Mountains of Grace (Amish of Big Sky Country #1) by Kelly Irvin

In the first of a new series set in the Amish communities of Montana, bestselling author Kelly Irvin explores what the Amish do in the aftermath of natural disaster.

Schoolteacher Mercy Yoder loves her life in the beautiful West Kootenai region of Montana. But when a wildfire blazes outside her beloved community, she and her family are forced to evacuate and flee to the small town of Eureka.

John Hostetler, Mercy’s beau, sorts through the damage left by the fire, helping Mercy set up a makeshift school to continue her passion. Eureka is filled with fire personnel, media, and rubberneckers—more contact with the outside world than Mercy has ever experienced. A chance encounter with a smoke jumper, Travis Cooper, leads to longer conversations about her Amish beliefs and life.

As word arrives that their home was one of the houses destroyed in the fire, Mercy struggles to accept that everything they owned is gone. A life’s worth of memories. She hides her bitterness from her father, who accepts such events as God’s will. How can it be God’s will that they would start over with nothing? John’s decision to return to Kansas pours kerosene on her doubts. Her heart is doubly broken.

While John is away, Travis continues to seek Mercy’s company. His observations force her to look at her life from a different perspective. But is it the right perspective?

When all seems lost, including her way, Mary finds unexpected beauty and love springing from the ashes of all that she’s known.

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About The Author

Over the Line is Kelly Irvin's latest romantic suspense novel, a fast-moving behind-the-scenes look at how gun smuggling affects every aspect of life on the Texas-Mexico border. Publishers Weekly said of Tell Her No Lies, "No one is above suspicion in a tale sure to appeal to readers beyond its main Christian market. Kelly's newest Amish romance series, Amish of Sky Country, will debut in August with Mountains of Grace.

The Every Amish Season series ncludes Upon A Spring Breeze, Beneath the Summer Sun, Through the Autumn Air, and With Winter's First Frost from Zondervan/HarperCollins Christian Publishing. This follows the Amish of Bee County series, The Saddle Maker's Son, released in June 2016. It is an ECPA bestseller. It follows The Bishop's Son, and the critically acclaimed bestseller, The Beekeeper's Son, which earned a starred review from Publishers Weekly. The reviewer called it "a beautifully woven masterpiece." The Beekeeper's Son was a finalist in the romance category of the 2016 ACFW Carol Awards Contest. 

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My Review

The author gives us a story of nature when it consuming everything around this area of Montana in the form of fire, and we are there to see the devastating results.
We see all segments of society here and how they rally around those who have lost everything, and we quickly become involved in their lives.
Now we have both Amish and English sprinkled around here, and most have known each other all of their lives, and all are in the same state of loss.
We also hit some tough subjects head on, and find that God is needed and we need to hold on to Him.
I loved how things worked out here, and am glad that this is the first in this series.

I received this book through Net Galley and the Publisher Zondervan, and was not required to give a positive review.