A Book Review: The Bridge of Peace

So, I don't know how many of you have heard of this thing called Blogging for Books. It's pretty sweet, I have to tell ya. You sign up on their website and fill in a little thing about what types of books you like and based on that they give you a list of books that you can choose from. You choose a book, they send it to you for FREE and then you just have to read it and write a review on it! I found out about this from an old friend (Thanks Angela :)) and just read my first book. I'll be honest, I was really skeptical because apparently the site was having problems the day that I chose my book, so all my choices were Amish! But it turned out really, really well.

The Bridge of Peace by Cindy Woodsmall is an engaging story that has every aspect a person might want in a book. There are several story lines happening that are all interconnected in some way. It is the story of an Amish community and some problems that specific people have in it. The main character, Lena, is a young Amish school teacher that has a large birthmark on her face that she feels holds her back from the life that she really wants. She loves her job, but from it incurred the wrath of an unstable man. Lena's childhood friend, Grey, suffers from an unhappy marriage in a religion that has little to no flexibility. Grey's work partner is engaged to a woman that is joining the religion for him so that they can be married, and she struggles to leave everything from her former life behind. She, in turn, helps two women who run a bakery. One of these women was engaged to the other's son when he ran off and left them both.

This book was really good, full of good old-fashioned drama. It was easy to relate to because while Lena has a mark on her face that holds her back, I think everyone has something about themselves, whether it's visible or not, that they feel has that effect on them. I would highly recommend this book to any women (men might find it a little too romantic) even if she has no knowledge or interest in Amish life.

(I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review)