A Perfect Amish Romance by Shelley Shepard Gray (2021)

Tons of Amish Loveliness

This was a great read. There were so many things that I underlined; so many nuggets of goodness that I wanted to remember. I’ve been having luck with my Amish romances lately and it’s been very spiritually uplifting. 

One of the best things about this book is how loving the families were. There were challenges and love developing and one of the best things is that there wasn’t an overbearing parent or ordnung in sight. Thinking about it, we really didn’t see any English in this story and yet the oppressive feeling of some Amish stories wasn’t here. These people weren’t stifled by their simple life. They enjoyed it, which made me enjoy it too. And their faith was not just lived out in going to 3-hour church services but in the way they cared for each other, their community, and used the Bible to guide their lives. 

I really liked Aaron’s chaotic family and especially his parents. While Daed was the family head, and Mamm was his partner and wife, they didn’t try to control their children’s lives, but instead tried to guide them to be their best selves. It’s healthy family dynamics at its best. Even when Aaron revealed his secret — studying for the GED — they were supportive but still gave him a scold for being dishonest about what he was doing and hiding it. 

I noticed, too, that they weren’t scared of interacting with Englishers, a feeling I’ve gotten from some other stories, like their faith was so precarious that being around the English would corrupt them, bring them harm and wreak their faith. Instead, these people weren’t scared of the English way of life. They liked their faith better and found it more spiritually fulfilling. That may not seem like a big deal but to me it meant a lot. These people followed their community’s rules not out of fear but out of the joy it brought them. Not to say that they didn’t have challenges or hardships. But their faith and the love they shared helped them through those times instead of making them more of a burden. Definitely recommend.

5 out of 5 stars.