A time-slip novel by Beverly Lewis? Not what I was expecting, but it was just as lovely as her other books.

I liked the sweet, forbidden romance between Eliza and Eb set in the late 1940s, but I also enjoyed the modern-day romance between Anna and Gabe that featured horse therapy sessions with an adorable little girl who couldn’t speak for a very particular reason.

The characters were well developed, the plot steady and enjoyable, and the tour guide job very interesting. This story was delightful, and I was happy to spend a few hours in its world.

Beverly Lewis has done it again! She has created a very heartwarming, soul capturing story! I love her writing style and feeling as if I'm a part of the story. The characters are wonderfully chiseled and the plot is filled with inspirational messages that will have you thinking long after the story ends. Four stars and two thumbs up for sure!

Beverly Lewis is the author that first introduced me to Amish fiction years ago when I discovered her Abram's Daughters series from my library. She hooked me with that first book and I've since found many other wonderful authors who write in this genre. I'll always credit her to falling in love with my first Christian Fiction stories!

So it was with great pleasure & anticipation that I read The Stone Wall! What I loved about it is that Anna is a young Amish woman who's trying to find her way in the world. When an opportunity comes up to visit distant family, she eagerly embarks spending time with her Old Order Amish relatives. The promise of a new direction for her life renews her spirit & refreshes her heart. I also love the mysterious memories her elderly grandma shares that involve a stone wall and a long ago forbidden love. Lastly, I enjoyed the developing love interests from two different men and couldn't wait to find out which one Anna would end up with. I normally don't care for love triangles because they can be frustrating for me to read, but Lewis wrote this in a way that was interesting without all the angst. Now, I'd really like to see a book featuring the one that didn't get his happily-ever-after! I'm a hopeless romantic like that.

I loved getting to know Anna & her extended family, the community she quickly feels a part of, the friendships she'd made, watching how her strong faith guided her every step, and the depth of love she had for her grandma. Someone described this as classic Beverly Lewis and I would have to agree!

“Tis a waste of time to look back with regret,” Mammi Eliza Slaubaugh once told me. “Though we might fret and stew, the past simply can’t be changed,” she’d added, leaning closer, as if to share a secret. “Besides, if we could change our past, Anna, would we want to?”

*I received a complimentary digital copy from Netgalley and was not obligated to leave a favorable review. All opinions are my own. *

First sentence: ’Tis a waste of time to look back with regret,” Mammi Eliza Slaubaugh once told me. “Though we might fret and stew, the past simply can’t be changed,” she’d added, leaning closer, as if to share a secret. “Besides, if we could change our past, Anna, would we want to?” Mammi’s last question so ferhoodled me, I was unable to grasp her meaning.

Anna Beachy, our heroine, is looking to the Lord for guidance in how (and when) to change her life; she's feeling a bit restless and out of sorts. (Not that she wants to act outside the will of the Lord.) When a distant cousin (an Old Order Amish distant cousin) mentions a job opportunity that may suit, she jumps at the chance. The job is to be a tour guide--to take tourists on tours around the Amish community. What begins as a simple visit--for the job interview--soon becomes a new life. Will Anna remain Beachy Amish or will her attraction to a Mennonite (a fellow tour guide) or a horse rancher (Old Order) change her life's path?

The novel also contains flashbacks--if that's the right word--of her grandmother's visit to this same community. Her grandmother, Mammi Eliza (who is now suffering with Alzheimer's), visited Old Amish relatives for the summer and fell in love... Their love was forbidden...

I liked this one. Would I have loved it more without the flashback scenes? Maybe. Maybe not. Who can really tell? My job is not to review a book that might have been or even should have been--but to review the book in front of me. I enjoyed both story lines. I did. I almost, almost wish that they'd been separate books--if that makes sense so that the grandmother's story could have been more fleshed out. Or as equally fleshed out as the contemporary story.

I am not the biggest fan of love triangles especially when only two of the three within the triangle are fleshed out and the ending predictable. The heroine is never going to end up with the flat, not-fleshed-out, barely present character. Never. He exists as a shadow in the background. Is he truly necessary?

I did like the hero and heroine. (Yes, I know his name, but I don't want to spoil the novel.) I really enjoyed their journey together.

I love Beverly Lewis and her books. I was excited to have the opportunity to read her newest The Stone Wall. It is a great read and is getting four stars from me.

This is the first spilt time amish novel I've read and it was okay and the fact that Beverly Lewis wrote it made it all delightful.
Split time novels always open my eyes to God's workings and goodness in the lives of people; similar yet unique.
This one will delightful and worth reading, filled with a lot of history, love, family, rich amish life, perseverance and faith.

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley and this is my honest opinion.

THE STONE WALL is Ms. Lewis's most recent story and to me it fell flat. It is more women's fiction than romance, but there is a very weak romance or two.

The story is flat, told, not shown, and worked well as a sleep aide. However, if you are a serious Lewis fan, you might love this book.

I did like the mystery of her grandma.

I was given a copy free. All opinions are my own.

Beverly Lewis writes wonderful Amish stories, and this is another book for her many fans to add to their “must read” list. Anna’s story was an interesting one, and I loved how the different storylines in this book intertwined to come together for a beautiful conclusion. It’s an inspirational, heart-warming story that will make you want to read the book again. The faith element to this book was encouraging and helpful.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher. All opinions are my own.

I always enjoy books by Beverly Lewis. I loved this one as well! The description didn't do it justice (as it really was, but I thoroughly loved the book as I read it. I loved the depth of so many characters! I greatly enjoyed how the author intertwined the story of Anna's grandmother into the storyline from a generation before.

I always seem to learn something thru Ms. Lewis's books. One thing that Intrigued me was the differences between the Beechy Amish and the Menonites. I always thought the two were actually categorized as the same (I thought Beechy Amish were considered Menonites). I also enjoyed the descriptions of the subtle various characteristics of clothing from one community to another...like the shape of the prayer caps.

All in all, I just really enjoy a good fictional Historical Fiction style story that is relevant in our current day. I love the multigenerational cultures and settings, and the exploration of the depth of the families thru the years. This was another great book that I am truly glad I had the opportunity to read.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Bethany House through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Anna needs a change. The opportunity presents itself when a letter from a relative in Strasburg, Pennsylvania arrives with news that there is a job opening that Anna might be interested in. Anna's parents have concerns about her staying with the Old Order Amish relatives because Anna's family are members of the Beachy Amish Church and there are differences. Anna does get the job, she meets people and has a social life and volunteers. She meets two men and she knows who she should be interested in. Does her heart agree?
Anna's grandmother had spent a summer in Strasburg decades ago and there had been vague talk about what happened there. Her story becomes entwined with Anna's story in this beautifully told narrative. The author doesn't back away from tough issues. Family expectations and difficult choices have to be dealt with. The Stone Wall is an intimate and touching tale which pulls together a past and the present. This book is well worth reading.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. The opinions expressed in this review are my own

Anna is just getting over a bad break up. Her Beachy Amish family is trying to help her heal, but she feels she needs to get away to start fresh. Drawn to Lancaster where you grandmother spent time in her youth, Anna finds a job as a tour guide. There she meets the handsome mennonite Martin Nolt who takes interest in Anna. However, Anna also meets Gabe, a young plain Amish widower who also finds interest in Anna. Back home, Anna's grandmother's Alzheimers continues to claim her memory. In her few times of clarity, her grandmother tells her small clues to her life while in Lancaster. So much for Anna to understand and figure out and Beverly Lewis brings it all together.

First, I received an ARC e-book to read and review through Netgalley and Bethany House Publishing in exchange for my honest review. Thank you.
I have read several books by Beverly Lewis and have enjoyed them all. This book is no exception but, that said, it is not my favorite. The story was pretty easy to follow. It mostly kept my interest but I did find some of it less compelling than the rest. I did have one problem, for me, about the book. It was that the main character was encouraged to lean on her feelings when making a major decision. Since this is a Christian book, I had a hard time with that when the Bible clearly states that the heart is deceitful and desperately wicked. We are also told in the Bible to lean not unto our own understanding but to trust in the Lord. That aside, it was a good, clean book.
The editing needs to be refined. There were a few, not many errors mostly with punctuation or the order of the words in a sentence. There were about 2 places that I had to re-read the sentence a couple of times to understand What was being said.
Overall, I give this a 3 out of 5 rating. I would recommend this to a friend.

"The Stone Wall" by Beverly Lewis
September 8, 2020
Bethany House Publishers
352 pages
Amish Contemporary Romance

Anna Beachy belongs to the Beachy Amish community in Mifflinburg, Pennsylvania. Living with her parents, she is still grieving over her failed romance when the man she believed she would wed. A year has passed, and she wonders what her future holds. When she gets the opportunity to work as a tour guide in the large Amish community of Strasburg, (Lancaster County) Pennsylvania, she feels this is her chance for a new life. She is welcomed to stay with her older cousin, Sadie, and her husband, Glen, Old Order Amish, and she is sad to leave her family, especially her beloved grandmother, Mammi Eliza, who is suffering from Alzheimer's.

It breaks her heart to leave Mammi, even though the elderly woman does not recognize her at times. Yet when Mammi learns she is going to Strasburg, the town where she stayed caring for an elderly aunt when she was young, she gains some lucidity and talks about a stone wall there. This is a mystery to Anna, and upon her arrival, she asks Sadie if she knows where her grandmother may have stayed all those years ago telling her about the mysterious stone wall with the huge tree near it.

Though Anna works part-time, she thoroughly enjoys meeting "Englishers" and showing them places off the usual beaten path and locations that they want to explore to learn more about the Amish culture. Where Anna is, there are many Amish sects--Old Order Amish, Mennonite, Anabaptist, and other groups having similar but different beliefs. Anna, being a Beach Amish grew up with electricity and can own and drive and car and have a cell phone. Sadie and Glen are Old Order Amish, and these conveniences are not allowed, but Anna finds she is adjusting very well, and she forms a close kinship with her cousins.

She meets a kind young Mennonite tour guide man named Martin Nolt and finds an abiding friendship with him. They go to dinner, but Anna does not consider they are courting, and he is just a good friend, though she knows her parents would approve of him as a son-in-law for he is a Mennonite with ways similar to that of Anna's family.

One day, Anna drives by a stable called Peaceful Meadows and decides to check it out. She meets Gabe Allgyer, an Old Order Amish man who cares for special needs children by tendering horse therapy. She is entranced by his manner with the children, especially his own young daughter, Emmie, who hasn't spoken since the death of her mother two years prior. Anna finds this assistance so stimulating she inquiries about being a volunteer and is thrilled when her application is accepted. The few hours a week she spends there, she gets to know Emmie, finding a close and deep empathy and fondness for the child, and what is surprising to all is Emmie soon befriends Anna.

Though Sadie cannot learn where Anna's grandmother lived those many years ago, Anna discovers an old journal of Mammi's and learns more about her past, though it's still cryptic. She is determined to learn more about the time Mammi spent in Strasburg and the mysterious man she met at the stone wall.

This enchanting read not only offers insight into several Amish groups while giving Mammi's backstory of her younger years and the man she fell in love with, but it also opens one's mind to the many differences between "Plain" folk and "Englishers," showing a more gentle and compassionate way of life.

Without humility, we cannot have obedience, nor the other way around.

Anna is looking for a new beginning. After a relationship heartache, she is leaving her community of Mifflinburg and her parents for a Old Order Amish community in Lancaster County. In Mifflinburg Amish community, they have a few comforts that the Old Order Amish stay away from, electricity and autos. Anna has her own car and feels a calling to the opportunity of being a tour guide in Lancaster County. She has a distant cousin that she will stay with, however, her parents are uneasy about the Old Order ways as they know that it is by grace we are saved. The trappings of a work salivation weighs heavy on her parents in the Old Order Amish Community, but her family puts their trust in the Lord for Anna to find healing. Anna finds several ways to serve the Lancaster County being a tour guide but also working at a Amish run therapy horse group. She catches the eye of two different Amish men and it with these men she finds her true calling of humility.

The narration is done by Anna and her grandmother Eliza who at the same age visited the same Old Order Amish community with the same fears as Anna's family. Eliza befriends Eb who shares different Amish beliefs. Their friendships grows however, they cannot be seen together and correspond with letters on the Stone Wall. Anna and her grandmother stories collide in a special way that marks God's hand on their family.

I loved how the Anna story bloomed into her grandmother's story and the same lessons that they both learned. Humility and obedience and what exactly that means in our faith. It shares the struggles and the victory of faith based on humility. Highly recommend.

A special thank you to Bethany House Publishers and Netgalley for the ARC and the opportunity to post an honest review.

This is an amazing story about the plain people!

I love the fact that this book includes characters from three distinctive religious groups that are part of the plain people community. They included the Old Order Amish, the Beachy Amish, and the Mennonites. I was fascinated by how the different ones interacted with each other. I had never before realized that there more than one different Amish groups. I love it when I learn something like this from a novel.

The characters are incredibly well developed. Anna Beachy is the central character. She has moved to Strasburg to stay with distant cousins while she seeks God’s guidance for her life. Periodically throughout the book we have short looks at her grandmother, Mammi Eliza, who stayed in Strasburg to help her great aunt, 70 years before. I absolutely love Anna. She is so sweet to everyone she meets.

One of the sweetest characters though is little Emmie. Anna meets her when she starts volunteering at a horse riding therapy facility. I truly enjoyed reading how the therapy sessions were handled. It was fascinating.

There were a number of very emotionally intense moments in this book. One of the recurring themes was dealing with elderly relatives whose memories are failing. My heart broke for all of the characters who were dealing with this.

The key throughout the book was having a relationship with God. Along with that is the question of how do you know His will for your life.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher, through NetGalley. I was not required to write a positive review. All of the opinions expressed are my own.

Sometimes authors lose their flair after writing as many books as Beverly Lewis has, and they tend to run out of ideas. Not Beverly Lewis!

In The Stone Wall, Lewis has invented an amazing story that has a central theme of God’s Grace. Since Lewis has been around the Amish people so much, she has a heart and genuine knowledge that is hard to find.

The build up of characters (especially sweet Emmie) progresses very well, as well as the plot line running full course. I love the surprise towards the end with everything coming full circle.

I can’t wait for the next Beverly Lewis Amish story to come out!

The Stone Wall is one of Beverly Lewis's best yet. Lewis was my first Amish genre writer to read and I've never been disappointed.

Anna is a character filled with love for all those around her. Especially for her Alzheimers stricken grandmother. I can only dream of having the patience and understanding that Anna portrays not only with her grandmother but with little mute Emmie. Speaking of Emmie she will steal your heart.

I found the story calming during my current life of anxiety and stress-filled days. I see it becoming one of the rare books I will reread many times.

I received a complimentary copy from the publisher, Bethany House, through Netgalley. All opinions expressed in the above review are entirely my own.

I always enjoy reading books by Beverly Lewis. They are a wonderful escape from every day life into the tranquil life of the Amish, and include engaging story with meaningful characters. The Stone Wall was no exception.

Anna has recently gone through heartbreak, and decides that she needs a change in her life. She moves in with her cousin and her husband, and gets a new job as a tour guide. As she is adjusting to her new life, she meets a handsome Mennonite man named Mart, and begins to think that maybe she can find love again. Anna also begins to volunteer at a horse retreat, where children with special needs benefit from riding and caring for horses. A sweet little girl who has been mute since the death of her mother captures her heart, and she begins to build a friendship with the girl’s Old Order Amish father as well. During all of this, Anna embarks on solving a mystery from her dear grandmother’s past, that ends up coming full circle.

Will Anna follow tradition and her parents, and decide to spend her life with Mart? Or will she end up with Gabe, the Old Amish widower with the troubled daughter? And how does a stone wall factor in to all of this? I read this book in two days because I couldn’t wait to find out!

The Stone Wall by Beverly Lewis is a charming Amish story. The author blended the past and present beautifully with Anna and Eliza’s stories. I thought this was a unique Amish novel as it features Beachy Amish, Mennonites, and Old Order Amish. It allowed me to see the differences and the similarities between them. I thought The Stone Wall was well-written with developed characters. It moves along at a gentle pace which suits this story. Anna Beachy needs a change and has been praying on it. The opportunity arrives when she receives a letter from her mother’s cousins in Strasburg about an opening at the Mennonite Information Center as a tour guide. Anna is close to her grandmother, Mammi Eliza. Unfortunately, Mammi Eliza has Alzheimer’s and she has few lucid moments. When Anna tells her about going to Strasburg, Mammi Eliza has a moment of clarity. Her words about a stone wall linger with Anna and it has her searching for it in Strasburg. It is interesting to see the parallels of their time in Strasburg. There is more than one type of wall in The Stone Wall. Anna also has a wall around her heart because she is afraid of getting hurt again. There are two men who catch her attention. Since both men reside in Strasburg, Anna is torn because her parents did not want her to marry and live so far from home. Another issue is that neither of them are Beachy Amish. Anna becomes a volunteer at Peaceful Meadows Horse Retreat which practices hippotherapy. It was interesting learning about it and how it helps individuals. If you enjoy reading Amish novels, then you do not want to miss out on The Stone Wall. My favorite phrase from the book is, “The Lord had something better in mind for me than rehashing the past.” Mammi Eliza had once told Anna that it was a “waste of time to look back with regrets” because “the past simply can’t be changed.” I never thought of it that way. The Stone Wall is a thoughtful, heartwarming Amish story.

This was such a cute read! I enjoyed this story and found the writing to not be so slow paced which is always a plus in my book! This also gave me a new viewpoint of Amish life and the different periods of that which was interesting to see. All in all the story was cute and Lewis really did good job on the setting and characters for this book. I will be keeping a lookout for any of her other works!

*I received this book from Bethany House and NetGalley for free but all opinions are my own.