The Search by Suzanne Woods FisherJanuary 1st 2011 by Revell
Paperback, 298 Pages
Review Copy
Book Synopsis
Fifteen years ago, Lainey O'Toole made a split-second decision. She couldn't have known that her choice would impact so many. Now in her mid-twenties, she is poised to go to culinary school when her car breaks down in Stoney Ridge, the very Amish town in which her long-reaching decision was made, forcing her to face the shadowed past.
Bess Reihl is less than thrilled to be spending the summer at Rose Hill Farm with her large and intimidating grandmother, Bertha. It quickly becomes clear that she is there to work the farm--and work hard. The labor is made slightly more tolerable by the time it affords Bess to spend with the handsome hired hand, Billy Lapp. But he only has eyes for a flirty and curvaceous older girl. Lainey's and Bess's worlds are about to collide and the secrets that come to light will shock them both.
Beautifully written, The Search is a skillfully woven story that takes readers through unexpected twists and turns on the long country road toward truth. Fans both old and new will find themselves immersed in this heartwarming--and surprising--tale of young love, forgiveness, and coming to grips with the past. (Litfuse)
My Thoughts:
Lainey O’Toole has been hiding. Running away from secrets and past mistakes that have led her to live a quiet life….until chance would have her journeying to New York the same place she ran from fifteen years ago…..
Bertha an Amish woman is delighted to be spending the summer with her lovely granddaughter Bess. While Bess isn’t thrilled in the beginning, she begins to enjoy the time she’s spending with her grandmother. During the summer Bertha happens to meet Lainey, an English woman who took a job at the local bakery and remembers her from long ago. The two women strike up a friendship and soon Bertha learns of Lainey’s shocking secrets. Not only will Bertha's life be effected but Bess’s world is about to collide into all of it.
This was my first Amish fiction read for 2011 and Fisher once again...does not disappoint! Suzanne has a knack for writing wholesome yet real Amish story’s that take you into a more quiet place with in-depth writing, beautiful romances and charming characters. Full of humor and heart touching scenarios, The Search is a lovely Amish tale you don’t want to miss. While this novel can defiantly stand on its own, it’s the third in The Lancaster Series and I would recommend picking up the first two novels and start at the beginning.
4/5- Amish Fiction
Thanks to Revell/Litfuse for review copy.
About the Author
In no particular order, Suzanne Woods Fisher is a wife, mother, writer, lifelong student of the Bible, raiser of puppies for Guide Dogs for the Blind, a gardener and a cook...the latter two with sporadic results.
Suzanne has loved to write since she was a young teen. After college, she started to write for magazines and became a contributing editor for Christian Parenting Today magazine. Her family moved to Hong Kong for four years, just as the internet was developing, and she continued to write articles in a 44-story high-rise apartment, sending manuscripts 7,000 miles away with a click of a key. After returning from Hong Kong, Suzanne decided to give her first novel a try. For four and a half months, she worked on an antediluvian computer in a cramped laundry room. She didn't even tell her husband what she was up to. When the novel was completed, she told her family at dinner one night that she had written a book. "That's why there's no food in this house!" said her slightly insensitive sons.
Undaunted...Suzanne found a small royalty publisher for that book and wrote three more (all earned multiple awards). With help from an agent, she now has numerous books under contract with Revell. Also look for Suzanne's Amish non-fiction, Amish Peace: Simple Wisdom for a Complicated World, a non-fiction book of stories and examples about the Old Order Amish, as well as Amish Proverbs, and coming in Spring of 2011, look for Amish Values for Your Family. The Choice and The Waiting are the previous books in the Lancaster County Secrets Collection.
Writing, for Suzanne, is a way to express a love of God and His word. With every book or article, she hopes readers get a sense of what faith really looks like in the daily grind. She hopes they realize that life can be hard, but God is good, and never to confuse the two.
Suzanne can be found on-line at: http://www.suzannewoodsfisher.com/
Find out more about The Search and get a list of the full blog tour HERE.
I have yet to read a novel that deals with the Amish, but have been wanting to for a while. This sounds like a series I should check out.
ReplyDeleteO it sounds good! The cover makes her look a bit like a trouble maker ;) Great review.
ReplyDeleteI don't read much Amish fiction but this story does sound cute:) It sounds like she writes really great characters and that's always something that appeals to me. Nice review Tina!
ReplyDeleteHi Tina! Thanks so much for your thumbs-up review of "The Search!" Enjoyed your review and also reading your reader comments--it's great to reach people who don't normally read this sub-genre. I'm grateful! Warmly, Suzanne
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