The Heart of the Amish

Barbara Schwartz was born into a family of quilters, but she would rather eat dirt than partake in another quilting frolic or sew on another binding. When her parents send her to Indiana to help her grandmother in her quilting shop, she finds herself amongst a very different community. It's only one summer and then she will be back in Kentucky where she belongs.

Ruth Helmuth has never been rude in her life; trust her to choose the bishop of her Amish community for her first time! Ruth has worked hard to keep body and soul together since her husband, Levi’s, death. She tends her herd of goats, making her living from the milk and fiber she gets from them, all while running a farm and household by herself—and very competently, thank you! How could she imagine the bishop suggesting she should give it all up to another family, who will “make better use of the space”?

Jacob Lantz asked Trini Sutter to marry him when he was five. The mature nine-year-old thoughtfully responded that she’d consider his proposal when they were older. Now, nearly two decades later, the Amish farmer returns to the beautiful countryside of Arthur, Illinois, to take the independent Quilt Room owner up on her promise. Quiet, handsome Jacob is truly in love with the spirited “list maker,” and Trini finds herself falling in love with Jacob, but the youngest of eleven has big plans of her own. Will she forfeit her plan for the man of her dreams?

Simon Graber became a widower and a bishop early in life. His sole focus is his very close-knit Old Order Amish community—not entertaining the idea of marriage, despite what many of the elders think. When sickness comes to Cherry Grove, Kentucky, Simon reaches out to a neighboring community for help.

If God wills it, Mary Yoder will do it, even if that means using crutches for the rest of her life. She was badly injured in a buggy accident as a child. Still, she is content living in the Dawdi Haus connected to her parents’ farmhouse and with her work weaving baskets and raising specialty roosters whose feathers she uses to make excellent trout lures. She is truly happy at twenty-nine, but she wouldn’t mind finding a husband—if the Lord wills it.

Serenity Miller has much to love about life as the owner of The Pink Petal in Arthur, Illinois, and enjoys trying natural remedies and exploring garage sales. Then comes the day her neighbor, Stephen Lantz, saves her from trespassers on her property and their friendship deepens into an attraction Serenity knows can never lead to marriage. She holds secrets she can never divulge, despite Stephen's way of wooing her. But how can Serenity return to her life of contentment after a taste of love? And when danger returns, will it steal her last hope for a bright future?

LeEtta Miller brazenly accepts a dare from her friends. What harm is there in kissing a handsome stranger she’ll never see again? Unfortunately, the incident was witnessed and when her father learns her good virtues are marred, he wills her to marry. Benuel Ropp wanted a family, but not this way. He was trying to regain some of what he tarnished by coming to Cherry Grove, not to get married to a stranger. Well, if Laura thought he’d flinch and let her boldness add another stain to his name, she was mistaken.