The Plain Choice Book Review

A True Story of Choosing 

to Live an Amish Life

SUMMARY:  Sometimes Faith Is the Greatest Surprise of All

     As a young adult, Sherry Gore dreamed of a radio career, but instead, a series of terrible mistakes left her wrecked and alone.  Then one morning she walked into a church and the truth of Jesus' forgiving love shattered her world - and put it back together again.  She began to rid her life of anything that might keep her from God, but still she wanted a deeper faith.  Something more.

     Soon the life Sherry remade for herself and her children featured head coverings, simple dress, and a focus on Jesus Christ.  Only then did she realize that there were others like her:  the Amish/

She Left Everything to Find All She Needed

     The Plain Choice is the fascinating story of one woman's journey toward God through the Amish community.  After making the rare transition into Amish life, Sherry learned how to live off the land and make it, grow it, or do without it.  She learned the adventure of the horse-and-buggy life and began to thrive on faith, family and pie.  And when her teenage daughter was diagnosed with a devastating illness, she learned again how bright God's light can shine when everything else seems dark.

     This unusual memoir offers a riveting look at the choices we make toward or away from God - and how God pursues us in the most unexpected ways.

REVIEW:  For the past few years, I've been following Sherry Gore on Facebook.  I'm not sure how I found her but love her insights, humor and pictures of the pies she makes.  Her autobiography is just an extension of her FB page, just more in depth and personal.  Sherry did not grow up Amish but, after her conversion to Christianity, found their lifestyle was more like the life she felt she needed to live.  Details of her growing up in the 70s, 80s and 90s were raw but real.  She does not hold back any punches but shows her readers where she came from and where God has her now.  Sherry's life has not been easy but God has walked with her every step of the way.  After she decided to become Amish, Sherry's relationship with God grew stronger and helped prepare her for the difficult road her family would face after her daughter's devastating diagnosis.  This book is a wonderful story of God's pursuit and how He prepares His children for life on this earth and, eventually, heaven.  This book is difficult but awe-inspiring.  Check it out, then follow her on Facebook.

This book was provided by BookLook Bloggers and Zondervan 

for review without compensation.

Sherry Gore is the author of two cookbooks, Simply Delicious Amish Cooking and Me, Myself, and Pie, and co-author of the novel Made with Love.  She is also a weekly scribe for the national edition of the Amish newspaper, The Budget, established in 1890.  The National Geographic Channel featured Sherry prominently in their documentary series, Amish: Out of Order.  Sherry's culinary adventures have been seen on NBC Daytime, The Today Show, Mr. Food Test Kitchen, and more.  Sherry is a year-round resident of beautiful, sun-kissed Sarasota, Florida, the vacation paradise of the Plain People.  She has three children and is a member of a Beachy Amish Mennonite church.  When not spending time with her family, writing, or eating, Sherry is a cooking-show host and an official pie-contest judge. 

Her Brother's Keeper Book Review

An Amish Secrets Novel

SUMMARY:  Charlotte came to Amish country to find answers.  What she never expected to find was peace.

     Charlotte Dolinsky is not above playing dress-up and telling a few lies to find out what happened to her only brother.  In face, that is exactly what she's come to Lancaster County to do.  Now, calling herself Mary and slipping on a kapp, Charlotte will lie hr way into the confidence of anyone who knows why Ethan had to die.  Unless she get found out first.

     But when Charlotte befriends a quiet Amish man named Isaac Miller, she begins to rethink her motives.  And with a little help from a friend back home, Charlotte might find out that love comes packaged in ways she couldn't have foreseen.

      Isaac's been caring for his cancer-stricken father and sympathizing with his frustrated mother for three difficult years.  And that means he hasn't been dating.  He believes Hannah King is the woman for him, but Hannah is stil grieving the loss of her fiance', and Isaac has all he can handle on the farm.  When Hannah's family plays host to a woman named Mary, their new cousin shakes things up for all of them.

     As Charlotte digs deeper into the mystery of Ethan's death, she finds more than she'd bargained for in the community he once called home.  But will she ever learn the truth?  And what will the community - and her new family - do if they learn the truth about her?

 REVIEW:  I have mixed feelings about this book.  Charlotte/Mary wants to know why her brother killed himself.  Because he was living with the Amish at the time and knowing how tight-lipped they are with outsiders, she felt she had lie to get this information.  I don't like the idea of her pretending to be Amish and lying to the family.  There are other ways of getting answers.  I kind of understood why Charlotte/Mary did what she did when I read how she reacted to the family after her brother's death.  She was not very nice, AT ALL, made demands on them through her lawyers, and didn't take into consideration their thoughts and feelings.  But, two wrongs still doesn't make it right.  

     Now, there were a few things I liked about this book.  The ending was different but nice.  I like how even though the family rejected her after the truth came out, Charlotte/Mary still opened her heart and her home to them when sickness brings Hannah's mother to Texas and how the Kings were slowly opening their hearts to her.  I also liked how Charlotte/Mary started understanding faith better as she lived with the Kings.  Her new-found faith was still growing even after she came home.

     

This book was provided by BookLook Bloggers and Thomas Nelson Publishers 

for review without compensation.

Beth Wiseman, an award-winning bestselling author, is best known for her Amish novels, but her most recent novels, Need You Now and The House that Love Built, are contemporaries set in small Texas towns.  Both have received glowing reviews.  Beth's The Promise is inspired by a true story.

A Simple Prayer Book Review

Hearts of the Lancaster Grand Hotel

Book Four

SUMMARY:  Linda is no stranger to hardship.  Now she dares to hope for a chance at love and a new beginning.

     As the sole survivor of a buggy accident that left her orphaned at age four, Linda Zook was reluctantly raised by her Uncle Reuben.  She longs to be worthy of someone, but the lasting trauma of her injuries and embittered upbringing have destroyed her self-worth.  When Hannah Peterson asks her to work at the Heart of Paradise Bed & Breakfast, she's finally able to realize some confidence.

     Aaron Ebersol left the Amish community seventeen years ago when he could no longer bear the restrictions or the constant tension with his father.  Despite years of unanswered letters to his parents and the roots he's put down in Missouri, Aaron rushes back to the Amish community of Paradise, Pennsylvania, after receiving word of his mother's stroke.  Hesitant to get too close to the family he was once a part of, he decided to stay at the Heart of Paradise Bed & Breakfast.  Talking with Linda allows him to explore his feelings about his family and his position in the Amish community.

     As Linda and Aaron open up to each other, their feelings for one another turn into more than friendship, and Aaron must make a decision about his future as an Amish man.

     Can Linda and Aaron forgive the family members who have deceived and forsaken them?  And will Aaron be able to convince Linda that she is worthy of his love?

REVIEW:  This book is about forgiveness and loving those who have hurt you.  It is a wonderful picture of Christ welcoming us home after we've made mistakes and asked for forgiveness.  Aaron made LOTS to mistakes as a teenager and hurt his family and community.  But, when he returned to his family, most everyone had forgiven him, even those in the community he had wronged accepted him back.  Linda has been hurt by family whose dreams were shattered so they took their hurt out on her.  As she forgives them, the lives of both Linda and those she has forgiven change for the better.

     Even though this is the fourth book in this series, I was not lost at all, even though I've only read one other.  The books are self-contained and, when something from another book is mentioned, it is explained briefly.  This is a wonderful book that I thoroughly enjoyed reading.

This book was provided by BookLook Bloggers and Zondervan for review without compensation.

Amy Clipston is the author of A Gift of Grace and four additional novels in the bestselling Kauffman Amish Bakery series.  She lives in North Carolina with her husband, two sons, and four spoiled-rotten cats.

Wilderness Rising Book Review

A Church Builder Novel

SUMMARY: It began as a search for the truth about her best friend’s death. Now Bethany Barclay is caught in the ultimate struggle to keep faith alive.
     The Wilderness, an ancient cabal bent on destroying Christianity, has murdered Bethany’s best friend, framed her for acts of terrorism, and captured the brilliant teen hacker she vowed to protect. To ransom the girl, Bethany must traverse England and Europe to find the Pilate Stone—a mysterious first-century artifact that might not even exist.
     She’s not the only one who wants the stone. The Garden, a powerful group of intellectuals sworn to save the Church and help Bethany, is willing to betray her to achieve their higher goals. And a mysterious third faction lurks in the shadows, waiting for her to stumble.
     Alone and on the run in this international landscape of double and triple agents, Bethany’s quest becomes an ever more complex and dangerous contest against players who don’t play fair.
     In this riveting sequel to The Church Builder, many of A. L. Shield’s cunning characters are ruthlessly devoted to preserving a world where faith is possible. Others aim to brutally, and finally, undermine belief.
     Including Bethany’s.

REVIEW:  My daughter and I have been anxiously waiting for this book since we finished the first one.  Now, you DEFINITELY need to read the first book, The Church Builder, before reading this one or you will not be able to follow along.  Even though I had read it, it had been a while so I had trouble trying to remember what happened previously, how it was relevant to this story and who all was involved how.  After a few chapters, everything started falling back into place.
    The author does an excellent job keeping you guessing and sitting on the edge of your seat, quickly turning the pages to see what happens next.  This book is like a classic spy/whodunit-type novel, with all the twists, turns and not knowing who to trust. Quite a few questions from the previous publication were answered and things started falling into place.  I thoroughly enjoyed it.  Bethany is one character I won't easily forget.

This book was provided by Zondervan and Booklook Bloggers for review without compensation.

A.L. Shields  is a pseudonym for Stephen L. Carter, William Nelson Cromwell Professor of Law at Yale, where he has taught for thirty years. He is also the author of seven acclaimed works of nonfiction and five best-selling novels. His first novel, The Emperor of Ocean Park (2002), spent eleven weeks on the New York Times best seller list.

Palace of Darkness Book Review

A Novel of Petra

SUMMARY:  In an ancient city carved from stone, one desperate young woman searches for peace - in the calm before the Romans attack.

     In AD 106, a single mother can be certain of one thing - destitution.  So Cassia and her six-year-old son flee to Petra, seeking refuge in the loving arms of family. 

     But the great stone city is not what Cassia imagined.  And family cannot be trusted.  When a secret reveals her son's true bloodline, the boy becomes the target of a royal conspiracy.  He's snatched from Cassia's grasp.

     In her darkest hours, Cassia finds herself surrounded by followers of the Way, a subversive new religious group whose disciples are frequently sentenced to arenas with starved lions and blood-soaked sand.  Why would they seek out more danger by helping her?  And what kind of religion gives freely and asks for nothing in return? 

     Roman soldiers soon surround Petra, immersing the city in panic and further endangering Cassia's son.  She realizes he cannot be saved by human efforts alone.  Her only hope lies with the followers of the Way . . .  and her willingness to trust their One True God.

REVIEW:  Tracy L. Higley has written a wonderful book.  I like how the events of the book were spread out over a period of weeks, instead of just days.  Cassia is a women to be admired.  She rose above her circumstances and doesn't give up, even when circumstances look impossible.  I like how the author worked Paul's letter to the Romans into the storyline.  It just added a little something extra since it is just about fifty years earlier.  I also loved how members of the Way reached out to Cassia in her time of need and was willing to step out of their comfort zone (and risk their lives) to help her get Alexander back.  The author also adds a little Frank Peretti-esque feature of showing how demonic spirits are involved in Queen Hagiru's life and some heavenly visions seen by Cassia. Check out this great  book.  I think you will enjoy it.

     

This book was provided by BookLook Bloggers and Thomas Nelson Publishers for review without compensation.

 

Tracy L. Higley is the acclaimed author of such beloved historical novels as Garden of Madness and The Queen's Handmaid.  She has traveled to Greece, Turkey, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, and Italy, researching her novels and falling into adventures.  She writes novels that transport readers to ancient times and places.  See her travel journals and more at TracyHigley.com.  Facebook: tracyhigley.  Twitter: @TLHigley.

Veil of Secrets Book Review

SUMMARY:  Can a woman face - and forgive - her own painful past before her house of cards crumbles . . .  and before her own daughter makes the same mistakes?
     Melanie and Will Connors are the perfect power couple.  Will is the chief campaign strategist for a rising presidential candidate.  Melanie is a prominent advocate for protecting children in an over-sexualized culture.  Their devotion to one another is admired, even envied.

     But their marriage isn't what it appears to be.

     Will maintains an apartment n Washington, DC, and over the years his visits home have grown fewer and farther between.  The long-distance marriage has enabled Melanie to avoid intimacy - and has only increased her shame about her secretive past.  But then Will issues an ultimatum: We work on the marriage . . . or we work on the divorce.

The Connors commit to marriage counseling in the most brutal of environments - snowy New Hampshire, a tiny state that is first in the nation for presidential primaries and a prize to be won at any cost . . . and the price of victory keeps rising.

As Melanie sifts through the debris of her past, she obsesses over the fear that she hasn't done enough to protect her teenage daughter.  When Melanie sees her facing some of the same temptations, she knows she must intervene . . . but how can a woman with so many veiled secrets guide a daughter honestly?

While the country struggles with threats to its integrity and security, Melanie can no longer ignore the dangers looming in her own world.  She can never undo the mistakes of her youth, but perhaps she can still save her marriage and family - if she can surrender her guilt and learn to open herself to her husband once again.

REVIEW:  This book is a follow-up to To Know You.  While it stands well on its own, it helps to have read the first book to understand Melanie's relationship to Destiny and Dillon and some of the background of these characters.  I loved how Will was determined to fight for his marriage to Melanie, to weather through the tough counseling sessions and work through the problems they were having.  I love how Melanie worked on her marriage and stuck with the individual counseling sessions to help her figure out how her past was influencing her relationship with her husband and daughter, Sophie.  It is refreshing to read about a couple who faces the difficulties, who weather the storms that could tear them apart, and come out stronger on the other side.  Without giving away too much information, it was difficult to read about the situation Melanie and her daughter both found themselves in.  I was glad to see the counselor recognize the source of most of Melanie's problem regarding this incident, help Melanie see the potential danger her daughter was in and give her the tools to help Sophie.
     The book ended without tying up all the loose ends, I guess to make way for a few more books.  I don't want to say anything about the way it ended, afraid I will give something away but I will say this:  Melanie and Will's relationship is stronger and better than ever, still a work in progress but aren't all relationships?

This book was provided by BookLook Bloggers and Thomas Nelson Publishers for review without compensation.

Shannon Ethridge is a best-selling author, international speaker, and certified life coach with a master's degree in counsseling/human relations from Liberty University.  She has spoken to college students and adults since 1989 and is the author of twenty books, including the million-copy best-selling Every Woman's Battle series.  She is a frequent guest on TV and radio programs and host the Sexy Marriage Radio Show.  She also mentors aspiring writers and speakers through her online BLAST Program (Building Leaders, Authors, Speakers & Teachers).

Kathy Mackel is the acclaimed author of Can of Worms and other novels for middle readers from Putnam, HarperCollins, and Dial.  Her latest book, Boost, tackles the thorny issue of steroids and girls' sports.  Writing as Kathryn Mackel, she is the author of the YA fantasy series the Birthright Books and of supernatural thrillers including the Christy finalist The Hidden.  She was the credited screenwriter for Disney's Can of Worms and for Hangman's Curse, and has worked for Disney, Fox, and Showtime.

A Mother's Secret Book Review

Hearts of the Lancaster Grand Hotel

Book Two

SUMMARY:  An unwed Amish woman years for real love and a family.  The only thing in her way is the shame she's been carrying for half of her life.

     Thirty-one-year-old Carolyn Lapp has never been married - but she's been a mother for fifteen years.  In a community with strict standards and a long memory, Carolyn knows she might never find a man who will have her and her son, Benjamin.

     Carolyn's family tries to marry her off to a widower with a daughter who needs a mother.  A marriage of convenience doesn't sound so bad, yet despite her loneliness, Carolyn knows what she really wants: a traditional Amish family and a marriage for love.

     When Benjamin gets into trouble at an auction, he finds himself beholden to a handsome horse breeder named Joshua Glick.  Joshua and Carolyn feel an instant attraction, and soon a romance is budding between them.  The trouble is Joshua believes Benjamin is Carolyn's nephew, not her son.

     After years of shame and loneliness, Carolyn suddenly has two men vying for her attention.  Can either man give her the family - and the unconditional love - she longs for?  Or will her past once again sabotage the future she wants?

REVIEW:  This storyline - an Amish woman who had a child out of wedlock - was one that caught my eye.  I love how strong Carolyn was.  She stands up for herself and he son, even when it isn't easy.  Though most of the community has forgiven Carolyn for her indiscretion, her brother Amos hasn't.  He constantly reminds Carolyn of it, and never passes up an opportunity to hold it over her head and judge her.   I like how she honors his position as the leader of the family but doesn't let his constant barrage keep her down.  She keeps the welfare of her son foremost in her mind, hoping that the time spent with Joshua repaying the debt he incurred will put and keep Benjamin on the right path.

     While reading this novel, I was reminded that we should not judge others by their past sins.  Once they confess their sins to the Lord, as Carolyn did, it is not our place to judge them any more.  We are made new creatures in Christ.  Joshua's mother, Barbara, and Amos both tried to remind everyone of Carolyn's past but were shown that once it is forgiven, we should also forget.

This book was provided by Booklook Bloggers and Zondervan for review without compensation.

Amy Clipston is the author of A Gift of Grace and four additional novels in the best-selling Kauffman Amish Bakery series.  She lives in North Carolina with her husband, two sons, and four spoiled-rotten cats.

Take This Cup Book Review

Jerusalem Chronicles

Book Two

SUMMARY:  Woven into the fabric of prophecy, a young boy named Nehemiah must choose to embrace his destiny as cupbearer to the King of Kings.

     When Nehemiah, the child of Jewish exiles, begins hearing whispers and experiencing portentous visions, it quickly becomes clear to his father and his rabbi that the young cupbearer is meant for a higher purpose . . . but what?  Certain that the Messiah is alive at that very moment, the family waits for the boy's destiny to be revealed.

     From the ancient site of the Garden of Eden, Nehemiah undertakes a perilous journey.  The caravan route is full of danger, hardship, and mystery - all linked to what Nehemiah has in his keeping.  

     In due time, his path becomes clear.  It leads to Jerusalem, to a wealthy pharisee named Joseph of Arimathea . . . and to Jesus of Nazareth.

     In Take This Cup, the second installment of the Jerusalem Chronicles, Bodie and Brock Thoene envision more of Scripture's most enigmatic moments and expand their award-winning canon of historical fiction with unprecedented power and depth.

REVIEW:  This book is different than most I've read.  It mixes bible history and stories with fantasy, stretching my ideas of what could be true and what is purely fiction.  The story starts out in the land where the Garden of Eden was said to exist, with the food and animals raised there direct descendents of the animals and plants that were there before the Fall of Adam and Eve.  The families that live there are descendents of Jewish families who were exiled there and chose to stay when Jews returned to Jerusalem.  Like the first book, liberties are taken with the characters of the bible and the stories of the New Testament: Nehemiah's rabbi being one of the Magi, Joseph of Arimathea having close ties to Jesus, and Lazarus being included with Jesus in the pharisee's "death threats," just to name a few.  While I don't necessarily agree with some of the connections, I do like how everything ties together.  I even saw the potential for characters in future stories in this series.  It would be interesting to see if some of my thinkings actually play out.

     This is an interesting book.

This book was provided by Zondervan and Booklook Bloggers for review without compensation.

Bodie and Brock Thoene are the bestselling authors of over sixty-five works of historical fiction. Their timeless classics have sold more than thirty-five million copies and won eight ECPA Gold Medallion Awards.  The Thoenes have four grown children and eight grandchildren.  They divide their time between Hawaii, London, and Nevada.