Annie's Recipe by Lisa Jones Baker

Annie's Recipe (Hope Chest Of Dreams, #2)

by Lisa Jones Baker

Three young Amish women, each gifted with a hand-carved hope chest, find that one by one, with patience and faith, their most blessed dreams for the future can come true…
 
Annie Mast and Levi Miller were best friends until his father was shunned by the church. Now, ten years later, Levi has returned to Arthur, Illinois, for a brief visit, and he and Annie discover their bond is as strong as ever. Spending as much time together as possible, Annie finds herself dreaming of a future with Levi. And Levi is soon dreaming of building a home on a beautiful local hillside—to live in with Annie. Yet their longings are unlikely to become reality…

Levi is part of the English world, and while Annie cannot see herself there, she knows she must reveal her heart’s truth to him. And Levi, strongly reminded of his Amish roots, knows he must heal the bitterness of the past. And together, with love on their side, they just may find their way to an answered prayer…

Reviewed by Molly J(Cover To Cover Cafe) on

4 of 5 stars

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Excerpt
The small brown freckle under Annie’s right eye that he’d teased her about as a kid had developed into something of a beauty mark. It belonged there. To Levi’s dismay, his pulse picked up speed. He wanted more time with her. She was of Rumspringa age, so she could do non-Amish things. But that would only be for a couple of years, not forever.

Behind them, Aunt Abigail followed in a separate buggy with Aidan and Elijah. As Levi glanced back at Jake, the kid responded with a big grin. To Levi’s surprise, an unexpected appreciation for the ambience in the buggy, often referred to as the fiberglass box, welled in his chest. He sat back as the horses stepped it up.

 

Automatically, Levi looked down. There wasn’t a trace of dirt on the beautiful navy velvet cushion that softened the hard bench. He remembered when his mother had used a lint brush to clean their buggy. On the sides were two small viewing windows and one in the back. A blue homemade quilt was rolled up and slightly draped over the backseat. He’d forgotten what it was like being in a means of transportation with no seat belts or radio. Levi missed the music. He was used to driving his dad’s truck and had traversed country roads long before he’d gotten his license a few years before.



 As they traveled, Levi glanced back to smile at little Jake. The response was a large toothless grin and eyes wide with excitement. Levi knew the child was dying to spend time with him. Levi had nearly decided not to come today. Even though there had been no mention of the shunning, everyone knew it had happened. He had never discussed it with anyone. He and Annie had shared everything when they were young. And despite their unbreakable bond, she was still Amish.



 I’ve got to stop thinking about her.

My Thoughts
I love a good Amish novel, and this is one that I thoroughly enjoyed. Ms. Baker is a supremely talented author who brings the perfect amount of humor, faith, and romance to a book that is filled with hope, forgiveness and understanding. Each page turn was something new, and kept me reading long into the night.

Annie and Levi's characters were absolutely perfect for the story! I loved Annie's strong will and wit and I loved Levi's charming character. He really stole my heart from the start. After all they've both been through,I loved their interactions! Watching them together was so refreshing, especially after they have been a part for so long. 

This story of forgiveness, understanding, and faith is one that I highly recommend with 4 stars. Ms. Baker makes her stories pop and come to life before the reader. Not only does she do that, she adds recipes to the story making the reader hungry by the end. If you love Amish novels and books with characters who steal your heart forever, look no further! Grab you a copy of this talented lady's book. 

 

Giveaway
Lisa will be awarding a $50 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via

rafflecopter during the tour.
a Rafflecopter giveaway

This review was originally posted on Cafinated Reads

Last modified on

Reading updates

  • Started reading
  • 22 May, 2017: Finished reading
  • 22 May, 2017: Reviewed