This is one of those books that you'll find yourself sucked into...the characters are so realistic, with understandable issues and troublesome pasts, that you'll be rooting for each of them at varying parts of the story. The dad will tick you off, and he shows that arrogance and narcissism exist in the Amish community, too, and stem from surprising places. In the end, naturally, everything works out nicely. This is where novels are fun to read...because you know it's all going to work out right in the end. No matter how dark it seems.

This is a delightful story with a unique insight into Amish culture. Amy Clipston, has written and published 42 books, loosely based around the Amish community and their faith in God.

In this work, The Bake Shop, she takes the reader into the heart of the home, where the main decisions about everyday matters are made by the father of the household. A place where women are ruled by domestic grit, a simple lifestyle and their faith in God. There are strict rules about who and what might contaminate their culture and these are cleverly slipped into the narrative without losing the beat of this engaging story.

The main character Christiana is unmarried and is attracted to Jeff who is 28. He is her neighbor at the market, where they have booths selling home-made items. Why the good-looking Jeff unmarried and why he has such a moody temperament?

They go through a number of trials and tribulations, the author cleverly building the tension of whether or not they will end up together. She has to ask her father if she can date him and whether or not he will approve of her meeting his family. Everyone knows how strict her father is about the Amish ban on the use of electricity. He discovers that Jeff uses it to burnish his leather crafts at the market and he stops her from having anything to do with him. Jeff has to come up with a solution or risk losing Christiana forever.

This was a good read and I was intrigued by the bakery goods that were mentioned in the text. Macadamia nut kichlin, whoppie and shoofly pies. I would love to have seen a recipe or two for the favourite pastries that were so popular at Christiana’s bakery booth.

It was slightly off-putting, to read the Amish words for everyday vocabulary like mother, father and the various Amish greetings, but the writer has listed all these unusual terms at the beginning of the book.

The publishing house, Zondervan say they publish “… stories that inspire, illuminate, and transform. Stories that captivate the imagination, enlighten the mind, and strengthen the spirit”.

It was refreshing to be taken to a place of simplicity, of old fashioned values, where communities support each other and yet we still find couples struggling with the same angst that everyone else does.

I received a complimentary copy of this book via NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Christiana operates a bake stand at the gate of her parent's property, but when customers start coming down to their house after hours in search of her famous baked goods her family suggests she move to the markets in town. After seeking and receiving permission from her strict Amish father, she moves and her business goes from strength to strength.

Jeff is a man with sadness in his eyes and Christiana is intrigued, though she doesn't dare let on to her cousins. She soon discovers that he is to be her neighbour at the markets. Despite their embarrassing first meeting and initial issues with customer flow, they soon forge a friendship which forces Jeff to confront the reasons behind his deep sadness.

Christiana and Jeff soon discover that their friendship is deepening into love. But when Christiana's father pays a visit to the market and discovers that Jeff uses electricity in his business he forbids the young couple to associate with one another. Christiana is devastated and enlists the help of her sister, mother, and cousins in the hopes of changing her father's mind.

Can Christiana and Jeff move past their differences and convince her Father that Jeff is a committed Amish man?

The Bake Shop is an enjoyable and easy read with likable characters. I appreciated the insertion of a glossary of terms at the beginning of the novel, and think that it is beneficial to a reader who may be unfamiliar with the Amish culture.

This is the first novel I have read by Amy Clipston and would definitely read another!