The Judgment and The Mercy

A continuation from my last post I have just finished reading the two other books from Beverly Lewis' The Rose Trilogy.
The order is :
The Thorn
The Judgment
The Mercy

This is the story of Rose Anne, a young Amish woman in her early 20's set in the late 1980's. She made a commitment to the church at a very early age and has devoted her time to help in her home taking over the chores as she is the youngest of a large family (who have all married and left home) and her mother is confined to a wheelchair after a buggy accident.
Her sister Hen arrives home in the first book to return to her Amish roots with her daughter after being married to an Englisher for five years. Her husband Brandon wants to divorce her and gain custody of their daughter but is involved in an accident on the way to the lawyers and is persuaded to come to the farm to be looked after by Hen until his temporary blindness goes.
Rose has been a friend to the Bishops adopted son Nick (they live on the next door farm) since he arrived in the community as a young boy but after what appears to be a fight with the bishops son and his death, Nick flees to return to the outside world.
Rose is courted and engaged to a Amish man which she breaks as she still feels for Nick and there is another woman her beau likes, then courts another from the next district.
These books really need to be read one after each other and I am pleased my daughter Jennifer had all three. When they first came out there were a few months between and I don't think I would have liked to have to wait.

I wont tell more to spoil the stories but I really enjoy Amish stories and the simple life.
Beverly Lewis is a great writer of these having been raised in Pennsylvania Amish country, she has plenty of knowledge of the community. Her stories as fairly predictable but there is something relaxing and likeable about them.