The Refuge by Ann H. Gabhart

From the back cover: When Darcie and Walter Goodwin hear of a new cholera epidemic sweeping the area, they join the Shakers whose villages seem immune to the disease. It's meant to be a temporary stay, but Walter is killed in a riverboat accident. With no family and no money, Darcie has little choice but to stay with the Shakers. To complicate matters, she is expecting a baby conceived before she and her husband came to the Shaker village. Marital relationships are considered sinful in this celibate community, putting Darcie in a unique--and lonely--position. Can the arrival of widower Flynn Keller and his headstrong daughter offer Darcie the hope of happiness . . . and family?

My review:

Flynn Keller is a widower with a young daughter Leatrice. They live with his father-in-law, Silas, also a widower. Silas makes the mistake of marrying a gold-digging woman he doesn't know very well so that his granddaughter will have a woman's influence. And the men? They need someone to cook for them. The story gets extremely interesting from that point on. Flynn realizes Silas's wife has her sights on Flynn, too. He decides to sleep in the barn to avoid her. Eventually, he takes Leatrice to the Shakers temporarily so that she can learn to read. But this arrangement also gets Leatrice away from the bad female role model.

Ann Gabhart is a master writer, and this book is my favorite so far. I've enjoyed her Shaker books because I have visited Shakertown in central Kentucky and studied Shaker beliefs. Each character has a different reason for being with the Shakers as a resident or visitor. Every one of them comes alive, pulling you into the story so that it's hard to put the book down.

The reader learns a lot about Shaker customs. They would take in anyone in need. But all are expected to conform to the Shaker routine and beliefs. There are several "sisters," as the Shakers call all the women, who have come to Harmony Hill solely because they have no way to take care of themselves.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book compliments of the author and Revell Publishers. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Photo source: https://www.annhgabhart.com/

The Gifted by Ann H. Gabhart

The Gifted is the fifth in Ann Gabhart's Shaker series. It's the story of Jessamine Brady, an orphan who was sent to live with the Shakers at Harmony Hill when she was just a child. Jessamine loved the Shakers who took care of her, but she had not joined the group officially because she was not yet of age to sign the agreement.

The Shakers believed that God gifted people with certain abilities. Jessamine loved to make up stories, but that gift was not acceptable to the Shakers. Hands to work. Hearts to God. That was their philosophy. Life in the Shaker colony was very structured, and Jessamine had a hard time conforming. Enter the stranger from "the world" who had been shot. Jessamine and her berry-picking partner found him on the road and brought him to the colony for treatment by their doctor. The story started slow, but, once the stranger, Tristan Cooper, entered the picture, the plot thickened and the suspense built.

The story contrasts the life-styles of the simple Shakers and the wealthy who are vacationing at White Oak Springs resort nearby. Tristan is one of them. Jessamine is attracted to the world and to Tristan. A potential killer on the loose and the conflict between Tristan's commitment to marry a wealthy woman and his love for Jessamine make for an absorbing story. But, that's not all. Other characters in the story will surprise you. The Shaker song, "The Simple Gifts," is referenced throughout the book. Tristan and Jessamine both have gifts, and the underlying theme in the story relates to the text of the song.

As I mentioned, I thought the story started slow. There was a lot of build-up to the girls' finding Tristan, probably so that the reader could absorb the Shaker beliefs before putting them in conflict with the world. Once Tristan entered the story, though, I was hooked. I've read all Gabhart's Shaker books, and I've found them all interesting. She captures the tension between the Shaker colony and the world they try to avoid.

If you like Amish fiction, you'll like The Gifted. Learn more about the author and the other Shaker books on her site.

Read a sample on Amazon at this link. Buy the Kindle version here.

Disclaimer: I received this book as a gift from the publisher, Revell books. There was no requirement for a review, positive or negative.

Angel Sister by Ann H. Gabhart

Three years ago, I had never heard of Ann Gabhart. That all changed when I met her at Kentucky Christian Writers Conference last year. Since then, I've read several of her books, and I must say this. She is a master of the historical fiction genre.

Angel Sister is the best yet, in my opinion. It is set in the fictitious  Kentucky town of Rosey Corner in the 1930s. The Great Depression is in full swing---"tough economic times" that make today's economy look pretty good. Fourteen-year-old Kate Merritt finds a little girl abandoned on the steps of the church where her grandfather is pastor. Little Lorena's parents could not care for her, so they left her where someone would find her and take her in. Kate becomes her "angel sister," but not without causing controversy in the family and in the church.

Like most small towns, Rosey Corner has its drama and family secrets. The drama escalates, the secrets come out, and Kate is right in the middle of it. We learn how the conflicts in Rosey Corner came to be, from her father's post-traumatic stress from WW1 to the reasons for other town characters' peculiar behavior.

It's an entertaining story, and the book is not as long as some of Ann's other books. The historical details add interest. For example, the flashbacks to the WWI days when Kate's parents were newlyweds give us a picture of what our forebears have sacrificed for our freedoms.

Buy Angel Sister on Amazon.

Disclaimer: This book was sent to me, unsolicited, by the publisher, Revell Books. I was not required to read or review the book, nor is my review in any way influenced by the publisher or the author.

The Seeker by Ann H. Gabhart

The Seeker is the third in Gabhart's Shaker series. I reviewed the first two books on this blog here.

The story of Charlotte Vance, the seeker, reminds me a little of Scarlett O'Hara in Gone with the Wind. But, Charlotte is a much more believable character. She's strong and capable without the air of caricature that defined the GWTW characters.

The story is set in Kentucky in 1861. Charlotte is heir to a plantation and daughter of a prominent state-level politician. She's a planner, but her plans come unraveled. First, the man she intended to marry runs off to join the Shakers, a religious community that does not believe in marriage. Next, her father brings home a "gold-digging" new wife who's not much older than Charlotte. About the same time, Charlotte meets a portrait painter and journalistic artist who takes an interest in her. With war on the horizon, her position in the family threatened, and her father blind to the manipulations of the new wife, Charlotte runs away to the Shakers herself. She learns about the simple life, but she also turns to prayer to help her chart her future.

Gabhart artfully weaves historical events into the story while allowing her readers to experience the turmoil of the times through her characters. From the politicians and planters to the soldiers and slaves affected by the events of the time, Gabhart presents them all in a non-political and non-judgmental manner. I think the highest compliment you can pay a fiction writer is to say, "I was there." That's how I felt as I read.

Gabhart gives a little background about the Shakers at the beginning of the book. Many people think they are just an off-shoot of the Amish, but they are entirely different. Read this portion on Amazon here (beginning on page 7).

 Visit Gabhart's Web site here.

Buy it on Amazon here: Seeker, The: A Novel

PS---I purchased this book directly from the writer at Kentucky Christian Writers Conference 2010.

The Shaker Series by Ann H. Gabhart

Are you a fan of Amish fiction? Especially if there's a hint of romance in the stories? If so, you will like the Shaker series by Ann H. Gabhart. If you have never experienced Amish fiction, I suggest that you check out one or both of these great books as your introduction to the genre.

The Outsider, the first in the series, was nominated for a Christian fiction award in 2009. It's about Gabrielle, a Shaker girl who has the gift of premonitions. She has grown up in the Shaker community, learning their ways and intending to spend her life there. But, the need to bring in a doctor from "the world" turns her life on end as she begins to fall in love with him. For Shakers, marriage is not allowed. How will she resolve the conflict between the rules of her faith and her budding love for the doctor? Read part of the first chapter here.

I like historical fiction because I can learn about other times and cultures while also being entertained with the story. This book was of interest to me because I love Shaker furniture, and I have visited the restored Shaker community, Pleasant Hill, in Kentucky. Gabhart does a superb job of making the reader feel part of the story. Since she lives near the restored Shaker village, she can go there herself to experience the setting and let her writer's imagination take flight.

The second book in the series is The Believer. The primary male character in this story is Ethan Boyd, a young man who was rescued by one of the Shakers as he attempted to escape from the "care" of his dastardly father. Elizabeth Duncan, the heroine, came to the Shakers with her younger brother and sister after their father died leaving them no way to take care of themselves. While Ethan has taken the vows of the Shaker faith, he still finds himself attracted to Elizabeth.

Again, I admire the author's skill in taking me back to the 1830s Shaker village. She manages to educate me about Shaker beliefs while spinning a fascinating story. Sample chapters from The Believer are available here.

Gabhart is a prolific Kentucky writer whose work has been published by several companies. Visit her Web site for more information. She will be teaching fiction workshops at Kentucky Christian Writers Conference next June.