The Chair, by James Rubart - FREE BOOK

Tell us about your book.


If you were given an ancient looking chair and told Jesus Christ made it, would you believe them?

When an elderly lady shows up in Corin Roscoe’s antiques store and gives him a chair she claims was built by Christ, he scoffs. But when a young boy is miraculously healed after sitting in the chair, he stops laughing and starts to wonder: Could this chair heal the person whose life I destroyed twelve years ago?

As word spreads of the boy’s healing, a mega-church pastor is determined to manipulate Corin into turning over the chair. But the mysterious woman who gave him the piece insinuates it is Corin’s destiny to guard the chair above everything else. But why? Desperate, he turns to the one person he can trust, a college history professor who knows more about the legend of the chair than he reveals.

Searching for truth about the artifact and the unexplained phenomena surrounding it, Corin soon realizes he isn’t the only one willing to do almost anything to possess the power that seems to surround the chair.


What inspired this book?

It started when I read an article about a Jewish historian who told how some of the plows Jesus made lasted until the second century. I thought, “What if he made something that lasted until today? What if it was a chair? What if that chair had supernatural healing powers? That’s where the premise came from. The heart of the story came from the restoration of a relationship I had with one of my best friends. We had been estranged from each other for three years—and the Lord brought us together in a miraculous way. I tell the details in a reader letter in the back of the book.

How long have you been writing?

Forever and not that long. (Smile.) I’ve dabbled in writing since 7th grade. For years I wrote short stories but it wasn’t till 2000 that I showed anyone any of my fiction. And it wasn’t till 2003 that I got serious about writing a novel. I was too insecure to give it a shot. But God intervened (through my amazing wife) and I jumped off the cliff.


What is your favorite character trait to write about?

Their search for freedom. With every book I write, I want the reader to come away from it more free than when they started. That's the overarching theme in my novels so it's what I instill in each of my protagonists; that pursuit of the things what will bring them liberty in their lives.

What do you hope readers will take away from this book?

At its core, life is about the relationships. The one we have with the Lord and the ones we have with each other. But often those relationships are broken. As I mentioned above, the heart of THE CHAIR came from the restoration of one of my relationships, so my desire is people find hope and forgiveness for their broken relationships.

What is your favorite season?

Are you implying there’s another season other than summer? I love the long days of summer, playing the water with my wife and sons and being able to wear shorts most days. I pretend summer lasts until mid October—and my family loves to tease me about it.

If you could travel back in time when and where would you go?

Fun question! I would probably go back in time to when my parents were children to watch them at that age, then pop over and watch my wife’s childhood.

What project are you currently working on?

I’m smack in the middle of my writing my fourth novel (Oct ’12) which I’m really excited about. I think it will blow people’s minds.

I’m also—along with promoting The Chair—getting the word out about a Small Group study based on my first novel, ROOMS.

There’s a workbook, a DVD where I teach on the four major themes in the book as well as scenes from the book that were acted out by professional actors. It’s available through LifeWay stores and from LifeWay online at: http://tinyurl.com/3ku4hxt

Thanks so much for having me, Salena!


Jim has offered to give away a copy of "The Chair". Contest rules: At least 10 people need to leave a comment WITH an email address. If blogger is giving your trouble you can email me at srstormo@yahoo.com and put "contest" in the subject line. Valid in the US and Canada only. Winner will be announced 11/20/11.

Connect with James:
http://www.jameslrubart.com/