The Angel of Forest Hill

Words.

They can cut to the core of who you are, even if they aren't true. We tend to focus on the negative ones instead of the positive things people say about us. If we don't stop it, it will force us to put up a wall between ourselves and the people we love in an effort to not be hurt by those who love us the most.

At least that was what Rose Kurtz believed. When the offer to leave her home and tend to an Amish family in a small community who needed someone to care for their children, Rose was offered up. Her community and family never dreamed it would be forever, but for Rose it was a chance to make a name for herself against what her mother and father said to her. That she never was good enough for anything including finding love. She was better off tending to her parents farm and household, caring for her 11 brothers than finding love anywhere else.

So when the opportunity came, Rose went. She never imagined she would walk into a home on the night the wife and mother died after childbirth. Even after a few weeks she imagined going home to a life she didn't want to be a part of. Here at least in the Dienner home, caring for Joel, and his three children, she felt she had a sense of purpose. However when Joel and his father came up with a plan for Rose to remain in the home, she never imagined marriage as a contractual agreement to care for his children would be the one she dreamed of. At least it prevented her from having to go home to a life she hated, and here she could raise and care for Joel's children as if she was their mother.

But when another widow shows us and garners Joel's attention, Rose believes that the feelings she had been developing for him is just another sign she isn't supposed to have a future. She wonders if there is hope for her at all and if love is just something for others but not for her. After 4 years of marriage with Joel, what did she expect? That he would honestly develop feelings for her?

I received The Angel of Forest Hill by Cindy Woodsmall compliments of WaterBrook Multnomah Publishers. This is such a wonderful feel good Christmasy novel that reminds us all what it means to feel loved by those in our lives. I could relate to Rose's character the most because I dealt with the same self esteem issues growing up, wondering if anyone could love me. The best part is how Joel and Rose work on building their ability to communicate around the walls they put up to protect themselves and realize while they were keeping people from hurting them, they were also keeping themselves from the love they needed and deserved. There are also some amazing recipes tucked in the conclusion of this wonderful novel and well worth a 5 out of 5 stars in my opinion.

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The Angel of Forest Hill by Cindy Woodsmall

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