A Year of Amish Tales

Rosemary loves Saul, but she thinks he can't give her the one thing she wants, so she broke up with him after dating him for only three months.

Irma Rose thinks Jake is the man for her, but Jonas goes out of his way to prove that he's her man.

Eli is searching for a new mate since his wife died two years ago. Miriam thinks she's unworthy of marriage.

Katherine is experiencing her first Christmas without her beloved Elias. Someone has been following her and she's not sure who it is.

Beth Wiseman has written a delightful series of novellas that will hold her readers captive. My favorite is the last one with Katherine and her family. The man who has been following her is her father-in-law who left his family when her husband was quite young. He's been in witness protection, protective custody, and been on the FBI force. He had good reason to leave his family, but he couldn't tell them about it at the time. Mary Carol, Katherine's older daughter, meets her daadi (also known as grandfather) and develops a great friendship with him, but his moments of confusion also confuse her. When all is revealed, there are many reasons for Daadi's behavior and for his presence in the community.

These stories will take the reader through the four seasons of a year and delight the reader in each and every one of them. Each of these tales is worth five stars, two thumbs up, and a year of adventures.

My thanks to Thomas Nelson for allowing me to read and review this book.

The Midwife's Choice

In the last episode, Martha's daughter has run away from home to join a theater group. Martha has gone after her daughter to try to find her to no avail. The tavern where Martha lives has burned down, and the Confectionary owners have offered a place for Martha to live.

As we pick up this next episode, Martha is called to deliver a pre-term baby because the mother "fell." When the baby is still-born, Martha sees that the cord was wrapped around that baby's neck twice and the baby would have died regardless of when he was born. Unfortunately, the father of this baby takes his anger about losing his son on his wife and beats the pulp out of her. Martha cannot abide a man who uses his fists to express his frustrations and takes the girl in. In the meantime, her daughter returns with ideas to go back to New York and work for the woman who took her in.

Martha has many choices to make during this novel and the naming of the book is so apropos. Thomas wants to marry Martha, Martha's patient has to choose whether to forgive her husband for his abusive ways, and Victoria (Martha's daughter) has to choose whether to stay and help her mother or go back to New York and work. Fern, one of the Confectioner sisters, has choices of her own to make.

Delia Parr has written another five star book, with two thumbs up, and a choice of a lifetime. The plot never lags, the characters have depth, and the whole book is hard to put down, ever.

My thanks to Bethany House Publishing for allowing me to read and review this book.

Antagonizing Antagonists

Jerry Eicher writes Amish fiction with a deft hand. His characters are believable and most of them are lovable. His portrayal of the Amish Ordnung and its spirit is almost with an insider's knowledge. His newest offering shows his remarkable ability to describe the winsomeness of the Amish culture, as well as the misuses of the Amish life-rules.

So the protagonist is Miriam, a sweet girl who teaches the Amish scholars in Clarita, OK. Her mother writes that a surprise is coming her way and she is surprised when it shows up in the form of Mose Stoll, a minister from Wayne County, Ohio.

One of the antagonists is Mose Stoll, a rather rigid minister who lives by the letter of the rules and ignores the spirit of them. He feels that his life should be above all the other Amish in righteousness.

The other antagonist is Tyler, a journalist who is sent to do a human-interest piece on how the Amish recovered from the tornado that swept through their community a couple of years before. While he is there, he uncovers a bit of fraud in the handling of the relief fund that seeps back to the Senator from the state. Uncovering the the fraud endangers the community and creates problems for Miriam and her family as well as for the Deacon.

When Mose meets Miriam, it is with matrimony in mind. He is a minister and needs a frau for his home, especially since his district is choosing a new Bishop. Mose almost thinks he will be chosen Bishop and wants to make a good impression on his district more than one on his future wife. He begins by assuming Miriam will marry him, he sets the date, the length of her skirts, the color of her stockings, and her allowable activities. I am sure that in any culture, there will be those who abuse the power they have and try to rule with an iron fist, but Mose was NOT a likable character.

Tyler is almost in the picture at the same time Mose is. He sees in Miriam a sweet freshness he has never before encountered in his jaded, worldly life. The problem is that Miriam sees in Tyler the newness that her life needs, except that he is English and she will not leave the community to join up with Tyler. When a misunderstanding between Tyler and one of his journalist friends escalates out of control, Miriam is caught in the middle of a scandal she wanted no part of. It brings her untold grief and depresses her beyond belief.

The Amish are above all an hospitable group, always something to eat or drink in an Amish home, always something to offer the visitor--whether pie, cookies, or cake--and it's always good.

This is a five star, two thumbs up book with a cup of coffee and a piece of pie to go with it.

My thanks to Harvest House Publishers for allowing me to read and review this book. Once you pick it up, you will not be able to put it down.

The Knight's Bride

I don't know what happened. Normally I would like the genre of novellas, but somewhere along the line, there was a disconnect between the stories and me. Tracie Peterson wrote two of the stories that resembled a novel I read years ago, but the other author treated the plot line better. While the description of the novellas says that the stories take place during the middle ages, one does not take place then. It was in the 1800's and it was by far, the best book of the olio.

A Stranger's Kiss is the one that I liked best. Jenny has been promised to a man her cousin has her eye on and she'd rather marry almost anyone else than him. At their "engagement" party, Jenny's intended ends up dead from poisoning, and Jenny is accused of his murder. When a stranger/benefactor posts bail for her, hires an attorney, and moves her to his estate, Jenny does not know what to think. There are mysteries surrounding Jenny, her parentage, and her very being. She has been mistreated since her father passed away, lied to, and otherwise kept beholden to her relatives for taking her in. As she is questioned by the attorney, he gets more and more ideas of whom the real culprit is and using Perry Mason type techniques, he exposes the real criminal during Jenny's trial.

While this one story is a five star tale, the rest of the book doesn't fair as well. Three stars.

My thanks to Barbour Books for allowing me to read and review this book.

Brides (and Husbands) by Mail

The five ladies who contributed to the Mail-Order Marriage collection are top of the line authors in the Christian Romance and Christian Historical Romance genre of books. Every single novella is high quality, with complex characters, beautiful settings, and intriguing plot lines. I loved reading this book, because each successive story seemed even better than the one before it.

My favorite is the last one: Forever Yours by Tracie Peterson. Daughtry Lucas is the daughter of a very over-protective rancher who won't let a man look at her. She is getting tired of his routine and wants a life like that of her parents. When her family goes to the county fair, she meets an interesting man and escorts him around the town and the fair until her father meets them. Then it is all over but the shouting. Before the family goes home, Daughtry sees an ad for a mail order bride that ends up being a mail order bride by proxy. She writes to the man and is chosen to be his bride. After a dust-up with her father, she leaves in the middle of the night, takes the train out of town, finds a minister to perform the proxy marriage, and makes her way to the ranch of her new husband.

This is a five star, two thumbs up book, with a letter from your mail order mate.

My thanks to Barbour Publishing for allowing me to read and review this book.

Amazing Truths

Last year I tried to read a book of apologetics from a scientific point of view, but the science was so far over my head, I couldn't finish the book. I am here to tell you that this book will not be so difficult to understand. One of the chapters discusses the earth's place in the universe saying that if we were one one-trillionth of an inch in a different position either way, the gravity would either pull us in or throw us out in a way that the earth could no longer sustain life.

One of the most fascinating things I read in this book is about the speed of light. For a particle to travel at 99.9999% of the speed of light, the particle's journey would take a day and a half to go the same distance. That is so basic and yet so mind boggling. Michael Guillen takes the science and puts it in laymen's terms simple enough for this science-phobe to understand. His purpose seems to be to show the Average Joe what a detailed God we have.

Five Stars.

My thanks to Zondervan for allowing me to read and review this book.

Hot Bread!!!

Today's review is for a book you could really sink your teeth into. The Hot Bread Kitchen covers not only breads from around the world, but accoutrements to go with the bread. The recipes are fairly easy, completely explained, and sound sooooooooooooooooooo good, I cannot wait to try some of them. The only problem is that at my house we have a fairly set list of foods for the holidays, so my experiments will have to wait.


Jessamyn Waldman Rodriguez and Julia Turshen have collected these recipes and made them simple enough for the most basic baker. Since my childhood diet included homemade bread and homemade cornbread, I love experimenting with making tasty breads, but having access to recipes to complement the bread is such a bonus!

I love the way the book is put together, with similar types of breads grouped together and the complementary recipes in the grouping as well. One of the recipes I want to try SOON is carnitas. As a family, we are always on the prowl for super-delicious Mexican food recipes. This one looks to be a crowd pleaser in my house.

This is a five star, two thumbs up book, with a piece of freshly baked bread slathered with butter.

My thanks to Random House for allowing me to read and review this book.

Gonna Take a Sentimental Journey

These nine novellas all take place during World War II. Four of them are a series in and of themselves where four of the romances also help get Jewish children out of Nazi controlled Europe. All four of these novels covered members of one family who worked in various stages of helping the children get out, but in the meantime, romance blooms in the harshest of environments.

Other novels have women taking care of siblings because they are orphaned, another smuggles a Gutenburg Bible to the US to keep it out of Nazi hands, one is a nurse in a remote station, another works at home taking pictures for magazines, and yet one more serves in the RAAF.

I think it is harder to write a shorter novel and make it a cohesive story with fully developed characters and plot lines. These nine ladies do this with aplomb and class. There are humor to be enjoyed, grief to be shared, letters to be written, and weddings to be planned.

This book will fill several afternoons with some sentimental reading--five stars, two thumbs up, and a sentimental journey home.

My thanks to Barbour Books for allowing me to read and review this book.

In the Good Ol' Summertime

I have finished all four collections of the 12 Brides of Summer series. I think this fourth collection is one of the best.

In the County Fair Bride, Prudence has come home to take care of her father, but finds that he has been replaced by someone else. She is incensed because she feels he was pushed out of his job. When she finally takes the time to talk to her dad, she finds he's happier not being mayor of the town. She joins forces with the new mayor to plan and produce a county fair and to fall in love.

In the Honey Bride, Kate is deathly afraid of the bees her father ordered for the hives he got. He thought that she'd be able to make a bit of money selling the honey and beeswax that the bees produced. When her neighbor's cowhand comes to help, she is not sure if she can trust him or not, especially when a drunken man shows up on her front porch claiming that her father promised him a job.

In the Columbine Bride, Lucy is widowed with two children and fighting to hold body and soul together. Buck finds himself intrigued by the young widow and starts showing up to help out--even with her cattle round up. She hates being beholdin', but what else can she do?

Vickie McDonough, Diana Brandmeyer, and Davalynn Spencer have combined forces to produce a book of fun entertainment for a free afternoon. These authors know how to develop a character, set them in a plot, and keep the plot moving along to engage the reader till the very end.

This is a five star, two thumbs up book, with a blue ribbon at the county fair.

My thanks to Shiloh Run Studios for allowing me to read and review this book.

Such an Agreeable Book

Five "novellas" in one cover telling stories about arranged marriages or marriages of convenience. Thing is, I don't think these were novellas, I think they were full length novels. I finished this last night, and I must say that it was a long haul to read this whole thing. One of the stories I'd read before--A Bride's Sweet Surprise in Sauers, Indiana.

The novellas were all pretty good stories, but I think my favorite was Love's Shining Hope by JoAnn A Grote. Pearl has decided to help her friend Jase with his responsibilities since his parents were killed in an accident. He has two younger brothers and two younger sisters to care for, a farm, the house; and he's in over his head. Pearl comes to teach the older girl about keeping a home and cooking while Jase and the boys take care of the outdoor chores. When Pearl's parents come home from a trip, they tell her she is endangering her reputation by being at Jase's house unchaperoned. After two weeks with no Pearl, Jase asks her to marry him, in name only. She agrees and he gives her forty-eight hours to get ready for the wedding. Pearl has loved Jase since they were children, but it takes a while for Jase to realize that he does love Pearl and wants her for his wife in all ways.

The olio has a wide variety of stories to please the reader: all of the authors are quite competent in their craft and they have done well with the stories in this anthology, the characters have depth, the settings are well-suited for the plots, and the plots move at a steady pace that keeps the reader involved.

This is a five star, two thumbs up book, and a cooking lesson for an adolescent girl.

Elaine Bonner--Thanks to a Lonely Heart
Ramona Cecil--A Bride's Sweet Surprise in Sauers, Indiana
Nancy J Farrier--Sonoran Secret
JoAnn A Grote--Love's Shining Hope
DiAnn Mills--Kiowa Husband

My thanks to Barbour Books for allowing me to read and review this book.

Called to Pray

Linda Evans Shepherd knows prayer. She also knows the voice of the Holy Spirit, so that when He says, "Pray for . . . " she prays. This book is grouped into stories of people who have listened and prayed--grouped by topic, or calling, or whatever. But the stories are stories of miracles where God calls people to pray because of circumstances surrounding someone else. The most poignant of these stories (to me) is the phone call at 3:00 am, when Linda had been praying for and telling her friend about God's love for him. He was at a down point in his life and wondered if God cared for him at all. He prayed that if God was there, she'd answer her phone at 3:00 am. The series of events that brought this to fruition make this story one for the ages. There are hundreds of these stories in Linda's book and hundreds of people touched by someone else's prayers.

The point of the book is prayer works, and these are living, breathing testimonies to its power. The style of writing is easy to read, the stories are short and can be read in short bursts, like waiting rooms, or while you are filling your car with gasoline.

Five stars.

My thanks to Revell Publishing for allowing me to read and review this book.

Heirloom Brides

Four great authors teamed up to put together a great olio of stories with the theme of Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed, Something Blue. Tracey Bateman, Mona Hodgson, Joanne Bischoff, and Kim Vogel Sawyer are the A-team of writing historical romance with aplomb with a bit of humor injected to keep things moving along.

Something Old: Betsy's grandfather lost his watch in an auction of all his property because he couldn't pay the bank note on the farm. When Betsy finds out who has it, she demands its return because it is an Heirloom. Trouble is, the watch is an heirloom, just not one from her family. She has to get the truth out of her grandfather before she can accept that the new owner is the one who should have it anyway. She also has to realize that the one who has the watch also has her heart.

Something New: Tate comes back to see Wren after leaving for four years. When he left, he broke Wren's heart and now that he's back, his plan is to build a house for Wren and when it is finished, to ask her to marry him. Before that, though, he gives Wren a journal of her grandmother's along with some seeds that her grandmother sent her, then he asks her to wait before she plants the seeds.

Something Borrowed: Clara and her father have moved from Minneapolis to Wilhelmina, Minnesota, for her father to try farming after he retired from banking. She had broken up with two beaux and got quite a reputation that made her rather skittish around people. When her father got his leg broken from felling a tree, she had to borrow the labor of her neighbor, Titus, so that the field could be cleared for planting.

Something Blue: Darla has come back to Cripple Creek to begin a nursing job at the hospital. She is assigned as a home duty nurse to check on patients who have been released from the hospital but still need some care. She re-encounters Nicolas Zanzucchi after he'd been burned in a mine accident, and while she gets to know him and his daughters, Zach Pfeiffer wants to reignite what he thought was a strong romance between the two of them. Darla comes to realize that Zach is not the one to give her heart to, but now she has to plow through Nicolas' reservations.

Each of these stories has such an endearing quality to it and the writing is easy to read and follow. Something Old may be the least liked because Betsy is such a tartar, but concern for her grandfather is enough to excuse her poor behavior.

Five Stars, Two Thumbs Up, and an heirloom for your wedding.

My thanks to Barbour Books for allowing me to read and review this book.

Highland Hall Excitement

World War I is in full swing, and various relatives of Highland Hall are being affected by the war. Kate is pregnant, and her husband is treating returning wounded. In the meantime, Kate, Jon, and Kate's sister Penny are the guardians for eight London orphans ranging in age from three to fourteen. After German Zeppelins come and bomb London, Jon decides that Kate, Penny, and the children are to go to Highland Hall. William and his wife, Julia, open the doors of their home and take in the whole group. Jon closes up the house in London and takes a flat near the hospital. He visits as he can, but not very often.

Before the bombing, a friend of Jon's from India, Alex, comes to visit and because he'd been injured in training, needs a place to stay until he goes back to his training. Alex and Penny make a connection and decide to keep in touch. Through their letters, even after Alex has been transferred to France, they begin to deepen their friendship.

Alex is assigned several risky and dangerous missions and through one of the missions is seriously injured. After finding out the extent of his injuries, Alex seems to give up, he gives up his hope, he gives up his desire, and he gives up on God. It is only through the prayers of his friends, the work of his friends, and the perseverance of Penny that Alex comes out of his self-imposed exile.

During the war, men in England of German descent were put into internment camps to work on farms and through the countryside. One of the maids who came to Highland Hall befriends one of the German prisoners. Another of the prisoners is intent on escaping the camp and provides a bit of mystery for the book, but the maid's friend stays in the camp.

Carrie Turansky has taken several subplots and put them together in a cohesive whole. Her characters have a depth that engages the reader. She creates tension with several of the characters and then allows them to work out their tensions--sometimes maturely, but often with childishness. She shows the full gamut of human emotions in the fictional residents of her novel.

This book is very hard to put down, I started it last night and picked it up today after church, and I didn't put it down until after I finished it. Five Stars, Two Thumbs Up, and a letter from a dear friend.

My thanks to WaterBrook Multnomah for allowing me to read and review this book.

The 12 Brides of Summer #3

It's almost Christmas, but I am reading about summer brides. Kind of ironic, but, I like the thought of warmer days.

Margaret Brownley, Miralee Ferrell, and Pam Hillman have teamed together to bring this third collection to those of us who need a warm thought on a cold winter day.

Margaret Brownley's Dog Days of Summer centers around Marilee and Jed and the ownership of one dog who claims them both.

Miralee Ferrell's The Dogwood Blossom reminded me of the old movie, "Support Your Local Sheriff." Grace Addison is seen early in this novella up a tree.

Pam Hillman's The Lumberjack's Bride takes us to a lumber camp in Mississippi.

Each story has a winsomeness that draws the reader in and doesn't let go. They are easy reads for that rainy afternoon where the reader wants to cuddle up with a book, a cup of tea, and a blanket, and dream of warmer days.

I've read writings by these authors before and they never disappoint me. Characters are personable, situations are believable, and settings are indescribable.

Five Stars, Two Thumbs Up, and a dog to claim you as its human.

My thanks to Barbour Publishing for allowing me to read and review this book.

Prayers and the Heart of God

I've never encountered Shane Stanford before I read What the Prayers of Jesus Tell Us About the Heart of God. I was intrigued by the book simply from its title. Since 2003, I have been learning prayer in a more intensive way than I thought about it before. So, when this came up in my reading list, I was thrilled.

I learned or relearned several things:

God wants an intimate relationship with us
God wants to instruct us
God wants us to be intentional about our relationship with Him
God wants us

Shane uses several prayers to show us how Jesus sees us, sees His temple, sees His relationship with the Father, and how He wants us to be in relationship with Him.

There were so many significant points brought out in this book, it is hard to mention them all, but each point will help each pray-er grow in his/her prayer life and in his/her relationship with God.

I read this book while I was walking on my treadmill (three seasons of the year, I walk outside, but right now, I am too chicken to walk outside because of the cold weather, so I use my treadmill) and I came upon one prayer by John Wesley that Shane included in the book. My husband came out to the garage to ask me a question and I showed him the prayer and told him the next time he gave the "Call to Worship" in church, I wanted him to use this prayer. It is that profound. I am quoting it here because I want to be able to see it often.

I am no longer my own but yours.
Put me to what you will, rank me with whom you will;
put me to doing, put me to suffering;
let me be employed for you, or laid aside for you,
exalted for you, or brought low for you;
let me be full, let me be empty,
let me have all things, let me have nothing:
I freely and wholeheartedly yield all things
to your pleasure and disposal.
And now, glorious and blessèd God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit,
you are mine and I am yours.
And the covenant now made on earth, let it be ratified in heaven. Amen.

Prayer by John Wesley

This is a Five Star book.

My thanks to Abingdon Press for allowing me to read and review this book.

The Christmas Cradle

Miriam has grown-up triplet daughters from her first marriage--Rhoda, Rebecca, and Rachel, but now she's pregnant with her new husband's child and she's running a restaurant. When her husband, Ben, hears a buggy outside, he goes outside to see who it is and if he can help. He finds a young couple--Josiah and Lena--in a heated discussion about being lost, and very tired from a long journey. Lena is also pregnant and she and Josiah are not married. Josiah's family has passed away except for his sister Savilla, and Lena's family has disowned her.


Charlotte Hubbard has finished out the Seasons of the Heart series of Amish novels. Several issues that have been in previous books in the series are brought to completion in one way or another. In writing this series, Charlotte has described what happens when our egos get the best of us, when we open our hearts and act as Christ would, and when we truly place our faith in the only God who can aid us. She did kill off one of the characters in solving one of the issues she set up, but she did so in a way that makes a cautionary tale, and then she shows the grace of God through the reactions of the other characters.

One of the things Miriam is known for is her baking--especially her cookies. She teaches Lena to make and decorate the cookies to sell as a way to raise money for a place to live. Josiah wants to work in Miriam's restaurant cooking for a dinner shift, but he has a lot of growing up to do to take responsibility for Lena and her baby.

This is not a synopsis of the book, my thoughts are too disjointed right now, but it is a series of thoughts that struck me while I was reading the book. One thing I have appreciated about Charlotte's writing is that she explains a lot of Amish beliefs to an English person like me.

Five Stars, Two Thumbs Up, and a decorated cookie from the bakery.

My thanks to Zebra Books for allowing me to read and review this book.

There Is a Balm in Gilead

I have read the books in this series a long time ago, so it took me a few pages to catch up to Sarah and her friends in Pennsylvania. Adina Senft has brought Sarah and Henry full circle in Balm of Gilead. Joe and Simon come home from Colorado and begin making their lives in the community. Joe has Priscilla waiting for him, but Simon is a bit at loose ends. Caleb has started working for a contractor and still wants to work for Henry in his spare time. Sarah is still taking lessons from Ruth on being a doktorfrau with herbal remedies. Henry and Ginny are engaged to be married. Everything seems to be going so well, but flies are infesting the ointment.

Adina ties up most of the loose ends in this final book in the Healing Grace series, and she does it with such a deft hand that makes the book hard to put down. I think every reader of Amish fiction wants Sarah as a friend, she a straight-shooter who doesn't hold back with her opinions, she tells the truth even when it hurts, but she's always willing to lend a helping hand to anyone in need especially with her herbal remedies.

I loved this book, staying up way too late to read it, simply because I got so involved in the story. It's definitely a Five Star, Two Thumbs Up, and a salve for your soul type book.

My thanks to FaithWords for allowing me to read and review this book.

To Dream the American Dream

Nine authors submitted their novellas for this collection and put together quite a fun read. There are a couple of series included in this collection, and books I have read before, but I still enjoyed the stories. Beginning in the seventeenth century with a girl kidnapped and impressed into indentured servitude and running to the Civil War and the Westward Expansion with a midwife who wants to move west after a misunderstanding with a patient's brother, this collection shows how these women found love in most unexpected ways.

The characters have such beautiful personalities that are well developed in spite of the shortness of the novellas. The settings only add to the winsomeness of the stories, and the plots are well-paced. This is a perfect book to read when you just want to fill a few stolen minutes and still read a full story.

Five Stars, Two Thumbs Up, and a dream to call your own.

My thanks to Barbour Publishing for allowing me to read and review this book.

Hitler's Cross

I heard Erwin Lutzer's sermons on this book a long time ago and what he said about this topic is as relevant now as it is today. In taking the first amendment of the Constitution of the US and interpreting it as the freedom FROM religion, we have allowed our religious freedoms to be gutted. When Hitler came into power in Germany, he gutted the religious freedoms in the same way. As long as people followed in lock-step with his ideals, they were left alone; but if they pushed back in any capacity, they were singled out for his particular brand of torture and punishment.

Our government has made it so that any religion EXCEPT Christianity is acceptable, and is actually preferable. With the ACLU hunting for any sign of Christianity in public places and the interpretations of the laws being skewed against the Christians, we are entering an age very similar to the one that brought Hitler into power. Our political parties are all about what will gain the most for themselves instead of what is best for the people.

Lutzer makes the point that we, as Christians, have to stand up, put God first--above all other considerations, and take back the rights that are being dealt away like so many cards in a deck. As I read this today, I prayed that I would be found worthy to God, that I would be able to stand up despite any repercussions in my own life.

This is a FIVE STAR book that needs to be read by every student of history, by every Christian who truly wants to live for God, and by anyone who values the freedom to worship.

My thanks to Moody Publishers for allowing me to read and review this book.