The Promise of an Angel

April 11, 2011
First-time novelist Reid taps into two fan basesâAmish fiction and angel talesâin this lovely story that seamlessly blends both worlds. Judith Fischer is the first to reach her brother, Samuel, after a dramatic fall, and she sees a tall Englischer kneeling near him. The stranger disappears, but Judith later meets him repeatedly, coming to understand he's an angel. The Amish community doesn't believe, as Judith does, that Samuel will walk again; instead, they turn on her for her talk of angels. Only Andrew Lapp befriends her as Judith struggles with her faith, her wayward sister, Martha, and the chaos of her feelings for Levi Plank. Judith's dreams reveal the choices she must make, but can she face the ire of her Old Order Amish community in light of what the angel reveals? Will she leave her Michigan home, and perhaps her dreams for the future, and so avoid shaming her family? Reid has written a fine novel that provides, as its series title claims, a bit of "heaven on earth."

June 15, 2011

Judith Fischer belongs to an Old Order Amish community in Michigan. Following an accident at a barn raising, she tries to convince the other members of her community that she has been visited by an angel. Most, including her fiance Levi Plank, demand that she stop spinning tales. Only one man believes her. As Andrew Lapp listens to Judith talk about the visitation and the dreams she is having, romantic feelings grow. Meanwhile, Judith's younger sister takes advantage of Judith's new oddball status to pursue Levi Plank. VERDICT This first novel is an odd mix of Amish fiction and the angel novels that have recently flooded the market. The characters are well-drawn and the romance is enjoyable, but the premise may put off traditional readers of Amish fiction. Readers interested in angel stories might be better served by Jill Marie Landis's "Irish Angel" series.

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