A Christmas Gift For Rose By Tricia Goyer Book Review

// A Christmas Gift For Rose //

 

A Novella

 

By Tricia Goyer

 

{Review By Bethany}

 

Title: A Christmas Gift For Rose :: A Novella
Author: Tricia Goyer

Source: Litfuse Publicity Group Review Copy from the Publisher
Number of Pages: 192
Publisher: Zondervan
Publication Date: September 24th, 2013
Bethany's Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
 

// Book Synopsis //

"Rose turned her back on the man she loves after he assisted the Englisch during World War II—only to discover she’s an Englischer herself. Born in the midst of the hardships of The Great Depression, Rose grew up in Berlin, Ohio, in the arms of a loving Amish family. But she is overwhelmed by self-doubt when she learns that she was born Englisch and abandoned when her family moved West in search of work. Was she meant to be Amish or would she have been better off growing up with her own kind—Englischers? When the man she loves leaves her behind, Rose is certain he left for good. Yet Rose discovers sometimes our greatest gifts are the ones we fear."

// Bethany's Novella Review //

This was a short, yet sweet Christmas novella set in an Amish town and based on a true story, that is sure to be a delightful read accompanied by a warm fireside and a cup of cocoa, to read during the holiday season!

 

This was the first book that I've read by Tricia that she had written by herself (I read The Swiss Courier, which she authored with another author, Mike Yorkey), and I have to say I really liked it! It was a very sweet quaint story that really made me get excited about the upcoming holiday season!

 

Since this is a novella, it's shorter than a novel and the perfect size to read in a short amount of time. However don't let the size fool you as there is plenty of things going on. At first I though that since this story was so short, I wouldn't get a very good character development in the story. But I was pleasantly surprised when I read it, to find that this wasn't an issue at all, and actually the character development was quite well done. Main character Rose who is Amish, and the other characters too for that matter, were nicely developed in a short time, and I really felt like even though it was short, I got as much character development as I would have if it was a novel size. I loved seeing how Rose grew and dealt with her fears and anxieties, and loved the way the novella ended!

 

This novella is not only a sweet fireside read, but it's also got a wonderful message of feeling important and feeling like you belong. In the story Rose finds out that she wasn't born to an Amish family. She was adopted at a young age, when she was sick and her poor parents were unable to care for her and feed her. So they let their Amish next door neighbors adopt Rose, and she grew up with them. Now it's nearly Thanksgiving many years later, and she finds out that she isn't Amish and that the family she grew up with isn't her real family. Rose begins to doubt, and have second thoughts about being Amish, and feels out of place among the Amish community members who were born into an Amish home. Though she's always been loved and well cared for in the Amish family, she feels out of place and like she doesn't really belong. Top it all off with her strained relationship with the man she once though she'd marry, and Rose is overwhelmed with the fear of the unknown, and feeling like she fits in. However by the end of the story readers see that once Rose learns to trust the Lord and realize her identity in Him, everything seems to pan out in the end.

 

Overall I enjoyed this novella and would recommend it as a sweet, short Christmas read to get you into the holiday cheer.

 

N O T E :: I'd like to sincerely thank Tricia Goyer, Thomas Nelson publishers and Litfuse Publicity group for the opportunity to receive a complementary hardback copy of A Christmas Gift For Rose to read and review. I was not paid to review this novella, and all thoughts expressed in my review are completely honest and unbiased.

 

 If you want to join the A Christmas Gift For Rose release fun, then be sure and check out Litfuse's fun giveaway!

{Note: I am not involved in this giveaway as far as sponsorship, but still wanted to let you all know about it.}
 

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