible back story for each of my characters.
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A Certain Man
Linda Dindzans’ A Certain Man is a strikingly heartfelt and vividly imagined piece of biblical fiction. It follows Mara, a Samaritan woman navigating the brutal constraints of her culture, her faith, and her heart during the time of Christ. Told through lush, poetic prose and an unflinching lens, the novel begins with a young love interrupted by betrayal and spirals into a gripping journey of survival, soul-searching, and transformation. With its backdrop of Roman-occupied Judea and familiar Gospel moments reimagined, the story weaves spiritual truths with deeply personal struggles, culminating in a powerful retelling of the woman at the well.
What stood out most to me was Dindzans’ writing. Her style is rich but never overdone, lyrical without losing clarity. She manages to make the ancient world feel immediate. There’s real grit in her characters, especially Mara, who is no porcelain saint. She’s bruised, desperate, fierce—and incredibly human. I felt every injustice, every small joy, every beat of her aching heart. The dialogue is often simple, but it hums with tension and longing. The scenes of violence, particularly those involving Mara’s forced betrothal, are hard to read but so crucial. They ring too true. You don’t just observe Mara’s suffering—you feel pulled under with her.
It’s the ideas that linger. The novel tackles faith, consent, justice, and freedom in a world built to deny those very things to women like Mara. And yet, there’s hope threaded through it all, not in neat resolutions, but in the idea of redemption. The figure of Yeshua appears in glimpses, each one filled with quiet power and startling gentleness. Dindzans doesn’t preach. Instead, she lays bare the deep hunger for mercy and lets the possibility of grace rise naturally. I was especially moved by how she links trauma with spiritual healing, not with platitudes, but through real, painful growth.
A Certain Man is for anyone who loves powerful women, deep questions, and stories that reach beyond their setting to hit something true. It’s especially for readers of biblical fiction who want more than sanitized retellings—this one is raw, brave, and beautifully unsettling. I’d hand it to fans of Francine Rivers or Mesu Andrews, or anyone longing for a story where faith doesn’t erase suffering, but shines all the brighter through it.
Pages: 415 | ASIN: B0D98K4BPT
LITERARY TITAN 