By Amy Clipston
Zondervan, 2018
Summary
Love is in the air in these four sweet romances!
Love and Buggy Rides (previously published in An Amish Harvest) – Janie Lantz is a cashier at Lancaster Souvenirs and Buggy Rides, where Jonathan Stoltfuz is a buggy driver. A frightening accident brings Janie and Jonathan together in a blossoming friendship, yet daunting obstacles stand between them and something deeper. Can love kindle into flames that burn away fear and regret—and lead them to a life together?
A Home for Lindsay – From Amy Clipston’s beloved Kauffman Amish Bakery series comes Lindsay Bedford’s story. Lindsay is happily looking forward to the day she becomes Matthew Glick’s wife and is excited for the plans he has for the house he will build her. So, when Matthew suddenly calls off the wedding, she is blindsided. She knows there is more to the story than what he is telling her, but will he open up and let her in on his own heartbreak?
Where the Heart Is – Tobias Smucker is back home, and it’s no secret he and his father are still not on the best of terms. But what is surprising is that his little sister’s best friend, Mariella, has been harboring her own secret feelings for Tobias. With her help, he begins to unravel a family mystery and learns that everyone has their own hidden depths, including his father.
Love Birds (previously published in An Amish Market) – While Ellie Lapp and her mother are still mourning the loss of her brother, Seth, Ellie starts working at one of the gift shops in town. Seth’s friend Lloyd is talented at carving wooden birds, but his father disapproves and expects him to take over the family farm someday. Ellie sees the beauty in Lloyd’s creations and insists Lloyd sell the birds in the gift shop where she works. As Ellie and Lloyd spend more time together, they begin to develop feelings for one another, but she accidentally betrays his trust. Will she lose any hope of a future with him?
My thoughts
Amish Sweethearts is heartwarming and sweet, incorporating everything that I love about Amy Clipston’s stories. Novellas aren’t known for character depth, but Amy somehow always manages to accomplish this. In the Amish Sweethearts collection, she has created narratives that engage the emotions from the first page and reflect a relevancy beyond the Amish setting. Each story thoroughly entertains and is well grounded in faith at the same time. All are moving reads.
A Home for Lindsay – Matthew doesn’t handle things very well when all that he has hoped for and worked toward in being able to provide for Lindsay seems to be falling apart, and I really wanted to shake some sense into him! What a personal message this story carries when it comes to pride, communicating and working as a team, and also discerning God’s guidance.
Love and Buggy Rides – Jonathan and Janie’s story looks at interesting themes of Amish life, such as their way of non-involvement in legal matters and obedience to parents vs. what’s best for someone. A really good story that made me think.
Where the Heart Is – The now repentant Tobias played a troubling part in Summer Storms from the Amish Summer collection and I’ve longed for his redemptive story ever since, so this has to be my favorite of the collection. To see his humbleness, uncertainty about his place in the family, and willingness to make a public confession before the church’s baptized members was spellbinding. I also loved the growing closeness between Tobias and his father. Excellent story!
Love Birds –Ellie and Lloyd’s story, in light of the previous death of Ellie’s brother, is sweet and moving as well. I haven’t quite finished reading this one and will update upon completion.
I received a copy of this book from the author. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.
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Amy holds a degree in communication from Virginia Wesleyan College and works full-time for the City of Charlotte, NC. Amy lives in North Carolina with her husband, two sons, and three spoiled rotten cats.
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