The Hope Of Refuge by Cindy Woodsmall

Paperback: 352 pages
Publisher: WaterBrook Press; 1 edition (August 11, 2009)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1400073960
ISBN-13: 978-1400073962

From Amazon.com
Product Description
Raised in foster care and now the widowed mother of a little girl, Cara Moore struggles against poverty, fear, and a relentless stalker. When a trail of memories leads Cara and Lori out of New York City toward an Amish community, she follows every lead, eager for answers and a fresh start. She discovers that long-held secrets about her family history ripple beneath the surface of Dry Lake, Pennsylvania, and it’s no place for an outsider. But one Amish man, Ephraim Mast, dares to fulfill the command he believes that he received from God–“Be me to her”– despite how it threatens his way of life.

Completely opposite of the hard, untrusting Cara, Ephraim’s sister Deborah also finds her dreams crumbling when the man she has pledged to build a life with begins withdrawing from Deborah and his community, including his mother, Ada Stoltzfus. Can the run-down house that Ada envisions transforming unite them toward a common purpose–or push Mahlon away forever? While Ephraim is trying to do what he believes is right, will he be shunned and lose everything–including the guarded single mother who simply longs for a better life?

This is one of the books that I’m giving away here.

This book was excellent! It was so good that I couldn’t put it down, making me neglect my own writing duties. This is a book that you’ll need to spare some to read, because, if you got lots of stuff to do, you’ll find yourself procrastinating, not wanting to do anything until you’ve reached the last page!

Cara has always struggled to survive. She barely remembers her mother and father, plus, she has vague memories of a house, a boy, and the sweeping plains in an Amish community. When a stalker from one of her former foster homes continues to threaten her, she runs to the vague place from her childhood, desperately wanting to protect her daughter Lori.

The Amish community is suspicious of this “drunken” newcomer who pilfers from their homes. However, when her real identity is discovered, the flames of unrest are ignited in this small Amish town.

Ada, an Amish woman, wants to help Cara, and Ephraim (the boy from her childhood) finds himself falling in love with her. His offer of protection to her practically makes him an outcast within his own community.

This is one of the best Amish stories I’ve ever read and I look forward to reading more books by this author. Reading this book was like eating my lemon pound cake. When I make one of those, I can’t just stop at one piece! Throughout the next two to three days, I crave piece after piece until it’s all gone! That’s why you need to carve out a hunk of time to really enjoy this novel! You won’t want to put it down! After reading those first few pages, you’ll crave more of the story until it’s all finished!

I also wanted to point out that this author was featured on Nightline awhile back. I blogged about that here.
~Cecelia Dowdy~
WARNING: SPOILER BELOW WITH MY FURTHER THOUGHTS….

One thing that bugged me about the novel was Cara’s stalker. He appears, and we know he’s been stalking her for several years. However, I’m unclear as to why he’d stalk her for so long? Perhaps it was explained in a sentence or two and I just overlooked it? I know he’s the son of the parents in one of her foster homes, but that’s about all I could piece together. Is he a lunatic who just wants Cara to have a relationship with him?

Also, the author did a great job of creating a tense, suspenseful situation between Cara and the stalker, BUT, there’s no justice done as far as the stalker is concerned. Although Cara is safe at the end in the Amish community, I still wonder what happened to Mike (the stalker)? Is he ever caught? Is he crafty enough to actually discover Cara and her daughter now living in the Amish community? I felt this was a loose end that needed to be tied up. This book is part of a series, so, perhaps this issue will be addressed in another novel? Will Mike re-appear to stir up trouble between Cara and her soon-to-be husband?