Upon a Spring Breeze – Curiosity Piqued!
Over the last few years, Kelly Irvin has really made a name for herself in the Amish genre. Her Amish of Bee County series is phenomenal. I had no doubts that Irvin could deliver with her new series, Every Amish Season. The first in the series, Upon a Spring Breeze, looks to be a promising start.
This novel tells the story of Bess Weaver: young, expecting her first child, and suddenly widowed. When the baby arrives, he looks so much like his father, Caleb. Bess is drowning in despair, loneliness, and apathy. When a job opportunity presents itself at an Englischer’s B & B, she hopes to find a secret escape from her overwhelming life.
Aidan, Bess’s childhood friend, and Caleb’s best friend, also grieves deeply for Caleb. He too has a secret. He’s kept this secret from Bess since before Bess and Caleb ever married. As Aidan faces unbelievable hardship on his farm, he struggles with what God’s will is for his life.
I was given Upon a Spring Breeze in exchange for my honest review. When I read the synopsis about the novel, I was disappointed. Although I love Irvin’s writings, and I always love a good Amish novel, all I could think was: “Not another young Amish widow. Not another best friend in the mix!” This is, at least, the third Amish novel I’ve read in the last year with a similar storyline. I was hoping Upon a Spring Breeze would be dramatically different. The first part of the novel seemed to drag, but it was full steam ahead for the latter half. There are a few characters that diverged from the norm – Mattie’s subplot was heart-wrenching – and Bess’s post-natal depression is an important topic that definitely needs to be written about more often. But, I found myself wishing that the author had not spent so much time in certain areas of the book and further developed others. All of that being said, this novel was well worth the read. Irvin seems to enjoy building up a good story. I cannot wait for the next book in the series, as there are several characters that I want to know more about! Upon a Spring Breeze is a promising start and my curiosity is definitely piqued.
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!