"The Daughters of Lancaster County" Series

by Wanda E. Brunstetter

The Storekeeper's Daughter

Time appears to stand still in Naomi Fisher's Pennsylvania Amish community....but she's running out of time to correct a terrible mistake. Naomi was content with her life...

...until her mother died in an accident.

...until her somber father needed her to tend the family store every day.

...until her seven siblings started relying on her for their needs.

...until her "English" friend showed her how confining her life had become.

...until her heart started to long for romance.

When Naomi turns her back on one basic duty, the unthinkable happens - and now she feels unworthy to accomplish anything set before her. How can she escape the weight on her spirit that paralyzed her emotions? Is there any redemption for such a failure? (c) Wanda E. Brunstetter, back cover)

My heart responded to this book like it does to all of Wanda Brunstetter's books. I yearned for freedom with Naomi, the main character, and chafed against the responsibilities placed upon her young shoulders. I fumed with anger towards her father and with impatience towards her younger siblings who were yearning for a mother of their own. The picture on the cover captures the sentiment entirely - Naomi with faced raised toward the sun, feeling the warmth and peace upon her brow.

As always, the characters were ones you could relate to. I felt empathy for each of the characters - Naomi's father who has lost his wife and has a brood of 7 children to raise on his own; the younger siblings who were mourning the loss of their loving and competent mother; and Naomi who desires to be like every young girl, free to enter into the Rumspringa (running around) like other young people.

While the characters were well-fleshed out, the story line was also very engaging. The angst of young Caleb who wished to date Naomi is entertaining to watch as is the draw of Naomi's "English" friend, Ginnie. Also, very important is the secondary story line of Linda and Jim who are desperate to have a child of their own, so desperate that Linda resorts to drastic measures in the quiet village of Lancaster.

I really enjoyed this novel and very much look forward to reading the other two in this series. You won't be disappointed in this book!

I have not had the pleasure of reading the next two books in the "Daughters of Lancaster County" series, yet. They are on my personal reading list!