The writing of this novel is quite good. The beginning of the story was a little slow in set up but I thoroughly enjoyed the premise, characters and problems. I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Review Copy of this book.

So slow and not a lot of substance except religion shoved down your throat. I was so disappointed in this book. I will try one more book by this author and I am hoping it is better.

I reviewed the book on Amazon with the name hardworker. Kind of slow at times, but we get interesting historical views of the Amish and the English.

I've read books by Olivia before and enjoyed them. However, for some reason, this one was hard for me to connect with & I could not finish it. I'd still recommend it to fans of this author! It gives historical tidbits of the Amish in years past and a whole cast of interesting characters.

This is a historical fiction book based on happenings between the Amish and the Methodist, who held tent revivals, taking place in 1847. There were such differences in their teachings that many Amish would actually leave to follow the revivalists’ teachings. One of the phenomenon’s of the time was someone being “filled with the Holy Ghost” and being able to preach while in a trance.

The book centers around Susannah and her favorite cousin, Noah, who has received this spiritual filling. They are both Amish. Susannah’s best friend, Patsy, is the daughter of a Methodist circuit riding preacher. They have always respected each other’s beliefs and maintained their friendship. When Noah begins preaching while in this trance, both Susannah and Patsy are there by his side to be sure he is safe since he isn’t aware of his surroundings when this takes place. Adam, the man Susannah loves, is very much against her always being around this influence, since it was in conflict to the Amish beliefs.

The book, which I thought would be a typical Amish romance, was very different and strange in its content. It held the element of Amish romance, but definitely centered on the emphasis of this phenomenon.

The author does explain her research on this phoenomenon further in her information at the end of the book.

This wasn’t the typical Amish romance I expected, but still enjoyed reading this and learning this piece of history of which I had no prior knowledge.

I would recommend it to those who like historical fiction. I received a complementary copy of this book from Barbour Publishing and was under no obligation to post a review.

Olivia Newport has written some of the best Amish Fiction I've ever read. While to some degree, Amish fiction has an historical element to it. The Amish faith holds to some historic practices by foregoing modern conveniences. In Gladden the Heart, Olivia has taken the Amish life as it has been lived for the last four hundred years, and put it into the 1800s.

Susanna's favorite cousin, Noah, has had an illness overcome him after the church services. When he "came to," he began preaching repentance. He was totally unconscious of what he was doing at the time and never remembered what he'd done. The bishop believes that Noah is trying to lead the members of the church astray, and objects to Noah's preaching. As the illness takes over Noah, he stands in his home and preaches at the windows daily. People from town come to watch the spectacle of Noah's demonstration, and that gives the bishop even more ammunition for his objections.

Adam has been dating Susanna and hopes to propose to her, but he can't get over her support of her cousin.

There are conundrums, crankiness, and conflicts within the warp and woof of the novel. Those all give the story oomph and substance. This is a five star book, with two thumbs up, and a sermon that gladdens your heart.

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

Gladden the Heart certainly wasn't what I expected. Usually when I read an Amish story the conflict is about keeping separate from the Englisch world. The focus is on the Amish faith and beliefs with little discussion about any other religions. However this story made me stop and think. When the Amish faith and the Methodist Church collide there is no right or wrong. Add to this a simple Amish. man suddenly preaching revival style and then having no memory of it and a young girl trying to fit in both worlds you have a pretty good story. While I wasn't that satisfied with the ending I'm not sure if there could have been a satisfying conclusion. Like I said, Gladden the Heart made me think.

I will start off that this book is not my cup of tea. I am a huge fan of Amish fiction but not a fan of "preaching" books. This book has a lot of that in the beginning which I only got a third of the way through before stopping.

Kish Valley, Pennsylvania 1847

Susanna Hooley is a 21 year old Amish woman who is friends with Patsy Baxton, the daughter of Charles Baxton, a fiery Methodist revival preacher. They have been friends all their lives and are able to ignore or at least respect the differences between their faiths whilst still enjoying the common bond that they share. Susanna is being courted by Adam Yotter, who is the nephew of her next door neighbour. Life seems to be going along charmingly when Noah Kauffman, Susanna’s cousin starts very strange behaviour of appearing to go into a trance and start to preach the Word of God, which he is expressly forbidden to do. There is no explanation given for this behaviour, but almost every day, like clockwork, he will lose his sense of self and begin preaching sermons that would make even Charles Baxton proud.

This of course, is seen in a negative light according to the Amish Bishop. It is thought that Noah is trying to bring attention to himself (a grave issue for the Amish) and that he is capable of stopping the behaviour if he but wants to. Susanna gets pulled into helping his wife Phoebe look after Noah, as is Patsy. They see that Noah has no control over this behaviour, but is a danger to himself when he is preaching because he is unaware of his surroundings. Adam is unsure what to make of the situation. He wants to be faithful to the Bishops leading, having sworn an oath to be submissive to church leadership, yet he is also aware that Susanna wouldn’t knowingly go against the Bishop but is compelled to look after her cousin and has her father’s blessing. He is also influenced by his uncle who doesn’t believe that Noah is preaching for the wrong reasons and is open to the whole situation.

At the end of the novel a crisis situation occurs where Noah wanders off into the forest at the back of his property whilst in a trance and ends up in dire circumstances. This results in people from both religious persuasions to have to work together to save Noahs life. Of course, it is also the catalyst for Adam and Susanna working through their issues and coming together as a happily ever after book should.

Olivia Newport takes this very unusual situation of ‘sleeping preachers’ and has turned it into a short novel about the Amish and the English who lived among them. This story is thin and weak in substance. The whole sleeping preacher situation is really intriguing to modern ears, yet it isn’t really enough given within the book to merit a whole novel such as this. A kind of examination is inferred but the potential to see the break in the Amish groups to become Mennonite and Amish was not taken advantage of. There is very little in the way of other plot lines, unless you call the occasional disagreement between Adam and Susanna and their understanding of Noah’s behaviour as a deep plot line. Romance is part of the overall scope of the book, but as it is an Amish couple courting, there is very little in the way of actual romance and it doesn’t seem very likely the way it is portrayed.

Overall this book is an oddity. It has a really interesting premise as a foundation, yet it is not taken full advantage of. It can’t seem to make up its mind if it is a romance novel or an exploration of the sleeping preachers phenomenon that were so prevalent in the mid 1800’s. It could have been an interesting historical novel about the breakup of the Amish church and culture that happened in great numbers during this period, but ultimately, this too was ignored. In the end, this doesn’t satisfy any area of interest and comes over somehow as lacking.

A missed opportunity.

I enjoyed this book very much!! I love reading the history of the Amish and how they came fo this country just like the English did for various reasons..
I think what drew me to this particular book was at a time when the revival meetings started. I have attended a few rivals myself and I love them.
I liked how they all came together to help the one in need.
I didn't like however how some ppl treated an individual just because he was "different".
I think Gladden the Heart means to accept Jesus in your heart no matter who does the preaching.
Whoever accepts Jesus will have eternal life and joy will shine through to whomever will meet up with you.
I also love the friendship between Amish and English even tho the Amish want to set themselves from the world.
Some ppl are just set in their ways no matter how much we try to help or change them.
Veronica Susanna's mother was afraid of the influence that the preaching that went on.
Im glad for Susanna's father who was sturdy and firm in his decision making and on whom to trust.
I like nosy Timothy too. If I had a brother I'd want him to be just like Timothy.
There were some things in the book that made me smile and laugh too.
I also held my breath in certain places. I didn't want anything to happen to my favorite person!
If I had an uncle I'd want to be just like Noah. I thought Noah was cool for an Amish man.
Olivia will be added to my list of favorite authors because I enjoy her stories
I wanted to add that I loved the little authors note. at the end of the book. I think it's good to know how the author gets ideas ffor their stories and knowing there. is truth mixed in with fiction. This is why I love fiction.
I received this book for free.

Gladden the Heart by Olivia Newport is set in PA in 1847. The story deals with the differences between the Amish and the Methodist’s styles of preaching and ideas about redemption. It also deals with the “sleeping preachers” who were found in that era. It seems they would fall into a trance and preach and later not remember anything about it. There was, of course, controversy over whether it was real or a form of trickery.
Charles Baxton is a Methodist preacher who organizes tent revivals around the area. Shem is the Amish bishop who believes in tradition. Patsy Baxton and Amish Susanna, who is Amish are best friends since childhood. Noah, a cousin of Susanna, begins preaching while in trances. This creates much controversy between friends and family members. Will the Amish community split or can there be reconciliation between the different facets?
At times I found this book difficult to read and I had to examine my own feelings about what was happening. It was not a quick read for me. I felt the ending did not tie up all the loose ends and the reader is left to their own conclusions. I find this to be typical of Olivia Newport’s style and does not take away from the story. I give this book a 5 of 5 stars. It must be read with an open mind or you may be disappointed.
I received an advance copy of this book through Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

I received this e-book Gladden the Heart for free to read and review. This is the first book I have read by author Olivia Newport and I enjoyed it. I will gladly keep an eye out for more of her books. I loved Susanna character and strength. She is not afraid to stand up for what is right even when there isn't that many people in her corner. Patsy is a smart fierce loyal friend and daughter. Adam is the silent type but glad that he found his inner courage. I love the story line of this book and I love that anybody any age can read this book. Its clean and refreshing. A must read for any type of reader. This story will capture your inner historian or adventure seeker.

What a powerful sweet love story. Set in the Evangelizing era of the 1800's with a Methodist circuit riding preacher, his family, and an Amish congregation, a story of the struggle with the differences between preaching styles and expressions of faith. We witness the strife differences can cause between members of families, between friends, and within a church congregation. I am very glad I read this story.. and when you finish the story! Read the author's note... The note makes the story even more powerful.

This was an enlightening book! It was enjoyable to read about "The Great Awakening" of the 1800s through Amish and Methodist eyes!
Susanna Holley, a 21 year old Amish girl, passed by the revival tent and listened to the hymns while her friend Patsy Braxton had to sit for 3 or more hours in the tent as her father, Reverend Charlie Baxter had invited the preacher to preach during the revival and she could not leave. Susanna's close friend Adam, goes by the revival tent on the way home and he speaks with Susanna and Patsy.
The next Sunday, Adam, Susanna and others are talking after church when her cousin Noah collapses and then starts preaching about repentance, sin and judgment, which makes the Amish bishop, Shem Hertzberger angry. He tries to stop Noah from preaching, but Noah keeps on preaching and ignores Shem. Afterwards, Noah does not remember anything he said.
Susanna tries to help Noah and his wife, Phoebe when Noah has these episodes, but Noah's "trance" preaching creates a lot of trouble for the Amish community.
You will need to read the story for yourself to discover what happens next!

The story of Noah takes place during the revivalist period in the 1800's when traveling circuit preachers were common. This is an interesting story of how Noah, an Amish man begins to fall into a trance and begins preaching, only to awaken from this state and have no recollection of the fact.

It is a very different theme than what I have read about in the past and it was interesting to see the interaction between the Methodist and the Amish families in this story.

I did enjoy reading this book.

I received an ebook copy of this title from NetGalley. All thoughts are my own.

I have read several books by Olivia Newport, and this was not my favorite. It was a good story, but at times it did not keep my interest. It was interesting to learn about these men who preached in a trance like state, but did not remember doing it. The romance between the main characters was good. Even though they faced some major hurdles in their relationship, they worked to overcome them. I will continue to read other books by this author because I think she is a very gifted author.