The Thorn

Beverly Lewis

I have just finished reading the first book in the Rose Trilogy by Beverly Lewis. I have read and loved a few of her books that are based on Amish families.

There are a few book reviews around but this is a summary of a couple you can find online.



Lancaster County, with its rolling meadows and secret byways, may seem idyllic, but it is not without its thorns. The Rose Trilogy is the stirring saga of two Amish sisters, and the events and decisions that change their lives. 

Rose Ann Kauffman, a spirited young woman,  has long enjoyed a close friendship with the bishop's rebellious foster son. Nick dresses Plain and works hard but stirs up plenty of trouble too. Rose's older sister, Hen—who knows more than she should about falling for the wrong man—cautions her against becoming too involved with him, but Rose is being courted by another, a good, Amish fellow, and so dismisses the warnings. 

Hen Kauffman Orringer's impulsive marriage to an outsider divided her from the People, a decision she regrets now that she has a daughter of her own. As Hen struggles to reclaim aspects of Amish culture, her very modern husband pushes back, and the two soon come to an impasse.  Can she find a way to reconcile her longing for the Old Ways with the life she has chosen? 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 she wear Amish attire--and speak Pennsylvania Dutch, despite her husband's wishes.

Meanwhile, Rose keeps house for an English widower but is startled when he forbids her to ever go upstairs. What is the man hiding?
 
 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?

 Like most of her books I thoroughly enjoyed it and am looking forward to the next two in the series. I find when I have read them I almost long to be apart of the Amish community, probably for the same reason the Hen so wanted to return to her Amish roots. The simple ease of life although hard working seems to have chosen the important things in life.