A Simple Prayer by Amy Clipston Book Review

 

Life has taken much from Linda Zook. Now she dares to hope for a chance at love and a new beginning.

Linda Zook, 32, works part-time at the Lancaster Grand Hotel. As the sole survivor of a buggy accident that left her orphaned at age four, she was raised by her unwilling Uncle Reuben. Linda longs to be worthy of someone, but the life-long effects of her injuries and her upbringing under the care of her embittered uncle have destroyed her self-worth. 

Aaron Ebersol, 32, left the Amish community 17 years ago when he could no longer bear the restrictions or the constant tension with his father. He'd written too many unanswered letters to his mother and found himself incapable of putting down any roots in his new home in Missouri. Success in work could not replace the family that denied Aaron, even after all of these years. 

Aaron hastily returns to the Amish community of Paradise, PA, after receiving word of his mother's stroke. Hesitant to get too close to the family he was once a part of, he decides to stay at the Heart of Paradise Bed & Breakfast. He soon encounters Linda, working there part-time, and they begin to develop a friendship.

Aaron's return allows him to reconnect with his family as he jumps into home improvement projects, hoping to make his parents' house more accessible to his handicapped mother. But before long, he is enraged to learn that his brother, Solomon, had hidden all of Aaron's letters to their mother. .

Linda and Aaron must each learn to forgive the family members who have deceived and forsaken them. And Aaron must also show Linda that she is worthy of his love.

About the Author

Amy Clipston is the award-winning and best-selling author of the Kauffman Amish Bakery series. Her novels have hit multiple best-seller lists including CBD, CBA, and ECPA. Amy holds a degree in communication from Virginia Wesleyan College and works full-time for the City of Charlotte, NC. Amy lives in North Carolina with her husband, two sons, and four spoiled rotten cats.

My Thoughts:

This is the fourth and final book in the Hearts of Lancaster Grand Hotel series. It has been a delightful series that I am sad to see it coming to an end. This can be read without reading the previous books as it stands alone. You will want to read the other three as they are all wonderful books. Amy does a wonderful job getting you up to date with the characters and does a family tree to remember who goes with whom in the families. As many books as I read I find this helpful to keep my series straight.

I have read a lot of Amish fiction as I know that it will be a clean book with no surprises. Some authors just do it right and know how to keep you coming back to read more. Amy Clipston is one of those authors who write a good story.

The characters have a lot of debt to them and she just makes the characters real with real life issues that we can relate to.

The book starts out with Aaron Ebersol a sort of prodigal son and him coming back home to see his mom who recently suffered a stroke. Aaron is actually my favorite character. He has a big heart and a lot of personality. He also carries a lot of guilt and not forgiving himself. His relationship with his brother is intense at times and you can feel it while reading this story.

Then there is Linda Zook who is an orphaned raised by her uncle. Her uncle really didn’t want her. Her life is illustrated so clearly and the sadness and just brokenness within the pages of this story. Linda is not going to let her situation bring her down. Her faith just shines throughout the book.

Then Aaron and Linda rekindle their friendship after a somewhat rocky start.

I don’t want to give away too much of the story. I think you will be pleased and have a hard time putting the book down.

This is the final book in this series but, I look forward the next series from Amy Clipston.  

Disclosure of Material Connection: BookLook Bloggers-Thomas Nelson Publishers provided me this Book free as part of their book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have or my own.