Tuesday, April 5, 2011

When the Heart Cries by Cindy Woodsmall

When the Heart Cries (Sisters of the Quilt, #1)About the book:

When Hannah dares to love across the boundaries of tradition, will she lose everything?
Despite being raised in a traditional Old Order Amish family, seventeen-year-old Hannah Lapp desires to break with custom, forgo baptism into the faith, and marry outside the cloistered community. She’s been in love with Mennonite Paul Waddell for three years, and before returning to college for his senior year, Paul asks Hannah to be his wife. Hannah accepts, aware that her marriage will change her relationship with her family forever.
On the evening of their engagement, tragedy strikes and in one unwelcome encounter, all that Hannah has known and believed is destroyed. As she finds herself entangled in questions that the Old Ways of her people cannot answer, Hannah faces the possibility of losing her place in her family, in her community– and in the heart of the man she loves.
When the Heart Cries is book one in the Sisters of the Quilt series.

My review:
5 STARS

I don't know where to begin about how I felt about this story.  This is the first Amish story I have ever read and so I wasn't quite sure what to expect but I was blown away! This is about a young Amish girl named Hannah who was in love with a Mennonite named Paul for three years. He was in college but came every summer to the community in which Hannah lived to help his grandmother and Hannah worked for his grandmother and that is how they became friends. He proposed to Hannah before he left for college his senior year.  Hannah said yes knowing that this relationship could change everything for her, she was going outside tradition and the affect could be damaging.  The day Paul left, Hannah was struck by a huge tragedy that changed her life forever. 
This story was so deeply moving that I could not put it down even when I wanted to. It made me cry in so many ways and then also rejoice with things that happened. Hannah was such an amazing character that you instantly loved her and everything about her.  Cindy Woodsmall did an amazing job connecting you with the characters.  It has rarely happened to me that I went to bed still thinking of the story and woke up to pick it right back up.  I couldn't get enough of the heartache, the rejoicing, and the struggles of this amazing woman.
I requested a review copy of the third book of the series, Sister of the Quilt, so I felt like I had to read the first two books in the series first.  It's a good thing I did it that way because there is no way I could have waited for a long time to read the final book in this series.  When the Heart Cries made my heart cry and made me just want to reach out and help this family and situation.  It really was an amazing book. I recommend anyone who enjoys Amish stories to pick this one up, and if you just like Christian romance, with a side of tragedy then you will like this one also! Great read!
About the Author:

Cindy Woodsmall is a veteran homeschool mom. As her children progressed in age, her desire to write grew stronger. After working through reservations whether this desire was something she should pursue, she began her writing journey. Her husband was her staunchest supporter as she aimed for what seemed impossible.

Her first novel released in 2006 to much acclaim and became a Christian Book Association best seller. Cindy was a 2007 ECPA Christian Book Award finalist, along with Karen Kingsbury, Angela Hunt, and Charles Martin.

Her lastest book, When the Morning Comes, hit the New York Times best-sellers extended list and the Christian Book Association best-sellers list.

Cindy’s real-life connections with Amish Mennonite and Old Order Amish families enrich her novels with authenticity.

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Her website: 

You can buy her books online at Amazon! 

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