Loved reading this book. Amazing story and the characters lend to the charm of this book. I would highly recommend this book. You would not be disappointed.

Two Steps Forward" by Suzanne Woods Fisher is the third book in the Deacon"s family series. It is a wonderful Amish fiction story. The reader will realize the value in the simple life and the importance of focusing on loyalty, caring, faithfulness.
Thank you to Revell and the author for allowing me to read and review this wonderful book. It is well written. and gives the reader insight into the Amish life. The opinions are my own about this book.

The Deacon's Family Series comes to an end with Two Steps Forward. You could probably read this book as a stand alone, but I would not recommend it. There are many repeat characters and as you read through the series you become quite connected to them. When you see their story continuing to unfold in each book it's like visiting an old friend. You want to hear about all that's been going on in their life and how they are doing. In this series it is Luke and Izzy. I loved revisiting them!

Two Steps Forward is about Jimmy and Sylvie. Jimmy has been away from the Amish community for four years working in Colorado with horses. He is used to getting by on his good looks and his charm...until Sylvie. Sylvie is a widow and she hires Jimmy to work on her farm because of his knowledge of horses, but it seems that is all she's interested in. However, it's not long before he manages to steal her heart.

Jimmy's mom Edith believes that Sylvie's farm belongs to her and she is working on a way to claim back the land. Has Sylvie made a terrible mistake in falling for Jimmy? Has he been using his charm just to get her land?

Suzanne Woods Fisher is an amazing Amish fiction author. Her series wraps up perfectly. What I like best about her books is that they are, what I call, easy reads. They are enjoyable, and steady paced. Not a lot of surprises, but such well developed characters that you can connect with. This is the kind of book I like to snuggle up under a cover with and read while drinking coffee.

***Thanks to Revell for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I really liked the main character Sylvie as she struggles to raise her son as a single mom on a farm after the recent death of her husband. She offers Jimmy a job on her farm when he arrives in town, much to his mothers dismay. She was a wonderful, strong character who was not afraid of work or personal sacrifice.

I liked the funny interactions (and misunderstandings) between the two of them and the eye winking part throughout the book was hilarious!

I enjoyed reading about the farm, daily work, and the townspeople. Things are not always what they seem, as these characters find out during the book; and it took lots of forgiveness, understanding and faith to get them thru. I really enjoyed this story!

I received a copy of this book complimentary for blog and social media review. All opinions are my own.

I love Suzanne Woods Fisher's The Deacon's Family series and the third book, Two Steps Forward does not disappoint. I enjoyed it. Four stars.

Suzanne Woods Fisher is one of my favorite Amish authors, and I have particularly loved the “The Deacon’s Family” series. It was fun to return to this community that I’ve come to love and learn more about the lives of the characters there. This story features the characters of Jimmy Fisher and Sylvie Schrock. Both seem somewhat “stuck” in their circumstances, and moving forward for both of them is a struggle. Edith Lapp, Jimmy’s mother, makes matters much worse than they need to be, and both Jimmy and Sylvie have to take some steps forward in faith to find the future that God has for them.

The storyline I enjoyed most in this book, however, was that of Luke and Izzy Schrock. Luke’s experiences as a deacon made me smile. Izzy’s struggle to have a baby and her longing to know her birth father touched my heart. The themes of this book are trusting God and His guidance even when you can’t see your next step; forgiving one another; and always finding ways to share God’s love with others. There’s a miracle or two that happen in this story that delighted me. I realize that this is the conclusion of this particular series, but I’m hoping there’s more stories coming from Stoney Ridge.

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

I was really pleased to find this in my list of books to review, I love reading the Amish books by Suzanne Woods Fisher and had forgotten I had this to read. It was a very easy read and a lovely story I can't wait to read the other books in the series. It was a very quick read only taking half a day to read.

t's all about letting folks carve their own path, stumbles and all. When people come to the end of themselves, that's where they'll find God.

Jimmy Fischer has come back to Stoney Ridge. An Amish cowboy that tried his passion in Colorado. Raising horses and coming back to Stoney Ridge he encounters a beautiful horse owned by his mother's nemesis Sylvia. Sylvia has her own past but is looking toward the future in raising Arabian stallions and her son. Not normally the Amish way, she is drawn to her horse Prince and that he would make a good buggy horse. Her husband Jake passed away leaving her Rising Star Farm and it is here she has a passion for horses. Naturally, Jimmy and Sylvia become drawn to each other as Sylvia is needing help getting the farm ready to breed horses. Jimmy and Sylvia have past that keeps them from seeing the future but together they find love when they find themselves with nothing.

Izzy and Luke from the previous books are an underlying plot as they both see a need in their community for abandoned babies. They create a safe box for mothers who cannot take care of their babies. A driving force in Izzy's life as she does not know her own father, which is revealed in a sweet way. A reminder of what God values and how we can be part of that in Izzy and Luke's story.

A great quote that fits in this community. A saint has a past and a sinner has future. We all are in it together!

A Special Thank you to Revell and Netgalley for the ARC and the opportunity to post an honest review.

This book can stand alone but does continue the wonderful saga set in Stoney Ridge so the novels are best read in order. Jimmy Fisher has returned home after several years away. Now a widow, Sylvie, who has a young son, lives next-door. He starts working for her, and their precarious relationship begins. Jimmy’s mom is determined he should get married and she knows just the Amish wife for him—definitely not Sylvie. The endearing store with its quirky characters draws you in and entertains as well as prompts thoughts about relationships and forgiveness. I like the way the Amish community there works to promote family life and help foster needy kids. The novel incorporates modern news in the story line. Another great one, Suzanne Fisher. I received a copy from the publisher through NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

I really enjoyed the first two books in this series. The second one even made my favorites list last year. Unfortunately I struggled getting into this one and it didn't hold my attention as much as the others. I didn't find the storyline as intriguing to begin with but thought I would still enjoy it because of revisiting old beloved characters. I liked stepping back into their world but the plot itself moved too slowly. I would still read more from this author in the future as I really enjoy her books, but this one just wasn't for me.

"Two Steps Forward" by Suzanne Woods Fisher is the third book in the Deacon"s family series. It is a wonderful Amish fiction story. Jimmy Fisher is back in the town of Stoney Ridge . He is Edith's son. He is hard working and caring. He showed his support for Sylvie , recent widow, who really needs his help. Her yard is overgrown. He showed his dedication and support by working for her. Sylvie had lost her husband and needed to get back on her feet. The author paints a beautiful picture of what life is like in Stoney Ridge. The reader will get a glimpse of what life is like in this Amish town. Their simple life is inspiring and renewing for the reader. The reader will realize the value in the simple life and the importance of focusing on loyalty, caring, faithfulness. Thank you to Revell and the author for allowing me to read and review this wonderful book. It is well written. and gives the reader insight into the Amish life. The opinions are my own about this book.

Two Steps Forward is the third and last book in the Deacon’s Family series. Readers of Suzanne Woods Fisher’s other novels will be familiar with most of the characters in this novel. It can be read on its own but I would recommend reading the prior books first.

It follows Jimmy Fisher who has finally returned to Stony Ridge after four years and Sylvie Schrock King, a widow who is raising her young son. Sylvie hires Jimmy to work for her due to his knowledge of horses. The characters are wonderfully written and it was great to be reunited from some of my favorite characters from Fisher’s previous novels. This is a great read for those who enjoy a heartfelt and light Christian romance.

A welcome return to catch up with old friends, & meet some more along the way. Guaranteed to be a good story (well-written, & with lots of commonsense home-truths woven in) all-in-all make this author’s books well worth reading. Suzanne manages to blend important issues with a good dose of humour, which makes a very good way of imparting her message. Yet another of her books which I can’t stop reading – but don’t want to come to the finish of : I just love them! Plenty of food for thought, & - as the book encourages – for action also. Highly recommended (maybe all of our churches should be reading it - & acting on it.) PS This is one very special book! But I can’t possibly spoil it for you by telling you why – you’ll really have to read it....

Suzanne Woods Fisher has really out done herself from reaching to adding the information to the story to the story coming to life onto the pages.
Two Steps Forward is a very powerful novel.
I look forward to reading more books by Suzanne Woods Fisher in the future.

I received a free copy from NetGalley with no money exchange, only that I give an honest review. This is my honest review in my own words.

2.5 Stars. I read this without doing any research and so I went in not realizing that this book was part of a long-running, multi-book series and fictional world that was very interlinked. Even though this was definitely readable without having the context of the previous books, I could definitely see how having that context and already being immersed in this world would have made this a more compelling read and would have made me care a lot more about the characters. The thing is that even though there are sort of two central characters in this, Sylvie and Jimmy, there are a lot of other side characters that get a lot of time and whose perspective you get to see. I can imagine that if you had read past books and know their story, this book would be a real joy to read and revisit old friends in a familiar community.

The premise of this novel is that Jimmy tried to escape from life as a hassled son to a very controlling mother to go work on a ranch. That adventure failed and now he’s back in town with nothing and has to return to his mother’s house. Fortunately for him, his mother’s widowed neighbour, Sylvie, new to the community, and his mother’s sworn enemy, offers him a job on her crumbling much to his mother’s chagrin. Jimmy can’t help but be intrigued by his boss but his meddling mother, his lack of maturity and his fear of commitment might just get in the way of his future happiness.

I used to be a huge fan of Amish-type Christian romances. I wouldn’t quite categorize this as a romance- more of general Christian fiction because the romance/love story definitely isn’t central to the story. This was more a book about a complex community experiencing all sorts of issues. There are potential triggering themes like growing up without a father, infertility, miscarriages, abortion. Being Christian fiction, this book is definitely pro-life on the abortion debate and the recent passing of abortion laws in certain states is a major theme.

My favourite parts of this book were the parts where characters came to terms with finding their own faith. I loved Sylvie’s thirst for the Word and her journey from misquoting to finding and studying God’s truth by herself. I love how Luke grew in his faith and in his own acceptance of himself and how God saw him, as a changed person. I loved Izzy’s exploration of feeling like an outsider as a new convert in a Christian society where every one is a lifelong believer. Those were the themes I cared about and wish had been explored a little more. That said, I enjoyed how they were handled in this book.

In all this was a very readable book. It was an okay read. I found that it dragged a bit at times especially when the focus was off Sylvie and Jimmy and I think a lot of that had to do with the expectation that the reader kind of had a context and an emotional connection with those characters based on previous books in the series. I would not necessarily recommend this as the first book to read in this series or by this author, but I do think that someone who was already into this series would probably enjoy this as a solid work of Christian fiction.

I received a complimentary copy of this novel from Revell Books through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This third book in The Deacon's Family series continues to share the journey of Luke in his role as deacon of the Amish community, assisting the bishop with the concerns and issues in Stoney Ridge. Luke is growing in maturity and confidence, and still has his unique way of looking at things and solving problems. Edith's bitter grudge against Luke's cousin Sylvie was surprising, and it was interesting to learn about the backstory of Sylvie's arrival to the community and how she made a home in a place that Edith coveted deeply. Jimmy's defiance of his mother was hilarious as he chose to work for Sylvie and grew closer to her. I liked their friendship and how they confided in and supported each other. This author has a lovely writing style that brings depth and meaning to the lives of her characters and their struggles that we can all relate to.

(I received a complimentary copy of the book; all opinions in this review are my own)

Two Steps Forward is a bit of a strange book. Somewhere in the last couple of years, Suzanne Woods Fisher had Jimmy Fisher as a character in a book who got in trouble with racing buggies with his friend. The culminating incident sent his friend to rehab and sent Jimmy to Colorado to work on a horse ranch.

When the ranch goes bust, Jimmy comes home to find his mother married to Hank Lapp (a man who doesn't know the meaning of inside voice), and to find that his mother wants him to get married to the maedel of her choice. Next door to Edith Lapp lives Sylvie Schrock King, along with her son and her horse Prince. This is the one woman Edith does NOT want Jimmy to marry.

Sylvie meets Jimmy at the Bent and Dent store and offers him a job cleaning up her farm. She is the widow of Jake King who was notorious for hoarding. Jimmy has a lot of work to keep him going for a while and when he finds things worth selling, Sylvie tells him to keep the money for his wages.

Edith is a bit vindictive and quite a bit of a gossip. She refuses to believe Sylvie's son is actually her nephew and she refuses to believe that Jake left her his farm. She tries to cause trouble for Sylvie wherever she goes.

Jimmy is in love with Sylvie and doesn't know how to proceed in courting her. His lack of decisiveness brings Sylvie to move back to her father's house. Jimmy has to learn to court her through letters.

One of my favorite parts of the book is where Jimmy has the old barn completely cleaned out and the walls fall in on each other because Jake's junk was holding up the walls. My dad owned the house where his parents had lived (not a very big house), and he took out the flooring board by board, then he took out half of the studs one at a time. He was working on getting more lumber out of the house when he heard it creaking. He got out and watched the walls fall in on each other. He burned what he could and hired a man with a bulldozer to level the site the house was on.

This is definitely a four star book, and it will be enjoyed by any reader who likes to read Amish fiction.

Revell Publishing and NetGalley.com provided the galley I read for this review. The opinions I expressed are my own.

For years now I have been enjoying trips to Stoney Ridge through the pages of Suzanne Woods Fisher's books. It's always nice to catch up with the characters and get introduced to new members. While this is an Amish community and I'm not Amish there are so many ways that I can relate to this group of people.

Ms. Fisher does a marvelous job of reminding us that even though we live a bit differently we still have a lot in common. Being Amish doesn't keep you from sorrow or strife. But it also doesn't keep you from experiencing joy and harmony.

In Two Steps Forward the subjects of abandoned newborns and late term abortion are addressed. In the Amish community children are looked at as a blessing from the Lord so these two issues concern them greatly. I was impressed with their thoughts on making a difference, even if it only had the potential of making a small difference.

The novel introduced a couple of new characters but it was full of the old ones that we have come to know. Edith Fisher Lapp is still a cranky pants but this time around we get to see a bit of backstory and softening of character. Her husband Hank Lapp continues to make me laugh. Edith's son Jimmy Fisher is back, hat in hand and I enjoyed watching him come full circle. The book is centered on his character along with the widow Sylvie Schrock King.

One of the best things about this book and series is that it is very versatile. It can be read as either part of the series or as a stand alone. If you want my recommendation I would say to go all the way back to the first book in the first series, The Choice. You'll enjoy the development of the characters and the ebb and flow of the Amish life. Don't want to go that far back? Just start with this book. You'll get enough background as you go along to know what has happened before you joined the group.

I received a copy of this book to facilitate my review.

<i>FTC Disclosure: Revell Reads gave me complimentary copies of this book. A positive review was not required. These are my honest thoughts.</i>

This book is also third in the series. (Sunrise at Normandy) It is a historical romance that is based in the WWII era following Rangers that are in the U.S. Army. Being the third in the series this book is focused on one of the brothers as the other stories have already been told.

Clay and Leah become friends and after a brutal attack on Leah, Clay does the honorable thing and marries her. He is still in the Army though and they are separated. Can they keep what they have by writing letters?

The historical accuracy is well researched. The writing has highs and lows that gives a wonderful balance while keeping you waiting until the end. And you will want to read all the way to the end.

In this heartwarming, soul-searching tale, Suzanne Woods Fisher invites us back to Stoney Ridge. In Two Steps Forward, we see Luke Schrock maturing as a deacon; Izzy still looking for her missing childhood, and Jimmy Fisher returning from Colorado. Unsure of his plans, Jimmy accepts an unexpected offer from widow Sylvie Schrock King to help with her horse and farm.

Sylvie is a very likable character. She is independent, a hard worker, and she will defend and protect those she loves. For her, the question seems to be, is Jimmy worth loving?

I really couldn’t decide how I felt about Jimmy. Fisher drew him in such a way that I liked him, felt sorry for him, but despised and wanted to be done with him.

The creek, which divides Sylvie’s property from Edith Fisher Lapp’s, is slowly meandering closer and closer to Edith’s house. Perhaps symbolic of the way Edith’s sphere of influence gets smaller and smaller the more in control of others she tries to be.

Edith is NOT a nice person, but Bishop David Stolzfus gives her lots of room (grace) to be herself. In our time in Stoney Ridge, I have enjoyed watching his people-handling skills, honed by hours of prayer. David is a very patient and wise bishop and is teaching Luke well by example.

While Luke has grown by leaps and bounds, Izzy is still chained to her unfulfilled childhood longings. Will she ever feel that she can move on without the ability to settle her past?

Themes include righting wrongs towards others (mending fences); forgiveness (can those already given grace pay it forward?); protecting those who can’t defend themselves (adoption or fostering). It’s important to take action, realizing by being part of the solution, we can help people, one by one.

Yet, a fourth theme was the importance of a loving father in the home.

I totally enjoyed this story and recommend it. That being said, I wish there had been one less twist at the end.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Revell and the author through NetGalley. This in no way affects my opinions, for which I am solely responsible.