This is a delightful read for anyone who enjoys lighthearted, slow-paced romance stories about overcoming past heartbreak, finding love, and learning to trust again, set against the charming backdrop of small-town life.

I enjoyed reading Kathleen Fuller again! Great plot and growth of character development. All three couples were able to grow through their character flaws and determination to make things work.

The Proposal Plot is the second book in Kathleen Fuller's Amish of Marigold series. I had no trouble reading this one as a standalone.

I'm glad I tried this story. I enjoy romances where people come from different walks of life, and Fuller does a nice job building a relationship between Nelson and Ella. There are also some well done scenes with interesting family drama within several families.

I enjoyed the narrator, Lauren Berst. Berst does a good job finding a unique voice for each of this varried cast of characters. Nicely done.

I love Amish inspired stories and this one did not disappoint. The characters were likable (even with their faults) and the three separate love stories were engaging. I will be reading more by this author.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy to enjoy. All opinions are my own.

The Proposal Plot by Kathleen Fuller was an excellent, clean read/listen. The narrator did an amazing job with the different characters. I enjoyed the story and can't wait for the next book.

The Proposal Plot was the first book that I had the pleasure of reading by author, Kathleen Fuller. Over the last few years I have found myself drawn more and more to books that had to do with the Amish community. I was impressed with Kathleen Fuller’s ability to create very relatable characters that by themselves possessed flaws, different backgrounds, and problems but collectively were easily adaptable to making The Proposal Plot work for me. It had some funny, laugh out loud moments as well as some that made me want to jump into the story and shake a character or two. I enjoyed reading about the quaint and simple life of the Amish and Kathleen Fuller was able to capture their essence in The Proposal Plot. It was paced just right, had enough drama, confrontations, decision making and choices throughout to make The Proposal Plot a very satisfying read for me.

Nelson Bontrager, a young Amish man, was down in his luck when it came to the romance department. He had recently found himself head over heels in love with two different women over a short period of time. Nelson had found himself rejected by both women for different reasons but the disappointment and hurt was the same. All Nelson had ever wanted was to be able to find a woman that wanted to marry him. He then saw himself working on the family farm. Nelson was so distraught after the second rejection that he made himself a promise to swear off women, romance and marriage altogether. An opportunity arose where Nelson was taught how to become a butcher. He embraced the opportunity and discovered that he was very good at it. Nelson was at the point where he was exploring the possibility of opening his own shop. He learned that an abandoned warehouse was available in a place called Marigold, Ohio. Nelson had family close by so he made arrangements to see the property. His nephew, Malachi, accompanied him.

The warehouse that Nelson was interested in was right next door to the E and J grocery store that was owned by Ella’s and Junia’s father, Barnabas Yoder. Ella’s and Junia’s mother had died a few years ago and Ella had talked her father into moving to Marigold, Ohio and purchasing the grocery store. The store was doing fairly well. Ella seemed to have a good sense of how to manage the store and make it profitable. She had began coaxing her father to consider buying the warehouse to expand their business. When Ella discovered that someone else was interested in buying the warehouse her first reaction was to try and discourage the sale. Ella seemed to know no boundaries. She barged into the warehouse, invaded Nelson’s space and proceeded to try and talk him out of buying the warehouse. Needless to say, Ella and Nelson got off to a very shaky and turbulent start. They could not have made a worse first impression on each other if they had tried. The opposite was true of Nelson’s nephew and Ella’s younger sister, Junia. When Junia came to the warehouse to get Ella, she was immediately smitten with Malachi and he with her. Despite all of Ella’s efforts to persuade Nelson that he shouldn’t buy the warehouse, he ended up purchasing it. Even though Ella and Nelson went out of their way to avoid each other, they were continually thrown together. Can first impressions be wrong and altered? How will Ella and Nelson learn how to navigate this new path they were traveling on?

I enjoyed how Ella’s and Nelson’s characters transformed and grew throughout The Proposal Plot. Ella started off as a very bossy, opinionated and impulsive young woman with a low self esteem when it came to her chances of finding a man that could love her. She was very smart and adapted to the role of running a business easily. Nelson, on the other hand, had built so many walls around him so he would not be hurt again. He was not sure how to go about starting a business and was not readily able to seek help.

Ella’s sister, Junia, was lazy, spoiled and tried to get away with doing the least amount of work she could get away with. She was always shirking her responsibilities and putting more of her share of the work load on Ella’s shoulders. Both sisters felt a lot of resentment towards each other. They were constantly complaining about each other and arguing over everything. Their dad, Barnabas, lacked the ability to handle their outbursts and strained relationship. After loosing his wife and becoming a widower, Barnabas lost sight how to discipline his own daughters. Barnabas had entrusted those responsibilities to his sisters for a long while. After his wife’s death, he and his daughters had moved in with Barnabas’s sisters and he allowed them to take charge of his daughters. Now that Barnabas and his daughters were on their own again he knew that he had to take charge, but how? Who could help him learn how to step into that role again?

There was another character that I really liked in The Proposal Plot. Her name was Wendy. She was not Amish. Wendy had been living in New York City where she had been an attorney in a high powered law office. When Wendy’s aging mother needed more care, it was the perfect opportunity for Wendy to leave New York City and her affluent clients behind. Wendy was becoming disillusioned with her own life as she knew it. She moved in with her mother and opened her own office right outside of Marigold. Would Wendy find happiness in Marigold? Could she embrace the life her Amish neighbors lived as her own? Was romance in the cards for Wendy as well?

I really enjoyed getting to know the people of Marigold, Ohio. If you enjoy stories about the Amish people that possesses a touch of romance, then I believe that you will enjoy The Proposal Plot by Kathleen Fuller. I hope to read more books by her in the future. The audiobook that I listened to was very well narrated by Lauren Berst. I highly recommend the audiobook of The Proposal Plot.

Thank you to HarperCollins Christian Publishing for allowing me to listen to the audiobook of The Proposal Plot An Amish of Marigold Novel by Kathleen Fuller through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

this book was just middle of the road for me. I don't hate it. but it really didn't keep my interest.

Another great Amish book from a new tome author! Wonderful main characters with an entertaining story! Thank you to Netgalley, the author and the publisher for a chance to read and review this book in exchange for an honest review.

A fun novel that is like 3 love stories in one. Never any boring areas of the book and keeps the reader/listeners engaged.

Thank you NetGalley for providing me with an advanced copy of the audiobook. All comments and opinions are voluntary and my own.

Netgalley audiobook.
In THE PROPOSAL PLOT we see three different romances develop within the Amish community. We see pride, selfishness and sloth throughout. By the end some learn and change, as others remain the same and continue on. To me the story was written more for tweens as opposed to adults and is, I think, one of the reasons I've taken so long to review this. I continually saw it from an adult perspective, but when I changed my view I enjoyed listening to it.

Such a sweet story of a dad and two sisters finding their way back together and learning to let go of pain from their past. Learning to accept each other for who they are and a dad learning to take back control of his family. Sweet love stories for all enjoyed. I really enjoyed reading this book. Thanks for the advanced copy.

The Proposal Plot
Kathleen Fuller
This is an Amish Romance.
Ella Yoder has a head for business.
When Ella’s mother passed away, she took over running the family. Her father was devastated and allowed Ella to make major decisions. Ella and Junia missed their mother. The girls found themselves at odds, often arguing, yelling and angry. Junia was a bit lazy. It was easier to let Ella do everything; she did cook breakfast but felt that was all she should be expected to accomplish in a day. Junia resented Ella’s bossiness and resented that everything had to be done Ella’s way. Ellas resented having to do everything herself. Ella talked her father into moving them to Marigold, Ohio where they would open a grocery store.
Nelson Bontranger was raised on a farm and to be a farmer, but his heart lies with deli meats. He discovered he is really good at creating deli meats. He wants to buy the building next door to Ella’s grocery store and open a butcher shop. Ella had plans to expand the grocery store and is very upset that her father had not been willing to expand, and Nelson is buying HER building. Ella tries to be nice to Nelson, but her bossy personality makes that impossible.
Junia and Nelson’s nephew Malachi fall madly in love with each other. Nelson and Ella become unwilling chaperons, throwing them in each other’s paths repeatedly. Soon they find they enjoy each other’s company, but they will have to overcome hurt and pain from the past.
I love this tale. It is beautifully written. My heart ached for both Nelson and Ella. Two aunts are mentioned several times, what horrible women. They degrade their nieces in so many ways. Ella’s father is at his wits end over the lack of peace in his home. It is his own fault for not taking a stronger stance. The love between the lawyer and Ella’s father was slowly beginning to smolder.
Kudos to author Kathleen Fuller for a beautiful love story, well written and with memorable characters.
Thank you Netgalley for providing a copy for review.

I wanted to like this one I really did but it fell short for me - the characters were all over the place and the narrator didn't do a lot for me. I dont give 2 stars often but this was probably a 2.5 for me.

Publication date 05/07/2024

Thank you for the advanced reader copy Netgalley!

I really enjoyed listening to Kathleen Fuller's latest Amish romance, The Proposal Plot. This is book 2 in the Amish of Marigold series so we get to see a bit of Charity and Jesse and others who were in The Courtship Plan. I loved how there were 3 romances and one involved a couple in their 40's. Lots of family dynamics and having to work through issues with siblings.

The narrator was great! I love her voice so it made for easy listening.

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to this audio book. All opinions are my own.

Publication date: 7 May 2024

Summary:
A year ago, Ella convinced her father and sister to move to the community of Marigold, and since then her relationship with her younger sister, Junia has been rough. It’s not like Junia & Ella had the best relationship before, but things have gotten so much worse since the move. Ella also has dreams of expanding their family's grocery store, but neither her father nor sister supports that move. Then comes Nelson Bontrager, who has sworn off love after having his heart broken one too many times. He has bought the warehouse next to their grocery store The very warehouse Ella wanted to expand to, so of course she has issues with him on the spot. But then Junia falls in love with Nelson’s nephew and as much as they try to avoid each other, they keep being drawn together to chaperone Ella’s sister & Nelson’s nephew. And the more time they spend together, the more they realize they may have misjudged each other.

Thoughts:
It has been a while since I have picked up an Amish romance, so I am really glad I got the opportunity to listen to this book. Although Ella & Junia did drive me a little crazy, I still fell in love with all the characters almost immediately. I was confused about the introduction of the Englischer, Wendy, but her introduction soon made sense. Nelson & Ella were both incredibly stubborn to the point I was certain they would never see that they were perfect for each other. There were a lot of love stories going on, but it wasn’t overwhelming and I was rooting for each couple to get their happy ever after. This was a great lighthearted Amish romance.

Amish fiction is one of the biggest sellers in Christian fiction. I always see them in the best seller lists. I understand the attraction. It just fascinates me the way the Amish lives. It's so simple and yet hard, too. This book by Kathleen Fuller is a romance with three different couples who find their happily ever after. I enjoyed the family dynamics with polar opposite personalities and how they interacted with each other. I feel my favorite of the characters was Wendy. Kathleen Fuller is one of my favorite authors, and this book reflected why she is. I listened to this book, and the narrator did a wonderful job. I enjoyed it and recommend it to anyone who reads Amish fiction.
*I was given a copy of the audio book and this is my honest opinion.

I have been enjoying the stories following along as the Bontrager family meet their loves. Kathleen Fuller hit the mark with this one. The narrator did a great job, changing her tone depending on which character was talking & making it easy to fall into long periods of listening. I can relate with the head-strong Ella & how she only wants to help those around her, but sometimes letting it consume her & accidentally taking over. I tend to do that too, good to know that I must not be alone in that. Looking forward to the next book, can't wait to see who is next in the Bontrager line to find their future love.

Great novel and great narrator. First time listening to a novel.. I would listen while I washed dishes and daily chores.

The Proposal Plot is a cute Amish romance. Nelson is finding it hard to trust women again after his hard times with love. Ella is dealing with family troubles with a sister who is not pulling her weight around their business and home. Love blossoms in three couples. Also the faith content was great. Jesus was mentioned which does not happen in all Amish books. I enjoyed reading this book. I received a digital copy of this book from NetGalley in trade for my honest opinion. My thoughts are my own.

YouTube Review: 05/01/24
YouTube Handle: KeenCat

I am a huge fan of Amish romance books. After I finished this audiobook I felt like awwwwww! It was SO sweet. I absolutely loved the sisters and how snarky they were to each other. Such sn enjoyable listen! A great book!