Naomi's Hope

Naomi's Hope by Jan Drexler is the third book in Journey to Pleasant Prairie series. It is April 1846 in LaGrange County, Indiana. Naomi Schrock is out looking for her adopted son, Davey and discovers him with their new neighbor, Cap Stoltzfus. Davey has taken an instant liking to Cap and wants to spend time with him. Cap moved to Indiana from Holmes County, Ohio to get away from the memories of his deceased wife and child. Cap is happy in the new community and enjoys spending time with young Davey, but then an old nemesis shows up. Shem Fischer, a bully from his childhood, moves to town. Shem came from Ontario, because he heard of the communities need for a minister. Cap distrusts Shem, but he keeps his own counsel. Shem soon starts showing his true colors when he spreads seeds of doubt and mistrust among the two different Amish districts of LaGrange County and the Clinton Township. Is there a chance of once again uniting these two factions? Naomi and Cap spend time with each other, and Naomi begins to hope of a future she never thought possible. But then Naomi's world crumbles around her when relatives come to claim Davey. How will this impact Naomi and Cap's relationship? Read Naomi's Hope to find out how the Journey to Pleasant Prairie trilogy ends.

Naomi's Hope contains good writing, but I found the pace of the novel to be slow. The story slowly unfolds, but then wraps up quickly at the end. After getting into Naomi's Hope, I could anticipate how the story would unfold and end. It is a lovely story, though, and that I found pleasurable to read. While Naomi's Hope is the third book in this series, it can be read alone. I appreciated the additional storyline of Naomi's struggle with faith. A struggle many people are familiar with and understand. I give Naomi's Hope 4 out of 5 stars. Some of the themes in the Naomi's Hope are love, forgiveness, loss, greed, and faith. I thought the characters were realistic and relatable. I also liked the setting and time period. The author did a remarkable job at portraying that region of Ohio and time. Personally, I did feel that the story could have used a little fine tuning that would have made for a better novel. Naomi's Hope is a novel worth reading, and I trust you will enjoy it as well.