Arms of Love, by Kelly Long

Arms of Love, by Kelly Long

Thomas Nelson

Set in colonial America, the Amish families suffer persecution from the colonists because they do not fight against the British and from the British because they are colonists.  Adam is the son of an Amish family that holds some authority in their neighborhood Amish community.  Adam has loved Lena for several years and they look forward to marrying, but on her deathbed, Lena's mother Mary makes Adam promise to stay away from Lena until he is no longer under a dark cloud.  When Adam tells Lena that the can no longer be together, she vows to marry is brother.  Between the difficulties of life, Adam discovers a truth that he has tried to forget for many years, and comes to forgive his father for beating him.

This is a very tender story of strength, forgiveness, and love, with well thought out characters, and involving plot twists.  One rarely remembers that while fighting for their own freedom, colonists were lax to extend those same ideas to others.  Viewing the Amish way of life through a historical lens adds interest to the story, as does other elements of the setting such as the frequent deaths that surrounded everybody's lives.  This is a book for readers that enjoy a love story deeper than a mere romance, along with the interesting history of the setting.

Received Galley from NetGalley.com

Published by Thomas Nelson on May 2, 2012.