As I began reading this book, I felt like I was visiting an old friend. As a matter of fact I was. On August 8, 2016, I published a review of the same book. My opinions haven't changed, and I still believe everything I said.

This title says it all, it's about plain men and women finding romance, whether they are Amish, Quaker, Mennonite, or from Amana Colonies. The sweetness is all there too. The women are sweet, what they cook is sweet. The novellas are overloaded with sweetness, but at the same time, quite a number of the women are strong-willed and not all of them can cook. It's a neat thing to see these women with foibles, even in their plain lifestyles.
The nine novellas are written by respected, experienced authors who put out nothing but quality. These are of the same quality as their full length novels--which I think is a harder thing to pull off because a whole plot has to be condensed into a little over 100 pages. Definite Five Stars, Two Thumbs Up, and your favorite Christmas cookie recipe.
My thanks to Barbour Publishing for allowing me to read and review this olio.

This is a deep and rich collection of Christmas themed stories from varied Plain sects. I really appreciated the fact that not only were these stories well written and engaging but very well researched. I come from a Plain background and often see glaring inaccuracies....not so with this book. Excellent inclusion of Amana. This is far above the genre standard in depth of narrative and character.

I always get excited when Netgalley starts rolling out books with the beautiful Christmas covers. And while I am not one to reach for romantic books, I couldn't get past the description of 'A Plain and Sweet Christmas.' It just sounded so good! And it most certainly was.

This book is a collection of 9 novellas, all centered around the Christmas season in various Plain (Amish, Mennonite, Quaker, etc.) communities. The stories were rich and sweet, focusing on subjects such as forgiveness, acceptance, love and wonder. It is so hard to choose a favorite, but I think perhaps Abigail's Christmas Candle may top the list for me. Such a wonderful and cozy book that set my heart in the mood for the Christmas season.

Thank you to NetGalley and Barbour Publishing Inc., Barbour Books for allowing me to read this digital galley.

I've always been curious about this mixture of romance and faith novels and decided a good way to experience them would be through a collection of stories written by different authors. What I found were nine wholesome, charming and relaxing looks at romance inside religious communities I'm not very familiar with. The added bonus is a recipe included at the end of each story. One was even from one of my favorite places to visit, Colonial Williamsburg. This is the type of book where you can read one story a day to lift your spirits or read it from cover to cover to discover all the different situations you will find. I've listed the stories along with other information which was interesting to me so you can make sure you haven't read the stories before.

Laura Lee Bliss -"A Crossroad to Love" - 2011 - Quaker - 1846 - Waynesville, Ohio
Ramona K. Cecil -"Simple Gifts" - 2011 - Quaker - 1880 - Serenity, Indiana
Dianne Christner -"A Christmas Prayer" - 2016 - Mennonite - 1881 - Mountain Lake, Minnesota
Melanie Dobson -"Treasure of the Heart" - 2016 - Amana Colonies - 1907 - Amana, iowa
Jerry Eicher -"Love is Forever" - 2016 - Amish - 1941 - Lancaster County
Olivia Newport -"Love's Pure Light" - 2016 - Amish - 1910 - Lancaster County
Rachel O. Phillips -"Pirate of My Heart" - 2011 - Quaker - 1825 - Rock and Cave, Illinois
Claire Sanders -"Equally Yoked" - 2011 - Quaker - 1838 - Southern Ohio
Anna Schmidt -"Abigail's Christmas Candles" - 2016 - Mennonite - no date given - Hope, Wisconsin

Naturally, out of all nine stories I did have some I enjoyed more than others, but considered as a whole I think this collection was a very good introduction for me to the treats in store among these types of novels. I look forward to exploring more by these and other authors.

Wonderful stories from many authors. Christmas spirit woven throughout all of the stories.

A great collection of Christmas stories. I enjoyed each selection.

A Plain and Sweet Christmas Romance Collection is a collection of nine wonderful stories. These nine stories include:
A Crossroad to Love by Lauralee Bliss
Simple Gifts by Ramona K Cecil
A Christmas Prayer by Dianne Christner
Treasure of the Heart by Melanie Dobson
Love is Forever by Jerry Eicher
Love's Pure Light by Olivia Newport
Pirate of My Heart by Rachael O Phillips
Equally Yoked by Claire Sanders
Abigail's Christmas Candles by Anna Schmidt
I just love these short stories. There were a few authors who are new to me and some that are one of my top must read authors. If I had to pick a favorite from this book, I would have to choose, Melanie Dobson's Treasure of the Heart.
Great Christmas Collection!
5 plus stars.

Yet another wonderful collection of stories! A little strange reading this festive collection of stories in June but I will undoubtedly read them again around Christmas (and definitely try the recipe!) because the sweet stories brought a smile to my face. Perfect to get you in the festive spirit - anybody fancy doing Christmas in June with me?

I think that this book will not appeal to the general reader but fir a specific group of people most of the stories are set in the past and a lot of readers will not understand the context of the settings and the ref to particular sects.
Stories are interesting to read but after you have read the first it appears that the other stories have a similar background and layout almost predictable It is understandable why the stories have been grouped together but in this modern day and age are a bit old fashioned.
I personally enjoyed reading them but as I mentioned before will only appeal to a specific kind of reader.