Cindy Woodsmall
Amish Vines and
Orchards Series, Book 2
About the book:
The tornado that devastated Kings’ Orchard pushed Rhoda,
Samuel, and Jacob to make a new start in Maine. Are they strong enough to
withstand the challenges of establishing an Amish community—and brave enough to
face the secrets that move with them?
On the eve of their departure to begin a new Old Order Amish
community outside of Unity, Maine, Rhoda Byler is shocked to discover that
choices made by her business partner and friend, Samuel King, have placed her
and her unusual gifts directly into the path of her district’s bishop and
preachers. She is furious with Samuel and is fearful that the Kings will be
influenced by the way her leaders see her, and not what they know to be
true—that Rhoda’s intuition is a gift from God.
Jacob King won’t be swayed by community speculation. He
loves Rhoda, believes in her, and wants to build a future with her in Maine.
But when the ghosts of his past come calling and require him to fulfill a great
debt, can he shake their hold before it destroys what he has with Rhoda? Samuel
has a secret of his own—one he’ll go to great lengths to keep hidden, even if
it means alienating those closest to him. Throwing himself into rehabilitating
the once-abandoned orchard, Samuel turns to a surprising new ally.
Book 2 of the Amish Vines and Orchards series asks: can the
three faithfully follow God’s leading and build a new home and orchard in
Maine? Or will this new beginning lead to more ruin and heartbreak?
My thoughts:
One of the many things that I appreciate about Cindy
Woodsmall’s series is that they seem to come out in pretty quick succession.
Even with that it is still sometimes hard to immediately remember what happened
in the last book and where we are at in the story. At the beginning of each of
her subsequent books is a short synopsis of what has occurred in the story up
to this point. I really wish more authors and publishers would adopt this
practice.
This installment picks up where the first book left off.
Samuel is still smitten with Rhoda but he can’t act on those feelings because
his younger brother Jacob is actively pursuing her. Samuel and Rhoda are
amazing business partners but could they be life partners as well?
Samuel makes decisions out of his passionate nature and does
so in the pursuit of truth and justice. The problem is that in that quest he
winds up hurting the very one he meant to protect. I find myself so frustrated
with his stubbornness. He always thinks he’s right!
Jacob makes me crazy too. If he would just tell the truth
about things it would not only allow others to help him, but it would give him
the freedom to begin to set things right.
Rhoda is such an interesting and complex personality. I
admire her ability to stand up to constant ridicule from those around her. One
of the things that has me scratching my head is her willingness to cover up for
Jacob. When will she realize that she’s not helping by allowing him to
continually escape detection and repeatedly shirk his responsibilities to the
group?
I have to say that I had the same exact reaction to the
ending of this book as I had to the first one and many of Cindy’s other books
as well. It went something like this, “What . . . that can’t be the end!” I
would then frantically flip a few pages just to see if I had missed something.
Nope . . . another cliffhanger! It is a very good thing that the next book in
the series, For Every Season, is
scheduled to release in August 2013. I can hardly wait!
Connect with the
author:
Twitter: @CindyWoodsmall
Amish Vines and
Orchard Series
I'm not a big fan of the Amish Christian books, but after reading your review, I might actually like these!
ReplyDeleteHi Shannah! I enjoy reading Cindy Woodsmall's books. She just has a style all her own. The characters seem more real to life than some Amish fiction.
ReplyDeleteIf you decide to give this series a try remember this is book 2 so go back and start with book 1.
Have a great day!
Fitzysmom