Love Finds You in Paradise, Pennsylvania

Author: Loree Lough
Genre: Christian Fiction
Publisher: Summerside Press, 2009
Pages: 320
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: For as long as anyone can remember, tourists have flocked to the quaint town of Paradise, Pennsylvania, where Amish buggies are as common as shops selling handcrafted goods. But to attorney Julia Spencer this town is anything but a paradise. Raised in foster homes, Julia has succeeded in life only through steely determination and independence. The close-knit Amish people are a mystery to her, but local veterinarian Simon Thomas knows them well and is fiercely protective of their simple ways, which are increasingly threatened by the outside world. When Julia agrees to defend a local teenager charged in a case involving an Amish boy, she and Simon find themselves on opposite sides of an intense and emotional legal battle. Just when it seems they will never understand one another, God has something to teach them both about the power of forgiveness. . .and the joys to be found in Paradise.

Review: The prompt in one of my book clubs for August is, "read a book set in your home state." My home home state is Pennsylvania, and between Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, we have Amish country. There are a ton of novels set in this locale. I haven't read one in years so I decided to travel down this path to keep the challenge reading light and fun.

The ending is obvious before you even begin reading, but the journey is fun. I enjoyed the novel for what it was, but at times I was thinking, "enough already." There is a lot of filler text and unimportant dialogue (both spoken and mental). It's typical for this genre, which I think is perfect for summertime reading. 

There are other books in the "Love Finds You" series, and I'm looking forward to reading them in between novel with heavier or more intense themes - my palate cleansers so to speak.