Never an Amish Bride

A grieving Amish woman is drawn to a man who left the faith in the lovely first Honey Brook romance from London (The Last Plus One). Esther Miller’s fiancé, Jacob Brenneman, died unexpectedly just before their wedding two years ago. Now Jacob’s estranged brother Lucas, an unbaptized former member of their Pennsylvania community, has returned to a nearby town working at an Englisch doctor’s office as a physician’s assistant. Esther goes to meet with him in secret looking for answers about Jacob’s death, and Lucas tells Esther that Jacob had been diagnosed with leukemia during his Rumpspringa in New York, and that his struggle with cancer propelled Lucas’s own decision to leave the faith and study medicine. In return, Esther provides details on Lucas’s family (who never answered his many letters) and shares her own secret fears about fitting into Amish life. They strike a fast friendship that slowly gains an undercurrent of attraction, but the difference in their lifestyles threatens any future they could have together. Meanwhile, Esther’s success selling soaps is a surprisingly effective outlet for her creativity as she struggles to understand her place in the world. The gentle, chaste flirtation between the leads is a pleasure, and though the stakes stay low they are deeply felt. Fans of Amish romance should take note. (July)