Jennifer Beckstrand generated another page turner with her latest release in her Huckleberry Hill series. Return to Huckleberry Hill is filled with characters that were charming and others that were disappointing in their behaviors that I wanted to shake them. The antics of Anna and Felty Helmuth, beloved grandparents, provided plenty of laughter and pondering what Anna’s recipes tasted like since she made them up. The Helmuth’s grandson, Rueben, escaped to Bonduel, WI from Sugarcreek, OH to escape his best friend stealing his intended girl from him right before Christmas. Fern King went to Bonduel to wake Rueben up, that he needed to forgive her brother and return to his family. Fern sacrificed so much during her stay in Bonduel along with being kindhearted in helping others, accepting her lot in life along with a desire that everyone had a love for God, family and friends. The unexpected plots, octogenarians’ grandparents, members of the community, and visitors from Sugarcreek brought moments of joy, sadness, laughter, and tears, with individuals finding themselves and discovering love. Which members of Bonduel will blossom and find their intended? Grab a copy of Return to Huckleberry Hill to read this page turner story.

I received a complimentary e-book of Return to Huckleberry Hill from Netgalley. I was not required to write a positive report, but have expressed by honest thoughts.

After his girlfriend shows a preference for his best friend, Reuben leaves home determined to escape his humiliation. Fern, his best friend's sister, follows him to his grandparents' home determined to cheer Reuben up. Reuben must learn to forgive while building his new life. Maybe he will even find true love.

I don't read Amish romance expecting the next award winning book. I read them for escapism and a sweet happy story. The story was fine, but the pacing was a bit slow. Reuben spent way too much time serving the knitting group girls to earn back their favor. Things seemed awfully slow until the very end. Overall, it was a decent Amish romance.

Huckleberry Hill novels always prove to be quite entertaining and this one is no different. Anna and Felty are such an eccentric couple that readers can't help but love them. Another grandson, Reuben has come to visit after having his heart broken by his girlfriend finding love with his best friend. Reuben has lots to learn about himself as he tries to overcome his hurt.

I have read most, if not all, of Jennifer Beckstrand's Huckleberry Hill Amish fiction books. This latest offering in the series has been a disappointment and that made it hard for me to discipline myself to finish the book.

Reuben Helmuth feels he has been humiliated in his hometown in Ohio, because his girlfriend has decided to throw him over for his best friend. So he flees to his grandparents place on Huckleberry Hill in Wisconsin. When he finally feels he is getting his feet underneath him again, he sees his best friend's tagalong sister, Fern, at the church service in Bonduel.

Where Jennifer has had characters with some depth to them, these characters are more of caricatures of who they could be. Reuben has a mindset that mimics the popularity mentality of some high school students who want to run with the "In" crowd. He wants to be liked, but he has the arrogance of someone who is not only part of the "rich," but also "popular." The rest of the book centers around his comeuppance and his true humiliation.

I wish I could have liked this book better, because the grandparents, Felty and Anna Helmuth are so likable.

Two Stars.

My thanks to Kensington Press for allowing me to read and review this book.

I loved this book. The characters are well developed. I loved the grandparents whose aim is to find marriage partners for their grandchildren. I have not read previous books in this series but I enjoyed this book and the author's writing so will be checking them out.

In this return to a favorite place called Huckleberry Hill in the quaint Amish town of Bonduel, Wisconsin, you will meet the young single grandson of the Helmuth's, Reuben Helmuth. This young man is a good lookin', eligible and well-to-do Amish man and he "knows it"!
He's ready to propose to the love of his life only to have his life completely shattered. Feeling as though he can no longer face the people he knew in Ohio, he heads to Bonduel to stay with his grandparents.

This book is great. I still really enjoy Jennifer Beckstrand's sense of humor and her light, happy style of writing. This is a continuation of the wonderful Huckleberry Hill series of the match-making grandparents, Anna and Felty Helmuth. This cute couple will do anything to find the perfect spouse for their many grandkids.

I think you will love reading this fun and captivating story. Always a good Christian read and full of learning of life experiences, as well.
You can grab a copy of Jennifer Beckstrand's latest book for pre-order at this link.

I received a ebook copy of this book from NetGalley for my honest review which I have given. All thoughts are my own.

Return To Huckleberry Hill by Jennifer Beckstrand is a delightful Amish romance which I loved. The tale grabbed my interest from the start as I warmed to both the setting and characters.
With comprehensive descriptions, Jennifer Beckstrand 'walked' me through the novel. I 'saw' the countryside and could almost 'smell' the cooking. The atmosphere was warm and jovial.
The characters were realistically drawn and there were some wonderfully humorous moments. I 'felt' like I was hearing the tale of friends rather than reading a novel.
There were some Godly themes of pride, forgiveness and guilt. In thinking of ourselves as better than others, there is an air of judgment surrounding some characters. We are never to judge or think of ourselves more highly than others. Our job is to love and to spread kindness as embodied in one of the characters.
Forgiveness and guilt go hand in hand. Forgiveness may be hard but we need to extend it. Guilt will drag us down if we do not deal with it.
Friends are important. True friends will go the extra mile and need to be cherished.
For some, outer appearances are key. God does not look at our outside, He is more concerned with the state of our heart and how we are progressing on our journey with Him and our interaction with our fellow man.
We are called to behave like the character of Jesus and practice servanthood. This needs to be done cheerfully and not grudgingly.
The novel shows the power of words. Words spoken in anger can wound. Once the words leave our mouths we cannot take them back. Words can be used to tear down or build up. We need to make sure the words coming from our mouths are positive and life affirming. We have the power of life and death in our tongues which need to be tamed.
The Amish are a community. This really exudes from the novel with its knitting group, singing and generally helping others.
I always love Jennifer Beckstrand's writings. They are warm and witty and leave me with a smile on my face and hope in my heart.
A marvellous read.
I received this book for free. A favourable review was not required and all views expressed are my own.

Jennifer Beckstram is a fairly new author for me - I just discovered her last year with her beekeeping series. I love the feel of her books - they are wholesome, but full of humor and life's funny situations. She combines the best of many worlds, and this book is no exception. I've already read a spin-off from this story in Amish Brides, but I look forward to following cousin Elsie in the next season of life in Bonduel!

I think that ""Return to Huckleberry Hill" was one of my favorite installments yet in this series! And there have been some great books in this series. Anna and Felty, the matriarch and patriarch of the Helmuth family in the Amish community of Bonduel, Wisconsin, are a lovely and eccentric couple in their late 80s. They, Anna especially, thrive on finding matches for their grandchildren and great grandchildren, wanting for them the same happiness Anna and Felty have shared for over 60 years. This time, their grandson Reuben escapes to Bonduel after being "betrayed' by his best friend and fiancee. Reuben is followed to Bonduel by his best friends' sister Fern. Fern is determined to bring Reuben back to Sugarcreek to forgive his brother and Reuben's former fiancee. Fern "cooks up" some creative schemes with Anna and Felty to heal Reuben's loneliness and self shame. All the while, Fern attempts to hide the mis treatment she receives from her hosts in Bonduel, and tries to hide her growing less than sisterly affection for Reuben. She introduces Reuben to many of the town's young adults, hoping he will find a kindred spirit. Reuben vacillates between frustration from Fern's efforts, and the resolve to protect Fern. I hesitate to say more as I don't wish to spoil this for fellow readers. I invite fellow readers to read "Return to Huckleberry Hill" as it is a story you will not want to put down!

A very enjoyable story of grumpy Rueben and happy Fern. He is way too proud, and takes offense at being teased and laughed at, so when he feels he has been wronged he leaves town and runs to his grandparents farm. Fern travels to help him learn how to forgive her brother, and things progress from there. Nice to see the Amish have issues too. Good story and hard to put down. Highly recommend this story and author.