Harlequin Love Inspired
Featuring: Joseph Shetler; Lizzie Barkman; Carl King
220 pages ISBN: 037387877X EAN: 9780373878772 Kindle: B00FTQIM7S Paperback / e-Book Add to Wish List
This Amish tale reminded me of the sisters in 'Fiddler On
The Roof' as four sisters on an Indiana farm worry over who
they will marry. Respect for their elders means that they
should obey the uncle who houses them in this Plain
community. After all, maybe he is right and a stern
widower thirty years older would make a good husband for
the eldest, Clara Barkman.
THE SHEPHERD'S BRIDE moves swiftly as second sister Lizzie
is determined to travel to Hope Springs and seek her
grandfather. He may have fallen out with their late
parents, but maybe he could give them a home. Arriving
alone at her sheep-farming grandfather's house in Ohio she
can see that there is plenty of work in this home without a
woman. Carl King the shepherd is first to meet her, and he
doubts that Joseph Shetler will be pleased with her arrival.
Joseph cannot forget that Lizzie's mother disobeyed him and
married a man he distrusted. He believes it would be wrong
for him to go against the wishes of the girls' uncle. For
all he has the first hot water tap that Lizzie has used,
and even a propane washer, he's of the old ways. What's
more odd is that he asks Carl to drive Lizzie in the trap
to the bus, only for Lizzie to discover that Carl has been
shunned by those of their faith. Why would Joseph put her
in this position? And what could Carl possibly have done?
I was amused by the way that people get around
restrictions. Lizzie can't accept a lift from a shunned
person, but it is okay to give him a lift, so she takes the
pony's reins, although it's Carl's pony and trap. The two
men technically eat at different tables, though covered by
the same tablecloth. Lizzie comes across as continually
trusting in others' goodness. She doesn't have a skill
other than housework; other ladies make beautiful star
quilts which are in demand with Englisch customers. Basket
weaving and alpaca wool are more of the Amish crafts. The
confident, positive-thinking girl makes friends easily
among people who remember her mother. Now if she could only
find some suitable men!
I particularly enjoyed the alpaca shearing scene while the
sheep shearing seems like harder work. In fact the story is
thoroughly enjoyable and I look forward to reading more of
the Brides of Amish County series by Patricia Davids.
My
only quibble is that THE SHEPHERD'S BRIDE title rather
gives away the ending!
Shunned by the Amish community, shepherd Carl King has given
up on his dream for a family. Yet when captivating Lizzie
Barkman shows up at the sheep farm where he works, Carl sees
the wife he once dreamed of. Lizzie is looking for a new
start, for herself and her sisters, and discovers Carl to be
a kind and gentle man who cares deeply about the Amish way
of life. But he is under the bann. Is it possible that this
forbidden man holds the key to her family's safety—and the
one to her heart?
Brides of Amish Country: Finding true love in the land of
the Plain People
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