THE HOPE OF REFUGE -- Cindy Woodsmall

Waterbrook Press
ISBN 978-1-4000-7396-2

Single parent, Cara Moore, is penniless, homeless, and running from a stalker. Long-buried memories draw her away from the city to a rural Amish community, Dry Lake, Pennsylvania, where she hides out with her young daughter, while at the same time struggling to unravel the tangled pictures and names in her mind.

The people of the community are wary of this English stranger, but one man reaches out to her in kindness. Torn between the rigid rules of his Amish upbringing and the command he feels he has received from God, Ephriam Mast risks losing his business, family, and even the friendship he is trying to develop with Cara.

Long-held secrets disturb the stillness of the little Amish community—secrets that have the power to tear lives apart.

THE HOPE OF REFUGE is one of those books you’ll sit up late at night reading because you can’t put it down. My heart ached for Cara and her precocious little girl as they ran to escape the violent intent of the man who wants to possess her. The Amish don’t want to accept her—in fact, most of them want her to leave the area. But Ephriam has such a tender and caring heart, he gives her refuge, all the while knowing the ramifications. Once the dark secrets gradually find their way into the light, the reader will understand why Cara was drawn to this unlikely place and why God selected certain people to minister to her in an amazing way.

This is more than just another Amish story. The author has seasoned this book with mystery, drama, and the wonder of God’s mercy, and has created some unique characters to play out the story on the stage of THE HOPE OF REFUGE.

I enjoyed this book immensely, and in case you missed it, Cindy Woodsmall’s book, The Sound Of Sleighbells, was another great read.