The Revelation by Beverly Lewis

The Revelation is the fifth and final book in the Abram's Daughters series by Beverly Lewis.  As it is the fifth, this should not be the book (or review) that you start the series with.  Go back to the beginning, otherwise not much will make sense.  Lewis does a little recapping in her novels, but not near enough to cover the detail of the previous four books.

With the return of Jonas, Leah is beside herself with happiness.  Even though the Bishop puts a strict proving time on Jonas to allow him back in the fold, they are certain they can wait it out and finally be together at least.  The same is not true for poor Lyddie though, her love can never be because of a secret that was kept hidden from the community.  Meanwhile, Hannah struggles with depression and wanting to be a healer, despite her family's thoughts on the matter.  But her sister Mary Ruth is enjoying her time as a new mother and her Mennonite husband.  They all have their different dreams, but some are easier to achieve than others.

Leah is still my favorite character, which is a good thing since she's the main character.  And it was nice to finally see something good happen to her.  It only took four books.  Jonas is just as nice in this book although he's never held my interest the way Leah has.  Hannah, I just wasn't sure what to make of her in this book.  She waffles between feelings so quickly it's like Lewis just decided she needed some strife and then just as quickly decided against it again.  Lyddie I didn't really care for too much in the story.  It's not that she's a bad character, I just didn't get drawn into her storyline as much.  And then there's Peter Mast, the father of Jonas, I can't figure him out or his motives for the life of me and it's never really explained.   So that was just plain odd.

I was very glad to see all the different storylines tied up at the end of this novel.  And it was a very nice ending, although I won't describe it and ruin it for the readers of this review.  Once again though, this book was exceptionally preachy.  It's understandable that there will be Christian elements when you read an Amish fiction book, that's perfectly acceptable.  What's not acceptable is shoving it down the reader's throats, which is what Lewis does in this book.  She's got a pretty big opinion on what equals the proper way of practicing faith, and doesn't hesitate to make that clear.  It just really detracts from the rest of the book.

I'm not going to delve into Lewis' books again anytime soon.  I was entertained by this series, but need to just give it a break for awhile.

The Revelation
Copyright 2005
343 pages

The Prodigal by Beverly Lewis

The Prodigal is book four of Lewis' Abram's Daughters series.  If you haven't read any of the others in the series, I highly suggest that you stop reading this review and go start at the beginning.  This series has a continuing timeline and is not meant to be read out of order. 

All the Ebersol children are back in Lancaster area.  Sadie, having returned after being widowed is doing her best to repent with the church.  Mary Ruth is nearby, living the life of a Mennonite and teaching while her sister Hannah is married to the blacksmith and being a dutiful Amish wife.  Leah is still single, living with her father and raising the youngest two siblings as she promised to her dying mother.  All of them still have some secrets though, and quite a bit of them can be more surprising than they would ever guess.

Leah actually took a backseat in this book in my opinion.  She's still technically the main character, but not a lot happens with her.  It's focused on the younger kids this time, which is fine, but I just wish for some happiness for her.  The younger kids I just don't care for as much, they don't grab my interest and I honestly find them kind of selfish after reading about Leah so much.  Abram, Leah's father, is better in this one at least and he's a character that I'm starting to grow fond of whereas I used to not care for him at all.  Meanwhile, the opposite is true for Hannah's husband, who I used to like but now has become very unlikable.

The plot doesn't really go anywhere in this one.  There are new secrets revealed, but that's about it.  Nothing big happens and it is more the characters interacting with each other.  Normally I wouldn't care about that but since the majority of the books in this series has been like that, it seems to me that this could have easily been a trilogy instead of a five book series if a lot of the fluff had been cut out.  This one was also extremely preachy and you couldn't turn around without a character praying.  I'm not against prayer, but the method it's pushed at you in this book (with the hint that it's the correct way to pray) it just gets grating.  I'm perfectly accepting that Amish fiction usually equals Christian fiction, but there is an elegant way to do it, and this is not the way.

I'll still read the last book.  I have to see how it ends after all.  But I may shy away from Lewis for awhile after this series.

The Prodigal
Copyright 2004
343 pages
 

The Sacrifice by Beverly Lewis

The Sacrifice is the third book in the series of Abram's daughters. If you haven't read the first or second, go back and start at the beginning, this review will be useless to you otherwise. These books are not the kind you can read on their own, they have to be read in order. That being said, I wasn't so thrilled with the first two books, but with this third book, I am beginning to warm up to the series.

Having not gotten to be with her Jonas, Leah has settled into life being an unmarried woman with her family. The neighbor boy, Gideon, has renewed his interest in her but all too quickly events in her life cause even that relationship to be placed on hold indefinitely. She's made a promise to her mother, and that must come first. Meanwhile, Hannah is accepting her role as an Amish woman and joining the order, but it comes to her great sorrow that her twin sister isn't doing the same. Instead, Mary Ruth has decided to pursue her education, something that is frowned upon in the Amish community, and it causes yet another breach within the family.

Leah is still the best character, and thankfully she's the main character so we get to see quite a bit of her. She's a bit of a martyr though and just once I would like to see something positive happen to her. At least in this book though we get to see a little more of the twins and what's happening in their lives. Leah's father Abram is still his surly self though and I really can't bring myself to like him. Her sister Sadie and old beau Jonas are hardly mentioned at all in this one, although they remain a reminder of Leah's sorrow in the background.

While this one was still just moving the plot along, quite a bit happened. There was also a lot of sorrow and moving scenes in this book too, I felt myself tearing up at quite a few parts. Mostly because I was worried about Leah and her future. The time line in this book jumped around a bit too. By several years a time, so that was a little frustrating to try to keep track of how old all the characters were, but after awhile I got used to it. I do have to say that this book was just as preachy as the last one in regards to the religion and author's beliefs. I'm well aware that I'm reading a Christian fiction book, and some of that is to be expected, but I've read some authors who do it so unobtrusively that it kind of spoils me for when others just kind of lay it all out there without any thought to it.

I look forward to the next in the series. I can kind of guess where everything is heading, but I still enjoy the books anyhow.

The Sacrifice
Copyright 2004
347 pages

The Betrayal by Beverly Lewis

The Betrayal is the second book in the Abram's daughters series. If you haven't read the first book go back and start there. This is definitely the kind of series that is supposed to be read in order.

Leah is having a hard time with herself, keeping her sister Sadie's secret. Even though her Aunt knows too it weighs heavy on her heart. She has her beau Jonas to to take her mind off things and also plan the wedding. But even things with him aren't rushing along quite the way they're supposed to. Not to mention her father still would rather see her with the neighbor boy. Meanwhile, the twins are trying to figure out their lives, and Mary Ruth has been caught with her books. She wants desperately to learn, but in this family it doesn't seem to be a possibility.

Leah is about the only redeeming character in this book. She's the only one who seems to be honest and has a heart. The rest have their own agendas and can be so selfish and horrible that it's hard to believe they're real people. Sadie especially I can't stand. I know I'm supposed to feel sorry for her but I just can't. The twins, Leah's mother, and a good portion of the other characters are written kind of flat, and don't really have a great deal of time or personality in this book. And Leah's beau Jonah, well I liked him in the first book but am completely perplexed by him in this one. His decisions just do not make sense.

This plot was merely filler. Since there's five books in the series I'm almost horrified that the story is going to be stretched that long. There's just a lot of added fluff that takes away from the main plotline of Leah and her love life. And while I am eager to read the next book to find out what happens, I can't help but wish it would get there a little quicker. I do have to say that this book was considerably more preachy than the first one. I know these are considered Christian fiction since they are Amish fiction, but the use of religion was extremely heavy handed in this one. Lewis made her point and then some.

I'll keep reading of course. It's a decent story and I want to be there for the end of it. I just hope it starts to follow a more logical course.

The Betrayal
Copyright 2003
358 pages

The Covenant by Beverly Lewis

I like Beverly Lewis, she always seems to have an interesting story to tell about the Amish. Unfortunately though she does use the same formula when she creates her books, so even while you enjoy reading them, you know what's going to happen, and that detracts a little bit from the book. The Covenant is the first book in a series titled "Abrams Daughters" and as you may have guessed it, Abram's daughters are the ones who feature.

Sadie is in her wild time and is certainly taking advantage of it. She's fallen in love with an Englischer and her sister Leah can only watch and shake her head at her sisters worldly ways. Leah meanwhile is coming into her own time of courting and worries that she wont' find someone as she's been working as the "son" on the farm helping her pa with the chores outside and never really learning to be a good wife. She also has her eye on a different boy than the one her father wants her to be with. The twins have their own issues, but as they are younger, their love life is not centered on them. One wants to be a teacher, but they don't get an education past eighth grade, and the other knows that she is destined to remain Amish. All the girls pass a year discovering themselves and learning, and keeping their own secrets.

Sadie to me was the most believable character. Kids that age make mistakes and she certainly makes quite a few according to the rules of her society. And she doesn't even regret some of them, which is human. Leah however, I started out really like her, but then she had an abrupt personality change and it just didn't seem authentic. To be such a tomboy and then stop, well I suppose it's possible, but not really likely. At least her boyfriend seemed like a sweet guy. The twins we don't get to see very much so I was never able to develop a connection with them. All together the characters presented an interesting story, but if you looked hard at any one, they just were a little less than a whole character.

I thought the plot was interesting; seen many times before in Lewis' stories, but with a couple of twists in it. She has an unfortunate habit of ending the book without a satisfying conclusion in it though, so you have to read the next book. These definitely aren't stand alone reads and while I can admire a series, I think it's always good to have each book feel a bit complete, so that if you can't get a hold of the next in the series you don't have that much suspense. But I guess that's what draws the readers in and keeps them coming, so I can't fault her too much for it. The writing style of this one stays mostly with Leah but does switch to the other girls once in awhile to see things from their point of view (but still 3rd person narrative) and it can make it a little confusing sometimes to determine which sister you're with.

A pretty good start to the series, not as good as some of the others but I will pick up the next book in the series and read it. As far as Lewis goes, this is one of her more average tales. Should be interesting to see where the story leads.

The Covenant
Copyright 2002
318 pages

The Shunning by Beverly Lewis

The Shunning is the first book in a trilogy by Beverly Lewis. Make sure that you are going to read the other two books if you plan on reading this one. It isn't really built to be a standalone novel.

Katie has a hard time fitting in to her Amish lifestyle. She loves music, and fancy things, and finds it hard to put these things away from her life as she should. And she needs to learn to do so quickly, because she is about to marry the Bishop of the church, and these sins have no place in his household. But as her marriage approaches Katie starts uncovering secrets that her mother and father has been hiding, and these secrets could change her life forever.

Katie is probably the best character in this book, which is good since she is the main character. She has a feisty way about her and you really can identify with what she's going through. She's genuine and her struggles seem very real. The other characters I wasn't as taken with. Especially the majority of the men in this book. I realize that the Old Order Amish stress the importance of obedience and that men are the head of the family, but the guys just seemed too over bearing in this book. Just a little bit of light in their personalities would have been nice.

I do think this book really does a great job of explaining the Amish way of life. Having known several Amish (but never having been one myself) it seems fairly accurate, and since different sects have different practices, it may exactly fit an Amish community that exists. Some of their ways seem harsh, like the Shunning the book takes its name after, but it's a different way of life. Because this is an Amish fiction book, religion plays heavily into the writing but it's not really preachy. Rather the religion that is described in this book is tough and unyielding and filled with scripture verses. The plot itself is fairly common, a young Amish woman not being content with her lot in life and wondering about the outside world. But at least with such a decent protagonist it doesn't get stale.

Definitely an interesting Amish read. And one with an ending that will make you have to pick up the next two books to see what happens. 

The Shunning
Copyright 1997
282 pages

The Secret by Beverly Lewis

I like Amish books. And I like the ones that Beverly Lewis has written (with the exception of a few). But this one, it was just average for me. It had a good plotline, but there were some things I just didn't like.

Grace Byler is a young Amish woman whose family is your typical Amish family. Or at least so she thought. Her mother has been acting strangely lately, her father is as quiet and stern as ever, and she is too busy being courted to really be concerned. But then, her mother goes missing in the middle of the night and the family is turned upside down. Grace sets out to try to figure out where her mother is gone, but everyone seems pretty close-lipped about it. Meanwhile, in a shorter side story, Heather is a young modern woman who has just found out she has cancer. With her mother having died from cancer a little over a year previously, she is scared and turns down the thought of modern medicine. Instead, she packs up for the summer and decides to live the simple life with the Amish and try to recover naturally.

I liked Heather the best of all the characters. Maybe its because I could connect better with her being modern. She had the most interesting story as well. Grace was nice, but a little too perfect. Of course she made up for her flighty mother and her stern seemingly unloving father. The other characters were good, and had distinct personalities.

The writing was nice. Obviously suspenseful as it was somewhat a mystery type of book. But it didn't feel complete. I know its part of a series (although I'm not sure what the next book is) but it didn't have any resolution what so ever. Honestly, this kind of annoyed me as there is no way you could read just this book if you want to know anything that's going to happen. She cut it off in a bad stopping point too which just furthered this feeling. Stepping aside from that, this book does have religious overtones because it is a book about the Amish. It is not very preachy though and more serves to show how the Amish live their lives.

I'll probably read the next one just because I want to find out what happens. It is certainly an interesting story and probably well worth finishing.

The Secret
Copyright 2009
362 pages

The Reckoning by Beverly Lewis

The Reckoning is the third book in Beverly Lewis' Heritage of Lancaster County series. While I loved the first book, and abhorred the second, I have mixed feelings about the third.

The story starts with Katherine becoming accustomed to life at the mansion after her biological mother's death. Just as she is settling in and getting used to things, Daniel, an old boyfriend whom she thought dead shows up on her doorstep begging forgiveness. Its a little more than Katherine can handle and she send him away.

Meanwhile, to fill her time she dates the charming painter Justin and volunteers at a hospice where she makes friends with a young boy dying from terminal cancer. She also hosts a quilting class in her home with several friends and also some newer friends, local amish people.

Something is missing from her life though and as the ban on her shunning is partially lifted she returns home to talk with her family and friends and somewhat misses the Amish even though she has found a new religious relationship.

The ending came as quite a surprise for me. While I had a suspicion that it might end up the way it did, I never imagined the destination to be what it was. It was as if Lewis changed her mind literally between paragraphs to a different ending and followed through with it.

While I was pleased to see the development of characters improve in this novel over the second, I have some reservations about the novel. There seemed to be a quite open agenda throughout the entire novel, a theme if you will. While I realize Beverly Lewis' writings are technically classified as Christian fiction, this book was so blatant about its proselytizing it was almost off-putting. While I love reading about the Amish and their culture, the constant references to being saved by Jesus in the Mennonite and regular Christian churches Catherine attends was heavy handed.

Lewis still offers a lot of detail in her writing and a nice history of the Amish. While most of it is written in the 3rd person, the prologue and epilogue are written through Katherine's eyes. It brings a nice change and divide in the novel.

The Reckoning
Published in 1998
281 pages

The Confession by Beverly Lewis

I greatly enjoyed the first of this series "The Shunning" by Beverly Lewis. However, this one failed to grab me. It seemed like it was a very rushed novel, yet, despite this, not much was done in it.

It takes off where the last book left it, Katie (now known as Katherine) is staying with some Mennonite relatives and is searching for her birth mother. She finds what she thinks is her mother only to encounter a rough time with her husband, Dylan Bennet who is waiting for his wife to die so he can inherit her wealth.

Katherine leaves her relatives and goes to her mother's house, only to find that another Katie Lapp has appeared there and has been welcomed as her mothers daughter. While she was debating going, Dylan had hired an actress to fool his wife by thinking the girl was her heir.

Katherine, unsure of what to do, takes a position as a maid at the household and hopes to get close to her mother. Being that her mother plans on announcing the inheritance at Christmas, the next day, time seems to run short for her. Especially when Dylan finds out who she really is.

It sounded like a promising sequel when I read the summary of it. However, the reality wasn't as promising. Lewis hurries the story along but its so boring and inconceivable (who would let a deception like that take place knowingly?) that I didn't have much patience with it and was glad it didn't take long to read.

While Lewis' writing is always pleasant and authentic, it just didn't make up for the story line.

The Confession
Copyright 2008
288 pages