Gabriel's Bride

Choices, choices? But which is the right path to take? If only she had a definitive answer. Will God answer her prayers? Rachel Yoder is still dealing with the death of her only family member, her Aunt Katherine, she is now faced with finding a new place to live. Unlike most Amish families, her Aunt Katherine took out a reverse mortgage on her home and land. Now that she has passed away, the bank now owns the property and despite all of Rachel's pleas to make the payments, she has no other choice but to find somewhere else to move.

It seems her only option is moving to Ohio where her Katherine had some cousins that could definitely use her help raising eleven children. His wife has been ill lately and could use the help around the house if she is willing to come. But what other choice does she have? She can only pray that they might be willing to take her goats as well since she has been making a living with their milk and cheese. But Ohio? So far away.

"There is no one here that would take her in. No one who would help without needing something in return. For her to care for their children or cook their meals. No one who would understand how important it was for her to keep her goats and make her cheese. To understand how important it was for her to make her own way. Once again she was adrift. Alone in the world. Except this time she was twenty-six, not ten. This time she was an adult, though she still felt like a frightened child who had come here all the way from Florida to live with a maiden aunt after her parents had died in that awful accident.

"The district will have to choose a new deacon, and I'm putting your name in."

A dozen conflicting emotions swamped Gabriel. He wasn't worthy. He was a widower. He didn't need the responsibility while he was alone now and struggling to raise his children.

"I'll say that I'd rather you didn't." Being a deacon, or any of the chosen leaders, was no easy job. Aside from feeling like he wasn't worthy, he simply wasn't up for it.

""It'll do you good son."

Gabriel took a deep breath, slowing the mad thump of his heart. Just because his name went into the lot wouldn't mean he would be chosen. Only God knew the outcome.

"Course'n it'd be better if you were married."

He had no intention of getting married again. He'd been so blessed before, marrying a woman he loved with all his heart. Then the Lord had seen fit to take her home at the same time He gave them Samuel. Gabriel would never love like that again. Having experienced it once before, it wasn't fair to ask another to enter into a relationship that was not was wondrous. Oh, he knew that he'd had something so special with Rebecca, he couldn't settle for less. He's make do in his life, knowing that once he had held the world in his arms.

But the little voice whispered in his head. He no longer had a woman partner, someone - anyone - to help with chores and teaching the boys the ways of women. Katie Rose was getting ready to get married and Mary Elizabeth was gone, her love of animals and desire for an education pushing her into the Englisch world. His mother was doing well after her cancer treatments a couple of years back, but she was not as strong as she used to be. Gideon's Annie was going to deliver their first child soon. No, all the women in his life were busy living their own lives. Oh, they would help if he asked, but he didnt' feel that was fair, nor was getting married again. He'd just have to manage.

"I don't think - "

Esh shushed him with a wave of one hand. "You just be open to whatever God has in store for you."

There was no way to argue with that. "Jah, Deacon. I will at that." (Excerpt pg 13-14).

Welcome to Gabriel's Bride, the third book by Amy Lillard in her Clover Ridge series that has completed captivated my heart and soul! Both Rachel and Gabriel have pressing matters in which a marriage of convenience would work well for, but even though it seems like the perfect arrangement, neither of them are prepared for what lies in store for them. For Rachel she has to contend with trying to find a way to cook and clean when she appears to not be able to manage anything without burning or scorching something in the process. Gabriel has to battle the feelings that he finds stirring in his heart now that Rachel is living under his roof even though they have agreed to keep things platonic between them. It's the perfect recipe for romance and a whole lot of laughs along the way.

I received Gabriel's Bride by Amy Lillard compliments of B and H Publishing Group and Christian Fiction Blog Alliance Book Tours for my honest review. I did not receive any monetary compensation for a favorable review and the opinions are strictly my own unless otherwise noted. I have been completely charmed by this series because Amy creates a delightful cast of characters that keeps you coming back for more just to know what is happening in their lives. It's hard to believe that your simply reading a great novel and these characters only exist on the pages of this book and not in real life. They aren't perfect but have their own set of flaws much like we all do. I believe that is what makes readers sit up and take notice.  Congratulations Amy Lillard, you've hooked me and created such a craving for this series, I am officially addicted. I easily give this one a 5 out of 5 stars in my opinion and it even includes a discussion guide that is great for book clubs!

For more information about Gabriel's Bride, Amy Lillard or where you can pick up a copy of this novel today, please click on the links below:

Gabriel's Bride by Amy Lillard

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To read more reviews on Gabriel's Bride, please visit Christian Fiction Blog Alliance Book Tours. 

Katie's Choice

Highly recommend seems hardly the word to describe my feelings after reading Katie's Choice by author Amy Lillard. This is one of the best books I've read this year and desperately needs to be added to anyone who loves Amish fiction! I would most definitely add this to your summer reading list even if your simply a fan of romance stories and have never read an Amish fiction novel before.

Picking up on the heels of its predecessor, Saving Gideon, the reader is once more back at the Fisher family farm in Oklahoma. This time it's to help with the financial worries facing the community in dealing with Ruth Fisher's cancer treatments. Asking an English reporter, Zane Carson to spend three months in their home learning about what the Amish life is all about, they are hoping since the English are so interested in the Amish way of life, this might be a way to help contribute to the ongoing cancer treatments Ruth has been facing since learning she has breast cancer.

Zane Carson is less than thrilled with his latest assignment in Oklahoma preferring to be in the midst of some war in a third world country at war. Yet still recovering from his last story in which he was shot, his editor Jo, promises if he can cover this story for three months, she send his to Juarez, Mexico to deal with the ongoing drug cartels. For Zane it's a no brainer to do this. Until he discovers that living life as an Amish person is a whole lot more challenging than he ever dreamed. Not just dealing with no electricity, but men are working from before sun up to sun down, plowing, planting and caring for the farm. Something this Chicago based city boy is about to get a rude awakening on. What he didn't plan on, was falling for Katie Rose Fisher, a plain and simple Amish girl dealing with her own heartbreak.

Katie Rose Fisher has been waiting for the man she dreamed of marrying, Samuel Beachy. She's been waiting for six long years and has resolved her fate in life, that Samuel will never return from living among the English and instead cares for her brother and his only child, while teaching the children in the one room Amish schoolhouse. She truly believed that after Samuel experienced his time during rumspringa, that he would return to the church and they would marry, but Samuel didn't want to return to the church. He wanted to remain English instead and never looked back. Katie now believes it's long past time to find someone else to marry and it's certainly not going to be the man moving into her parents home, no matter how good looking he is.

I received Katie's Choice by Amy Lillard compliments of B and H Publishing Group and Christian Fiction Blog Alliance for my honest review and received no monetary compensation for a favorable one. Now I can say I thought Saving Gideon was my favorite but after reading Katie's Choice, I am stuck in the middle. Amy Lillard seamlessly weaves two beautiful genre's together in writing her latest novels in the Clover Ridge Series, Amish Fiction and Contemporary Romance, and for me and my book lover's heart, I am in LOVE! Hands down this one is a 5 out of 5 stars, which in my world means it's a permanent keeper on my library shelf, one that I will read more than once and will talk about long after reading it. I especially loved the relationship that Zane develops with John Paul, Katie's brother who himself is in the midst of rumspringa and the lessons they teach one another about growing up and practical jokes. There's even a discussion guide included to make this one a great novel for a book club along with a glossary of Amish words you'll found throughout the novel. Trust me, get this one! While you're at it, better pick up Saving Gideon too because it shares the story of Annie whom you will meet in this one!

For more information about Katie's Choice, Amy Lillard or where to pick up a copy of this novel, please click on the links below:

Katie's Choice by Amy Lillard

You can also follow Amy Lillard on Facebook to stay up to date on all her latest novels.

To read more reviews on Katie's Choice on the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance Book Tour, please click here. 

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: B&H Books (May 1, 2013)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1433677539
• ISBN-13: 978-1433677533
• Product Dimensions: 5.4 x 0.9 x 8.3 inches 

Available in paperback and eBook formats wherever fine books are sold!

Saving Gideon

"The rain turned slowly into snow. The change happened so gradually that Avery Ann Hampton hardly noticed the slushy drops had built up on the blades of her windshield wipers.

Great. Just great.

As if being in this backwoods part of Oklahoma weren't enough. First the rain...and now she had to deal with snow.

And slick roads.

And...heartbreak.

She should have stayed in Dallas, but no. Instead, she had wanted to surprise her fiance' by showing up in the Sooner State where he was scoping out land for on-location shoots. She would surprise him and tell him that he had won. She'd caved. He begged her to elope to Vegas with him, but she had been holding out for the big wedding: long, white dress; horse-drawn carriage; and doves released at sunset.

She parked next to her Mercedes - loaned to Jack for this trip - sitting off to one side. She stepped up to the unlocked motel room door, pulled it open, and saw...

Enough.

Enough to know that Jack had used her. Enough to know that he had never really loved her, and enough to know that he - like everyone else - had used her for her father's money.

As she continued to drive listening to the turn by turn directions from her GPS, she noticed the weather was getting worse and it was becoming more difficult to see. As she jumped at the sound of the GPS voice, and pulled the wheel to the left, she found herself hydroplaning in the mud and slush and flipping over and over again until she passed out while her car horn blared through the snowy night.

Gideon Fisher bolted upright. He body trembled. Sweat poured off him. He'd had the dream again. How many times in the last eleven months had he had that dream? More than he could count. More than he wanted to count. Even with his eyes open, he saw them still, his family, Jaime and Miriam. Every night he dreamed he could save them. Every night he failed.

As he shuffled into the kitchen and stoked the fire, a far-off wail captured his attention. It sounded like...well, it sounded like a car horn. He shook his head. His nearest Englisch neighbor was a two-mile walk through the pasture. They were good neighbors. They never gave him strange looks or tried to take his picture. And they never blew their car horn at this time of night.

Someone was in trouble. No one made a racket like that in the middle of the night without there being something wrong. He headed off down the road. Probably some irresponsible Englisch teenager with more money than sense. Most likely took the corner too fast for the weather and veered off the road. Gideon shook those thoughts aside as he drew nearer to the car. The clear light from the lantern flashed off the shiny silver paint - and even shinier chrome of a crumpled-up fender. He was no expert on Englisch automobiles, but he could tell this one was very costly and very damaged.

He wasn't sure what he would find, but it surely wasn't this wisp of a woman slumped over the steering wheel, her forehead pressed against the horn. As Gideon gently removed her from the car, and totted her small dog in his bag, he carried them both back to his house before they both froze to death in this weather. He could only hope she wasn't hurt internally, and that by moving her he hadn't sealed her death. He couldn't stand another life on his conscience." (pg 2-7).

In the debut novel from Amy Lillard, Saving Gideon, takes the reader into the lives of Avery Hampton, a wealthy Dallas socialite whose been struggling with finding a man who can truly love her despite her father's wealth, and that of Gideon Fisher, an Oklahoma Amish farmer whose been looking to find a way to restore his faith in people once again and begin to live a life without the loneliness that has been plaguing him. As feelings between the two grow, can they overcome their sheer differences, or will those differences pull them apart.

I received Saving Gideon by Amy Lillard compliments of B & H Publishing Group and Christian Fiction Blog Alliance book tours for my honest review. I simply love it when an author combines some of my favorite genres together to make a perfect blend of something new, in this case, Amish romance and contemporary romance. In fact, I often wondered what might happen if an English woman were to fall in love with an Amish man. How would they work through their differences? Would they be able to find common ground and still keep part of their former lives, or would it require a complete sacrifice on the behalf of one or the other? To find out what happens, you'll have to pick up a copy of Saving Gideon for yourself. I rate this one a 4.5 out of 5 stars.

For more information about Saving Gideon, Amy Lillard or where to pick up a copy of this novel today, please click on the links below:

Saving Gideon by Amy Lillard

You can also find Amy Lillard on Facebook and stay up on the very latest from her.

To read more reviews on Saving Gideon from the Christian Fiction Alliance Blog Tour, click here.