Book Information

Book ID Asin: b074xjw3l7
Book Title: A Plain and Sweet Christmas Romance Collection: Spend Christmas with 9 Historical Couples from Amish, Mennonite, Quaker, and Amana Settlements
Book Author: Lauralee Bliss,Ramona K. Cecil,Dianne Christner,Melanie Dobson,Jerry S. Eicher,Olivia Newport,Rachael O. Phillips,Claire Sanders,Anna Schmidt
Book Format and Price:
Book Format Name: Paperback
Book Format Price: $12.59
Book Price: unknown
Book Category: Kindle Store, Kindle eBooks, Religion & Spirituality and unknown
Book Rating: 44 ratings

Book Product Detail

• Best Sellers Rank: #1,636,549 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
  • #3,198 in Amish Romance (Kindle Store)
  • #5,570 in Amish Romance (Books)
  • #5,930 in Amish & Mennonite Fiction (Books)

• Customer Reviews:
  4.5 out of 5 stars 44 ratings

unknown

Book Review

Name: damodara
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Good Book
Date: Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on December 12, 2017
Review: I bought this book for my mom to add to her book collection. She was very happy and will cherish it for a long time. It arrived quickly & was in good condition.

Name: Annette
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Great stories.
Date: Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on April 19, 2019
Review: I love reading these collections. Many different authors with stories of love and a love for Christ, what could be better.

Name: Ralph Key
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Five Stars
Date: Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on September 10, 2016
Review: good short stories

Name: Pirate2240
Rating: 4.0 out of 5 stars
Title: A beautiful introduction into Amish fiction through 9 incredible historical novellas!
Date: Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on January 26, 2018
Review: If you're new to Amish fiction, and love the idea of a Christmas setting with some great story lines, then you might want to pick up A Plain and Sweet Christmas Romance collection. In it you will find 9 different Christmas Romances of Amish, Mennonite, Quaker and Amana settlements, which vary in some of the dress styles, their religious beliefs, and manner of speech. They hold fast to the belief that what happens stays in their communities to handle and marrying outside of the church, can often result in a shunning from the community especially if they have been baptized into their churches.

Yet the one thing that remains clear in all of them, is their sense of support within the community. Help is always offered from within regarding medical issue, issues dealing with breaking the law and tragedies. They are always there for one another. The best part also of this series, is it gives you a brief insight into the style of writing each of the nine authors. This will help you decide if you want to pick up full length novels of other books in that genre as well. It is well worth it too, if time is an issue. Reading them one at a time, as you have time available, keeps you from feeling overwhelmed about not being able to get through a larger novel, than these nine stories provide.

The nine authors that have contributed to this collection are: Jerry Eicher, Olivia Newport, Lauralee Bliss, Ramona K.Cecil, Dianne Christner, Melanie Dobson, Rachael O. Phillips, Claire Sanders, and Anna Schmidt. I have read quite a few of the novels of most of these authors, so it was a nice change of pace to meet some I had never heard of before. This collection is comparable to the length of a full size novel and in it, you get 9 short stories that feel like so much more than a simple novella. There is also a wonderful treat included at the conclusion of each one, a recipe that you can make at home from the story! Just the cover of this collection invites the reader to curl up by the fire on a cold wintery night.

I received A Plain and Sweet Christmas Romance Collection by various authors compliments of Barbour Publishing and NetGalley. This is such a beautiful collection of wonderful heartwarming stories of faith, hope and love set among the Christmas season. This is a must have for lovers of Amish Romance, and even for those who want a great sampling of the various communities mentioned in this review. For me, this really introduced me to some authors I had never heard of before, as well as bring back some favorites from best selling authors as well. For me, this collection would rate a 4 out of 5 stars. There are some stories that really didn't connect with me as a reader, and wanted to get through them to something else, especially the Quaker stories with their 'thee's and thou's in how they speak to one another. Kind of like trying to understand Shakespeare in high school, yet overall a great collection.

Name: Susan Scott Ferrell
Rating: 4.0 out of 5 stars
Title: A Bevy of Christmas Delight!
Date: Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on October 17, 2016
Review: If you are looking for a book to get you in the Christmas mood, then this is the one for you. A Plain Sweet Christmas is a collection of nine plain (Quaker, Mennonite, Amana, and Amish) novellas, all with their own unique twist. So grab a mug of your favorite drink, cozy up to the fire, and prepare to be carried away!

Crossroad to Love by Lauralee Bliss meets the Quakers in1846 Ohio. Mysterious traveler Silas stumbles across their settlement and finds himself at a crossroad: love or revenge?

Simple Gifts by Ramona K. Cecil takes readers to 1880 Indiana, where pregnant and widowed Quaker Lucinda is trying to find her way in the world without her husband. So is her husband’s coworker and best friend Alan, who harbors guilt for her husband’s death. Will the simple gifts of Christmas draw them closer to God and one another?

A Christmas Prayer by Dianne Christner is set in Minnesota, 1881. Russian immigrant and Mennonite Hanna Friesen is doing her best as the eldest sister in her family, even with a slight disability.

Martin and Filipp Penner are headed from Iowa to Winnipeg, looking for farmland for their father, when a fierce snowstorm strands all of the train’s passengers in Hanna’s village. When Hanna and Martin meet, a Christmas prayer is sent up.

Treasure of the Heart by Melanie Dobson takes readers to 1907 Amana, Iowa. Fans of Dobson’s other Amana writings will find it satisfying to return to the colonies once again. Former colonist, and now socialite, Sophie Keller, is headed back home to her Amana roots to do some serious soul searching, including the proposal of a senator. She also brings along her sullen teenage daughter.

When colonist and used-to-be friend Will sees Sophie, he wants nothing to do with her. But when a critical situation arises at the woolen mill where Will works, the two are forced to work together. What will their working relationship do to their waning friendship?

Love is Forever by Jerry Eicher is set in 1940s Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Amish maedel Mattie Beiler has waited a long time to marry her love, Mervin Yoder. In fact, she’s already had to be patient as Mervin postponed their wedding during the last wedding season. But Mervin has more than wedding jitters – he’s worried that the country will go to war and he’ll have to leave a new bride behind. Mattie has nothing but marriage on the mind. When tragedy strikes, what will happen to their love?

Love’s Pure Light by Olivia Newport follows newly married Glory Grabill. Glory comes from a quiet, subdued Amish household. When she moves in with her large, boisterous in-laws, she finds herself lost. There doesn’t seem to be a place, or a need, for her anywhere. Was their marriage a mistake?

Pirate of My Heart by Rachael O. Phillips, set in 1825, Illinois, tells a Quaker tale you won’t soon forget. Keturah is a feisty young Quaker woman – not something you find every day. She loves to wear a bright red shawl (scandalous!) and longs for adventure. Henry McFarlan crosses paths with Keturah. Unbeknownst to her, Henry and his family are infamous thieves (pirates!) that live in their coastal town. Is this the adventure Keturah as been looking for?

Equally Yoked by Claire Sanders, set in 1838 Southern Ohio, takes us back to the Quakers and a woman named Susanna. Susanna has married a Quaker (Nathan), but (much to her mother-in-law’s consternation) has not converted to their faith. While they have only been married a short while, Nathan has left Susanna to keep the home fires burning while he supports his Friend, who is in trouble for helping slaves find freedom. When Susanna is caught in her own perilous journey will she finally see the Light?

In Abigail’s Christmas Candles by Anna Schmidt, we meet Mennonite Abigail Yoder. Abigail has moved from New York to Hope, Wisconsin, where life moves at a different (and more conservative) pace. She’s been asked by her uncle (the Bishop) to come and fill a teaching position at Hope’s one-room schoolhouse. The kids are thrilled, the parents and elders are leery, and one church member – Aaron Miller – is downright hostile. Will this be a Christmas to remember for all the wrong reasons?

I was given A Plain Sweet Christmas in exchange for my honest review. Although I am an Amishaholic by nature, I found each novella to have its own Plain charm. Some were exciting, some were endearing or heart-wrenching, but all of them brought the reader back to the true meaning of Christmas and the greatest love of all: God becoming man to bring peace to the world. Highly recommend.

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