Amish Sweethearts – Missed the Mark
When I was given an opportunity to read one of Amy Clipston’s latest releases, Amish Sweethearts (not to be confused with Leslie Gould’s novel by the same name), I was excited – such and exquisite cover, and it’s Amy Clipston after all (and overall, I find her to be an entertaining author.) Amish Sweethearts is a collection of four novellas – two of which have been published before in other collections. While I found the two previously published novellas very satisfying, would the other two novellas make the collection feel…complete? You’ll need to judge for yourself.
Love and Buggy Rides (previously published in An Amish Harvest) tells the story of cashier Janie Lantz and buggy driver Jonathan Stoltfuz, both employees of Lancaster Souvenirs and Buggy Rides. An unfortunate accident allows their paths to cross…and perhaps creates a path towards love.
A Home for Lindsay tells Lindsay Bedford’s story. Lindsay is marking down the days to her wedding with Matthew Glick, and the new home Matthew is building for them. When Matthew breaks up with Lindsay, she’s bewildered and devastated. What’s going on?
Where the Heart Is finds Tobias Smucker returning home, seeking peace and restoration – especially with his father. Mariella, Tobias’s sister’s best friend, seems to be the key to his path of forgiveness and finding peace with his dad.
Love Birds (previously published in An Amish Market) follows Ellie Lapp, whose brother recently died. It’s now just Ellie and her mom. The community has rallied around them, but Ellie really feels a need to find some work outside of the home to make ends meet. Her brother’s friend, Seth, has been one of those helping out…but he also has a secret hobby – one that may help both Ellie and Seth heal in their grief.
I was given Amish Sweethearts in exchange for my honest review. While there are many Clipston novels that I love (if you haven’t read her Kauffman Bakery series, buy it now), this collection of novellas missed the mark. Both A Home for Lindsay and Where the Heart Is had very predictable, and rather boring, storylines. Additionally, both of these novellas mention characters from other writings, which may make the read confusing to a new reader. With having already read half of this book in other collections, the question then becomes: Would I pay money to read the other two? I can’t in all honesty say yes. But I’ll leave the decision up to you – what do YOU think?
Susan Ferrell and her husband make their home in the Atlanta Metro area. Although Susan struggles with chronic migraine headaches, she stays very busy as a stay-at-home mom to one very precocious little girl. While catching her breath, she feeds her Amishaholic tendencies by reading vast amounts of Amish literature!