Customer Reviews

More Than Words (Daughters of Amana, Book 2)

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Gretchen Kohler wouldn't think of living anywhere but in her beloved Amana colony, where she works hard to keep the rules and fulfill her destiny. Her mother died, leaving her with a younger brother and a senile grandmother, along with a grieving father who depends upon her to help run the dry goods store. Her childhood sweetheart is obviously thinking marriage, but there's that creative urge within that refuses to be stilled. Gretchen's only outlet is her secret journals, where she writes her stories and poems.

Along comes a young, attractive reporter with a kindred spirit--or so she thinks. Sharing her stories leads to his betrayal in the worst way. Will she lose her job, her reputation, and her beau because of one unfortunate decision?

Once again Miller has spun a wonderful tale for family reading. Lots of action, suspense and emotion, but no unpleasant surprises. I highly recommend the book.

Review by Audrey Hebbert, author of Green Light Red Light

Judy Miller proves her research skills with her best novel yet. Her heroine is wonderfully flawed and real, her hero a treasure. The historical setting in the Amana colonies of Iowa is a wealth of intricately woven detail. Her plot and subplots flow with surprises that kept me reading far into the night. When a young woman of Amana shares her private writings with someone she trusts, things change in her life, causing her to question her beliefs and way of life. She faces new challenges, which teach her that people aren't always what they seem, and that the strength of community can overcome individual weaknesses. Highly recommended.

I enjoyed the first half of this book,but I just found it hard to believe how deceptive the main character Gretchen was for someone raised in a religious commune!

I found all the history and info about this commune-The Amana Colonies,really interesting.

However there was just so many unbelievable things in this book,the senile old grandmother climbing a tree,I doubt if that would be physically possible,the repeated deceptions by the main character,until I no longer even liked her,and I may have lost count of how many story-lines there was with the gypsies,the senile grandmother,the relationship between Gretchen and Conrad an Amana man,and the young attractive reporter who shows an interest in Gretchen. I really wearied of all the different directions and the constant outrageous episodes of the grandmother,so I started skipping a lot of pages from half-way-in on. It just couldn't keep me interested,like the first book did,even though I really liked the hero Conrad.

This book was the 2nd in the series, Daughters of Amana. It takes place in the Amana Colonies in Iowa. I have been there so it was interesting to learn of how they originally lived and more about the community. This series takes you from start during the 1st WW, in Book 3.
I enjoyed it so much I sent the whole series to my daughter to read.

More Than Words took me on a delightful journey through the Amana Colonies in 1885, and Judith Miller captured my attention from the very first page. I had no idea that I would experience such unique characters and cultures all in one book! I gained knowledge about the Amana Colonies, as well as learned what the Gypsies were like at that point in history.

For those that don't know, Amana members are often mistaken for Amish, when in fact, they are not connected at all. The Amana members have no issues with using electricity, for example, and are always looking for ways to improve their quality of work as well as the speed in which it is accomplished. They have a communal society where no one owns their own home, and each person has very few possessions. This allows them to focus their time on God and His Word because they are not tied down to things or worldly desires.

The Gypsies, on the other hand, were very interesting, too. I had no idea that they frequently kidnapped young children, and brought them into their society. That tidbit was quite disturbing, but it was an important secondary part of the story. I did know that they used Tarot cards and conjured up spells and such, but thankfully, those things were not mentioned much at all.

I found that I related very well with Gretchen, the main female character. She had a desire for reading and learning that was enormous. I couldn't imagine if I had to watch what I read in such a strict society, but I understood why they had their rules in place. Thankfully, she had a very understanding father (most of the time), in addition to a very nosy brother. She also had a very dreamy beau who was very patient and understanding....reminded me of my hubby. :o)

More Than Words is book 2 in the Daughters of Amana series, but can easily be read as a stand-alone. I had not read the first book prior to this one, and never felt like I had missed any back story. For someone who is a fan of bonnet fiction, I enjoyed learning more about another society that wasn't Amish. Their lifestyle is simple, but interesting, and I imagine most fans of Amish fiction would find the Amana society to be a nice diversion in their reading fare. My rating is 4 Stars.

Gretchen Kohler likes to write in her journal. She never imagines her words will travel further than her home in the Amana Colonies, at least not until a traveling salesman takes an interest in her writing. With a jealous childhood sweetheart, a wandering grandmother, a younger brother drawn to visiting gypsies, and a father changed for the worse since her mother's death, Gretchen has her hands full. She finds it difficult to bear the weight of a guilty conscience, too. Should she confess her secrets and risk losing her job, her reputation and the respect of the man she loves?

More Than Words by Judith Miller, book two in the Daughters of Amana series, delivers a sweet and entertaining love story for those who enjoy reading about life in communal colonies.

(My thanks to Bethany House for a complimentary copy of this title, given for purposes of review.)

This is the second book in the series "Daughters of Amana" I have read the first one also, and these were the first time I had heard of the Amana Colonies, but they are really interesting. They thrive within their own circle, grown their own food and supply almost all they need within this little community.
This story take up in Homestead Village, Amana Colonies, Iowa in the year of 1885. Gretchen is a young woman that takes care of her father, brother and her grandmother (Oma) and they run the general store within the colony. Gretchen finds herself trying to help with the store and looking after her grandmother who has dementia, she doesn't have much time for herself but when she had a minute she loves to write, which she is not supposed to do. She slips around and writes poems and sometime stories, then hide her journal where no one finds it, she thinks...but old those sneaky little brothers.
Oma keep running off and finds herself in all types of places that she does not need to be as in the apple tree trying to get apples in the spring. Gretchen has a boyfriend that is the town barber by the name of Comrad. He helps her keep her father from knowing about Oma's mind as Gretchen thinks he will send her away if he finds.
Then a Gypsy group sets up outside town and everyone is afraid of what they made do, but Oma slips off and makes friends with them, they really helped Gretchen and Oma instead of being mean to the town. The town has a lot of tourist that comes in with the train and buys from them, and looks............. One couple came to town and saw the Gypsies and fainted, it was learned then that a group of Gypsies had taken their little five year old girl the year before. How will things work out for Gretchen and Conrad? What will happen to Oma?
The story is a great read and very interesting about this group of people, somewhat like the Amish but so different.
This book was sent to me by Baker Publishing for my honest review.

Although she lives in one of the villages of the Amana colonies, Gretchen Kohler dreams of being an author. A dear friend supplies her with notebooks in which to record her thoughts, but this friend is the only person who seems to care about her writing.
Her father has been distant and stern since her mother died, and her childhood sweetheart, Conrad, is a pragmatic man who doesn't pay attention to the person Gretchen really is. To top things off, she's saddled with the care of her senile grandmother, who often mistakes Conrad for her deceased husband.
One day a salesman comes to the store where Gretchen works, and notices her writing in a journal. He's impressed by what he sees, and his interest leads Gretchen down a path she'd never have imagined. The consequences impact the entire colony.
In More Than Words, Miller follows her initial volume in the Daughters of Amana series, Somewhere to Belong, with further fascinating glimpses into the early Amana colonies. This novel was enjoyable on many levels. I recommend it to readers who enjoy family-friendly stories set around lifestyles different than our own.
My thanks to Bethany House for providing my review copy.

I was so entranced by Judith Miller's Daughter's of the Amana Colonies books. Living in Nebraska I am very aware that the Amana Colonies are in Iowa but I've never been there. Now that I have read the first two in this series I can not wait to make a trip there and see them in person! Judith absolutely brought the colonies to life for me and I learned so much about the colonies and how they work. I realized that while many people (like myself) tend to lump the Amish, Mennonites and people of the Amana Colonies all under the Amish label, there are really a lot of differences between them and Judith highlights a lot of the ways that the people living in the Amana Colonies are different. I found it fascinating. Then she creates this group of characters that are just wonderful and there is even some mystery woven into the story with the band of gypsies camped outside town and who started the fire and why things are disappearing. I don't think I could have been more pleased with this book.

More Than Words by Judith Miller is the second book in the Daughters of Amana series. Gretchen Kohler is mostly content working in the town store, although she misses her father's affection and attention that has waned since the death of her mother. He often leaves her in charge of the stores and of younger brother Stefan, which creates trouble when the Gypsies come to town and Stefan just can't seem to stay away. Gretchen loses herself writing in her journal. She composes poems and essays until Allan Finley arrives in the small community claiming a desire to joining them and shows an interest in Gretchen that no one but barber and childhood sweetheart Conrad has been giving her. Although Gretchen is often angry at Stefan for breaking the strict rules of their community, she's just as guilty, but it's easy for her to rationalize away her own actions until her pride causes damage to the entire community in a way she didn't see coming, and it just may cause her to lose her standing within the village and the love of Conrad. It's not necessary to have read the first book in the series because I didn't notice any reference to the characters from the first novel. I would have liked to see just a glimpse of them though. Gretchen is completely likable is impulsive young woman that readers will alternately want to hug and shake silly. I felt that Conrad was a bit too bland for Gretchen, although he did prove himself true, I understood her attraction for Allan. There's a strong message here about not judging a group by a single representative of it. I don't feel that this was as strong as the first book in the series, but it's still an enjoyable read.