The Face of Heaven by Murray Pura

thefaceofheaven The Face of Heaven (Snapshots in History)

1861 – Pennsylvania

In April 1861, Lyndel Keim discovers two runaway slaves in her family’s barn. When the men are captured and returned to their plantation, Lyndel and her young Amish beau, Nathaniel King, find themselves at odds with their pacifist Amish colony.

Nathaniel enlists in what will become the famous Iron Brigade of the Union Army. Lyndel enters the fray as a Brigade nurse on the battlefield, sticking close to Nathaniel as they both witness the horrors of war–including the battles at Chancellorsville, Fredericksburg, and Antietam. Despite the pair’s heroic sacrifices, the Amish only see that Lyndel and Nathaniel have become part of the war effort, and both are banished.

And a severe battle wound at Gettysburg threatens Nathaniel’s life. Lyndel must call upon her faith in God to endure the savage conflict and to face its painful aftermath, not knowing if Nathaniel is alive or dead. Will the momentous battle change her life forever, just as it will change the course of the war and the history of her country?

The Gifted by Ann Gabhart

1849 – Kentucky

By 1849, Jessamine Brady has been in the Shaker Village for half her life, but in spite of how she loves her sisters there, she struggles to conform to the strict rules. Instead she entertains dreams of the world outside. When Tristan Cooper seems to step out of those dreams to entice her into the forbidden realm beyond the Shaker Village, her life turns upside down. Will Jessamine be able to survive the storms of the world? Or will she retreat back to the peace of Harmony Hill?

The thousands of loyal fans of Gabhart’s Shaker novels will love this entrancing story of learning to trust the gifts God gives us and let him guide us through life.

Arms of Love by Kelly Long

armsoflove Arms of Love (Amish Beginnings)

1777 – Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania in the late 18^th century, once called William Penn’s Woods, was an assortment of different faiths living together for the first time in American history. Included in this tapestry was a small and struggling population called Amish.
Surrounding this peaceful people were unavoidable threats: both Patriots and the British were pillaging land and goods for the sake of the war, young Amishmen were leaving the faith to take up arms and defend freedom. A simple walk in the untamed forests could result in death, if not from bullet or arrow, then from an encounter with a wild animal.
Amid this time of tumult, Adam Wyse is fighting a personal battle. To possibly join the war efforts and leave his faith, which would mean walking away from the only woman he’s ever loved: Lena Yoder. But for that love he’s made a promise that may keep them apart permanently.
When Adam withdraws from Lena, she’s forced to turn to his brother, Isaac, for support. Must Lena deny her heart’s desire to save Adam’s soul? And will life in this feral and primitive New World be more than this peace-keeping people can withstand?

The Messenger by Siri Mitchell

1778 – Pennsylvania

Hannah Sunderland felt content in her embrace of the Quaker faith

…until her twin brother ran off and joined the army and ended up captured and in jail. Suddenly Hannah’s world turns on end. She longs to bring her brother some measure of comfort in the squalid, frigid prison where he remains. But the Quakers believe they are not to take sides, not to take up arms. Can she sit by and do nothing while he suffers?

Jeremiah Jones has an enormous task before him. Responsibility for a spy ring is now his, and he desperately needs access to the men in prison, whom they are seeking to free. A possible solution is to garner a pass for Hannah. But while she is fine to the eye, she holds only disdain for him–and agreeing would mean disobeying those she loves and abandoning a bedrock of her faith.

The Heart’s Frontier by Lori Copeland and Virginia Smith

The Heart’s Frontier (The Amish of Apple Grove)

1881 – Kansas

An exciting new Amish-meets-Wild West adventure from bestselling authors Lori Copeland and Virginia Smith weaves an entertaining and romantic tale for devoted fans and new readers.

On a trip to visit relatives, Emma Switzer’s Amish family is robbed of all their possessions, leaving them destitute and stranded on the prairie. Walking into the nearest trading settlement, they pray to the Lord for someone to help. When a man lands in the dust at her feet, Emma looks down at him and thinks, The Lord might have cleaned him up first.
Luke Carson, heading up his first cattle drive, is not planning on being the answer to anyone’s prayers, but it looks as though God has something else in mind for this kind and gentle man. Plain and rugged—do the two mix? And what happens when a dedicated Amish woman and a stubborn trail boss prove to be each other’s match?

The Wings of Morning by Murray Pura

thewingsofmorning The Wings of Morning (Snapshots in History)

1917 -Pennsylvania

Jude Whetstone and Lyyndaya Kurtz, whose families are converts to the Amish faith, are slowly falling in love. Jude has also fallen in love with flying that new-fangled invention, the aeroplane.

The Amish communities have rejected the telephone and have forbidden motorcar ownership but not yet electricity or aeroplanes.

Though exempt from military service on religious grounds, Jude is manipulated by unscrupulous army officers into enlisting in order to protect several Amish men. No one in the community understands Jude’s sudden enlistment and so he is shunned. Lyyndaya’s despair deepens at the reports that Jude has been shot down in France. In her grief, she turns to nursing Spanish flu victims in Philadelphia. After many months of caring for stricken soldiers, Lyyndaya is stunned when an emaciated Jude turns up in her ward.

Lyyndaya’s joy at receiving Jude back from the dead is quickly diminished when the Amish leadership insist the shunning remain in force. How then can they marry without the blessing of their families? Will happiness elude them forever?

The Captive Heart by Dale Cramer

The Captive Heart

1920 – Mexico

Bandit troubles intensify as Caleb Bender’s family tries to settle into their new life in 1920s Paradise Valley. When El Pantera kidnaps Rachel and leaves her brother, Aaron, for dead, Jake Weaver and the Mexican native Domingo pursue the bandit leader to his mountain stronghold in a hopeless rescue attempt. Jake and Domingo manage to escape with Rachel, with the bandits hot on their trail. In a desperate attempt to avoid recapture, Domingo puts himself squarely in harm’s way, giving Jake and Rachel time to get away. This is not the quiet life Caleb Bender envisioned when he led his family out of Ohio. What is a father to make of his daughter’s obvious affection for a man outside the fold? And how will a pacifist Amishman like Caleb respond to the events that threaten his family and their way of life?

A Bride’s Flight from Virginia City, Montana by Murray Pura

abridesflightfromvirginiacitymontana A Bride’s Flight from Virginia City, Montana

1875 – Several States

Join the chase as an unlikely foursome, threatened by a ruthless gang of ne’er-do-wells, strives to reach safety. Montana ranchers Zephaniah Parker and Charlotte Spence are determined to get two Amish children, who witnessed their family’s massacre, back home to relatives in Pennsylvania. Will they succumb to the plans of blood-thirsty outlaws or reach Bird-in-Hand alive? Along the treacherous trek, Charlotte and Zephaniah’s friendship blossoms into love. Will wedding bells soon chime, or will Charlotte’s startling admission forever silence potential peals? How will God redeem outlaws and law-abiding citizens in this epic Old West adventure?

Family Blessings by Anna Schmidt

Family Blessings

1932 – Florida

Her four stepchildren are thrilled when they learn an ice cream shop will be opening in their small Amish community. But widow Pleasant Obermeier isn’t so pleased. Spending time with handsome shop owner Jeremiah Troyer is too much for a woman who’s only ever been wounded by love. And now he wants to use her baking skills in his shop? Out of the question!
A harsh childhood left Jeremiah convinced that family life wasn’t for him. Yet something about the Obermeiers moves his heart. If he can win Pleasant’s trust and learn to trust himself, then he may gain the ultimate blessing—a lifetime of love.

The Christmas Bride by Melanie Dobson

The Christmas Bride (formerly titled Love Finds You in Nazareth, Pennsylvania)

1755 – Pennsylvania

They were strangers when they married, but they both long for love. Christian and Susanna had never met when they were chosen by lot to marry in a Moravian community in Germany. But in 1755, they traveled with a dozen other newly married couples to
Nazareth, Pennsylvania, to help establish a Moravian borough and share their faith with the
surrounding Indian nations. Susanna’s heart warms toward her new husband even after she learns that he had wished to marry another woman in Germany. As war rages between
the British and French Indians and their young marriage faces hardship, Susanna wonders if
Christian will ever return her love.

The Blessed by Anne Gabhart

1844 – Kentucky

It is 1844 and Lacey Bishop’s life is a tangled mess. Estranged from her own family, at age 16 she went to work for a preacher and his wife. When his wife died, the preacher convinced Lacey that the only decent thing to do was to marry him. That way she could continue to act as mother to the little girl who was left on his doorstop. But Lacey never expected he would decide to take them all off to a Shaker village. There she’s still married but living in a community that believes marriage is a sin. And to make matters worse, she finds herself drawn to Isaac Kingston, a man who came to the Shakers after his young bride died. But of course any notion of love between them is only a forbidden dream. How will Lacey ever find true happiness?

The Society by Melanie Dobson

1863 – Iowa

As the rest of the nation is embroiled in Civil War, the Amana Colonies in Iowa remain peaceful. Amalie Wiese arrives in the newly built village of Amana in 1863 only to find that her betrothed, Friedrich, has left to fight with the Union Army. She is determined to build her communal kitchen in the midst of the turbulence and hopes that working alongside Friedrich’s best friend will provide some comfort, but Matthias is abrupt and cold. Months pass before Amalie realizes that Matthias has loved her since childhood and will not betray Friedrich’s friendship. When Matthias leaves for the battlefront to deliver supplies, war wages in Amalie’s shattered life. Will she ever recover the broken pieces of her heart?

Legacy of Love is a series of historical romance novels based on the courageous people and significant events that wove together the rich tapestry of America’s freedom and faith. The print version of The Society is available online under its original title of Love Finds You in Amana, Iowa.

A Bond Never Broken by Judith Miller

A Bond Never Broken

1917 – Iowa

For many years, Ilsa Redlich has helped her parents run a hotel in South Amana, but as the United States enters the Great War, she can feel her world changing. The residents of the towns surrounding the Amana Colonies used to be accepting of their quiet, peaceful neighbors, but with anti-German sentiment running high, the Amana villages are now plagued by vandalism, threats, and insults. Things get even worse when Ilsa finds out her family won’t be allowed to speak German in public–and that Garon, the childhood friend she’s long been smitten with, has decided to join the army.

Jutta Schmidt is shocked when several members of the Council of National Defense show up on her family’s doorstep. Sure, the Schmidts once lived in the Amana Colonies, but that was years ago. She’s even more surprised when the council demands that she travel to Amana and report back on any un-American activities. Not daring to disobey the government agents, Jutta takes a job at the South Amana hotel, befriends the daughter of the owners, and begins to eavesdrop every chance she gets.

When Jutta hears Ilsa making antiwar remarks and observes Garon assisting a suspicious outsider, she is torn at the prospect of betraying her new friends. But what choice does she have? And when Garon is accused of something far worse than Jutta could imagine, can the Amana community come to his aid in time?

Paradise Valley by Dale Cramer

Paradise Valley (The Daughters of Caleb Bender)

1922 – Ohio to Mexico

An Amish settlement in Ohio has run afoul of a law requiring their children to attend public school. Caleb Bender and his neighbors are arrested for neglect, with the state ordering the children be placed in an institution. Among them are Caleb’s teenage daughter, Rachel, and the boy she has her eye on, Jake Weaver. Romance blooms between the two when Rachel helps Jake escape the children’s home.

Searching for a place to relocate his family where no such laws apply, Caleb learns there’s inexpensive land for sale in Mexico, a place called Paradise Valley. Despite rumors of instability in the wake of the Mexican revolution, the Amish community decides this is their answer. And since it was Caleb’s idea, he and his family will be the pioneers. They will send for the others once he’s established a foothold and assessed the situation.

Caleb’s daughters are thrown into turmoil. Rachel doesn’t want to leave Jake. Her sister, Emma, who has been courting Levi Mullet, fears her dreams of marriage will be dashed. Miriam has never had a beau and is acutely aware there will be no prospects in Mexico.

Once there, they meet Domingo, a young man and guide who takes a liking to Miriam, something her father would never approve. While Paradise Valley is everything they’d hoped it would be, it isn’t long before the bandits start giving them trouble, threatening to upset the fledgling Amish settlement, even putting their lives in danger. Thankfully no one has been harmed so far, anyway.

The Silent Order by Melanie Dobson

The Silent Order

1929 – Ohio

Rural America – 1928. After the murder of his partner, Detective Rollin Wells hides away in an Amish home near Sugarcreek, Ohio, to find out who in the police force is collaborating with Cleveland’s notorious mob. While Rollin searches for answers to his partner’s death,
he befriends an elusive young Amish woman named Katie and her young son. As Rollin learns about Katie’s past, he’s shocked at the secret Katie is hiding – a secret that has
haunted Rollin for eight years.

The Preacher’s Bride by Jody Hedlund

The Preacher’s Bride

1659 – England

In 1650s England, a young Puritan maiden is on a mission to save the baby of her newly widowed preacher–whether her assistance is wanted or not. Always ready to help those in need, Elizabeth ignores John’s protests of her aid. She’s even willing to risk her lone marriage prospect to help the little family.

Yet Elizabeth’s new role as nanny takes a dangerous turn when John’s boldness from the pulpit makes him a target of political and religious leaders. As the preacher’s enemies become desperate to silence him, they draw Elizabeth into a deadly web of deception. Finding herself in more danger than she ever bargained for, she’s more determined than ever to save the child–and man–she’s come to love.

More Than Words by Judith Miller

More Than Words (Daughters of Amana, Book 2)

1885 – Iowa

Gretchen Kohler is an Amana storekeeper’s daughter with a secret passion for writing. But artistic pursuits are frowned upon in her conservative Amana village, so she confines her poems and stories to her journals, letting only close friends read them. When a young reporter comes into her store, she believes she’s found a kindred spirit. She shares a few of her stories with him–only to have her trust betrayed in the worst of ways, resulting in trouble for her entire community. The scandal is made even worse by the fact that gypsies have camped nearby and seem to be preying upon the Amanans’ compassionate, pacifist nature. Will Gretchen lose her job, her reputation, and the love of her childhood beau all because of one bad decision?

The Seeker by Anne Gabhart

1861 – Kentucky

Charlotte Vance is a young woman who knows what she wants. But when the man she planned to marry joins the Shakers–a religious group that does not marry–she is left dumbfounded. And when her father brings home a new wife who is young enough to be Charlotte’s sister, it is more than she can bear. With the country–and her own household–on the brink of civil war, this pampered gentlewoman hatches a plan to avoid her new stepmother and win back her man by joining the Shaker community at Harmony Hill. Little does she know that this decision will lead her down a road toward unforeseen peace–and a very unexpected love. Ann H. Gabhart brings alive the strikingly different worlds of the Southern gentry, the simple Shakers, and the ravages of war to weave a touching story of love, freedom, and forgiveness that sticks with readers long after they have turned the last page.

Love Finds You in Homestead, Iowa by Melanie Dobson

Love Finds You in Homestead, Iowa

1894 – Iowa

Times are hard in 1894. Desperate for work, former banker Jacob Hirsch rides the rails west from Chicago with his four-year-old daughter, Cassie. When a life-threatening illness strands the pair in Homestead, Iowa, the local Amana villagers welcome the father and daughter into their peaceful society. Liesel, a young Amana woman, nurses Cassie back to health, and the Homestead elders offer Jacob work. But Jacob’s growing interest in Liesel complicates his position in the Amanas. Will he fight to stay in the only place that feels like home, even if it means giving up the woman he loves? Or will Liesel leave her beloved community to face the outside world with Jacob and Cassie at her side?

Somewhere to Belong by Judith Miller

somewheretobelong Somewhere to Belong (Daughters of Amana, Book 1)

1877 – Iowa

Johanna Ilg has lived her entire life in Main Amana, one of the seven villages inhabited by devout Christians who believe in cooperative living, a simple lifestyle, and faithful service to God. Although she’s always longed to see the outside world, Johanna believes her future is rooted in the community. But when she learns a troubling secret, the world she thought she knew is shattered and she is forced to make difficult choices about a new life and the man she left behind. Berta Schumacher has lived a privileged life in Chicago, and when her parents decide they want a simpler life in Amana, Iowa, she resists. Under the strictures of the Amana villages, Berta’s rebellion reaches new heights. Will her heart ever be content among the plain people of Amana?

Where Grace Abides by B. J. Hoff

Where Grace Abides (The Riverhaven Years)

1856 – Ohio

Readers loved Rachel’s Secret, the first book in BJ Hoff’s wildly popular new series, The Riverhaven Years, and are eagerly awaiting the continuing story of young Amish widow, Rachel Brenneman, and Irish–American riverboat captain, Jeremiah Gant.
In Where Grace Abides, the compelling second book in the series, Hoff offers her readers an even closer look at the Amish community of Riverhaven and the people who live and love and work there. Secrets, treachery, and persecution are only a few of the challenges that test Rachel’s faith and her love for the forbidden “outsider,” while Gant’s own hopes and dreams are dealt a life–changing blow, rendering the vow he made to Rachel seemingly impossible to honor.
Many of the other characters first introduced in Rachel’s Secret now find their gentle, unassuming lives of faith jeopardized by a malicious outside influence. At the same time, those striving to help runaway slaves escape to freedom through the Underground Railroad face deception and the danger of discovery.

Fields of Grace by Kim Vogel Sawyer

Fields of Grace

1872 – Kansas

With their eldest son nearly to the age when he will be drafted into military service, Reinhardt and Lillian Vogt decide to immigrate to America, the land of liberty, with their three sons and Reinhardt’s adopted brother, Eli. But when tragedy strikes during the voyage, Lillian and Eli are forced into an agreement neither desires. Determined to fulfill his obligation to Reinhardt, Eli plans to see Lillian and her sons safely settled on their Kansas homestead–and he’s equally determined that the boys will be reared in the Mennonite faith. What he doesn’t expect is his growing affection for Lillian–and the deep desire to be part of a family.

The Believer by Anne Gabhart

1818 – Kentucky

Elizabeth Duncan has nowhere to turn. In charge of her younger brother and sister after their parents die, her options are limited. When she hears that the Shaker community in the next county takes in orphans, she presents herself and her siblings at Harmony Hill. Despite the hard work and strange new beliefs around her, Elizabeth is relieved to have a roof overhead and food to eat. But when she feels a strong attachment to a handsome young Believer named Ethan, life gets complicated. Ethan has never looked on the opposite sex as anything but sisters, but he can’t shake the new feelings that Elizabeth has awakened in him. Will Elizabeth be forced to leave the village to keep Ethan from stumbling? Or will Ethan’s love for her change their lives forever? Following on the heels of the successful book The Outsider, The Believer is Ann H. Gabhart’s newest exploration of love and devotion in this quiet Shaker community.

Love’s Pursuit by Siri Mitchell

Love’s Pursuit

Colonial – Massachusetts

In the small Puritan community of Stoneybrooke, Massachusetts, Susannah Phillips stands out both for her character and beauty. She wants only a simple life but soon finds herself pursued by the town’s wealthiest bachelor and by a roguish military captain sent to protect them. One is not what he seems and one is more than he seems.

In trying to discover true love’s path, Susannah is helped by the most unlikely of allies, a wounded woman who lives invisible and ignored in their town. As the depth, passion, and sacrifice of love is revealed to Susannah, she begins to question the rules and regulations of her childhood faith. In a community where grace is unknown, what price will she pay for embracing love?

Rachel’s Secret by B.J. Hoff

Rachel’s Secret

1855 – Ohio

Bestselling author BJ Hoff promises to delight her many faithful readers with her compelling new series, The Riverhaven Years. With the first book, Rachel’s Secret, Hoff introduces a new community of unforgettable characters and adds the elements readers have come to expect from her novels: a tender love story, the faith journeys of people we grow to know and love, and enough suspense to keep the pages turning quickly.

When the wounded Irish American riverboat captain, Jeremiah Gant, bursts into the rural Amish setting of Riverhaven, he brings chaos and conflict to the community–especially for young widow, Rachel Brenneman. The unwelcome “outsider” needs a safe place to recuperate before continuing his secret role as an Underground Railroad conductor. Neither he nor Rachel is prepared for the forbidden love that threatens to endanger a man’s mission, a woman’s heart, and a way of life for an entire people.

Where the Heart Leads by Kim Vogel Sawyer

Where the Heart Leads (Waiting for Summer’s Return Series #2)

1904 – Kansas and Massachusetts

After his graduation from college, Thomas Ollenburger is filled with big dreams and many questions. What will he do for a career? Should he marry? Where will he call home? Torn between his Mennonite roots on the Kansas prairie and his love for the big city of Boston, as well as his affection for a girl in each location, Thomas is unsure of his place in the world. He has always sought God’s leading in his decision-making, but now it seems as if God is staying silent. Has Thomas’s heart led him astray?

The Duchess and the Dragon by Jamie Carie

The Duchess and the Dragon

Regency America/England

Drake Weston, Duke of Northumberland, is accustomed to a life of royalty until a tragic mistake followed by murderous rage results in his darkening character and sudden flee from England. With a hoarde of money on which to survive, Drake hops a ship of indentured servants to America but is duly robbed and taken ill by the merciless sea voyage.

In Pennsylvania, Serena Winter is a humble, devoted Quaker on a mission of mercy, ready to tend the sick people aboard a ship that has just arrived from England. Taken by Drake’s air of dark mystery after he begins to serve as an apprentice to her silversmith father, Serena falls in love and is excommunicated by her fellow believers when she accepts a non-Quaker’s marriage proposal.

Not knowing Drake’s history, Serena is later shocked to discover her new status as a duchess. What follows are hard truths and softening hearts, romance triangles, webs of deceit, and ultimately, the power of grace, love, and passion.

Waiting for Summer’s Return by Kim Vogel Sawyer

Goodreads ~ Purchase ~ Sample

1894 – Kansas

After losing her husband and children to typhoid, Summer Steadman lacks the desire to forge ahead to Oklahoma. Instead she seeks employment in the small Mennonite community of Gaeddert, Kansas, to be near the graves of her family. Widower Peter Ollenberger, the local gristmill owner, needs someone to teach his son. When he hears of a “learned woman” in town, he believes she is the answer to his prayers, despite the fact that he faces censure for helping an “outsider.” There is next to nothing Peter will not do for his son. But when the boy begins looking at Summer as more than a teacher, Peter battles with himself. Does he marry this woman to give his son a new mother, or does he marry only for love?

A Seeking Heart by Kim Vogel Sawyer

Goodreads ~ B&N ~ Google Play ~ Kobo ~ Amazon

1917 – Minnesota

A rich, heartwarming story about discovering God’s love, acceptance, and healing for even the most damaged hearts

Samantha O’Brien, seventeen years old, runs away from Wisconsin to Minnesota to escape a drunkard father and broken home. She is accepted with open arms into the Klaassen family, German-Mennonites who show both love and patience to this lonely and defensive girl. Samantha’s fractured childhood and its devastating losses make it very difficult for her to accept the Klaassens’ genuine care and concern, because she’s sure nobody can love the likes of her. But with prayer, time and love, the family, including the young and handsome Adam Klaassen, begins to break through Samantha’s walls.