FORGIVEN

By Shelley Shepard Gray

Description:

When a fire destroys the Lundy's barn, Winnie is injured trying to get the animals to safety. Confined to a hospital for weeks, out of touch with her loved ones who live too far away to visit by buggy, she must depend on Englisher Samuel Miller to keep her company. Though his family is part of Winnie's tight-knit Amish community, Samuel left years earlier to pursue a university education. Through conversations and Samuel's dedication to her recovery, a friendship forms. But despite their growing attraction, Winnie knows it can never develop into something more as long as Samuel chooses to remain in the outside world.

When Winnie returns home, she finds her brother, Jonathan, struggling with his own dilimma. Cigarette butts were discovered in the debris of the barn and Jonathan is determined to find out who is responsible for destroying his property and putting his family at risk. But in a community founded on grace and forgiveness, will his unwillingness to move on eat away at the trust that is the foundation of their lives?

Book Takeaway:

I hope that readers will enjoy the novel, and that they will root for Winnie's and Sam's romance as much as I did! I hope, too, that they will be able to identify with some of the other characters' struggles.

Why the author wrote this book:

I wanted to explore why someone might move away from the Amish faith, and why he or she would want to return. Also, I've always been intrigued by the theme of forgiveness.