Book Review: Home All Along by Beth Wiseman

Home All Along (Amish Secrets #3)

Author:  Beth Wiseman

Publisher:  Thomas Nelson (2017)

335 pages

Genre:  Amish Fiction

First Line:  "Ashes to ashes, dust to dust.  Charlotte pulled her black sweater snug and looked around at the people in attendance for her mother's funeral, a final good-bye to the woman Charlotte only thought of as Janell despite their shared genes."  

Summary:  Charlotte's mother has just passed away.  In many ways she is relieved.  She had a difficult relationship with her mother.  She is thankful to be surrounded by people that care about her, during this difficult time.  Charlotte lives among the Amish, but she is not Amish.  When she came looking for her brother, an Amish family took her in.  She is now dating an Amish man, Daniel.  

The bishop is pressuring Daniel.  He feels Charlotte has become a member of the Amish community, without actually taking the step of being baptized into the church.  She follows some of their ways, but not all.  And an Amish man should not be dating someone outside of the faith.  Daniel realizes that they could never get married unless she is baptized or he leaves the Amish faith.  

Charlotte loves Daniel, but she is afraid to make the commitment to the Amish faith.  Afraid that she is not good enough and will let God down.  But she can't imagine life without Daniel.  To complicate matters, Daniel's mother is about to give birth at the age of 50 and has some complications, the Amish woman who was a mother figure to Charlotte has cancer and an unexpected visitor shows up at Charlotte's home needing a place to stay.  

My thoughts:  In some ways this was a difficult read.  There are some heavy issues dealt with.  But, what I appreciate about all of the books in this series is that they come to a satisfying, hopeful conclusion.  And that is the case in this story as well.  I also appreciate the growth of the characters, especially in their faith.  

Some of the issues dealt with are:  life after death, the role of life support for a critically ill patient and decisions regarding it, ways of grieving, how the past defines us, greed, doubt and family.  

If you have read the first two books in this series, I definitely recommend this one.  Like the first two books, this one deals with some heavy topics, but it also brings Charlotte's story to a satisfying conclusion.