Hopefully Ever After

by Beth Wiseman

This novel has a lot going for it:

1. So many important themes including: forgiveness, faith, love, security, family, abuse, goals, healing, independence, maturity, drugs, love of books, respect.
2. Interplay of Amish and Englisch characters with several experiencing one culture and considering or actually changing to the other.
3. Temptations for both Amish and Englisch characters.
4. Contrast of Amish lifestyles with Englisch lifestyles.
5. View of how technology, especially cell phones, has affected the Amish.
6. A great plot centered around a 16 year old girl, Eden, with a difficult upbringing who stays for a month with her Amish cousin and her husband. She discovers what a real family could be like.
7. Lots of characters with their own difficulties—Samuel, a 17 year old with overly strict parents; Yvonne and Abraham who take in Eden for a month; Emma, a much older cousin who is Eden’s guardian; and Eden’s mom, a currently imprisoned drug addict.
8. Emotional tale as Eden and Samuel struggle with their attraction to each other. Eden, who is determined to not be like her mother, has a past to overcome. Samuel is unsure of God’s will and is anxious to see the world outside his home community as it must be so exciting.
9. The setting is described so well. Without air conditioning, beautiful Indiana farmland can be very hot in July. It was easy to imagine the characters with sweat pouring off them, trying to rehydrate and get a little cooling from battery operated fans. 
10. There are lots of twists along the way, and as the book moves toward its conclusion, a happily ever after seems out of reach. Thanks to some surprises, although problems are not magically solved, the ending is quite satisfying.

I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Rating: 5/5

Category: Christian, Romance, Religion, Fiction

Notes: #3 in the Amish Bookstore Novels, but the author fills in background quite well so it could be read as a standalone.

Publication:  April 18, 2023—Zondervan

Memorable Lines:

Eden didn’t even try to make friends at school these days. What was the point? They’d eventually find out her mother was in prison—a fact that seemed to define Eden, whether it was fair or not.

She could either choose to be a victim—life surely hadn’t treated her fairly—or let go of the past and commit to being the best person she could be. Eden chose the latter, but it wasn’t without a struggle.

“I know that everything changed for me once I found a relationship with God. At first it was like having a new friend, someone I could talk to about anything. And the more I talked, the more I knew God was listening.” She didn’t verbalize the last thought in her mind, probably the biggest change in her life since she had found God: she was no longer alone.