5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fantastic Amish Fiction, Feb 28 2012
By Liz - Published on Amazon.com
Ce commentaire est de: The Scent of Cherry Blossoms: A Romance from the Heart of Amish Country (Hardcover)
There was a period of time when I was enthralled with Amish fiction. I was very interested in reading stories and seeing the similarities and differences with my own life. I admit though there came a point where the stories all seemed the same; the plot didn't have much variety. I was pleasantly surprised when I read this book by Cindy Woodsmall. It made me remember what I had first loved when reading Amish literature.
This Romeo and Juliet story stars Aden and Annie, who can't be together because of their communities. Annie is an Old Order Mennonite, while Aden is Old Order Amish. This alone I thought was interesting because I never knew before reading this book that people from these different communities could not be in a relationship together.
At the same time there is another plot line. Roman, Aden's brother, was in an accident years ago and is now in a wheelchair. The book follows Aden and Roman's relationship, as well as Roman's romantic life and how he is dealing with not being able to walk.
Overall, I really enjoyed this quick read. I liked reading about Aden and Annie's relationship as well as learning about Roman. The only thing I disliked was that the ending seemed kind of abrupt. However, I would definitely recommend this better than average Amish read.
I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
3.0 out of 5 stars
Good but not Woodsmall's best, Feb 21 2012
By reviewsbyerin - Published on Amazon.com
Ce commentaire est de: The Scent of Cherry Blossoms: A Romance from the Heart of Amish Country (Hardcover)
An Old Order Mennonite girl with a troubled family background falls in love with an Old Order Amish young man, burdened with a stutter and responsibilities within his own family. Strictly forbidden by their two different religions, Annie and Aden must decide if they are willing to risk everything to be together or if they will choose to honor vows made to their churches. Also figuring into the equation is Aden's twin brother, Roman, who was injured in a farming accident and is paraplegic. Aden functions as Roman's legs and Roman has often functioned as Aden's mouth.
There's a reason that I tend to stay away from short stories and novellas. They just aren't satisfying to me in the same way a full-length story with plenty of plot development is. Everything just seems too easy because it happens too quickly; the life struggles that I identify with do not come into play. In this story the biggest hurdle was religious ostracism and, really, how many readers can relate to that? At first I thought that this story was going to be about two families as much as two people, and that would have been much more interesting, from my point of view. I'm used to Cindy Woodsmall tackling real and heart-breaking challenges and these just didn't strike me the same way.
That said, Woodsmall is still an amazing wordsmith. I'll continue to read and hope to see more of what I've found in the Sisters of the Quilt and Ada's House series.
Thank you to Waterbrook Multnomah for my copy of this book and for partnering with bloggers in so many ways!
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Sweet Romantic Story., May 21 2012
By Jan Drexler - Published on Amazon.com
Ce commentaire est de: The Scent of Cherry Blossoms: A Romance from the Heart of Amish Country (Hardcover)
In her newest novella, The Scent of Cherry Blossoms, Cindy Woodsmall treats the reader to a glimpse into differences between two communities - the Old Order Amish and the Old Order Mennonites. But these two communities only seem identical to the outsiders. Cindy Woodsmall dares to plumb the depths of the differences between these theological "cousins" that date back to the 17th century.
Annie Martin is an Old Order Mennonite girl who loves her heritage and her grandfather. To escape a difficult situation at home, Annie goes to live with him in Apple Ridge, Pennsylvania just as spring begins to show its face. While there, she becomes reacquainted with a childhood friend, Aden Zook. But Aden is Old Order Amish, and as their friendship grows into love, their families forbid the relationship, revealing just how deeply the boundaries between the two sects run.
Even though novellas are traditionally shorter and less complex than a novel, Cindy Woodsmall has also given the reader fully developed secondary characters, including a look at Aden's twin brother, Roman, as he tries to regain his identity after being confined to a wheel chair due to a farming accident. Roman's journey and his steps toward love with an outgoing, vivacious Amish girl are a delightful background to Annie and Aden's story.
I have enjoyed all of Cindy Woodsmall's books that I've read, and this one is no exception. In the growing sub-genre of Amish fiction, Cindy gives the reader a sweet, authentic story every time.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher for my unbiased review.