Every Good Gift

I loved this book. I had never read one set in an Amish district like this. I liked the twists up to the end about Maisy’s decision. I don’t want to give anything away so I will just say….read it.
Thank you Netgalley.

This is a sweet heartwarming story that is full of emotions. It's a beautifully written story that is full of hope, redemption, love, faith and accepting God's forgiveness. I loved this book and highly recommend it.
I received a complimentary copy from Zondervan Fiction via NetGalley and was not required to write a review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Kelly Irvin’s latest book, Every Good Gift, is another example of why she is one of my favorite authors. Full of moments that make you giggle and make you want to cry, this book will keep you up so you can finish it! Maisy is a young Amish woman who becomes pregnant by an English boy. She leaves home and goes to her cousin Ruth’s house so as not to drag her family into her shame. She is alone and sad and desperate to find hope. Joshua is a young man who lost his twin brother in a house fire ten years ago. He is angry and hurt and not sure how to move forward. When maisy moves in with her cousin, she and Joshua develop and unlikely friendship. As she struggles to make the best choice for her new baby, he seeks answers to help heal his heart. Together, they will discover that God has a plan that they could never have imagined. I wish the series wasn’t at an end. I’d love to keep reading about all the people in Haven! Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers! As always, five stars!

Could Not Put It Down

Before I went to bed, I told myself I would only read one chapter. That plan went out the window the minute I began reading. The story captured me immediately and I could not put it down until I got to the very end. It was just that good.

Maisy and Joshua stole my heart right from the start and had me on an emotional roller coaster. There was so much going on with them as they worked at dealing with their situations. However, that served to draw them together as friends and kindred spirits. While not everyone was crazy about their friendship, it developed into a special bond where they could share with each other honestly and without judgment. Watching Maisy and Joshua grow in their relationship with each other and in their faith in God was absolutely beautiful, touching and inspiring.

Maisy and Joshua's story is one of love, faith, overcoming, new beginnings and hope. It is also about true repentance, accepting God's forgiveness, and seeking God's will. It also drives home the message that "we've all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God," and that God is the only one who can judge and forgive and whose love is endless.

All of these elements are what make Every Good Gift a truly inspiring and touching story that will stay with you long after you finish reading it.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a complimentary copy of this book. All comments and opinions are voluntary and strictly my own.

If the measure of a good book is how many tissues the reader goes through while reading it, Every Good Gift is a stellar offering! I wept often at Maisy's story, and Joshua's story, and Vicki & Isaac's story. All of these, woven together, made for a book I had trouble putting down to do anything else.

Maisy Glick finished her rumspringa months ago, but it isn't finished with her. When morning sickness rears its ugly head, the reality of her situation hits full force. She won't leave her Amish faith so she can't marry her English boyfriend, who is off to college and wants nothing to do with parenthood. She knows that as an unwed mother in her community, she will be an example to young girls of how not to act, and she knows she will likely be isolated until her baby is born. She knows she messed up badly and she knows her parents and siblings will endure scandal because of her so she packs her belongings and flees to her cousin, Ruth's, home in Haven, Kansas.

When Joshua Lapp finds a bedraggled Amish girl sitting on a bench at the train station, he thinks nothing of asking where she is headed. When she says the name of his boss, he knows he can't leave her on the train platform and offers to share his driver with her. As Maisy begins to make her way, the obstacles she has to overcome are made easier by Joshua's friendship. He spends time with her when no other Amish can or will. He's not been baptized, so he doesn't have to obey the bishop's edict. As Maisy makes one of the hardest decisions of her life, can he make her see that he sees her, not her sin, and that "all have sinned and fall short" as the Scriptures say?

I cannot say enough about how emotional this book is. Maisy makes a mistake that, in the English world, is commonplace but in the Amish world, is only redeemable by marriage. She can't marry outside her faith, so she's stuck being a cautionary tale for every young girl in her district. She's also stuck being an embarrassment to her parents, so running away to a district where she's not well-known seems the better option. When she starts having feelings for Joshua, how does she know they're real and not just her giving in to her romantic fantasies? She wants so badly to do the right thing and gain the respect of those she meets, but the Amish have been warned not to associate with her, and the English don't understand the Amish ways. Navigating the two worlds is just a bit easier with Joshua's friendship but an Amish man and woman can't be friends, or can they?

So many individual stories converge in the pages of this book to make it gripping reading. Readers who love Amish romance fiction, will definitely enjoy this but I think anyone who enjoys a story with a ton of emotion will also love this book. It gets all the stars from me!

Kelly Irvin never disappoints and she went above my expectations in her new novel. I have loved this series, but this one is my favorite in the trilogy. I thought the author penned an emotional storyline, leaving me feel nothing by compassion for her characters.

Maisy and Joshua Lapp are sweet, kind people who are each struggling with very different challenges in their lives but to their credit they do the best they can. I enjoyed watching their friendship strengthen and how caring Joshua was to Maisy.

One of the many things I absolutely loved is the character driven story which captured my attention from the very beginning. This clean Amish romance can be read as a standalone and added to your TBR stack as soon as possible. Filled with memorable characters, love, forgiveness and faith this novel is one of my favorite books I have recently read.

My thanks to the publisher for providing a copy through Netgalley. Opinions are my own.

`I love a good book about the Amish community and this is one of them. Their lives are so interesting and I feel we could all do with living the way they do.. This novel is just a good as any other that I have read and good to curl up with whatever time of the year that you find yourself reading this. Well deserved 5 stars.

Thanks to Netgalley and publisher for this ARC

This is the 3rd book in the series, Amish Blessing, by author, Kelly Irvin.

This book contains about every emotion you could think of – shame, grief, embarrassment, forgiveness, acceptance, love, etc. You cannot put this book down until you have read it cover to cover. It was truly one of the best Amish books I have ever read, that that has been many.

The characters and their feelings are written so well that you feel every emotion they are going through. I hope the author will give us another book in this series and have these characters in it so we can see what happens in their future.

You truly do not want to miss this book. I received a complimentary copy of this book from Zondervan and NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This is my first book by this author. It won't be my last. A wonderful story about making mistakes, forgiveness, and second chances.

Every Good Gift was such a beautiful and tender story of redemption and forgiveness. I read the last several chapters with tears in my eyes and believe me when I say it was really hard to read while constantly having to wipe away the tears!! I really felt for Maisy and even though I knew she'd get her happy ending it was still bittersweet. Joshua was such a sweet support for her and I couldn't help but root for them the whole way through.

Kelly Irvin really knows how to write a beautiful love story and this has become my new favorite by her!

Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review. All opinions are my own,

Published 7 February 2023.

Maisy Glick wanted to experience her rumspringa as Amish teens were allowed prior to joining the church. Maisy never doubted that she'd join the faith of her family. She just wanted to experience the Englisch world first. And she did. What she didn't expect was to fall so hard for an Englisch boy (Nate) and find herself throwing up each day after their relationship ended.
Nate is headed off to college and doesn't want a wife and baby at this time in his life. Maisy wants to remain Amish, join the church and raise her child Amish. She knows this news of hers will devastate her family. And, it did.
In her shame, she ran away to her cousin, Ruth's home where Ruth greets her with open arms. Ruth's husband, Amos, not so much.
Ruth and Amos' community is not allowed to speak to her. She is not allowed to attend their church services. They fear the younger ones will see her condition and sin as acceptable. An example must be made of her.
Joshua Lapp, whom she met when she arrived in town, gave her a ride out to Ruth and Amos' home where he is employed by Amos. Joshua became her friend. He has yet to join the church as he is dealing with anger towards God for a huge loss he suffered as a boy. He asks the age-old question of why a good God would allow this to happen.
The bishop has warned him to stay away from Maisy, but he doesn't. They become friends. Maisy has learned her lesson and wants to do nothing to bring more shame upon herself or family. Joshua has genuine respect for Maisy and does not judge her as many others do.
This is such a well written story. Great characters. You feel as though you're there with them.
I was given an advanced ecopy by the publisher, Zondervan through Netgalley. I was under no obligation to leave a positive review.

An unplanned pregnancy for a young Amish woman forces a change of home for Maisy. She needs a breath of air and chooses to move to her cousin's house which is a train ride away from home. Though not yet baptized, Maisy is still burdened with her very visible mistake. The Englisch boy father wants no part of the baby and Maisy is relieved as they have such different beliefs.

Although the new Amish community knows of her situation, Maisy does move more freely there. She is able to assist her cousin with her household and asked to find a job.

Every Good Gift was such a compelling story! I liked that the author was able to show that the two main characters, Maisy and Joshua, were deep thinkers, who struggled with things that had happened or choices they had made. The way Joshua was drawn to Maisy, even knowing that she was pregnant by an English boy, showed what a kind man he was. Maisy definitely knew her actions during her rumspringa were foolish, and she had to deal with a lot in this story. Her friendship with Joshua was something that ended up being a precious thing to her.

The way Maisy’s parents and the community that she traveled to treated her situation seemed very realistic. I found myself frequently frustrated with the bishop’s suggestions regarding Maisy and Joshua, even though I think that his heart was in the right place.

Joshua had a lot to work through in this book. Grief had taken hold of him for ten years and pulled him away from trusting God. His journey back to leaning on God in all things and taking his place in the Amish community was a touching one.

(4.5 stars)

I received a complimentary copy of this book. All opinions are my own.