An Unexpected Amish Proposal

 Title: An Unexpected Amish Proposal

Author: Rachel J. Good

Publisher: Kensington Books

Genre: Christian Romance/Amish

Synopsis: 

Sometimes love is found in the most unexpected places--as three blessed men will discover in Rachel J. Good's heartwarming Amish romance series, set in a bustling Pennsylvania community...

When an organic farm causes rents to skyrocket at the Valley Green Farmer's Market, Fern Blauch's family baked goods stand is driven to the edge of eviction...Until a mysterious temporary reprieve. Fern is confused when she discovers the benefactor is barbecued chicken stand owner--and her longtime crush--Gideon Hartzler. She's grateful, but pridefully tells him she intends to pay him back. If only she can find a new place to sell her wares...

To stay competitive, and help as many others as he can, Gideon expands his stand to provide full meals--including dessert. That's where Fern comes in. As the two work long hours, side-by-side, business booms--and so does their attraction. Still, the demands of caring for aging parents and struggling relatives cause them to hide any feelings beyond friendship. But as new challenges emerge and Gideon and Fern turn more deeply to their faith, and to each other, will love find a place at their table?

My thoughts:  

An Unexpected Amish Proposal is the first book in the new series Surprised by Love by Rachel J. Good. I have read other books by Rachel and enjoy her writing style. 

Fern loves selling her baked goods at the Valley Green Farmer's Market. She is upset when her rent is increased and she can no longer stay in her booth. She is apprehensive when she decides to switch to organic baked goods to sell at Gideon's stand. Fern is a really sweet character with a heart of gold. She shows wisdom and grace in all her interactions and has a good head on her shoulders. While most people love her, she still manages to get on some people's nerves.

Gideon is running his family's organic BBQ stand at Valley Green Farmer's Market and is drowning in responsibility. That does not stop him from lending a hand to those in need, without thinking through the consequences, adding even more responsibility to his already full plate. Gideon is a somewhat gruff character, with the best of intentions behind his actions. He feels guilt for his brother's death and tries to alleviate that guilt by helping anyone who needs it. While his actions are a bit misguided, his intent is good. 

An Unexpected Amish Proposal has quite the motley crew of characters. While there are a lot of characters they are introduced slowly so you get to know them and understand their role in the story. It is very well done. The story is steady, with several surprises mixed in with suspense, making it a quick read. There is a thread of forgiveness woven throughout this story, along with redemption.

I enjoyed this story, from the character development to the well-written plot, everything flowed smoothly. I loved that the Amish worked with Englishers and were even friends with them, which is not something you see in a lot of Amish stories. Usually, there is more separation between them. I could not help but fall in love with several characters and appreciated that they were not all the same age! There is such a wide variety of characters in this story, but each person is unique in their own way. I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys light romance written with some Amish and English characters. I would also recommend this to anyone who just wants a good, lighthearted read!

Thank you to Kensington Publishers and Net Galley for the opportunity to read this book. I was not required to give a positive review but was happy to do so. All thoughts and opinions are my own.