AN AMISH CHRISTMAS GIFT BY BETH WISEMAN 

Hannah King and her two children, Mae and Lillian, are facing their first Christmas without their beloved husband and father, who passed only six months ago. Hannah is determined to display strength for her girls, stifling her emotions until she is alone at night crying herself to sleep. But as she tries to hide her grief, she is unaware that her children need her to be emotionally present.

Mae is Hannah's oldest daughter. At eighteen, she is deeply in love with a young man in her Amish community. She is working through the grief she feels over the absence of her father, but something about her mother has changed, and the transformation has Mae fearful to make a commitment to John Byler. Her mother robotically goes through the motions of daily living, but she is a shell of the woman she used to be. Mae walks away from her relationship with John, knowing her mother's grief must be far worse than her own. She isn't going to let that happen to her.

John Byler is in love with Mae, but his admission to her about his feelings causes her to stop seeing him without any explanation. He can only assume that she doesn't love him the way he loves her. 

Can Hannah see past her own grief and convince her daughter that it is better to have loved and lost, than never to have loved at all? And is Mae willing to take a chance on love?

"Wiseman is known for her character-driven stories . . . tender tales of love, loss, and redemption. Her fans will devour this short story." ~ Kelly Long, bestselling author for Kensington Publishers

For fans of Beverly Lewis, Amy Clipston, Wanda Brunstetter, and Cindy Woodsmall

MY REVIEW

What a lovely and emotional story the author has written. It is hard to lose a loved one and this Christmas Hannah and her daughters are grieving the lose of her dear husband. They were a very close family and his sudden death really took them by surprise. Hannah wants to be strong for  her daughters, so she grieves alone in her bedroom crying long into the night. What she doesn’t realize is her daughters need her right now. They have lost their father and need comfort from their only parent now. 

Mae is an exceptional character with such compassion for others.  She knows her mother is grieving and it hurts to hear her crying alone. The love her parents shared was suppose to be forever but God had other plans. I enjoyed the relationship between Mae and John. As they spend more time together their feelings for each other grow deeper. Mae is holding  back telling John her feelings for him because she is worried that  something will happen to him and she will face the grief her mother is right now. 

I felt such sadness for Mae as she decides that it would be better to be alone than risk the pain of losing John. She sees how her mother is having  such a difficult time and doesn’t want to have the same thing happen to her. This story is a great illustration of letting God heal your broken heart. When we give our  hurts to Him, he heals us and shows us that he is a God that will “never leave us nor forsake us.”  Mae will take an emotional journey that will show her to trust God and allow her to tell John how she feels. 

I loved the story and appreciate how the author takes a difficult subject and shows us that God heals the broken hearted. He restores our faith as He heals our heart. The ending is so beautiful and I especially loved a special gift that was shared. Thank  you for writing a story that shares the unconditional love that God has for  each of us. He dries our tears and turns sorrow into joy. 

I received a copy of this book from the author. The review is my own opinion.