Need You Now - Beth Wiseman

GENRE: CONTEMPORARY/WOMEN’S FICTION

PUBLISHER: THOMAS NELSON

PUBLICATION DATE: APRIL 10, 2012

RATING: 8 OUT OF 10 – GOOD

PROS: Approaches difficult issues respectfully and realistically; relatable characters

CONS: Some storylines and characters could have been developed further; one character took an unpleasant turn

For Darlene Henderson, life in Round Top, Texas feels much more safe and secure than it did in Houston. Her teenage son has been removed from the rough crowd he was spending time with in the city, and she and her husband are making plans to renovate their old farm house. Darlene’s so comfortable with her family life that she’s given up being a stay-at-home mum and started working at a school for disabled children. So she’s entirely unprepared when a series of catastrophes hit her family. Her seemingly perfect teenage daughter is revealed to have been self-harming for quite some time, a secret her brother was keeping from their parents. No one understands the enormity of what Grace has been going through, least of all Darlene. Her husband, Brad, is determined to sweep this situation under the carpet and deal with it without any outside help that might damage the reputation of their family. Brad’s reaction stuns Darlene, and his insinuations that Grace wouldn’t have been so destructive if Darlene spent more time at home drives an unexpected wedge between them. To complicate matters further, the father of a child at her school is starting to pay Darlene a lot of attention, at a time when she most needs someone to lean on. Darlene is struggling to stay strong and make decisions about Grace without the support of her husband, and needs all the help she can get to stay away from the open arms of another man.

Having recently become a fan of Beth Wiseman’s Amish fiction, I couldn’t help but be intrigued when I heard that she was releasing a contemporary novel, and a non-romantic one at that. Contemporary women’s fiction is a genre that is slightly lacking in the Christian market. There are some writers who approach this genre very well, but I’ve yet to encounter anyone who can rival Barbara Delinsky or Diane Chamberlain in their complex plots and family dynamics. While Beth’s debut into this market didn’t excite the same reactions in me that Barbara’s most recent instalments have, I will admit that it was incredibly compelling. I devoured it in two days straight, and I honestly think I need to go back and reread the last few chapters as I was struggling to keep my eyes open at the end, but determined not to go to sleep until I’d finished the book!

I didn’t have any major expectations for Need You Now, as I imagined it would be very different from Beth’s Amish fiction. But she has lived up to her trademark of complex, realistic characters with believable struggles, even in a contemporary setting. I was even more impressed by the way that she approached her teenage protagonists. Some brilliant authors have let me down in their portrayal of teenagers – notably, Jodi Picoult’s The Pact, which I repeatedly wanted to throw across to the room when I read it as a sixteen-year-old – but Beth does not join their ranks. While I never suffered to the extent that Grace did, I did struggle with unexplained feelings of depression throughout my teen years, which has now been diagnosed as Seasonal Affective Disorder. Even now, I can’t put my emotions from this stage of my life into words. Somehow, Beth has managed to explain how overwhelmingly confusing teenage depression can be, making Grace an incredibly relatable teenage character. Grace’s older brother, Chad, was equally realistic, although I felt that Beth could have developed his character a little more. There are hints that Chad is possibly going to head down the wrong route, like he did in Houston, and although he makes some positive choices towards the end of the novel, his character never had the depth that Grace’s did. Likewise, I did mostly enjoy the storyline about their neighbour, Layla, but she sometimes felt a bit caricatured. Her relationship with Darlene was very touching, but I think the fact that this novel attempted to focus on so many different characters meant that some of them – particularly Layla and Chad – were a little neglected and didn’t seem quite as fleshed out as Darlene and Grace.  

Some readers may find it difficult to read about the struggles Darlene and Brad’s relationship faces, and the temptations that Dave presents her with. Need You Now illustrates how dangerous a seemingly innocent relationship can become when it starts to provide that which your marriage cannot. I will admit that I got a bit annoyed at Darlene towards the end of the novel. She overhears a phone conversation with her husband and makes several assumptions, but takes a long time to confront him about it. I know that this is probably the way that many women would react, but I’m not that kind of woman. But although I couldn’t relate to Darlene in this particular incident, I will say that for the majority of the situations she found herself in, I could emphasise with her. I do wish that Dave’s character had taken a different turn. He was painted so sympathetically at the start of the novel – a widower with a challenging daughter who just wanted to find love again – but I felt he almost became somewhat of a villain, and Darlene the victim. Of course he was wrong in coveting a married woman, but if Darlene can be forgiven for her mistakes, so can he. I wanted some hope for Dave at the end of the novel, but there wasn’t any. Perhaps Beth will write another novel about Dave’s redemption?

Beth’s debut into the contemporary market is strong, and hopefully a sign of better things to come. Her characters are just as realistic and relatable as those in her Amish novels, and she continues to address controversial issues that some authors shy away from. While perhaps the number of topics that come up in this novel might seem a little overwhelming – self-harm, adultery, death – the novel ended on a hopeful, uplifting note. I think the only major pitfall of Need You Now is that the novel has a large cast, and some of the characters seemed less credible than others. A few characters could have benefited from some further development, but perhaps this had to be sacrificed for the sake of the main storylines. But hopefully this is something that Beth can improve on in later novels, of which I’m sure there will be many. Fans of Beth’s Amish fiction will likely enjoy this foray into a new genre, and those who can’t bear to pick up a novel with the bonnet on the front will now also get the chance to enjoy Beth’s challenging yet uplifting stories.

Review title provided by Thomas Nelson.

Plain Perfect (Daughters of the Promise #1) - Beth Wiseman

A search for peace in Amish country proves anything but simple for a woman on the run from life...and herself.

On the rolling plains of Lancaster County, PA., Lillian Miller is searching for her grandparents' house...and so much more. After years of neglect and abuse, she's turning to a lifestyle of simplicity among the Amish to find herself.

As she discards the distractions of her former life, she befriends the young boy working on her family's farm and his attractive widowed father, Samuel Stoltzfus. Despite Lillian's best efforts to the contrary, her feelings for Samuel--and his for her--deepen. Will Lillian find her faith in Plain living, or will she be forced to return to her former life?

With so many other Amish books that I own and need to read, I hadn't thought about checking out the work of Beth Wiseman until a friend leant me this book. Picking it up one evening when I was feeling under the weather and wanting to read a "real" book rather than something on my Kindle, I found myself pleasantly surprised. I almost devoured this book in an entire evening, unable to put it down. Lillian was a hilarious character, constantly putting her foot in her mouth whenever she claimed that she wanted to find "peace" amongst the Amish, and insisting that she'd manage fine because she knows how to cook! I loved that Beth had created such an unconventional, flawed heroine. Even though I couldn't entirely relate to her problems (nor her immaturity, that on any other character would have annoyed me) I wanted to keep reading about her because she was so entertaining.

The other characters in the novel were incredibly endearing, from the vastly different grandparents - the grandfather who saw the good in everyone and spoke his mind, and the grandmother who was still hurting from the loss of her daughter - to Samuel and his sweet son - who couldn't help but hope that Lillian would become his new mother. I even liked Lillian's "rival", who ended up being her friend. It was sweet to witness Lillian and Samuel unintentionally falling in love with each other, showing the readers how people from such vastly different backgrounds can find comfort in each other.

While I can sometimes be wary of conversion-to-the-Amish plotlines, Lillian's visit to Lancaster County made sense in that her mother had left the Amish as a teen, and both of them had subconsciously yearned to return there. I would have to say that Lillian's acceptance of the Amish ways wasn't entirely convincing, and that's why I'd give this book 9/10 rather than 10/10. At one point, she questioned why Amish women should be subservient to their husbands and she wasn't satisfied with her grandmother's answer - but this was never brought up again. I personally feel like Lillian would have needed a lot more convincing to join the Amish lifestyle, especially when it came to accepting "God's will" about bad situations. This is probably the part that I had the most difficulty with in this book. Even as a Christian, I don't believe it's "God's will" for bad things to happen - but I do believe it is His will for good things to come out of bad situations. But calling the death of a young woman from cancer "God's will" suggests that God intended for her to die - and I don't think this is the way it is at all. Lillian struggled with this also, but she seemed to finally accept it in the end but it was never really explained. I felt like too much was spent dwelling on the idea of "God's will" and it left me feeling a bit uncomfortable.

Despite my minor struggles with this book, I did really enjoy it. When a sudden tragedy struck Lillian's family near the end of the book I actually had tears in my eyes, which made me realise how attached I'd become to these characters. While the plot may have been rather predictable, the characters were far from conventional and I'd definitely recommend this book to fans of Amish fiction of the likes of Amy Clipston, Barbara Cameron, Vannetta Chapman and Kelly Long. I'm excited to get on to the next book and see where Beth takes our characters next. 9/10

An Amish Love - Kelly Long, Kathleen Fuller & Beth Wiseman

Best-selling authors Kathleen Fuller and Beth Wiseman are joined by Kelly Long, who entered the Amish genre last year with her debut Sarah’s Garden, in this romantic novella collection. An Amish Love features three interlocking stories of love, starting with an accidental marriage in Kelly Long’s A Marriage of the Heart and moving on to broken hearts embarking on a new relationship in What the Heart Sees by Kathleen Fuller. The anthology finishes on an optimistic note for the future with a late in life couple falling in love all over again in Beth Wiseman’s Healing Hearts.

From a glance at the front cover and the synopsis of this collection, one can be forgiven for assuming that this is a light, predictable selection of stories about the Amish. Even I expected this, and I’ve been an avid reader of Amish romances for almost two years now. So I was pleasantly surprised to see that each author was bringing something new and original to the genre.

Kelly Long, whose debut novel I absolutely adored, places her protagonist, Abby Kauffman, in an unusual situation and shows us how love can blossom in the most unexpected places. After a newcomer to the community, Joseph Lambert, fails to give Abby the attention she believes she deserves, she accuses him of misbehaving with her. But the joke is on her when her father forces them into a marriage of convenience in order to protect her honour – and much to her shock, Joseph agrees to this arrangement! While I’ll freely admit that the premise of this novella is a bit unbelievable, I loved watching Abby and Joseph’s relationship develop. Kelly brings something unexpected but most welcome to the Amish genre with the undeniable attraction and chemistry between her characters. As much as I’m a fan of “sweet” romance, I’m often disappointed by inspirational authors who fail to acknowledge this important aspect of relationships – bravo to Kelly for doing the opposite! 9/10

Kathleen Fuller’s story is definitely my favourite in this collection, especially as she shows us the flawed side of the Amish. While we uphold the Amish as being people of forgiveness, Kathleen dares to admit the obvious – that forgiveness doesn’t come easily or painlessly. Christopher Miller left the Amish after his fiancée was killed in a car accident, and he still holds a grudge against the driver of the car when he finally returns five years later. So it doesn’t sit well that his younger sister is engaged to be married to this man. Through the help of Ellie Chupp, who lost her eyesight in the same accident, he slowly learns to let go of his deceased fiancée – and to forgive and ask for forgiveness himself. While this story focused more on the developing relationship between Chris and Ellie, rather than romance, there was something simple and beautiful about the flawed nature of all of the characters that really appealed to me. Kathleen is a new author to me and I will definitely be looking out for more of her work. 10/10

I wasn’t quite so fond of Beth Wiseman’s addition to the collection. I found that it became a bit over-the-top and cheesy towards the end, but I truly appreciated the fact that Beth decided to focus on an older couple. Too many romance novels focus on young couples in their prime, and it often makes us forget how important it is to keep romance alive within marriage. Levina and Naaman Lapp have been married for over thirty years, but once all their children have left home they realise that they’ve drifted apart. Naaman takes a trip to visit family in Ohio and doesn’t return for almost a year – and when he does, their relationship needs even more work. Slowly, they learn to fall in love again, and Naaman is able to regain his wife’s trust. As someone who is currently reading a pile of marriage-preparation books, it was encouraging to see someone acknowledging the strain that raising a family can put on marriage and how important it is to set aside some time just for the two of you. However, there was a subplot about the possibility of Naaman being in trouble with the law that just didn’t seem to fit with the feel of the novella and spoiled this story a bit for me. 8/10

This collection is perfect for anyone who is already a fan of Amish fiction, but would also suit those who want to experiment with this genre but don’t know where to start. An Amish Love features three of the best authors of this popular genre, and I highly recommend it to anyone wanting to discover new stories about our beloved Plain folk. Overall rating: 9/10

I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”