Sometimes life presents us with choices, challenging ones, both which can seem the right thing to do, and yet it can be hard to decide which path to follow.
This is what Ellen Lambright, an Illinois Amish woman, is faced with after having gone to visit her longtime friend who moved to Hawaii. Her friend is thankful for her company, helping her with her small farm and other personal challenges, and Ellen has even met someone who she finds a strong attraction to, even though his values differ from hers. The duties and responsibilities of her life in Illinois versus remaining in Hawaii to help her friend and possibly find love.
Engaging already, right?
Wanda E. Brunstetter is a Christian fiction bestselling novelist who specifically crafts Amish-related stories. It does certainly make for interesting and different storytelling, given that this is not the normal lifestyle for most of us! And her stories have grabbed countless readers, religious or not, as they get to know her characters. Perhaps why is because she taps into universally human stories, and her prose keeps us following along with the characters.
Lucky for us, Wanda E. Brunstetter (along with her daughter, Jean Brunstetter) decided to bring together her Amish novel series into the setting of the Hawaiian Islands!
The first of the series was titled “The Hawaiian Quilt,” which garnered much acclaim. Following up on this story is this recently released book, “The Hawaiian Discovery.”
One of the great things about this novel is that you can join in the story and not feel like you are suddenly in the middle of things. This is a continuing saga, but “The Hawaiian Discovery” is its own tale.
Even if you never read Christian fiction, or an Amish novel, we bet you will find this one easily enjoyable!
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Cynthia Lynn and Ed Justus are owners of The Bookstore in Hanapepe.
