Book Review: Huckleberry Hill

Author: Jennifer Beckstrand
Publication Date: January 7, 2014
Publisher: Zebra
Series: The Matchmakers of Huckleberry Hill # 1

In her parents’ estimation, LIA SHETLER is the most unpromising girl in her Amish community. As her dat often reminds her, she is too tall for most boys, and with her mousy brown hair and grossly scarred fingers, how can she ever hope to find a husband? With her family dismissing her as an old maid before she even reaches the ripe old age of twenty-four, her most important job is watching out for younger sister, Rachel, and seeing to it that Rachel marries well. That is until Felty and Anna Helmuth introduce Lia to their grandson, Moses, and she can’t ignore her racing pulse when he is near. Will Moses awaken the heart she locked away long ago?

At twenty-six, MOSES ZIMMERMAN, is a bit long in the tooth for a single Amish fellow. Three years ago, his fiancé abandoned him and left the Church, and he promised her he’d wait for her return. But, his scheming grandparents make other plans. Moses tries to resist their meddling, but this time, their plans include someone who is tall enough to look him in the eye, someone whose soul is as beautiful as her staggeringly lovely face, and someone who might help him trade the painful past for a hopeful future.

No escape. He’d have to buck up, meet this girl, and get it over with, although he dreaded the introduction almost as much as he dreaded the root canal last year.

She turned her face to him, and he almost fell over. He had expected a girl and he had expected Amish, but he hadn’t expected beautiful.

It shouldn’t be allowed in the Ordnung to be that handsome. His good looks would be thoroughly distracting at church.

My fiancé’s family lives in Ohio, and on our last visit there I had the pleasure of being introduced to the Amish community. I found it to be a fascinating group of people and beliefs. I visited their stores, met some of them, and bought so many of their fabulous homemade goodies! Ever since that time I have been trying to read more Amish fiction. I was so glad when I stumbled across this new series, The Matchmakers of Huckleberry Hill, and I knew after reading several reviews that I would probably love it as well. This book introduces two characters, Lia and Moses, who both have their doubts about this whole “love” thing. Fortunately for readers, they are about to be proven wrong!

You may be surprised to find out that my two favorite characters in this book were not Lia and Moses, but they were in fact Anna and Felty Helmuth who are the grandparents of Moses. Anna, his grandmother, decides that it is time for her grandson to settle down, marry, and raise a family. Lia thinks she is coming to stay with the Helmuths to provide extra hands around their home, but this wonderfully charming couple have other plans in mind! They were just so precious and made me feel right at home just like they did for Lia!

Moses is such an honorable man and his love and admiration for Lia makes me love him even more. Their relationship starts as a friendship but quickly blooms into something more. This romance was not one that was hard to believe, but was written so realistically that by the time I finished reading I could have sworn I had just met these two people. I got to see a little into both of their lives and was happy to meet both of their families, even though I was not so crazy about Lia’s sister, Rachel! This book was a delightful start to a brand new series!

***A copy of this book was provided to me by the publishers at Zebra in exchange for my honest review***