This past Christmas, my husband bought me The Rose Trilogy
by Beverly Lewis. It is a series about the Amish community in Lancaster County,
Pennsylvania. Though I had never read Christian fiction about the Amish, I was
curious to see how good this series would be.
The
first book in the series is called The Thorn. It opens with Rose Ann
Kauffman, 20, the youngest daughter of Solomon Kauffman, a crop farmer, wagon
maker and Emma Kauffman who has been paralyzed from a buggy accident and lives
in constant pain. She has older brothers who are talked about but never really
seen in this book. She has one older sister, Hannah, nicknamed Hen who married
Brandon Orringer, an English (non-Amish) man and they have one daughter Mattie
Sue. Hen has left the Amish community because she has married an Outsider.
Rose’s friend is Nick Franco, a foster child of Bishop Aaron Petershiem and his
wife Barbara. Many in the community see Nick as trouble and Rose soon becomes
his only friend. The book opens with Emma’s accident and the arrival of Nick. Rose
takes care of her mother and helps a gentleman in the community with household
chores. Hen yearns for her Amish roots and begins to immerse herself back in
the community much to the dismay of her husband. Nick, now 21, is beyond the
age of being baptized into the church and truly becoming a part of the
community but he is resisting. Rose is being courted by Silas Good and thus a
love-triangle is formed. As the book ends, Nick has left the community and Rose
accepts a marriage proposal from Silas.
The
second book in the series is called The Judgment. The story picks up a
month or so after The Thorn ends. The community still talking about Nick
and the events which led to his leaving. Bishop Aaron must face consequences of
his foster son’s actions. A new character, Rebekah, is introduced. She is
coming to the community to help a new mother after birth. It is very obvious
that another love-triangle is being established. The reader is introduced to
some of Brandon’s family. His sister, Terry, who seems to be stuck up and happy
that her Amish sister-in-law is getting the boot. And his brother, Lawrence,
who seems to sweeter and kinder to his sister-in-law. The tensions between Hen
and Brandon are coming to a boil and when tragedy strikes, Hen has an
opportunity to show Brandon that she still cares and show him the world he so
stubbornly refused to see. Emma seems to
be getting worse when a young girl with special needs enters their lives and
gives them hope that she can get better. The reader discovers the real reason
behind Silas’ proposal. Rose has to come to a difficult decision, a decision
that could tarnish her reputation in the community.
The
third book in the series is called The Mercy. This story takes place after
the New Year with Rose Ann getting a new suitor, Isaac, and a surprise returns
to the community. This creates yet another love triangle. Rose Ann dates Isaac
but there’s something him that doesn’t feel right and the reader knows that
this isn’t the man for Rose Ann but it sets up for the arrival of the man Rose
Ann does truly belong with. The situation between Hen and Brandon comes to a
close with a resolution that surprised me but it fit their conflict. The situation involving Bishop Aaron and Nick
revolves with a situation that seems a little too good to be true. Without
giving it away, it seems to me that if the Amish community is as tight knit as
they claim to be, why didn’t the information come forward sooner? Overall, this
book was enjoyable and it was a nice ending to a series that started out
slowly.
The
Thorn
started slow for me. So slow, in fact, that I had to put in down for a month,
then pick it back up. The author uses Amish language, Deitsch, without much
explanation of what the words mean. The reader is left to guess by the
surrounding content but it’s distracting to have language without some form of
translation. Rose seems a little naïve when it comes to the people in her
community. She sees Nick as a friend and never picked up the fact that he had
more than friendship feelings for her. The tensions between Hen and Brandon are
annoying. The Judgment was a much
better read. I was able to finish it in a day. The unfolding drama was much
more captivating. The one thought that stuck in my head was the constant
objection to higher education. I do know that the Amish do not attend school beyond
the eighth education. Is the idea that education beyond what is necessary to
live in the community will drive children away from the community? The Mercy
was better than The Thorn but wasn’t as good as The Judgment. The
events in the series takes place in approximately in one year with an epilogue.
This series was enjoyable read. I recommend it to readers who love reading
about new communities and peoples.
