"A suspenseful romance as love gets torn by distance, secrets and cultural norms!"
Reviewed by Audrey Lawrence
Posted March 2, 2020
Inspirational Romance | Amish
The raging wildfire in the Kootenai National Forest is heading for the small town of West Kootenai far faster than anyone expected, burning homes and devastating the lives of the 400 people who peacefully live there.
Hastening in his buggy to pick up his girlfriend, Andy Lambright wants to get Christine Mast back to her home and then to safety from the fast-moving flames. They are happy in their love for each other; yet, Christine has her concerns. It seems Andy will do anything for her, except ask her to marry him and now they will be separated for a long time.
As the family needs to abandon their farm, Christine’s father sees this as an opportunity to return to his old Amish community in Haven, Kansas. Christine is afraid to go as Andy still doesn’t commit, but he does ask her to stay closer while her family leaves. Surprisingly, Mr. Mast allows her to stay with an aunt’s family in St. Ignatius, but where will that leave her if Andy doesn’t offer marriage and she is left on her own?
As usual, Andy is making many plans and keeping secrets in his head, but doesn’t want to share his heart’s desire to Christine. Meanwhile, Christine is eagerly learning new skills as she helps Aunt Lucy in their store and meets an intriguing customer called Raymond Old Fox. Raymond is intrigued by her Amish ways and is eager to share his knowledge and love for his people with her. Severed from her old life, Christine is comforted by her new friendship, but will they change how she feels about Andy?
Written by the talented and best-selling author Kelly Irvin, A LONG BRIDGE HOME is the second book in her new Amish of Big Sky Country series. With her strong understanding of Amish ways, Irvin takes this intriguing story to whole new level by introducing Christine with her simple ways to the Indigenous culture of the Kootenai people. The story is captivating as the interactions between Raymond and Christine and the reactions of their respective families really highlights some of the differences and similarities between their two unique cultures and their differing perspectives on life, their environment and the Creator.
Fans of MOUNTAINS OF GRACE, the first book in the series are sure to be happy to dig into this heartfelt story; yet, it also can easily be read as a standalone story. Irvin has developed an intriguing story with realistic characters and attitudes.
Raymond is terrific at sharing his history and historical knowledge and I especially love the wisdom and humour of Raymond’s Gramma. Irvin’s talents are also shown in the skillful development of the plot and in highlighting each character’s emotional responses to their beliefs and circumstances. My only quibble is I thought the story’s time frame was too short as I had trouble accepting Christine as a credible character. It seemed strange Christine, so true to her faith and customs for all her life, could so easily violate them within scant days. Others may see that as part of her anger and stress, especially as Andy starts to open up to her and share his secrets.
A LONG BRIDGE HOME is definitely a wonderful story of heartbreak, loss, grief, wisdom and solace. Fans of Amish stories and Christian fiction will definitely want to get a copy and read it! I also loved Irvin's notes in the back of the book on her own research journey. I confess I had to read A LONG BRIDGE HOME long into the night to finish it! So, be warned: this book will be very hard to put down once you start reading! Now, looking forward to the next in the series!
SUMMARY
After her community in the awe-inspiring Montana mountains is suddenly consumed by a raging wildfire, one young Amish woman finds herself in a new town where she’s introduced to the Native culture of the Kootenai people.
When the Mast family is forced to evacuate their home in the West Kootenai region of Montana, Christine chooses not to move with her family to her father’s childhood home in Kansas. Instead, she wants to stay closer to home and to her beau, Andy Lambright, who has yet to ask for her hand in marriage and who seems to be holding tightly to secrets from his past.
Now, living with her aunt and uncle in St. Ignatius, Christine is on her own for the first time in her life. While working in her uncle’s store Christine meets Raymond Old Fox, whom she befriends, and he introduces her to his rich native culture with strong ties to the earth and nature. Despite the warnings of her aunt and uncle, Christine is inexplicably drawn to Raymond, and her mind is opened to a history and heritage far different from her own.
With her newly expanding horizons, Christine wonders if she can return to the domestic life that is expected of her. Her heart still longs to be with Andy, but she isn’t the same person she was before the fire, and she wonders if he can accept who she is becoming. Has too much distance grown between them? Or can they bridge the gap from past to present and find their way back together?
ExcerptChristine. You need to go—now!”
DeeDee’s voice boomed behind Christine. She jumped. The fragile sculpture slipped from her fingers and hit the pine plank floor. It shattered in a half-dozen pieces.
“Ach!” Christine sank to the floor. She gathered the pieces of the happy family, their faces a puzzle that couldn’t be put together again. “I’m so sorry. Your beautiful figurine—”
“It’s okay, sweetheart. It’s not the end of the world.” DeeDee knelt next to her. “Stop, you’ll cut yourself.”
Indeed, the end of the world did roar down the mountains, and this tiny bit of beauty seemed too precious to lose. Christine would glue the family back together. No, it would never be the same. Like her serene, orderly life.
A pointed shard pierced Christine’s thumb. Blood dripped on her apron. She clutched her hand to her chest, trying to stymie the flow from a small cut. “I’m such a clumsy girl.”
“You’re not clumsy. It’s my fault. I scared you.” DeeDee heaved herself to her feet and offered her plump hand. “Let’s get you a bandage and get you going. We just got the Code Red Reverse 911 call. It’s time to evacuate. The fire’s coming.”
With one last look at the broken family, Christine scampered after the other woman. A quick fix in the kitchen and she rushed out the door. DeeDee followed. They hugged as if they might never see each other again. Being hugged by DeeDee was like being enveloped in a soft, down-filled comforter that smelled of Dove soap and lavender shampoo. A safe, clean fragrance.
“I didn’t finish the bathrooms.” A sob caught in Christine’s throat. Letting go and leaving this kind woman who had been a neighbor for Christine’s entire life seemed impossible. “Alex left a terrible mess in the kids’ bathroom.”
The oldest Drake son was a teenager sure he needed to shave those three spindly blond hairs on his chin and wear large quantities of a stinky aftershave that made Christine sneeze.
“Honey, God willing, they’ll still be here when we come back and you can scrub them extra hard.” DeeDee gently tugged free. “We’ll see you and yours in Eureka. Don’t you worry.”
A conversation played in Christine’s head. One she wasn’t supposed to hear. Mother and Father whispered over glasses of iced tea in the kitchen after the little ones went to bed. Father wanted to go home—to his home. Kansas. Mother argued against it, but if things went as usual, Father would have the final word.
Christine had been two when Father pulled up stakes and moved the family to Montana, drawn by the gorgeous vistas, hunting, fishing, and mountaintops he said brought them closer to the God who created them. Kootenai was their home. Christine had graduated from school here in the eighth grade, cleaned houses for four English families since she was fifteen, and been baptized at eighteen. She went on camping trips with her family to Lake Koocanusa even though tramping around outdoors with the mosquitoes and snakes numbered far down her list of favorite activities. She’d hike in the mountains a hundred times a year to stay here.
All she remembered from trips to visit family was a shimmering asphalt ribbon that cut a straight line through endless flat fields of golden wheat and corn as far as she could see—and dirty convenience store restrooms. Even as a child, she’d rather hold it than relieve herself in such stinky, miserable quarters.
The future heaved in front of her, a winding mountain road that suddenly buckled under the weight of a rock slide. “I’ll pay you back for the figurine.” Tears choked Christine as she grabbed the bike she’d left leaning against the back porch. “I’m so sorry I broke it. It was so beautiful.”
“Knickknacks can be replaced.” DeeDee swiped at her dimpled cheeks and then shooed her with both hands. “Go, girl, hurry. Your daddy and momma will be looking for you.”
Christine slid onto her mountain bike and pedaled down the gravel road. The thick smoke stung her eyes and hurt her throat. The entire world smelled like a wood-burning stove. The bandaged cut on her palm throbbed.
She glanced back. DeeDee stood on the porch waving as if she had all the time in the world. Behind her, black smoke loomed over the house, a sinister, growing monster lurching closer and closer. The towering pines and spruce that normally guarded the grounds with such stately dignity quivered and shrank as if they could see the seething flames roaring down the mountain, bringing with them the demise of every living creature and plant in their path.
Don’t look.
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