Customer Reviews

The Hope of Refuge (Ada's House Series, Book 1)

5 star:		(86)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

My synopsis: Cara felt like she had been on the run with her daughter forever. But now that Mike had found her again, and this time knew her daughter's name and school - she needed to really get lost. Unfortunately Cara had been "lost" her whole life. Her mother died when she was 8 and her father left her at a bus stop and told her to wait for someone named Emma Riehl who was going to come and get her. Emma never showed up and Cara ended up in foster care. It was while she was here that she met Mike. As a teenager she had tried to go to the police about him, but they did not believe her. She married when she was 17 to get protection from him. When her husband died a few years later, she was left to raise their daughter Lori alone. Mike soon found out and began to stalk her again.

Discovering an address in a journal that her mother Malinda had kept, Cara sets out with Lori with little money and just the clothes on their backs. They are headed to Dry Lake, Pennsylvania, an Amish community. Cara has not been able to trust anyone for so long, that when she shows up in Dry Lake she hides out in a barn with her daughter. She feels as if she knows this place though, but doesn't know how or why. They attend a local auction with the hopes of finding some food when Cara hears the name Emma Riehl again. She knows she must get some answers, but doesn't know what she is going to do for food and shelter in the meantime.

Her stay in the barn does not last long as a local has called the police. They claim they have seen a drunken thief in the area and that she appears to be living in this barn. Before the police can take her away, Ephraim steps in and tells them that she and her daughter can stay with him. He is not quite sure why he has done this, as it will cause problems in the community. Especially if she is who he thinks she is - the daughter of Malinda Riehl, who was banished from the community many years before and left much hurt in her wake. He remembers playing with her for a week when he was a child and has never forgotten her.

Cara's presence in Ephraim's household does indeed cause problems. He is shunned, more severely than normal. This means he is not allowed to speak to any other Amish person, nor sit with them at a table, nor take something from their hands or hand them something. He has also been banished from working at his cabinetry business. In spite of all this, he hears "Be Me to her" when he is having his greatest doubts and feels deep inside that he is doing the right thing. He has no clue how all this will end though.

My thoughts: This was really my first "Amish" book - and I know there are a lot out there right now! I really enjoyed it though, and it gave me a look into a world that I did not know anything about. On one hand, I don't know how people live without electricity, cars, TV, etc - but on the other hand life would be so simple! I am not sure that I would be happy like that forever though. I believe in the same God that they believe in, but I am not sure that if you are not born Amish that his would be a society that you would ever truly belong to. This says it is an Ada House novel, so I am hoping that there are more to come. There were a lot of background characters - Deborah (Ephraim's sister), Mahlon (Deborah's fiance), Ada (Mahlon's mom) and Anna Mary (Ephraim's girlfriend) that I would like to learn more about. I have a feeling that there will be some good stories there!

Oh - there is a cute puppy in the book which Ephraim names Better Days which makes for some good one liners!

Cindy Woodsmall has done it again! She's got a knack for writing a good Amish story that is different from anything else available on Christian bookstore shelves. Just like all of her other books, she has written a great story in The Hope of Refuge that will stay with me for days.

This book has probably one of the most believable storylines for Amish fiction that I've read in a long time. Cindy has created convincing characters with real flaws and real reactions to the circumstances that surround them. She also has great skill in being able to draw you into the lives of these characters, and it's like you are right there with them through the good and the bad.

What Ephraim did for Cara by taking her into his home took a lot of guts considering his commitment to the Amish lifestyle. He had to face some harsh treatment from his family and friends for obeying God's command for him to "be Me to her." I felt that the author hit the nail on the head by adding that small statement to this book, and it made me wonder how much we apply that to our daily lives.

Trust me, you will not be sorry if you get the opportunity to read this great book. As I said before, it's a book that will stay with you and have you thinking for days. I am already looking forward to the next one that Cindy has coming out...thankfully, I only have a couple of months to wait!

In truth I have tried a few Amish fiction books and just couldn't take to them. They seemed too sugary and plain. So, with a bit of trepidation, I started "The Hope of Refuge" and was delighted to be drawn in immediately.

Cara Moore is broke, practically living on the streets and being stalked by a jealous maniac.....just as she begins to feel safe in a small town as a waitress he strikes again. Grabbing up her daughter, a few bucks, and the clothes on their backs they run for Pennsylvania where drifting memories encourage her to go.

Though she isn't readily accepted into the Amish community at first, Cara works hard to feed her daughter and find out the secrets of the memories she feels and she see's in other's eyes. She is helped by a few of the Amish who know she is in trouble and feel in their hearts it is the thing to do.

Nice mystery, much information about the Amish and their beliefs, arrogance, mistakes, and redemption all figure into this lovely book that now has me ordering Ms. Woodsmall's "The Sister of Quilt's" series and her new one for Christmas. I appreciate good writing and Ms. Woodsmall is a fine writer.

I decided to get this book because I had read Cindy Woodsmall's Sister of the Quilt books and I love them. The book arrived in the mail this afternoon, and no exageration, I read it all evening and have finished it. I could not put it down! Cindy Woodsmall has such a way of bringing you into her stories and completely capturing your need to know what happens next! I look forward to reading many more of Woodsmall's stories so I hope she will continue.

This book is one of three from the Ada's House Series about an Amish community.

Cara was abandoned as a child after the death of her mother and ended up in foster care. She never stopped searching for answers to her past. She blamed God as so many people do when her prayers are not answered according to their wishes. God has a plan and it is sometimes hard to reason with the path He chooses for us. When Cara was a little girl she decided there must not be a God because He didn't seem to here her prayers.

Cara is a young widow with a little girl named Lori. Cara has had to jumped from one place to another to get away from a stalker of her youth. She is forced by fear to find a safe place for her child and takes off, with nothing but the clothes on their backs and a backpack, to search for her a place she only remembers in bits and pieces. It is a happy safe place from her early childhood memories and of playing with a sweet young boy. She tends to wonder if it isn't just a figment of her imagination. She finds this place which is an Amish community in Pennsylvania and she is not welcome there. One person, Ephraim, stands up for her and helps her to find her answers only to jeopardize his standing in the Amish community.

It touched my heart reading about this pour young woman trying to find a safe place for her and her child. If you believe in God's will for your life and following the path He sets before us you will enjoy this book.

I give this book a 5 out of 5. I would recommend this book to my closest family and friends.

I purchased this book for my personal reading pleasure and this review is my own honest opinion.

Cindy Woodsmall is one amazing author that leaves you thinking about the characters in her stories days after you finish the books. The Hope of Refuge was wonderful!! A young widow named Cara who has no family besides her daughter Lori is being harassed by a stalker and when things get dangerously scary she takes her daughter and makes a run for it. They end up at a bus or train station trying to decide where to hide from stalker Mike when she discovers an old address in her mother's journal. It is an address in Dry Lake Pennsylvania, an Amish community, and she decides right then and there that is the best place for Lori and her to hide from Mike.

When they finally arrive in Dry Lake they are wet, cold and homeless. They end up hiding out in a barn on someone's land. The owner of the barn turns out to be handsome young Amish man Ephraim and he isn't too thrilled to find Cara and Lori hiding out on his property especially when Cara is accused of being a drunken thief. Despite his struggles with the rumors he is hearing about her Ephraim is feeling called by God to help her and be Jesus to her! His community is not supportive of this idea and thus begins his struggle with trying to do what's right in Gods eyes and in the eyes of his Amish community.

I LOVE Cindy Woodsmall's writing!! The first Amish book I ever read was a book by Cindy and since then I've tried other Amish authors but have never enjoyed any of them. There is just something about the way Cindy writes that keeps you interested.

Her stories are full of engaging and dynamic characters. I always love the way the characters pull at my heart strings and that was no exception with The Hope of Refuge. I especially enjoyed the two main characters Cara and Ephraim. Cara has such a passion and love to take care of her daughter in a safe environment and to find the roots of her mother. Ephraim is amazing also. I love the way that he chooses to follow the call God has placed on his heart despite the troubles he encounters! I'm not sure that I could have done what Ephraim did if it meant the kind of problems he faced. That fact alone made him admirable and I was rooting for things to work out with him the whole way through the story!

Another point that makes Cindy Woodsmall an amazing author is her ability to keep a story flowing without any dull and dragging moments. I never once felt like it was a good time to stop reading the book and go to bed. I was engaged from chapter one and couldn't read it fast enough! I've found this to be true with all of Cindy's writing that I've read so far! Her books are entertaining, thought-provoking and emotional!! I am anxiously awaiting the second book in the Ada's House Series and will be devouring that book as fast as I can also! Thank you Cindy Woodsmall for your delightful Amish books!!

I have been a fan of Cindy's for along time now. I love anything she writes. And this new book is another one to tag with - I LOVE it!!. She is always so down to earth with her writing, and very accurate about depicting Amish life. Do not hesitate to buy it if you like Christian, Amish fiction. Can't wait for the newest relese!!!!!

A vicious stalker is after Cara Moore and her daughter, Lori. Cara is running to the only refuge she can think of, Dry Lake, Pennsylvania. She has no home, no money, and no friends. When Ephraim Mast finds her and rescues her, Cara is torn between feeling grateful and fear of what will happen next. She's learned not to trust, because people, at least the ones she knows, will let you down.

When Ephrain helps Cara, it goes against some of the rules of his church and he gets in trouble with church officials and with his family. He understands how they feel, but he can't abamdon Cara and Lori. He refuses to make her leave.

Ephraim and Cara must battle their way through some very strong obstacles, but they must prevail if they want to hold onto everything they love. Through all the problems, they learn that God is there, leading them in ways they don't realize. Full of passion and faith, this story is special. The characters are so well developed they will live in your memory.

I grew up surrounded by Amish people--we shared a town, a flea market, a weekly auction, and I regularly drove past and around their buggies on the road; however, I can't say that I ever paused much to think about what defined them beyond their rituals and outwardly appearance. As an adult who no longer lives anywhere near the Amish, I find myself regretful of not taking the time to learn and understand more about their community and ways of life. The Hope of Refuge provided what I was hoping for - a view into the Amish culture. The bonus was the narrative about Cara who has been on the run with her daughter for years in an effort to stay safe from a stalker. This book kept me up for several late nights as I couldn't put it down.

Cara's latest attempt to flee her stalker takes her to an Amish community in Dry Lake, Pennsylvania, where she embarks upon a life-altering experience in which she both fills in major gaps from her childhood and develops a broadened view of how she understands the world. Shortly upon arriving, she meets a young Amish man, Ephraim, who helps her in her effort to put the pieces of her past together. He pays a high price for disrespecting the rules of his faith because of his relationship with her.

The author allows the reader to enter the Amish community and understand the gifts that this way of life has to offer. While there are many rules to obey and wordly sacrifices to be made, there is a strong sense of community and, also, a type of freedom that does not exist in a world driven by the quest for more.

This is an awesome book! I love all her books. Keeps my interest and I don't want to put it down.