Review: A Shining Light

Shining Light, A (Home to Amana Book #3)

About the Book:

West Amana, Iowa, 1890

After Andrea Wilson receives the devastating news that her husband has been lost at sea, she returns home to Iowa with her young son, Lukas. But what she finds there causes more heartache: The family farm has burned and her father has died, leaving Andrea with nothing.

Andrea must rely on the kindness of the people from the nearby Amana village who invite her to stay with them for a time. She discovers much generosity and contentment among the Amanans--especially from the tinsmith, Dirk Knefler, who takes her son under his wing. But is the simple, cloistered life in Amana what Andrea wants for Lukas's future? Is she willing to give up the comforts and freedom of the outside world? And when yet another round of shocking news comes her way, will Andrea ever be able to find the serenity and hope that have eluded her for so long?

My Comments:  

While I enjoyed this story, I was a bit disappointed because I really didn't much sense of who the Amana people were.  We learned they were from Germany and that they lived communally but that was about it.  The story itself is a pretty formula romance with Andrea's husband as the force keeping her from true love.  Like all good romances, it ends with a happily ever after.  

I'd like to thank the publisher for sending me a review copy. I suspect I'm late with this review but I got the book during the time I was busy worrying about my Dad.  Grade:  B-