Christian

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The Thorn is the first book in The Rose Trilogy by Beverly Lewis. The trilogy is about two sisters who are on the fringes of the Amish church. Rose Kaufman and her married sister Hannah, called Hen, are struggling with their relationship with their church. Hen left the church when she married an Englisher, but wants to come back. Rose, on the other hand, is considering leaving. It was published in 2010.

The publisher's summary:

Lancaster County, with its rolling meadows and secret byways, may seem idyllic, but it is not without its thorns. Rose Kauffman, a spirited young woman, has a close friendship with the bishop's foster son. Nick dresses Plain and works hard but stirs up plenty of trouble too. Rose's sister cautions her against becoming too involved, but Rose is being courted by a good Amish fellow, so dismisses the warnings. Meanwhile Rose keeps house for an English widower but is startled when he forbids her to ever go upstairs. What is the man hiding?

Rose's older sister, Hen, knows more than she should about falling for the wrong man. Unable to abandon her Amish ways, Hen is soon separated from her very modern husband. Mattie, their young daughter, must visit her father regularly, but Hen demands that she wear Amish attire and speak Pennsylvania Dutch, despite her husband's wishes. Will Hen be able to reestablish her place among the People she abandoned? And will she be able to convince Rose to steer clear of rogue neighbor Nick?

The Thorn was an enjoyable novel but it did not engage me as as much as other novels by Beverly Lewis. The plot was simple and the writing did not give much mystery. At times I felt bored. That said, the characters were interesting. Both Rose and Hen were strong women that did not fit the Amish mold. Rose tried her best to fit into that mold because she knew it was expected of her. Hen, on the other hand, tried to fit into the English lifestyle that she chose for herself a few years back. While they were on different paths, Rose and Hen still retained their strong bond as sisters, unusual in the Amish community. In the other Amish fiction books that I have read there is always a broken relationship between family members who stayed in the Amish community and those who left. It was odd that these sisters resumed their relationship when Hen returned without any questions asked.

Thorn was an OK read. ( )

I've read other books by Beverly Lewis in the past. This one seemed slightly different than the majority of Amish fiction. This book (and only this book from the trilogy) was in a library booksale.

Rose is already committed to the Church but seems torn between two men. Silas Good (already baptized) and Nick (not yet a member of their Church). Rose wants to think Nick is just a friend--but I'm not so sure of that. The book leaves off with Rose planning to marry Silas--we'll see if that happens. I suspect there might be some pitfalls for them along the way.

Hannah (called Hen) never joined the Church and married a man from "the world". She's not shunned but now that she's a mother, she feels a pull to go back to her roots. I'm not sure if Brandon, Hen's husband, is fearful she'll leave him and that's why he tries to get her to hide her roots/deny her roots. I'm also not sure if he just didn't think the puppy thing through or if he was trying to manipulate their daughter--maybe figuring Hen would come home if Mattie Sue chose to live at his house.

I'm still not quite sure what was at the root of Christian's and Nick's animosity toward each other. Did Christian resent the attention Nick got (kind of like the prodigal son got all sorts of attention when he returned making the son who'd stayed and done the right thing, jealous)? Did Christian also feel the pressure from the community for the Bishop's son to be "doing the right thing"? I wonder if what happened between Christian and Nick will become known? ( )

An interesting Amish story that kept me guessing as to how it would end. And ended, knowing there was more to the story, so I began book two, "The Judgment".

Rose Kauffman has always had a close relationship with the bishop's rebellious foster son, Nick. Nick though doesn't seem to embrace the Amish way of life. Rose's sister Hen returns to the Amish community with her young daughter, having left it several years ago to marry outside the Amish community. So you will watch these two sisters struggle with what to do about their future and how to stay true to their upbringing. It was a well told story. ( )