A Patchwork Past by Leslie Gould Book Review

 

"Few are pleased Sophie Deiner has returned to her Amish community, but a sudden illness leaves her no choice. She befriends a group of migrant workers but is appalled by their living conditions. She soon finds her advocacy for change opposed by her ex, the farm foreman, and that her efforts only make things worse. Has she chosen a fight she can't win?"

 

My Thoughts:

 

This is the second book in the “Plain Patterns” series. I did not read the first book in the series. I was able to follow this story easily as a stand-alone book.

 

The main character is Sophie Deiner who is returning to the Amish community she left. She has been battling lupus and needs more help. Her family doesn’t trust her and the relationships are a bit of a mess.

 

Sophie ends up helping Jane who is an older Amish woman who needs help. During the process, Jane tells her a story about Mary, who traveled with her father to Chicago, and the Great Chicago Fire of 1871 breaks out. The story goes back and forth telling this story and the story of Sophie. This story tugs at Sophie’s heart and the migrant workers that she has befriended. She is a bit appalled at the living conditions of the migrant workers and begins to fight for their rights.

 

I enjoyed the historical history of the Great Chicago Fire of 1871 it was an interesting aspect of the story. The characters are well developed for the most part. A few gaps for me but, that could have been because I didn’t read the first book in the series.

 

The story felt like I was strolling the current events of today’s media. Just not what I wanted was a book that felt like a political story in today's events. I don’t think that was the author's intent to make a political statement about immigration. It just wasn’t what I expected when reading my favorite genre. I don’t know maybe it just felt a bit too raw with everything going on in the world and not something I wanted to deal with in my leisurely reading time.

 

Overall not a bad story, it just wasn’t one of my favorites from this author.

 

Disclosure: I received this complimentary product through Bethany House Publishers in exchange for my honest thoughts.