Review & Giveaway - Harvest of Blessings by Charlotte Hubbard

The tranquil little town of Willow Ridge is facing a startling challenge. Wealthy Nora Glick Landwehr is determined to make it her home again--and put her past to rest. Cast out by her own family, Nora can't reconcile with Old Amish ways or her strict father. But she'll do anything to help her community embrace the future . . . and make amends to the daughter she had to give up. So, she certainly has no time for her reckless new neighbor Luke Hooley. They disagree about almost everything. And how can she trust him if he always seems to believe the worst about her? Somehow, though, his unexpected support and passionate heart are helping her find her own way in faith. And Nora will discover that even in the face of insidious lies and unyielding judgment, God creates unexpected chances for forgiveness--and love.

I'm so glad I got to read Harvest of Blessings by Charlotte Hubbard, book 5 in the Seasons of the Heart series. True to form, it was fantastic. Just like the rest of the series.

Unlike the other books, though, this centered, NOT on a member of the Lantz family, but on Preacher Gabe Glick's estranged daughter, Nora Landwehr. When Preacher Gabe found out his daughter was pregnant he demanded she name the father, so that he could be held responsible. She refused to name him and was sent away to live with her aunt. After giving birth her baby girl wound up in Willow Ridge, but she did not.

For 16 years Nora lived an English life and even married an English man. She's moving back to Willow Ridge because she's decided the flashy, expensive English life she'd been living was not for her. She desired a more Plain existence but also to reconnect with her family... and the little girl she dropped on her brother's doorstep 16 years before.

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Leave it to Hiram to be at the center of the drama in this story. Nora actually buys his home on Bishops Ridge but Hiram believes that entitles him to WAY more freedom than is actually allowed of a business transaction. He's no longer just committing sins unbecoming of a Bishop in the Amish culture, but things that are bordering on abusive and illegal in all sorts of ways. Yuck.

Nora is a different kind of character. In many ways, more experienced in the world than her Amish counterparts, having lived English for half of her life. I like that she goes home though. That she decides the English life isn't what she wants. And I like how persistent she is trying to patch things up with her family. She's a strong woman who, even though EVERY OBSTACLE POSSIBLE was placed in front of her, never gave up hope. Not truly anyway.

Millie was just like her mother. Kind-hearted and strong in ways she couldn't have understood for someone so young. She sacrificed time she could have spent running around having fun, deciding whether or not the Amish church was something she wanted to be a part of, and dedicated herself to taking care of her grandparents.

Luke Hooley... definitely not his brother, Ben, but not bad in his own respect. Still not a member of the church in his 30s, and really not in the mood to settle down with anyone. Until Nora comes along. Then it's like someone has hit him with a sack of potatoes and Nora is all he can think about. And good thing, too. It seems that Luke has a habit of showing up in places at just the right time, manages to rescue Nora from nasty Hiram several times. Messes up once... but sometimes that is what happens when you fall for someone and get jealous.

I wasn't too fond of Ira Hooley at first. He seemed too dismissive for Millie. And when he saw Nora it was like Millie didn't exist to him at all. Forget that he was twice her age. He redeemed himself though. Which was surprising. And he was extremely good to Millie when her world was turned upside down. Or, as they say in the book, her applecart was overturned.

The story had some shocking twists and revelations. And like I said, Hiram pushed the envelope QUITE a bit. But I loved how Willow Ridge, for the most part, rallied around Nora to help her. Even some of the decisions she made weren't exactly in line with the Amish way of thinking. Makes me wish the town were a place I could actually go visit. And it was great to see all the familiar names from Cedar Creek (One Big Happy Family & Home at Cedar Creek) pop up quite a few times. I miss them.

The book was lovely. Ms. Hubbard's books are never without their share of drama and excitement and are always uplifting. They have a way of making you feel better just for the fact that you've read them. They become stories that you hate to close the book on because you've known the characters so long they almost feel like friends. And you don't want to say goodbye. So, as always, Harvest of Blessings is a highly recommended read. Whether you've read the other books in the series or not. I suggest that you DO pick up the other books, but it's not necessary. Just makes things that much more enjoyable.

Drawing upon her experiences in Jamesport, the largest Old Order Amish community west of the Mississippi, longtime Missourian Charlotte Hubbard (a.k.a. Naomi King) writes of simpler times and a faith-based lifestyle in her new Seasons of the Heart series. Like her heroine, Miriam Lantz, Charlotte considers it her personal mission to feed people—to share hearth and home. Faith and family, farming and food preservation are hallmarks of her lifestyle, and the foundation of her earlier Angels of Mercy series. She’s a deacon, a dedicated church musician and choir member, and when she’s not writing, she loves to try new recipes, crochet, and sew. Charlotte now lives in Minnesota with her husband and their border collie.

Excerpt from Harvest of Blessings by Charlotte Hubbard

When Nora swung open the restroom door, she nearly ran into Hiram Knepp before she saw him in the shadowy hallway. He was leaning against the wall as though he’d been waiting for her to come out. He shifted quickly, so he was blocking her exit.

“Looking good,” he murmured with a devilish smile.

Nora somehow contained her irritation. “Hiram,” she said with a curt nod. “If you’ll excuse me—”

“Oh, there’s no excuse for you today,” he quipped as his gaze roamed the length of her. “You and Hooley are as mismatched as a thoroughbred racehorse yoked to an ox. What do you see in him, anyway?”

Nora didn’t try to break past him, because that would bring her into contact with the arm he’d planted against the wall, right at her chest level. “You’re entitled to your opinion,” she muttered, “but—”

“But I’m really here with a proposition,” Hiram interrupted. “A business proposition, that is.”

As he moved closer, Nora had nowhere to go but backwards, into the deeper shadow. As her back found the wall she instinctively bent one leg up, so her knee was in a strategic position. She remained silent, making Hiram talk while she figured out how to get out of this trap he’d set.

“Several friends have told me how excited they are to be consigning items to your new store,” Hiram continued. “What a shame it would be if your business went belly-up. Most small businesses—especially those owned by women—fail within the first year because they’re undercapitalized. I’d like to help prevent that.”

I just bet you would, Nora thought, but she kept her mouth shut. Anything she said would give him more ammunition.

Hiram smirked. “Miriam Hooley and Andy Leitner can attest to that,” he stated. “They couldn’t keep their doors open if they didn’t have a benefactor who owned their buildings and relieved them of all that overhead. So what if I bought my barn back?” he asked. “What if I became your silent partner, Nora?”

“No way,” she muttered. “I don’t care to pay the sort of interest you’d expect.”

Hiram’s chuckle echoed in the small hallway. “Nora, my dear,” he protested in a silky voice. “You misunderstand my—”

The door to the mens’ room swung open so hard it hit the wall.

“The lady said no, Knepp,” Luke snapped as he stepped into the hallway. “I’ve got zero tolerance for snakes, so you’d better slither back into your hole. Got it?”

Hiram backed away from her. His jet black goatee rippled with his grin as he pointed first to Nora and then to Luke. “There’s just no accounting for taste, I guess,” he said with a shake of his head. “If you care to reconsider my offer, Nora, my door’s always open.”

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Review - Huckleberry Spring by Jennifer Beckstrand

Nothing gives Anna and Felty Helmuth greater satisfaction than seeing their grandchildren happily married--except for planning their next matchmaking venture. And as springtime comes to Huckleberry Hill, Wisconsin, the air is filled with promise. . .

Ever since the Helmuths' grandson, Ben, abruptly broke his engagement and moved to Florida, Emma Nelson has kept busy tending her vegetable garden and raising award-winning pumpkins. She can put her heartache aside to help Ben's Mammi with her own pumpkin patch. At least until Ben shows up to lend support to his ailing Dawdi. . .

Gardening side by side with pretty, nurturing Emma is a sweet kind of torture for Ben. She could have her pick of suitors who can offer what he can't, and he cares too much to burden her with his secret. Leaving once more is the only option. Yet Emma's courage is daring him to accept the grace that flourishes here, and the love that has been calling him back to Huckleberry Hill. . .

I've been reading a lot of Amish fiction lately. And unfortunately due to an email mishap I was not able to get this review up when I normally would... BUT we're here now. And Huckleberry Spring (book 4 in the Matchmakers of Huckleberry Hill) by Jennifer Beckstrand was definitely worth the scramble and stuffing my ears in headphones with movie soundtracks blasting and blocking out any other noise so that I could read straight through until I'd finished it.

Emma Nelson and Ben Helmuth were engaged and in love. The ideal couple. The type that made everyone else wish they could be them. Incredibly in love. And then it was over. Engagement was broken and Ben was gone. To Florida of all places. Leaving Emma in Wisconsin to mourn and try and put on a brave face so no one scolded her for crying or tried to make her feel better either.

Anna Helmuth was not easily dissuaded and was bound and determined to put the two lovebirds back together again. She convinced her husband, Felty, that he needed some fixing. Needed to get Lasik surgery for his eyeballs, his deviated septum repaired, plantar warts removed.... all in the name of love. Because if Felty was laid up recovering then Ben would HAVE to come back to help out with the chores until he was up on his feet again. And, it just so happens that at that same time Anna decided she needed a giant pumpkin and that Emma was the only person in the world that could help her to grow one.

Ben and Emma were thrown together, both wanting to help his grandparents, but neither being able to  handle being around each other. Ben wanted Emma to move on. And Emma thought she'd forced Ben away. That she'd disgusted him so much that he had no choice but to leave. Both of them couldn't have been more wrong. Even if it took them forever to figure it out.

I loved this book. I loved Anna and Felty's relationship. Felty didn't think Anna should meddle in Ben and Emma's lack-of-relationship but loved her enough to do whatever she wanted him to do to keep their grandson in Wisconsin. Even if it meant a root canal and a new false tooth.

Emma is the MOST accident prone person I have ever "met" in my life. And I thought I was clumsy. She seems to attract problems like a super magnet. It kind of made her endearing though. And it only seemed to REALLY embarrass her when it came to what she thought Ben thought of her, and when people made fun of her for it. Which they rarely did on account of how much everyone loved her. She was kind and helpful and never sought out sympathy for all the trouble she found herself in. Even when the man she loved more than anything left and her best friend deserted her. She was so much stronger than she gave herself credit for.

Mahlon was her twin, and a wonderful big brother. Even if he was a little cranky. He was Emma's shoulder when she needed one and was hellbent on defending her even when she didn't want him to. The relationship between the two of them was wonderful and comical. And it made me happy when Emma's friend Lizzy came back and Mahlon started paying her more attention. Even if in the beginning it was mostly teasing.

Oh my gosh this book made my heart ache. Watching Ben and Emma from the outside, knowing the way they felt about each other but Ben being too stubborn it seemed to do anything about it. And Emma thinking it was all her fault that he'd left to begin with. I just wanted to take them both and shake some sense in to them. Make them see how ridiculous the whole thing was. I could completely imagine the pain Emma was feeling every time she thought of Ben. The soul sucking emptiness that she must have felt when he left.

Three quarters of the way through the book I got a kick in the gut though. One I wouldn't have been able to see coming from a mile away. And one that kind of hits a little close to home. Obviously I won't give it away... you'll have to read it to find out what it is.

That being said, this book is definitely highly recommended. The characters are wonderful (although Emma's mother and Adam were not high on my list of likes). I was rooting for Emma the entire time and just when I thought I knew what was going to happen the rug got pulled out from under me. There's enough going on to keep you interested and the plot twist will most certainly surprise you. And I don't do this often with books... I may have teared up a bit toward the end. But in a good way. Do yourself a favor and read Huckleberry Spring!

Author Bio:

I grew up with a steady diet of William Shakespeare and Jane Austen. After all that literary immersion, I naturally decided to get a degree in mathematics, which came in handy when one of my six children needed help with homework. After my fourth daughter was born, I started writing. By juggling diaper changes, soccer games, music lessons, laundry, and two more children, I finished my first manuscript—a Western—in just under fourteen years.

I have always been fascinated by the Amish way of life and now write Inspirational Amish Romance. I am drawn to the strong faith of the Plain people and admire the importance they put on enduring family ties. I have visited and studied Amish communities in Pennsylvania and Wisconsin where I met with a bishop and a minister as well as several Amish mamms, dats, and children. It has always impressed me at what salt-of-the-earth people they are. My interactions with these kind people have been some of the most rewarding experiences of my life. I have a dear Amish friend with whom I correspond in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. She helps me keep my facts straight and gives me inspiration for my stories.

My goal is to write uplifting, inspiring stories with happy endings and hopeful messages. If my books make readers want to give themselves a big hug or jump up and down for joy, I’ve done my job. I am a member of Romance Writers of America and American Christian Fiction Writers and am represented by Mary Sue Seymour of The Seymour Agency.

There are three Amish romances in the Forever After in Apple Lake Series (Summerside/Guideposts). Kate’s Song, Rebecca’s Rose, and Miriam’s Quilt are all now available.

I have six Amish Roamish buggymances in the works with Kensington Books. The first and second books, Huckleberry Hill and Huckleberry Summer, are now available in stores and online. The Matchmakers of Huckleberry Hill is set in northern Wisconsin Amish country.

The series, The Matchmakers of Huckleberry Hill, is about an elderly Amish couple who try to find suitable mates for their grandchildren. What could be more fun than throwing two young people together to see if sparks ignite? No one would ever suspect two octogenarian Amish folks of mischief.

Romantic Times gave Huckleberry Hill 4 1/2 stars and chose Huckleberry Summer as a TOP PICK.

I have four daughters, two sons, three sons-in-law, and two adorable grandsons. I live in the foothills of the Wasatch Front with my husband and one son still left at home.

Author Links:

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

Review - Summer of Secrets by Charlotte Hubbard

Summer has come to Willow Ridge, but Rachel Lantz is looking forward to a whole new season in her life--marriage to strapping carpenter Micah Brenneman, her childhood sweetheart. When a strange Englischer arrives in the café claiming to be the long-lost sister of Rachel and her twin Rhoda, Rachel feels the sturdy foundation of her future crumbling--including Micah's steadfast love. As the days heat up and tempers flare, Rachel and Micah will learn that even when God's plan isn't clear, it will always lead them back to each other. . .

I finally got to the FIRST book in the Seasons of the Heart series, Summer of Secrets by Charlotte Hubbard! And like the rest, it didn't disappoint.

It was interesting to read the beginnings of the Willow Ridge crew. To see that at one point Hiram Knepp was at least SOMEWHAT respected in the community. Even if not for long. And to see the first meetings between Tiffany (Rebecca) and the family she never knew she had. She definitely was a surprise (and a shock) when she walked in to the cafe with her spikey "witchy" hair and tattoos with her goth style clothing. But Miriam knew her and loved her anyway.

Tiffany was the little girl that Miriam lost when she was only 3 years old. Washed away during a flood and thought dead for 18 years. After her "adoptive" mother dies, Tiffany finds out she's not really Tiffany and storms out in search of answers she doesn't feel her grieving father will truthfully provide. The truth, however, is not what she expected and seems to be more in conflict with what's going on once she's met her Mamm and her sisters than she ever was.

To Rachel's dismay and complete irritation, her honey Micah seems smitten with "Tiffany" and can't stop gawking at her. But, things aren't always what they seem. Yes, Micah was intrigued by the "witchy" girl, but realized that underneath all the hair dye, dark shocking make up, tattoos, and strange clothing, there was someone who was hurting and trying to figure things out. Someone who needed to know her Mamm and sisters, even if she didn't think she wanted to.

And it's a good thing he persisted. If he hadn't, Rebecca never would have come back to the bakery the day she did. Miriam could have lost her shop. And Micah and Rachel may have been forced to transform their home in to a B&B not too long after marriage in order to bring income in to the family. Not that a B&B is a bad thing... but when you're newly married who wants to share a home with strange people you have to wait on and take care of? Not that they would have minded probably... but you know they wanted to be able to enjoy that time together alone...

Loved the book. And meeting Rebecca/Tiffany for the "first" time. Even after reading all the other books and liking her a lot for her character and her part in the stories that she was in, this first meeting rubbed me the wrong way. I think I judged her much like most of the residents of Willow Ridge.

Rachel was prone to tantrums in this one. Something else I wasn't used to seeing in subsequent books. But... I suppose if I was not quite engaged - at least not publicly - to MY childhood sweetheart, I'd probably have been a bit worried TOO if he kept blowing me off to go follow around someone else. Yes, he had his reasons, and they turned out to be honorable... but what young girl is able to see the forest for the trees in a situation like this? She came around, and that was the important part.

I LOVED this first look at Miriam (not MY first look, but this first look in the series). She's strong and steadfast and SASSY. And she's so incredibly smart. Not one to just roll over and let things happen to her that aren't fair simply because someone says she should. She fought for the right to be independent and to run her business, a business that employed and supplied food and work for MANY Willow Ridge residents. She fought to be able to take care of herself and her children without having to ask anyone for handouts, which I'm sure would have been given if they had been needed because the people in the town loved her.

Micah was a little sneaky for my taste in this book. At the beginning at least. I was kind of worried that he'd end up breaking Rachel's heart (even though I knew that wasn't going to be the case). Or put himself in a bad situation as far as Rebecca was concerned. The thing I dislike the most in life is a liar. And unfortunately, he lied a bit. Made promises that he knew he couldn't keep. BUT... in the end, like I said, intentions were honorable and ultimately resulted in the happy ending the story had. Were it not for his mild deception things would not have been so great for the Lantzes. So... I'll forgive him for telling a few fibs.

If you haven't read any of  the other books in the series, start with this one. Or don't. It doesn't really matter what order you read them in. They're just as exciting and fun to read OUT of order as they are IN order. I just highly suggest you read them! They're not without their drama and frustration (Hello, Hiram!) but they're lighthearted and friendly and after a while, familiar. Like friends. You won't be sorry!

Review - Autumn Winds by Charlotte Hubbard

Winds of change are blowing through Willow Ridge, and they're bringing a stranger to the Sweet Seasons Cafe. At first, widowed Miriam Lantz has misgivings about Ben Hooley, a handsome but rootless traveling blacksmith. But as she gets to know the kind-hearted newcomer, she wonders if his arrival was providential.

Perhaps she could find love again - if only there weren't so many obstacles in the way. With Bishop Knepp relentlessly pursuing her hand in marriage and the fate of her beloved cafe at stake, Miriam must listen to God and her heart to find the happiness she longs for, and the love she deserves.

I actually meant to read Autumn Winds by Charlotte Hubbard after I read Summer of Secrets, which is what I'm currently reading, but forgot what I was doing and just picked this up and couldn't really put it back down.

Ben Hooley literally blows in to town with a storm and in to Miriam's bakery. There is no doubt about it, the chemistry between the two is immediate and electric. If I may be so bold as to assume, it was love at first sight. Even though neither Ben nor Miriam will actually say as much. Unfortunately, Hiram Knepp is hell bent on squashing any chance Ben has with Miriam by trying to force her to marry himself. Something Miriam is not too keen on doing. At. All.

This book was definitely not without its drama. Hiram trying to discredit Ben with Miriam and the entire town of Willow Ridge by spying and snooping and twisting his past. Not surprisingly, it doesn't work. The entire town seems to be smitten with Ben and can't wait for him to settle down and set up shop for good. Ben decides that's a fantastic idea, to the delight of miss Miriam, and calls on his brothers and his aunts to join him. We find out that Hiram has been keeping secrets. The kind of which end up getting him shunned. Good old Hiram. Can always count on him for some excitement.

Like I said before, I've been reading this series somewhat backwards. So I already knew that he was shunned, but it was kind of suspenseful anyway, in that even though I was well aware, the details and the story were presented in such a way that I felt like it was completely new to me. If that makes sense. Kind of like when you watch a movie you've seen a million times and you know how it ends but you find yourself on the edge of your seat anyway.

Ben Hooley was the epitome of a dashing and protective gentleman. And as always, I love Miriam. She's such a strong and independent woman and I love that Ben respects that and doesn't expect for her to change. After all, she wouldn't really be the woman he loved if she caved and gave up her business and pledged to stay at home and wait on him hand and foot the way Hiram would expect her to do.

I love the way the whole town rallied around Ben and his brothers, making it possible for them to relocate and set their businesses up. Always so friendly and helpful. And the way everyone supported Miriam and looked out for her as far as Hiram was concerned. It was fun, also, to see the introductions of Ben's aunts Jerusalem and Nazareth. I'd read about them in several other books but it was great to see how they kind of charged in and took control of Hiram's household and his children and got them all sorted out. Exposing Hiram and his shenanigans in the process.

Autumn Winds is a wonderful story. Even if you haven't read any of the other books in the series. Just like the others it works as a stand-alone or as a read-out-of-order. I'm looking forward to finishing up Summer of Secrets and then diving in to Harvest of Blessings which I have the pleasure of doing an advanced review of. I can't wait! If you've ever wanted to read Amish Fiction I highly suggest starting with the Seasons of the Heart series by Charlotte Hubbard or the Home at Cedar Creek series and One Big Happy Family series by Naomi King (aka, Charlotte Hubbard!). Fantastic stories!

Review - Abby Finds Her Calling by Naomi King

The Lambright family's eldest daughter, Abby, runs her own sewing shop. There, she mends the town's clothes and their torn relationships. But the town maidel has sworn off any suitors of her own because of her unrequited love for James Graber, who is about to marry her younger sister, Zanna...

On the wedding day, Zanna is nowhere to be found, breaking James' heart. Zanna has brought shame to her family, but there's more in store for them when they discover how far she has fallen. Long-buried secrets come to light, and they test the bonds of the Cedar Creek community. Abby is at the center of it all, trying to maintain everyone's happiness. But will she ever find her own?

I absolutely love Naomi King's books. Abby Finds her Calling was no exception. Even though I read the books completely out of order, they were not hard to follow and could even be read as stand alones should you find yourself not in the mood to continue the series.

Abby's little sister Zanna is all set to marry the man of Abby's dreams, James Graber, when she up and disappears on their wedding day. Everyone is panicking and crying and in a fit because she's absolutely nowhere to be found and no one knows if she plans on coming back. James is heartbroken.

When she finally does turn up we find out that she is... in the family way... to put it nicely. Everyone is upset at James until they find out that James is not to blame for the situation that Zanna has found herself in. But she's not spilling the beans immediately. Even though it's a huge slight to James, he offers to raise the baby as his own and marry Zanna anyway. Tempting, but Zanna knows that even though James is an amazing person, she'd be unhappy marrying him because she doesn't love him.

Abby spends the 6 weeks that Zanna has been shunned helping her sister figure out her own place in their little community and finding ways for her to make money to care for herself and the baby she normally would not have been able to raise. While Zanna hopes that the father of her unborn child comes around and becomes the man she's always wished he would be.

I always learn so much reading these books. And I always have such a good time too. I love Abby and James and Sam and Emma and Zanna... they're all wonderful. So kind and loving and completely supportive of Zanna, even though James is the one who was jilted.

These stories are also fantastic reads because, while they definitely show all the love and compassion and kinship, they also make sure that you know that no one is perfect. Even the Amish. And everyone has secrets. And problems they can't handle on their own. They show that it's how you deal with a situation that makes or breaks you.

Abby is always so steadfast. Even though it would have broken her heart to see her little sister marry the man she's always loved, she wouldn't let that come between, what she thought was true love. She puts her heart and soul in to trying to repair relationships that don't seem repairable and is always supportive of the people that she loves. Even if it's not the kind of support they think they want.

James... now, I know what happens with James because, like I said, I read the books out of order. But it didn't stop me from being mad at him for being TOTALLY CLUELESS when it came to Abby's feelings for him. BUT it also made me love him as a character all the more the way he stood by Zanna even when she didn't feel like she deserved it. Proved he was DEFINITELY the kind of man that Abby deserved in the end.

The end of this book meshes with the beginning-ish of Rosemary Opens Her Heart, so it was great to see how the stories tied together. It's been a while since I read that book so I'd forgotten who's wedding Rosemary and her father-in-law had gone to when she met Abby and the gang. Goes to show you, even though they're separate books and could be read on their own, everyone is connected in some way.

This was the last book in the series for the Cedar Creek gang. And it makes me sad that there won't be anymore. Like saying goodbye to friends you know you won't ever see again. But if you love lighthearted romances or are just looking for a fun uplifting read, I highly recommend this book.

Review & Giveaway - Emma Blooms at Last by Naomi King

Romance is in the air during the fall wedding season in the Amish community of Cedar Creek. But while one loving couple prepares to tie the knot, Amanda and Wyman Brubaker’s large family faces a threat from outside their happy circle...and must learn to pull together.

Recently wed Amanda and Wyman Brubaker are thrilled that their children from previous marriages have blended together to form a strong family. But when the construction of Wyman’s new grain elevator is delayed, making the project more expensive than anticipated, Amanda’s determination to rally the kids into taking on work to improve the family’s finances comes into conflict with Wyman’s sense of responsibility as head of the household....

Meanwhile, as James Graber and Abby Lambright prepare for their long-awaited nuptials, folks gather from far and wide. Amanda’s nephew Jerome has long been smitten with James’s sister Emma and wants to seize this chance to woo her. But Emma’s been burned once and is twice shy of trusting the fun-loving, never-serious Jerome. As Emma and Jerome struggle to understand each other, and find the courage to make a leap of faith, the Brubakers face a bigger challenge than they first anticipated and begin to discover just what it means to fight...the Amish way.

Emma Blooms at Last by Naomi King, book 2 in the One Big Happy Family series, is such a lovely book. And lovely is not a word I generally use. But there's not many better ones to pick from.
I love these novels. Reading about Emma and Abby and Wyman and James and Jerome and Amanda and ALL of the Cedar Creek gang... it always makes me wish I was a part of it.

We get to visit Amanda and Wyman again, a little bit of time after they've been married now. They're settled in and pretty well adjusted to their new lives together. Except... Wyman is having trouble with the contractor he's hired to build his new grain elevator. This new contractor does NOT have the work ethic (or the morals and values) of his predecessors, and it's costing Wyman more than expected to get the job done. The more money Wyman pays, though, the less his family has to make it through the winter.

Love is definitely in the air. Abby and James are getting married and couldn't possibly be more caught up in each other. Marrying James, however, means that Abby has to quit work. And without Abby, Sam is finding the Christmas season a bit hard to handle at the store.

Emma is busy lamenting the loss of the man she thought she was made for (he married Rosemary Yutzy from Rosemary Opens Her Heart). Too busy at first to really be interested in the extremely obvious eyeballs that Jerome keeps making at her. But he is not easily deterred. And soon, Emma can't remember why she tried so hard to ignore him.

As always, I read these books and they make me want to be a better version of myself. I'm not sure how to explain that so it makes sense, so I won't try.

I love how, even though these books could work as stand-alones and it's technically a separate series from Home at Cedar Creek, all the characters are familiar. They're like friends and family come home again after a short time away. It's like the stories suck you in and sit you down in the living room of one of these families with a nice warm, hand quilted blanket and make you comfortable.

They give you a peek in to the Amish community and lifestyle in a way thats light and inviting and the romance isn't overbearing like it is in a lot of novels. Although there were some parts where I wanted to shake Emma and just yell at her to stop being so stubborn.

You really get to see how much everyone cares about everyone else. And how willing they are to change their entire lives around to accommodate and to help. They make it a point to find what someone is good at and then they help them to accomplish all that they can in that particular field or with that particular craft.

As a matter of fact, after reading this book I picked my crochet hook back up and gave crocheting hats another go. I generally stick to loom knitting, but you can only do so much with that. I'm excited about making my hats and scarves and everything again. Because there's so many new ways to do it that I NEVER would have ever tried had it not been for reading this story.

I can not say enough wonderful things about this series and all of the others by Naomi King. PLEASE do yourself a favor and read Emma Blooms at Last. I promise you won't be sorry that you did.


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Drawing upon her experiences in Jamesport, the largest Old Order Amish community west of the Mississippi, longtime Missourian Naomi King (a.k.a. Charlotte Hubbard) writes of simpler times and a faith-based lifestyle in her new Seasons of the Heart series. Like her heroine, Miriam Lantz, Charlotte considers it her personal mission to feed people—to share hearth and home. Faith and family, farming and food preservation are hallmarks of her lifestyle, and the foundation of her earlier Angels of Mercy series. She’s a deacon, a dedicated church musician and choir member, and when she’s not writing, she loves to try new recipes, crochet, and sew. Charlotte now lives in Minnesota with her husband and their border collie.

Publisher: NAL (Penguin Group)
Release Date: November 4, 2014
Genre: Inspirational Romance/Amish Romance
Length: 315 Pages
ISBN: 978-0451417886
ASIN: B00INIJJA8

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Review - Rosemary Opens Her Heart by Naomi King

Another spring reminds the Amish of Cedar Creek, Missouri, that for everything there is a season.

Zanna Lambright is finally marrying Jonny Ropp, and friends and family have come from far and wide to celebrate. Among them is young widow Rosemary Yutzy, mother of toddler Katie, whose husband was tragically killed last fall. With a willing heart Rosemary has taken over care of her in-law’s family and continued to run a baked goods business from home, but privately she still mourns her lost Joe...and is unprepared for the changes that are coming...

Rosemary’s father-in-law wants to merge his lamb-raising business with Matt Lambright’s—a move that will require the Yutzys to relocate from their nearby town to Cedar Creek. Moreover, it will bring Rosemary into constant contact with Matt, who is making no secret of his romantic interest in her. The challenges of contemplating a future unlike any she expected are overwhelming for Rosemary. And although Matt is strong and kind, his courtship is so persistent, she often wants to run the other way. As Rosemary struggles to see beyond her immediate joys and sorrows, will she embrace the outpouring of welcome and support from the people of Cedar Creek...and accept this new chance to open her heart to a more abundant life?

I love Naomi King's novels. Rosemary Opens Her Heart is no exception. I love her portrayal of the Amish communities and culture and the way that she spins her stories together with romance are just fantastic.

Rosemary was a bit frustrating at first. Here is this handsome kind-hearted man who is interested in her and is incredibly kind to her little girl. And here is this town full of kind-spirited Amish folk who are more than happy to welcome her into the fold. Why is she so hesitant to let people love her? Why is she so hesitant to accept that maybe, just maybe, it doesn't matter to everyone that she has a child to take care of so courting her and eventually marrying her would mean that they would accept the responsibility of a child as well?

She was frustrating... at first. But then when you remember that it's been just about a year since her husband died, you forgive her a bit. I can't imagine losing a spouse that way and if I did... I don't expect I'd really be interested in receiving affection from anyone either. I probably wouldn't be interested in moving away from the only home we'd had together and leaving behind everything that reminded me of him either. Not for a long while at least.

But Matt is persistent. And gracious. And he's full of love and has such an amazing heart that eventually he could win over even the most stubborn of women if you ask me. He's a little in your face, but I think it's just because he's young and enthusiastic. Matt knows when to appear patient (even if he's anything but) and to lay off no matter how hard it is. And in the end, persistence pays off.

Abby is the kind of person I would want as a best friend. She's so sure of everything and always seems to have an answer for everything... She's quick to offer advice to anyone who needs it or she can point you in the direction of someone who can help you if she can't do it herself. She's sweet and loyal and just seems to me like an amazing person. Silly James Graber for taking such a long time to get his act together.

Abby is the perfect friend for lonely Rosemary. She reminds Rosemary that there are people who are kind and compassionate. And she reminds her that, while she may be mourning now, there is a time to mourn and then a time to let go and let the light shine again. She goes out of her way to make sure that the Yutzys feel at home in Cedar Creek.

The book was wonderful. The characters, as always, are just lovely. Reading Naomi King's novels always makes me want to start baking pies and cookies and they make me want to figure out how to sew and make clothing. Haha. They also make me wish I knew more about the Amish lifestyle and the people in the Amish communities.

Like I said, I love her novels. Every one of them I've read. The characters become like friends and family and when you read a new book with old characters, it's like coming home. I highly suggest you read them!

Review - Breath of Spring by Charlotte Hubbard

As a bright season brings a fresh start to Willow Ridge, Annie Mae Knepp feels she can never make peace with the past. Her disgraced ex-bishop father is furious she has taken her five siblings to live with her. She's never been truly at home in her faith. . .or believing in herself. And Annie Mae fears no man will want to take on the responsibilities she's gladly shouldered. True, her quiet neighbor Adam Wagler has been steadfast and unshakeable helping her through her trials, but he surely couldn't think of someone so lost as more than a friend. Believing she is unworthy because of her doubts, Annie Mae will find in a moment of surprising revelation that God can work impossible miracles--and that love makes all things new.

Breath of Spring by Charlotte Hubbard is the... 4th book by this author that I've read. Like the others, it's an absolutely delightful story. Absolutely wonderful.

Annie Mae feels out of place. With her father gone and her littlest brothers and sisters with him she's broken hearted. But the people of Willow Ridge have rallied around her and her sister to help give them a home and a way to take care of themselves until they can get things together and out on to their own two feet. A few in particular. And one specifically that she can't quite figure out her feelings for. She isn't sure what to do with herself and her confidence and self esteem have taken a nose dive, she doesn't believe she's worthy of the help she's received from everyone or the affections of a certain man who seems to be falling for her but doesn't really know it yet.

I loved this story. It was sweet and it was lovely and it was definitely the perfect break from all of the gory zombie novels I've been reading. As I said earlier, this is not the first Charlotte Hubbard novel I've read, but there are tons of familiar faces. It's like going home to old friends. When I got the book in the mail I couldn't wait to sit down and start reading.

Annie Mae is unsure of herself and kind of lost. Her dad is gone, her siblings are gone, she's not allowed in the only home she's ever known... She's working at the Sweet Season's bakery so that she can support herself and her younger sister who chose not to go with Hiram to Higher Ground, the Amish Community he decided to develop after he came in to some money after the accident with his boys in Winter of Wishes. She doesn't realize how strong she is, that much is obvious. It makes me sad how unworthy of love she feels and how completely she lacks any self esteem. She's an incredible person.

Adam is a knight in shining armor, even if he doesn't realize it. And even if Annie Mae doesn't realize that she needs one, or wants one for that matter. He's protective and sweet but is down on himself. You KNOW though.... it's like a rule... that once someone decides they're NOT going to fall in love or they DON'T want to marry... that's when they find the one they can't live without. He's very selfless and extremely loving and just an amazing person.

I loved getting to go back to Willow Ridge and see everyone. It's like getting more of their story without necessarily getting more of their story. It was amazing to see how they rallied around Annie Mae and her brothers and sisters to help them and take care of them. They're less of a community and more of this gigantic family who is just so incredible. They (or most of them) would do anything to help those in need and when Hiram left and 2 of his daughters stayed behind that's exactly what they did. I would give anything to have friends like that.

Reading these books always makes me wish I was more like the women I read about. And the way I figure it, if a book can make me feel that way it's a book I should recommend that everyone reads. I finish reading and I want to go clean my house or bake pies and bread. It makes me want to be a better kind of person. I don't know how else to put it.

But you should all read it. Fantastic series, fantastic stories. They're enjoyable and they portray love stories without having to make it all about sex. As a rule, the people in these stories are kind and gentle and just amazing and they're just so refreshing to read about. I recommend these books (and ALL books Charlotte Hubbard/Naomi King writes to everyone). Beautiful stories. And, as always, delicious sounding recipes follow at the end of the book!

Meet The Author:

I’ve called Missouri home for most of my life, and most folks don’t realize that several Old Older Amish and Mennonite communities make their home here, as well. The rolling pastureland, woods, and small towns along county highways make a wonderful setting for Plain populations—and for stories about them, too! While Jamesport, Missouri is the largest Old Order Amish settlement west of the Mississippi River, other communities have also found the affordable farm land ideal for raising crops, livestock, and running the small family-owned businesses that support their families.

Like my heroine, Miriam Lantz, of my Seasons of the Heart series, I love to feed people—to share my hearth and home. I bake bread and goodies and I love to try new recipes. I put up jars and jars of green beans, tomatoes, beets and other veggies every summer. All my adult life, I’ve been a deacon, a dedicated church musician and choir member, and we hosted a potluck group in our home for more than twenty years.

Like Abby Lambright, heroine of my Home at Cedar Creek series, I consider it a personal mission to be a listener and a peacemaker—to heal broken hearts and wounded souls. Faith and family, farming and frugality matter to me: like Abby, I sew and enjoy fabric arts—I made my wedding dress and the one Mom wore, too, when I married into an Iowa farm family more than thirty-five years ago! When I’m not writing, I crochet and sew, and I love to travel.

I recently moved to Minnesota when my husband got a wonderful new job, so now he and I and our border collie, Ramona, are exploring our new state and making new friends.

Connect With Charlotte:

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Review - Amanda Weds a Good Man by Naomi King

The Amish Community of Cedar Creek is celebrating a wedding! When Amanda Lambright, widowed with three daughters, marries Wyman Brubaker, a widower with five children, she envisions joining their two households into one big happy family. But it isn't quite that easy...

Amanda Lambright loves Wyman Brubaker, and after four years as a single mother, she is grateful for his support and for this new chance at happiness as his wife. She's confident that their children will get along just fine. But once Amanda's clan moves into Wyman's home, the tight quarters and Wyman's reluctance to make changes to accommodate Amanda cause friction. The older kids are squabbling. The little ones are frequently in tears. Tiny Alice Ann isn't speaking at all. Amanda and Wyman can't find any privacy. And Amanda wonders if she'll ever have a chance to pursue the pottery making that means so much to her.

Amanda believes that family lies at the center of any well-lived Amish life. Can she find the wisdom to guide the reluctant members of her new extended family toward the love that will bind them together?

Amanda Weds a Good Man is the third novel I've read by Naomi King (a.k.a. Charlotte Hubbard). And while this particular story goes on about families completely unfamiliar to me up to this point, there are some familiar faces that pop up every now and then which makes reading this feel like home. Do you know what I mean?

Amanda's husband has died. Wyman's wife has, unfortunately, passed as well. It seems that Amanda's family is doing what they can to move on while Wyman's is stuck in a sort of stasis. Wyman is suffering from survivor's guilt and doesn't even seem to realize it. But it's rubbing off on his children as well. When he weds Amanda and she and her children move in to his house it seems that there is little room for them there. The memory of his late wife takes up way too much room. That, and the chaos that seems to reign supreme in the household along with the outright hostility expressed toward Amanda and her children (and even Wyman) by the members of the community Wyman has brought them to, makes everyone absolutely miserable.

Wyman really has to search inside himself and see if what's happening in his house is what's meant to be happening. Sure, the Bishop has told him so, but is following the Bishop at the expense of his family's well-being really worth it? And is the Bishop even right in his instruction?

I can really relate to Amanda. I was married just a month ago and, while my children and I were familiar with the house we were moving in to after the wedding, it was still a lot to get used to. The memories of family members passed hangs in the air and, understandably, sometimes we are reluctant to move on but for the sake of sentimentality. No matter how much you love someone, and how much you want things to be perfect, there can (and will) still be issues at some point.

Poor Amanda. She moved away from the people she knew and loved in to an environment that was neither friendly nor welcoming. She tried. But I could literally feel her frustration and the tension between her and her new husband. She'd been so strong for such a long time and along with her nephew had been able to keep her family afloat. Wyman did not have to struggle as hard to provide for his family and I think, as a result, his children were not as close to him as Amanda's were to her.

He made me angry for much of the first half of the book. I felt bad for Amanda. I sympathized with her and could almost sense the dread building up in her heart at the thought that she'd be expected to submit to a man who didn't seem to have her best interests at heart, despite the fact that he did love her. Someone plants a bug in his ear, though, and gives him a lot to think about as far as the relationship between him and his new wife are concerned.

Now, the relationship between Abby and James... I adored them. The two of them were so completely head over heels for each other that I couldn't help but smile the entire time I read about them. James had such consideration for Abby and the way that she felt, the things that were important to her. And Abby was such an amazingly wonderful person to everyone she came in contact with. The two of them together were an absolutely fantastic pair.

Jerome, Amanda's nephew, was one of my favorites. He was the strong and (somewhat) silent type. He had Amanda's back and was definitely not going to sit idly by while he felt she was being slighted by her new family. He seemed like a happy go lucky guy, although I'm sure he's been through a lot in his life.

Last but not least, where would every great story be without a villain.

The Bishop of Clearwater and his nagging wife were definitely the bane of everyone's existence. They were hypocritical and rude and encouraged everyone to follow in their footsteps while claiming that those who didn't were placing other things at higher importance than their relationship with God, an attitude that had driven several families out of the district already. I could not STAND them and if they'd been real people and standing in front of me speaking to ME the way they spoke to Wyman and Amanda, I would probably have told them off. In the worst way. I honestly don't know how the Brubaker's managed to hold their tongues as well as they did.

The story was wonderful. I like books that make me FEEL things. And I could definitely feel for Amanda. All the hurt and anger and frustration... and on the flip side of the coin... love and adoration and wonderment. Fantastically written.

As with her other novels, I highly recommend this as a read to everyone. Not just those of you who enjoy Amish fiction, but anyone looking for a nice family/feel good read. Luckily, this is the first in the series. I can't wait to see more of what happens for the Brubaker clan.

First Chapter Reveal - Amanda Weds a Good Man by Naomi King

Amanda Weds a Good Man
One Big Happy Family: Book 1
By Naomi King
Chapter 1

Amanda Lambright paused outside the Cedar Creek Mercantile, clutching her basket of pottery samples and prayed that Sam would carry her handmade items in his store. She had also come to share some exciting news: she stood on the threshold of a brand new life in a brand new family, and the prospect thrilled her. But it frightened her, too.

When Amanda stepped inside, the bell tinkled above the door. As her eyes adjusted to the soft dimness of the store, she saw her teenage daughter Lizzie and the four-year-old twins making a beeline to the craft department while her mother-in-law Jemima ambled behind her cart in the grocery aisle. Several shoppers, English and Amish alike, lingered over their choices of cheese, locally-grown apples, and other household and hardware necessities, but she was in luck: the bearded, bespectacled man at the check-out counter didn’t have any customers right now. She approached him with a smile.

“And how are you on this fine September day, Sam?”

When Sam Lambright looked up from the order form he was filling out, his face lit up. “Amanda! How gut to see you. Things are going well at your farm, I hope?”

Amanda gripped the handle of her basket. Should she break her big news first? Or make her request? “The work never ends, that’s for sure. The last hay’s ready to cut, the garden’s gone to weeds, and Jerome’s training several new mules.” Jerome was her nephew by marriage, the boy she and her late husband Atlee had raised after his parents died in a fire.

“Your girls are growing up, too. I had to look twice to realize it was Lizzie, Cora, and Dora waving at me.”

“They change by the day, it seems. And, well . . . I’m making a few changes myself.”

Sam gazed at her in that patient, expectant way he had. He was Atlee’s cousin, and his expression, his manner, reminded her so much of Atlee that at times she’d not shopped here because she couldn’t deal with the resemblance. But that sadness is behind me now . . . and nobody will be happier than Sam, she reminded herself. “Wyman Brubaker has asked me to marry him. And I said jah.”

Sam’s smile lit the whole store. “That’s wonderful! Abby—” He gazed up toward the upper level, hailing his sister as she sat at her sewing machine by the railing. “Abby, you’ll want to come down and get the latest from Amanda. She’s getting hitched!”

“That’s so exciting,” Abby called out. “Don’t say another word until I get down there.”

Amanda noticed several folks in the store glancing her way, enjoying this exchange. It made her upcoming marriage seem even more real now that it had been announced so publically. She and Wyman had kept their courtship quiet, because they wanted to be very sure that a marriage blending two households and eight children was a wise decision.

“Months ago I suggested to Wyman that it was time he found another gut woman,” Sam said, “and I’m so glad he’s chosen you, Amanda. I can’t think of two finer folks with so much in common.”

“Well, we hope so. It’ll be . . . different, raisin eight kids instead of just my three girls,” she replied quietly. “But Wyman’s a gut man.”

“And with his grain elevator doing so well, it means you won’t have to worry about money anymore,” Sam replied quietly. “You haven’t let on—haven’t let me help you much—but even with Jerome’s income, it couldn’t have been easy to keep that farm afloat after Atlee passed.”

As Abby Lambright rushed down the wooden stairway to hug her, Amanda forgot about her four long years of scraping by. She felt lifted up by the love and happiness this maidel radiated. Rain or shine, Abby gave her best and brought that out in everyone around her, too.

“What a wonderful-gut thing, to know you’ve found another love,” Abby gushed. “And who’s the lucky man?”

“Wyman Brubaker.”

“You don’t say!” Abby replied. “I couldn’t have matched up a more perfect pair myself—and as I recall, his Vera and your Lizzie first met while both families were shopping here. And that started the ball rolling.”

“Jah, as matchmakers go they were pretty insistent,” Amanda replied with a chuckle.

“And when’s the big day?”

“We haven’t decided, but it’ll be sooner than I can possibly be ready,” Amanda admitted. “What with Lizzie still in school, I’ve hardly packed any boxes—not that I know where to stack them if the wedding’s at my house,” she added in a rush. “And with Jerome training a team of mules now, we can’t clear out the barn for the ceremony. And I can’t see me driving back and forth, cleaning Wyman’s house in Clearwater—”

“Or keeping it wedding-ready until the big day. His Vera’s a responsible girl, but looking after her three brothers and Alice Ann is all she can handle,” Abby remarked in a thoughtful tone. She looked at her older brother. “Sam, what would you say to having Amanda’s wedding at our house? What with preparing for Matt and Rosemary’s ceremony next week, and then for Phoebe and Owen’s that first Thursday of October—”

“Oh, no!” Amanda protested. “I didn’t mean to go on and on about—”

“That would be just fine.” Sam gazed steadily at Amanda. “We’re setting up the tables for the meals in mamm’s greenhouse—leaving them up between the two weddings, anyway. So if you pick a date in the first few weeks of October, it would be very easy to host your ceremony, Amanda. And I would feel like I’d finally given you some real help when you needed it.”

Amanda nearly dropped her basket of pottery. “My stars. That would solve a lot of my problems . . .”

“And with Wyman living in Clearwater and your house being on the far side of Bloomingdale, Cedar Creek would be a more central location for your guests,” Sam reasoned.

“And it’ll be gut practice for Sam, delivering another wedding sermon,” Abby added mischievously. “Right after he was ordained as our new preacher last spring, Rosemary asked him to preach and then Phoebe insisted on him, too. So he should be pretty gut at it by the time you and Wyman tie the knot!”

Sam flushed. “Jah, but if you want the preachers from your district to—”

“It would be an honor to have you and Vernon Gingerich officiate for us.” Amanda squeezed Sam’s arm, her excitement mounting. “Wyman will be so glad you’ve settled our dilemma, because if we choose one preacher and one bishop from our own districts, we’ll still be leaving out the other bishop and three preachers.”

“And you don’t want them all to speak! Six sermons would make for a very long day,” Abby added wryly.

As their laughter rose toward the high ceiling of the mercantile, Amanda relaxed. Wasn’t it just like these cousins to offer their home when she would never have asked another family to host her wedding? What a relief, to concentrate on moving her three daughters, Atlee’s mamm, and herself into Wyman’s home rather than also having to prepare for a couple hundred wedding guests.

Abby leaned closer to Amanda, watching Lizzie and the twins fingering bolts of fabric. “So how are your girls taking the news? And what of Jemima?” she asked quietly.

Amanda smiled. “Truth be told, it was Lizzie and Wyman’s Vera who got Wyman and me to the same places at the same time,” she confessed. “And bless him, Wyman said from the first that he had a room for Atlee’s mamm. It won’t be easy for her, living in a home other than her son’s. But we’ll all be together.”

“One big happy family!” Abby proclaimed as she hugged Amanda’s shoulders again.

“And what of Jerome?” Sam inquired. “He’s lived with you since he was a boy, but he’s what? Twenty-two now?”

“Twenty-four,” Amanda corrected. “And with him being so established with his mule breeding and training, I’ve asked him to stay there on the home place. It’s what Atlee would’ve wanted for his nephew.”

“A gut decision,” the storekeeper agreed. “One of these days he’ll be finding a wife, and a whole new generation of Lambrights can live there.”

Amanda nodded, feeling a flicker of sadness. Her Atlee had passed on before they knew she was carrying the twins . . . but cogitating over the other children they might have had together—or which ones might have taken over the Lambright farm—wasn’t a useful way to spend her time. A little gasp brought her out of her woolgathering.

“What’s this in your basket?” Abby asked as she reached for the handle. “My stars, these are such pretty colors for pie pans and cream pitchers and—” Her brown eyes widened. “Did you paint these, Amanda?”

Amanda’s cheeks prickled. “I make the pottery pieces on my wheel and then I glaze them, jah,” she said quietly. “I was hoping that—rather than packing away my finished pieces—you might want to sell them here.”

“These are pieces any woman could use,” Abby interrupted excitedly. She was carefully setting items from the basket on the counter so Sam could get a better look at them. “A pitcher . . . a deep-dish pie plate . . . oh, and look at this round piece painted like a sunflower!”

“That’s a disk you heat in the oven and then put in your basket to keep your bread warm,” Amanda said. “I sell a lot of those at the dry goods stores north of home. Seems English tourists like some little souvenir when they visit Plain communities.”

“I can see why,” Sam remarked. He was turning the pitcher this way and that in his large hands. “I don’t believe I’ve ever seen kitchen pieces with such bold colors. And if you make them, Amanda, I’d be happy to take them on consignment. Folks hereabouts would snap these up.”

“You’ve got several pieces with you, I hope?” Abby asked.

“This is such a blessing,” Amanda replied quietly. “I’ve got three boxes of this stuff in my wagon, along with an inventory list. I figured that if you didn’t want it, I’d stash it all in Wyman’s basement until we get moved in.”

“Don’t go hiding these in the basement!” Abby insisted. “We’ll set up a big display down here, and I’ll arrange the rest of them up in the loft.”

Sam started for the door. “I’ll help you carry in your boxes, Amanda. You can decide which items might sell better over at the greenhouse and work that out with Mamm.”

“Jah, I will. Denki so much, you two. Let me show you what I’ve brought.” Amanda’s heart skipped happily as the bell above the door tinkled. This trip to Cedar Creek was going even better than she’d dreamed, and she was eager to set her wedding date with Wyman now that they had such a wonderful place to hold their ceremony.

As they stepped outside, however, an ominous crash rang out, followed by a yelp and another crash.

“Simon! Get your dog out of that wagon!”

Amanda’s face fell. Oh, but she recognized that authoritative voice. And there could be only one Simon with a pet who had stirred up such a ruckus . . . and only one wagon full of pottery with its end gate down.

As she rounded the corner of the store with Sam and Abby, the scene in the parking lot confirmed Amanda’s worst fears: the Brubaker family was gathered around her wagon, coaxing Simon’s German shepherd out of it while Wyman lifted his youngest son onto its bed. When the five-year-old boy grabbed his basketball from the only box of her pottery left standing, the picture became dismally clear.

“Oh, Amanda,” Abby murmured as the three of them hurried toward the Brubakers. “This doesn’t look so gut.”

Amanda’s stomach clenched. How many days’ worth of her work had been shattered after Wags had apparently followed Simon’s ball into her wagon?

“Gut afternoon to you, Wyman,” Sam said. “We just heard your exciting news, and we’re mighty happy you and Amanda are hitching up.”

Wyman set his youngest son on the ground and extended his hand to the storekeeper. “Jah, I finally found a gal who’ll put up with me and my raft of kids. But I can’t think she’s too happy with us right this minute.”

Amanda bit back her frustration as her future husband lowered one of her boxes to the ground so she could see inside it. The other boxes had been overturned, so some of her pie plates, vases, and other items lay in pieces on the wagon bed. She had considered padding her pottery more carefully, boxing the pieces better, but who could have guessed that Simon’s energetic, oversized puppy would follow a basketball into her wagon? A little sob escaped her.

“And now, Simon, do you see why you should always check the latch on the dog’s pen when we leave?” Wyman asked sternly. “Not only was it dangerous for Wags to come running up alongside our buggy, but now he’s broken Amanda’s pottery. What do you say to her, son?”

The little boy, clutching his basketball, became the picture of contrition. Simon’s brown eyes, usually filled with five-year-old mischief, were downcast as he stood beside his father. “I . . . didn’t mean to break your stuff,” he murmured. “I bounced my ball too high and Wags had to play, too. I’m real sorry.”

Chastising this winsome boy wouldn’t put her pottery together again, would it? “Things happen,” she replied with a sigh. “I was hoping to sell my ceramics here at the mercantile, but . . . well, maybe we can salvage some of it.”

“Tie Wags to the wagon, Simon, before he causes any more trouble,” Wyman murmured.

Abby had stepped up beside Amanda to carefully lift the contents of the box onto the tailgate while Wyman set the other two boxes upright. Amanda was vaguely aware that the rest of the Brubaker kids were nearby: his teenage sons, Pete and Eddie, went on inside the mercantile while seventeen-year-old Vera came up beside her, cradling little Alice Ann against her hip.

“See there, all is not lost,” Abby remarked as she set unbroken dishes to one side of the wagon bed. “Still enough for a display, Amanda—”

“And look at these colors!” Vera said as she fingered some of the broken pieces. “Dat told me you worked on pottery, Amanda, but I had no idea it was like this! So, do you paint ready-made pieces or do you make everything from scratch?”

Amanda smiled sadly as she held up two pitchers that no longer had their handles. “I form them on my pottery wheel, and when they’ve dried I glaze them and fire them in my kiln.”

“Would you mind if I take the broken stuff?”

Amanda considered this, surprised. Vera’s eyes were lit up with interest, as though she truly loved the pottery even though it was shattered. “I don’t know what you’d do with it,” she murmured, “but it’s not like I can sell repaired plates and pitchers, either.”

“I’m sorry this has happened, Amanda. I’ll pay you for what Simon broke,” Wyman offered as he squeezed her shoulder. “At least you won’t be needing the income after we marry, jah?”

Amanda sighed. “Denki, Wyman. That’s generous of you.”

As much as she had come to love Wyman Brubaker during these past months of their courtship, a red flag went up in Amanda’s mind. He—and most men—didn’t understand that her pottery was much more than a way to earn money. It had been her salvation after Atlee had lost a leg to gangrene and then lost his will to live. . . a way to focus her mind on cheerful designs and colors instead of becoming lost in the darkness of her grief after he died.

Wyman ran the only grain elevator in the area so he was able to provide quite well for a large family. Yet as she considered mixing her Lizzie and the twins—not to mention her opinionated mother-in-law—with the three rambunctious Brubaker boys, Vera, and toddler Alice Ann, Amanda wondered what she was getting herself into. Everyone seemed amiable enough now, but what if their good intentions went by the wayside once they were all together in one household?

Would they be one big happy family, as Abby had predicted? Or had she let herself in for more major changes than she could handle by agreeing to marry Wyman Brubaker?

Book Spotlight - Amanda Weds a Good Man by Naomi King

The Amish community of Cedar Creek is celebrating a wedding! When Amanda Lambright, widowed with three daughters, marries Wyman Brubaker, a widower with five children, she envisions joining their two households into one big happy family. But it isn’t quite that easy.... Amanda Lambright loves Wyman Brubaker, and after four years as a single mother, she is grateful for his support and for this new chance at happiness as his wife. She’s confident that their children will get along just fine. But once Amanda’s clan moves into Wyman’s home, the tight quarters and Wyman’s reluctance to make changes to accommodate Amanda cause friction. The older kids are squabbling. The little ones are frequently in tears. Tiny Alice Ann isn’t speaking at all. Amanda and Wyman can’t find any privacy. And Amanda wonders if she’ll ever have a chance to pursue the pottery making that means so much to her. Amanda believes that family lies at the center of any well-lived Amish life. Can she find the wisdom to guide the reluctant members of her new extended family toward the love that will bind them together?

Author: Naomi King
Publisher: New American Library Trade
November 2013 ISBN: 978-0451417879 Buy it HERE on Amazon

Drawing upon her experiences in Jamesport, the largest Old Order Amish community west of the Mississippi, longtime Missourian Naomi King (a.k.a. Charlotte Hubbard) writes of simpler times and a faith-based lifestyle in her new Seasons of the Heart series. Like her heroine, Miriam Lantz, Charlotte considers it her personal mission to feed people—to share hearth and home. Faith and family, farming and food preservation are hallmarks of her lifestyle, and the foundation of her earlier Angels of Mercy series. She’s a deacon, a dedicated church musician and choir member, and when she’s not writing, she loves to try new recipes, crochet, and sew. Charlotte now lives in Minnesota with her husband and their border collie.

Book Spotlight and First Chapter Reveal - The Wanderers by Paul Stutzman

Title: The Wanderers
Author: Paul Stutzman
Genre: Amish Fiction
Publisher: Carlisle Printing
Pages: 374
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0984644911
ISBN-13: 978-0984644919

An Amish Love Story About Hope and Finding Home

Everything in God’s nature, Johnny observed, did what it was created to do. Everything, that is, except the human race. Johnny was born into an Amish family, into a long line of farmers and good businessmen. He is expected to follow the traditions of family and church as he grows to adulthood. But even as a boy, he questions whether he can be satisfied with this lifestyle. He wants “more” — more education, more travel, more opportunity.

His restlessness leads him down a dangerous road where too much partying and drinking result in heartbreaking consequences. He’s adrift, and no one seems to be able to help him find his direction.

Then he meets spunky Annie, who seems pure and lovely and devoted to her God. Her past, though, holds sin and heartbreak. She was a worm, she explains, but God has transformed her into a butterfly. Johnny falls hopelessly in love; and eventually he, too, finds the power of God to transform lives. Settling down on the family farm, he forgets about the questions and the restlessness, thinking that he is happy and at home, at last.

But in a few short hours, tragedy changes his life forever, and he is again wondering… and wandering on a very long journey.

Entwined with Johnny and Annie’s story is the allegory of two Monarch butterflies, worms who have been transformed into amazing creatures specially chosen to carry out the miracle of the fourth generation. They, too, must undertake a long journey before they finally find home.

Buy your copy at AMAZON.

Chapter 1:

I was ten when I had my first taste of beer. A late start, to be sure, but I was never bothered much by peer pressure. My friends had all sampled the stuff two or three years before, but I had felt no desire or need. There was only one reason I drank on that hot August day. I was thirsty.

Finished with my morning chores, I started across the hayfield with an armful of boards ripped from the old washhouse. Previous generations had scrubbed and soaked and steamed in the one-room shack in front of our farmhouse; my parents, though, had upgraded to a new kerosene washer, and now the women worked in the coolness under the long front porch. An old kettle still hung above the brick fire pit, but the washhouse sagged like a tired old work horse.

My dad had assigned me the task of dismantling the washhouse. That was fine with me; I had plans for that scrap lumber. I wanted to enlarge the deer stand at the edge of the distant woods. The stand was my hideout, where I spent countless hours contemplating life. It was a haven for my wondering mind, and I called it my institution of higher learning.

Eight years of school at Milford Elementary, in the little village several miles east of our farm, were not enough for me. While most Amish children were happy to be finished with formal education, I wept when I could not attend the local high school.

The English students sometimes mocked us Amish as backwards farmers, but I enjoyed school, excelled in sports, and had the gift of gab. Although I was known as something of a "charmer," I never liked the word. It's true, I could talk myself into or out of anything. You do have to make the most of whatever talents God's given you.

The school of higher education that I did attend was built in a stately oak that stood sentinel at the edge of our woods. Two gnarled branches cradled my hideout, ten feet off the ground, overlooking the fields that my family had owned for generations. Years ago, my grandfather had secured several boards across the limbs and nailed short slabs up the oak's trunk, a ladder ascending to the platform. Over time, the trunk swallowed up most of the rungs, but edges still protruded far enough for deer hunters to clamber up and lie in wait for the quarry.

My first hunt with my dad and my brother was also my last. Finally, I was deemed old enough to go hunting with the men. I climbed the ladder and settled into waiting, tense with excitement. Very soon, a doe came through the woods, paused at the spring to drink, then walked slowly down the side of the ravine. One shot echoed through the quiet morning. We scampered down the ladder rungs and approached the deer, lying bleeding on the hillside. It struggled to its feet, took another tumble, and lay still.

My excitement vanished. I felt only sadness and pangs of remorse. The doe's brown eye was open, staring at me, asking, "Why? What did I do to deserve this?"

Dad had a knife in his hands; I knew what must come next. Backtracking, I was violently sick behind a bush. I was not meant to be a hunter, and no one would ever shoot another deer from that stand if I had any say at all.

I did have my say. Well, my mom did. Although Dad was the authority and power in our house, Mom often held the reins. With tears streaming down my face, I unloaded my sad description of the dying deer. "We can't shoot them anymore. We just can't."

Soon the NO HUNTING signs were posted, and the woods, deer stand, and all of God's nature on our 120 acres were mine.

Well, perhaps not quite everything fell under my protection. Every year, we butchered a pig, a horrible sacrifice for the betterment of our family. My dad and brother would select the offering. I always wondered how the selection was made, but I never asked. They'd grab the unlucky swine by the hind legs, lift it over the fence, and carry it away as it squealed in terror. As the surviving porkers looked on in great relief, I'd run to the house, up the stairs, and cover my head with my pillow. I'd hear the shot anyway.

While my family processed the departed, I'd venture to the pig pen. I knew each hog by distinguishing marks; and, in dread, I checked to see who was missing. Spotty had survived. Curly was still here. Snort made the cut. We would be eating Limpy. A wild dog or coyote had wriggled through the board fence one night and taken a bite out of Limpy. Our German shepherd, Biff, had heard the commotion and chased the intruder away before he could get a second bite. On the day of Limpy’s demise, I reminded myself that I must take caution; I must never injure myself in any way that might cause my own lameness.

*** My usual route from the washhouse to the deer stand followed the cow path leading from the barn to the pasture field and traveled twice a day by our herd. On this day, the hay field between the house and the woods had been mowed and I took advantage of this shorter route. I might have chosen the hay field even if the route were longer; as a ten-year-old, I drank in the sensory gifts of summer: the aroma of new mown hay, the sweetness of warm strawberries, the smell of an August rain on dusty ground.

"Johnny, go get us some Stroh's!" my older brother Jonas called. He and his friend Jacob were in the field, making hay. Jacob had been recruited to help my brother today because Dad was on a lumber buying trip, and the clouds warned there would be rain by tomorrow. I dropped my boards reluctantly and retraced my steps back to the farmhouse.

My great-grandparents had built this house over a spring, and the cool waters flowed through the basement, filling a concrete trough where my mom stored crocks of butter, fresh milk and cream, eggs, watermelon, and any kind of dish she was preparing for the next meal. Those amber bottles of Stroh's were chilling in a corner of the trough just inside the door. I grabbed two by the necks and rushed back outside, leaving a wet trail of spring water.

The Stroh’s stash belonged to Jonas. Dad was bishop of our Amish church, and I had never seen him drink beer. As a church leader, he was very much aware that anything misused, misread, or mistaken could affect his reputation and influence in the community.

Jonas, on the other hand, had no such reputation to protect. Sixteen, he had recently concluded his formal education and he knew exactly where his future lay. He was not yet a member of the church, but he would join in a few years, get married, and settle down right here in our valley. He had big plans to take over the sawmill that my dad ran as a part-time operation. I was the younger of Dad's sons; my father's hope was that I would be farming the Miller family land someday.

"You thirsty?" Jonas handed his half-empty bottle to me. I was thirsty. But that first taste was not good.

Still, that swallow in the hay field meant that now I was one of the men. I may have been a Miller boy, but now I was a Stroh's man.

Yes, I admit, many bottles of Stroh's beer would find their way to the deer stand in the years to come. For a while, it was not only my thinking stand, it was my drinking stand. More of a beer stand than a deer stand. Stroh's beer would get me into so much trouble; but it would also lead to meeting Annie. And then, for a short time, I had it all. I was an Amish man living the dream.

Until it was all taken from me.

About the Author:


Paul Stutzman was born in Holmes County, Ohio in an Amish family. His family left the Amish lifestyle soon after Paul was born. They joined a strict Conservative Mennonite Church where Paul was raised to fear God and obey all the rules the church demanded. Paul continued to live among and mingle with his Amish friends and relatives his entire life. Paul married a Mennonite girl and remained in the Amish community working and raising a family. After Paul lost his wife to cancer, he sensed a tug on his heart- the call to a challenge, the call to pursue a dream. With a mixture of dread and determination, Paul left his job, traveled to Georgia, and took his first steps on the 2,176 mile Appalachian Trail. What he learned during the next four and a half months changed his life-and can change yours too. After completing his trek Stutzman wrote Hiking Through—a book about this life changing journey.

In the summer of 2010 Stutzman again heeded the call for adventure and pedaled his bicycle 5,000 miles across America. He began his ride at the Northwest corner of Washington State and pedaled to Key West, Florida. On his journey across America he encounters people in all circumstances, from homelessness to rich abundance. The people he meets touch his life profoundly. Stutzman writes about these encounters in his book Biking Across America.

Recently Stutzman released his first novel entitled The Wanderers. The Wanderers is a story about Johnny, a young Amish boy growing up in a culture he is not sure he wants to embrace. A young Amish girl named Annie wins his heart and life is great for a time. Entwined with Johnny and Annie’s story is the allegory of two Monarch butterflies, worms who have been transformed into amazing creatures specially chosen to carry out the miracle of the fourth generation. They, too, must undertake a long journey before they finally find home.

In addition to writing, he speaks to groups about his hiking and biking experiences and the lessons learned during these adventures. Stutzman resides in Berlin, Ohio and can be contacted through his website at www.hikingthrough.com or www.paulstutzman.com.

Stutzman resides in Berlin, Ohio and can be contacted through his website at www.hikingthrough.com or www.paulstutzman.com.