Lenora Worth, Rachel J. Good, and Kelly Long bring us a trio of Amish romances set amid snow, faith, and children galore. The word used for children is kinner, so AMISH CHRISTMAS KINNER reminds us to put the little ones first. I enjoyed all three novellas.

I recently read one of the quiltmaking stories about the ladies of the Shadow Lake Inn, and Lenora Worth revisits her characters on Christmas Eve in Christmas Eve Baby. To say it’s snowing is putting it mildly. The inn is not expecting many guests but two unexpected occurrences change that completely. Christmas Eve Baby starts as a baby is about to be born, and given the blizzard, there is room for an expectant mother in the inn. Sarah King and her three married daughters assist an unknown Amish woman. But a party of travellers stuck on a bus also needs help, filling the inn with chatter and the need to provide. 

In the next tale, Best Christmas Program Ever by Rachel J. Good, Emily Flaud starts work with widower Hosea King, selling cheese of various sorts. Emily’s Mamm takes in children in need of foster homes, which prompts Emily to act the same way when she sees two urchins helping themselves to the sample plate. Hosea doesn’t want kids around, a reminder of his losses. Best Christmas Program Ever spends time with Emily’s busy houseful, and Hosea, like a snowman, starts to melt.  

Moving on to Loving Luke by Kelly Long, Grace Fisher runs a general store in Blackberry Falls, Pennsylvania, but since being widowed, has found managing the store and her three children difficult. I was surprised by the premise of Loving Luke, in which it seems that an Amish woman can advertise for a mail-order husband, and just accept and marry whoever turns up, without much of an interview.  Luke King shows up, a bit ragged and in need of a haircut. He doesn’t even tell Grace he’s just been released from prison. He’s Amish, and they’re supposed to be honest with the community. And suppose two men had arrived in answer to the ad? No long courtship is involved, but maybe that only applies to young people, and not a widow in need of a husband’s help. I found it hard to put a date on this tale by Kelly Long, as no modern appliances are used at home, though some other Amish romances mention mobile phones.

If you would like a mixed read of warm, wintry tales, involving Amish people and interesting situations, AMISH CHRISTMAS KINNER will fit the bill. This is also a great way to discover new authors.