Will they lead her to love and resolution? Sarah Holtz doesn’t wish for much. All she wants to be is a great nanny for the children of the Jotters. An orphan, she has lived with the Jotters for two years now and knows what to expect from the holidays. Except, this year things turn out very differently when Alvan, the patriarch, is found murdered and Christmas is on the brink of ruins. While struggling to hold the family together, Sarah finds a box in the attic filled with newspaper clippings and a diary. And within the pages are dark secrets… Secrets that may point towards the person who killed Alvan Jotter… Investigating a murder by dredging through the past is not an easy task. The more Sarah learns, the more old wounds are opened. And when the eldest son Nathan joins her, he realizes that his Daed wasn’t the man he thought he was. Now, these secrets must be brought to light if the killer is going to be caught and Christmas is going to be saved. And in the midst of it all, Sarah struggles with her own feelings. Feelings that involve Nathan… Can Sarah unlock the secrets of the past while finding love in the present? AUTHOR’S NOTE: This is a 108-page stand-alone story with an HEA, so no cliff-hangers.

    But the delivery man for the local grain store, Jimmy Knox, had caught her eye and eventually her heart. Following a fateful kiss with Jimmy, Rebecca’s family gives her an ultimatum -she can go with Jimmy and leave their community, or she can stay with her family and lose Jimmy. After days of agonizing, she chooses her faith, but by then, the local village basically shuns her. Rebecca’s parents decide it would be best if she moves in with her grandfather two towns away, to take care of him as his health declines. They feel that by removing her from their home, they will no longer face the condemnation of the community for her relationship with Jimmy, and maybe she can find a man who would forgive her past. Becca moves in with her grandfather, and toils day and night, taking care of his house, the cooking, many of the farm chores, and taking care of his health needs. Sad and lonely, still facing comments about Jimmy, Becca starts taking long walks by herself when her work is done. On one such walk, she meets Noah Flaud, and they begin to court. Rebecca struggles to put her shame behind her, and fully embrace the love and acceptance Noah is offering her.

    

    The Husband's Secret by Liane Moriarty - A 30-minute Instaread SummaryInside this Instaread Summary: - Overview of the entire book- Introduction to the important people in the book- Summary and analysis of all the chapters in the book- Key Takeaways of the book- A Reader's PerspectivePreview of this summary: Chapter OneCecilia's husband, John-Paul, is in Chicago on business. She is a busy mother and part-time Tupperware consultant. Her twelve-year-old daughter, Esther, is currently obsessed with the Berlin Wall. Cecilia has a piece of the wall from a trip she took to Germany several years ago. While in the attic searching for it, she finds a mysterious envelope with her name on it. A note on it says that it should only be opened in the event of her husband's death. She does not open it. When she mentions the letter to John-Paul on the phone, she is troubled by his awkward silence.Chapter TwoTess and Felicity are cousins. Felicity was always overweight until recently, when she joined Weight Watchers and lost forty pounds. Tess, her husband, Will, and Felicity own a marketing business together in Melbourne. Tess is worried about her mother, who has just broken her ankle, and her six-year old son, Liam, who is being bullied at school. Will and Felicity call Tess into a meeting to tell her they have fallen in love. Furious, Tess says she will move back to Sydney with Liam to help her mother. She believes that her husband became attracted to Felicity when she lost weight. She tosses cold coffee in their faces....

     When Jeremiah’s father passed away, he wasn’t ready for the responsibility that fell on him. But when his mother fell ill soon after, he had little choice. He had a farm to run, his mother to pray for and barely time to eat a cooked meal. When Ella’s friend asks her to accompany her to hospital, Ella visits a stranger in a coma, the lady is Amish but Ella doesn’t know her name. Ella begins frequent visits to the sleeping stranger, telling her stories about her Amish life growing up, hoping that in some small way she might make a difference. During a visit to his mother in hospital, Jeremiah finds a girl in his mother’s room, telling stories as if she was a long-time friend of the family. But something shifts inside him, something that gives him hope for the first time in years. Do miracles still happen? In Lancaster County they do! Can Jeremiah find time to get to know Ella with all the responsibilities already on his shoulders? Will Ella open her heart to a man who clearly doesn’t have time for her? Enjoy this sweet Amish romance that will remind you to appreciate every day and delight you with a Christmas miracle, or two.

    In this unique and gripping trilogy, Hannah's struggles to reconcile her Amish faith with her fiery and rebellious spirit parallel the relentless hardships of life as a homesteader in North Dakota, including famine, blizzards, fires, and more.The Homestead: When Hannah's family, hit hard by the Great Depression, loses their farm, Hannah’s father loads his family and what little they have left into their covered wagon, dreaming of a better future far west of Lancaster. They settle in North Dakota, hundreds of miles from any Amish community. But his visions of success are shattered by the reality that his knowledge of farming in Lancaster isn’t of much use in Midwestern soil. With the fields barren and her family on the verge of starvation, independent and stubborn Hannah is forced to seek help from charismatic ranch hand Clay Jenkins and his family. Hope on the Plains: Hannah’s family is finally feeling settled. The cattle business is doing well, and other Amish families have moved into the area. Feeling betrayed by Clay Jenkins and unimpressed with her own father, Hannah is hesitant to trust the men around her. Jerry Riehl, intrigued by her intelligence and strong will, will try anything to earn Hannah’s respect.Home Is Where the Heart Is: Despite tragedy and almost unimaginable hardship, Hannah and her new husband are leading their Amish friends and family in their homesteading venture. But one final blow leaves Hannah grappling with her faith, struggling to understand who she is and how she fits in to the world around her. What will it take for her to feel like she’s home, like she finally belongs somewhere?

     Katie, Elizabeth and Hannah Schwartz are three sisters that love their Amish lives, but one by one they are tempted by the outside world and love. When their mother died Katie, the eldest, took it upon herself to take care of her sisters and her father. At the age of twenty-six Katie yearns to love and to have a family of her own but she isn’t sure her sisters will manage without her. In a twist of events, Elizabeth and Hannah plan a trick to prove to Katie that they can. Will Katie find love this Christmas after all? Elizabeth had always enjoyed the company of her bible but when the Bishop’s wife is in a brutal buggy accident, she offers to find their son. Jacob and Elizabeth had been friends before he left the ordnung, when Elizabeth finds him and takes him to see his mother, she can’t help but wonder if they will ever be friends again. Will the bishop’s wife recover, will Jacob revisit his decision to leave the ordnung? Hannah had always been the curious one, younger than Katie by almost ten years, she is excited to go on rumspringa. When Hannah disappears without a word, Elizabeth and Katie are grief-stricken. But what they don’t realize is that Hannah had returned and was hiding out in their barn with the help of their farmhand Paul. What happened to make Hannah hide from her family? Can Hannah reunite with her family in time to enjoy an Amish Christmas?

    That decision cost him his best friend and his betrothed at the same time, all because he couldn't bring himself to leave his sister after she passed up marriage to take care of him when he was younger. A year later, he runs into them, but they have become Englischers. Will Noah be able to accept the changes in Miranda and win her back, or will her circumstances prevent her from returning to the Amish ways without getting Noah shunned?

    Now she has returned. Can he win back her love? Or is he destined to spend his life alone?

     Becky Eicher is excited to be taking over Annie's job at the fabric shop in Shipshewana, Indiana. In fact, she's surprised that her parents agreed to let her have a job that is away from the farm. But she finds it exciting to meet new people. That is until she meets Steven Raber who works at the lumberyard. He's very forward and keeps stopping by to visit with her. Becky has no interest in him, especially since he is not a farmer. But as she gets to know him, she begins to learn that first impressions are not always correct. Is it possible that her preconceived notions were wrong?

    . .Overwhelmed by grief and tending twin baby daughters, Rosmanda Lapp is without options. She still blames her brother-in-law, Levi, for her husband's accidental death--but she and her aging in-laws need him to keep their farm going. Yet as Levi takes on his responsibilities with a new determination and steadiness, she can't help but regret that she chose his serious-minded brother over him. For Levi is still very much the passionate man she loved--and Rosmanda now has even more reasons to keep him at arm's length . . .Levi can't blame Rosmanda for staying clear of him. He has mistakes to make up for and must finally do right by his parents. Still, he never got over his brother stealing Rosmanda away. And he can't deny the feelings that even now tempt them back to each other. And when a mistake from her past threatens her reputation, Levi will do whatever it takes to help her--and trust that faith and courage will at last help them claim a future together . . .

    But when young Jaycee Parker mistakes him for Santa Claus, his heart is moved with compassion for the boy and his family. Will this unlikely pair discover more than just a holiday filled with food and gifts? At eighteen, Englischer Shannon Parker is left the sole caretaker and provider of her three younger siblings. All she truly wants for Christmas is to be able to provide a happy holiday and decent gifts for each of them. Not an easy feat, given that her low-paying waitressing job is their only source of income. When a handsome stranger walks into the restaurant offering kindness, she has a feeling her life will never be the same again. A faith-filled Christmas story sure to bring a smile to your face and warm your heart with the Joy of the season!

    When a secret becomes too much for him to bear, it drives a wedge in their relationship and threatens to change Emma's life forever.When an unexpected relationship with Daniel Miller comes to light, will he be able to remind Emma of her faith and help her deal with the lies that surround her birth? Will the secret change her life forever, and will she be able to forgive as God instructs her to do?

    

    We 'English' look at the Amish through rose-colored glasses. They seem so peaceful and content with a simple way of life. But we forget they are people like everyone else. Karen's series shows this through the hardships and heartbreaks they face and the faith they cling to or struggle with." Rita Gerlach, author of Surrender the Wind, Daughters of the Potomac Series "Author Karen Vogel has approached the often misunderstood beliefs or the Amish with tact and tenderness, and I highly recommend this heart-stirring story."Kathi Macias award-winning author of 35 novels, including Deliver Me From Evil and Unexpected Christmas Hero."Karen writes with heart-touching insight and her characters are gripping. Highly recommended."Jennifer Hudson Taylor, author of Highland Blessings & Highland Sanctuary"Two cultures knit together by one faith" Ginny and James Rowland have close-knit ties with many Amish families in the small-town of Smickburg, PA. But these ties are threatened to unravel... Ginny's photographer brother, Joseph, comes up from Pittsburgh to capture Amish farm scenes, but instead captures the heart of an Amish woman, Katie Byler. A shunned Amish man finds refuge in the Rowland's Baptist Church. The Bishop discovers his son is dating the Rowland's daughter.Will Granny Weaver's knitting circle, that Ginny and other Englishers attend, be able to bring harmony through their love and faith? Karen Anna Vogel is a trusted English friend to Amish families in Western PA and Western NY. These friends inspired her to write the Amish Knitting Circle series. She owns Thrifty Christian Shopper, an online Christian bookstore, and is a volunteer advocate for Compassion International.