stephikat 's review for:

The Shunning by Beverly Lewis
1.0

To be fair, this is one of Beverly Lewis's earliest works. She had undoubtedly grown as an author since. That said, I found this read to be a bit frustrating.

The characters were inconsistent and flat and the plot was extremely predictable. It isn't easy to relate to any of the characters-- especially Katie. The notion that she isn't a good Amishwoman because she wasn't born Amish (despite the fact that she was raised Plain from birth) doesn't make sense to me; her character and plight would be much more plausible if she were written younger, not as a woman in her twenties.

I am intrigued by the Amish culture and dialect, but Lewis's explanations were clumsy and forced. Sometimes her descriptions would detract from the story at hand; for example, any tension Lewis tried to build during the wedding scene (will she go through with her marriage to Bishop John?) was lost in the over-written description of the traditional foods and table settings seen at an Amish wedding.

If you're looking for a fluffy, lighthearted Christian read, look no further. If you want a book with a decent narrative, check out some of her later works. But I have absolutely no desire to continue with this particular series and would not jump to recommend this book to any of my patrons.