An Amish Christmas Love: Four Novellas

Wiseman (An Amish Year), Clipston (The Beloved Hope Chest), Irvin (Upon a Spring Breeze), and Reid (A Dream of Miracles) lend their considerable talents to this enjoyable Christmas collection. In “Winter Kisses,” Wiseman provides a multigenerational romance. When three men of similar ages rent out their Daadi Haus (guest house), a grandmother and mother (both widowed) and an unmarried daughter are all smitten, but a one-to-one pairing is not without its complications. Clipston’s “The Christmas Cat” is a tale of remembered love as well as love of neighbor. Emma Bontrager is lonely on her first Christmas without her husband of 45 years. After a rotund orange tabby arrives and makes himself at home during a snowstorm and four local youth come to check on her, she shares the memories of her long-ago courtship and early married life. Irvin’s “Snow Angels” features David Byler who must choose between a faith-filled future with his Amish sweetheart or leaving the community to pursue a woman he had romanced during his rumspringa. In Reid’s “Home for Christmas,” Ella Whetstone and her canine companion Lulu inherit her aunt’s farm, forcing her to return to the Amish community she left at six years old. The four novellas vary in style and substance, but all are feel-good stories perfect to indulge in during the busy holiday season. (Sept.)