The Courtship of Nellie Fisher
Author: Beverly Lewis
Author: Beverly Lewis
Published By: Bethany House Publishers
Genre: Christian fiction, Amish Romance, Historical fiction
Date Published: April 1, 2012
Pages: 699
Recommended Age: Young Adult, Adult
Rating: A/5
I borrowed this book from the library.
Summary:
During the fall of 1966 in the town of Honeybrook, the Old Order Amish community finds themselves on opposite sides of an everlasting divide. It couldn’t come at a worse time for Nellie Fisher and her beau Caleb Yoder.
My Thoughts:
This book was three books in one. It is a three book trilogy consisting of The Parting, The Forbidden, and The Longing. I believe it was well written and Beverly Lewis did her research well. I was even compelled to get on the internet to research the Amish, wanting to know the differences between the Old Order; The New Order; the Beach Amish; and the Mennonites. I also wanted to learn when they had all split from the Old Order. I think an author has done an excellent job when she encourages the reader to some research of their own.
As for the story line, it was very touching. I cried at the points where the characters tell how the Word of God saved them. It was very moving for a fellow Christian. There was one character I did not like and that was Caleb Yoder’s father. He was domineering over his family, telling his children who they can and cannot be friends with or marry. I did like Nellie’s father. He was very compassionate with his girls and put his foot down when it was truly necessary. A reader is able to fall into the book (or the three books, for the matter) and root for the heroine and some of the other characters.
I really enjoyed this book and may read it again someday, and for this reason I give it five stars and a grade of an A. If you love Amish romances or are interested in learning about the Amish divided through fictional storytelling, I recommend The Courtship of Nellie Fisher by Beverly Lewis.
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Autumn Winds
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The Thorn
Parents:
Language: None
Adult Content: None
Violence: None
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Autumn Winds
Author: Charlotte Hubbard
Published By: Zebra
Date Published: September 4th, 2012
Genre: Amish Romance
Pages: 324
Recommended Age: Adult
Reviewed By: Me (almost three years ago for another site)
Rating: B/4
This book I borrowed from the library.
Summary:
A stranger comes to the Amish town of Willow Ridge by the name of Ben Hooley; he is a blacksmith baptized in the Old Order. Miram Lantz, an Amish widow who runs the Sweet Seasons Bakery at first is weary of the newcomer, but as she gets to know the newcomer and finds him kind-hearted she starts to fall in love with him. With Bishop Knepp relentlessly pursuing her to marry him and threatening to take everything that she cares about away, she must decide if she should listen to her heart and find the happiness she craves.
My Thoughts:
I quite enjoyed this book. I never read an Amish love story before but I saw it sitting on the New Arrivals shelf at the library and thought it sounded interesting. It turns out it was the second book in the Seasons of the Heart series, but since the first book was about a different couple in Willow Ridge I was never at a lost for what was happening, plus the author filled in tidbits about the characters and how they were related to Miram so the reader wouldn’t be lost if they had not read Summer of Secrets first.
I found it well written, and it seems Charlotte Hubbard had done a quite an extensive research on the Amish community west of the Mississippi River. I learned things about the Amish I never before, like they did follow the new testament out of the King James bible and they have Bishops, all quite interesting.
I liked the character of Miram. She was a strong woman who followed her own heart and won’t let anyone, not even the bishop, tell her what she should do if it didn’t feel right to her. I did not care for Bishop Knepp at all. He was a hypocrite to his community and would be very devious in order to get his way. I was sad to realize that they couldn’t impeach him or do something to remove him from the position of Bishop.
I truly enjoyed this book; to the point I had stayed up until two in the morning trying to finish it; therefore, I gave Autumn Winds four stars and a grade of B. I recommend reading Autumn Winds by Charlotte Hubbard, especially if you are a fan of Amish romances. I never thought I would like Amish romances and actually thought I would be let down by this book, but thanks to Hubbard I will be reading more Amish romances.
Parents:
Language: None
Adult Content: None
Violence: None
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The Thorn
Author: Beverly Lewis
Published By: Bethany House Publishers
Date Published: September 7, 2010
Genre: Romance, Christian Fiction, Amish Fiction
Pages: 346
Recommended Age: Young Adults, Adults
Rating: A/5
I borrowed this book from the library
Summary:
Two sisters, one name Hen left The Old Order to marry an Englisher but after having a child she begins to long for the Old Ways she left behind and decides she wants her daughter to grow up in the Old Ways instead of in the World. She takes her daughter and moves back home, and she hopes to woo her husband to join the Amish.
The other sister Rose is unsure of her own heart. She is devoted to the bishop’s rebellious foster son, but she cannot marry him unless he is baptized into The Old Order so she allows another man to court her.
My Thoughts:
This is the first book I ever read by Beverly Lewis. I knew for many years she was a popular writer of the Amish; I even saw her books on display in the stores out in the Amish country I visit around Ohio, but I would never buy one. How interesting can a romance book about the Amish be, or any fictional book about the Amish for that matter?
But then I started going through..oh a “phase” (for lack of a better word), where I wanted to read books without all the “I can’t wait to yank your clothes off and take you right here and now” type books and more of faith based romance. So after reading one Amish book I remembered the popularity of Beverly Lewis and went off to the library in search of one of her books. I found The Torn, book one in the Rose Trilogy, and it was a great find.
I really enjoyed this book. It had the twinge of mystery I love. Lewis’ characters are not flat like in other Amish books, but they are well-drawn three dimensional characters. It showed that the Amish people deal with the same issues we the English suffer: tragedy, marital strife, and secrets. I really liked how Rose took the time to get to know people who were less fortunate to her, and I did not like how everyone else in the Amish community. I gave The Thorn five stars and a grade of an A, because it was superb reading. I recommend The Torn by Beverly Lewis, even if you are weary of Amish reading, as I once was. You will not be disappointed.
Parents:
Language: None
Adult Content: None
Violence: None
