What a beautiful story! I found myself captivated from the beginning and hated to see the story end. It encompasses friendships and families while showcasing real life hardships in relationships and life. It has a the perfect mix of romance, suspense, and a little mystery.

Lois Yoder is a young Amish woman living on her own in an apartment above her employment. She loves her job, her simple life, and bird watching. Everything was going smoothly until her former friend, Moses Lantz, purchases her place of employment. It doesn’t take long for sparks to fly driving a further wedge between them. Can their love of birdwatching heal the past hurts and begin to bridge the divide?

Leslie Gould is one of my favorite authors of Amish fiction and this book did not disappoint. Likable, relatable characters and a great storyline makes this book a must read! I found the love of birdwatching an enjoyable bonus to the story.

I was given a complimentary copy of this book by the publisher through NetGalley. All opinions expressed are completely my own.

The Shop Down the Lane by Leslie Gould is an Amish romance that bird watchers will delight in.

Lois Yoder is on her own and living above the gift shop she has worked in for some time. All the customers love her, and she enjoys her life in Paradise, Pennsylvania, until her boss sells the shop to an ex-boyfriend who broke her heart.

Moses Lantz, who bought the shop, didn’t realize that Lois came with it, and her attitude toward him immediately put him off. They both have a past with each other and grudges, which makes things a little tricky when they have to work together.

Both escape by applying to a birdwatcher’s circle letter anonymously. Under their pen names, they fall in love, but in real life, the animosity between them is so thick you could cut it with a knife.

While the relationship between Jane (Lois’ pen-name) and Menno (Moses’ pen-name) was sweet, when it came time for the big reveal, everything for me just fell flat. I enjoyed the bird information and the helpful hints to life and relationships in the circle letter and saw how these hints were helping both characters to grow. However, I felt the characters’ rapidly rekindled feelings were unrealistic, given the author’s extended depiction of their animosity.

While this book was reminiscent of You’ve Got Mail, if the author had lessened the hate and had more of a build-up to the change in feelings the characters had for one another, I think I would have given this five stars.

I received a complimentary copy courtesy of Bethany House Publishers through NetGalley for my honest review.

I always get excited when I see this author come out with a new book!
This was sooooo good! I loved every minute of it. I finished this one at 4am in the morning. I loved Moses's and Lois's story!
I've never met two stubborn people in my life! These two are so hard headed when it comes to certain scenes in this book.
There is a surprise in this story but I won't say what it is. I will tell you that in certain things I can relate to Moses and what's going on in his life.
Lois is a work in progress as we all are. Lois is a lot like me too on certain things in this journey called life.
Changes for one. I hate them but I know they need to happen.
Moving stinks! It's no fun at least for me it isn't.
But on a lighter note, I learned a lot about birds. Especially hawks. Birds are like people in a way.
I didn't like Sara at all! I didn't like her personality and the way she went about things.
God does have a way of working things out. It's called timing. Timing is everything and it's so hard to wait patiently sometimes!
Forgiveness is even harder. You can forgive but not forget.
I did find myself rooting for my two favorite people along the way. I kept hoping they'd wake up.
Did they ever realize that things have a way of working out? Did they ever open their eyes and look at what's right in front of them?
You'll just have to pick up this sweet and fun read and read it for yourself.
I did find myself laughing at some of the scenes in this book.
Gould does such a wonderful job at keeping me engaged with her characters that I'm giving this book 5 stars!
I highly recommend it!
My thanks for a copy of this book. I was NOT required to write a positive review. All opinions expressed are mine.