Review/Giveaway: The Choice

A WINNING READINGS GIVEAWAY!

Title: The Choice (Lancaster County Secrets Book 1)

Author: Suzanne Woods Fisher
Genre: Contemporary Christian fiction (Amish)

How to enter: Leave a comment on THIS post right here! If you're a subscriber or a follower, leave a second comment for a second entry.
Entry deadline: February 10, 2010
Restrictions: Open internationally!

That's right, enter right here for this giveaway. This is my review copy, so it has been gently read.

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I love books that immerse me in a different culture, while introducing me to people who have similar feelings, needs, and wants that I can relate to. This book is one of those.

The Choice, written by Suzanne Woods Fisher, is a 320-page paperback. It has a list price of $14.99 and is available January 2010 at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group. You may be interested in the book bomb day, February 15th, with some fun giveaway events for people who've purchased this book.

Here's the publisher's description of the book:

Lancaster County has always been her home--but where does her heart belong? One moment Carrie Weaver was looking forward to running away with Lancaster Barnstormers pitcher Solomon Riehl--plans that included leaving the Amish community where they grew up. The next moment she was staring into a future as broken as her heart. Now, Carrie is faced with a choice. But will this opportunity be all she hoped? Or will this decision, this moment in time, change her life forever? A tender story of love, forgiveness, and looking below the surface, The Choice uncovers the sweet simplicity of the Amish world--and shows that it's never too late to find your way back to God.

And a bit of information about the author:

Suzanne Woods Fisher's interest in the Anabaptist cultures can be directly traced to her grandfather, W. D. Benedict, who was raised in the Dunkard Brethren Church in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Benedict eventually became publisher of Christianity Today magazine. Suzanne's work has appeared in many magazines. She has contributed to several nonfiction books and is the author of Amish Peace and the novel The Choice.

This book follows the story of Carrie as she deals with tragedy and tries to comprehend love, both in her relationships with three unique men and in her relationship with Christ. She is by no means perfect; in fact, in the beginning, I'm not sure I like her very much, but her growth in maturity is beautiful to watch. I found myself crying with her and then filled with gratitude as all things worked together for good.

While the author sets this book in the Amish community and treats Amish traditions with respect and beauty, I appreciate that the central storyline is about a relationship with Christ. The book brings out how such a relationship transcends all traditions and enables us to find brothers and sisters in all walks of life. Among the topics addressed in the book are selfishness, guilt, family ties, friendship, honesty, and forgiveness.

On a side note, one of the stories in the book had me googling to find out flashpoints of kerosene, gas, and diesel as I researched "contaminated kerosene." It started out because I was curious as to whether there were issues with mixing kerosene and diesel in our heating oil tank (not really, since they both have high flashpoints), and then began to wonder how likely it is for a small gas spill to cause an accident of horrific proportions as in the book. I'm still a little skeptical, but I've learned a lot - and have a lot more respect for the danger of gas spills on clothing, etc.

This is a romance. But it is far more than a romance.

If you like Amish fiction, you'll love this book. If you're not familiar with Amish fiction, this is a great place to start! This book was an absolute pleasure to read, and I look forward to more in this series.

Thanks to Baker Publishing Group for the review copy of this book.