Can they find their way home to the land, to the Lord—and to each other?
May
1945. Germany has surrendered to the triumphant Allied forces, while
the war against Japan grinds toward a bloody end. Just graduated from
high school, Ellie Hershberger longs to explore the wider world,
unrestricted by her conservative Mennonite church. But when all her
dreams are suddenly shattered, she questions whether home is a place to
escape from—or where her heart’s deepest desires really lie.
Refusing
to join the Mennonite church he grew up in, Jude Mast enlisted in the
Marines and ended up in the South Pacific. Now battle-scarred and
crippled, he’s forced to return to the community he thought he’d left
behind forever. Yet here, where he believes he'll never be forgiven or
accepted, could he discover a grace he never conceived of and a love
that changes everything?
During that scorching summer, while the
war rages toward its climax in the Pacific, the skies remain as hard and
unyielding as iron. But in God’s gracious time there will come a season
for the heart.
About The Author
An award-winning author and editor, J. M. Hochstetler is the daughter of Mennonite farmers, a graduate of Indiana University, a professional editor, and a lifelong student of history. She spent many years as an editor with the United Methodist Publishing House before founding Sheaf House Publishers and is the author of award-winning historical fiction. She is a proud member of Daughters of the American Revolution and Historian of her local chapter.
Hochstetler's American Patriot Series is the only comprehensive historical fiction series on the American Revolution. Book 1, Daughter of Liberty, finaled in the 2024 American Legacy Book Awards. The Northkill Amish Series, coauthored with well-known Christian author Bob Hostetler, is based closely on the inspiring true story of their Hochstetler ancestors. Book 1, Northkill won the 2014 Forward Magazine's Indie Book of the Year Bronze Award for Adult Historical Fiction. Book 2, The Return, was named one of Shelf Unbound's 2018 Notable Indie Books and won Interviews and Reviews' 2017 Silver Award for Historical Fiction. Hochstetler's contemporary novel One Holy Night was the Christian Small Publishers 2009 Book of the Year and finalist for the American Christian Fiction Writers 2009 Carol Award.
My Review
This was a read that drew me in and didn't let go. A young man that dealt with abuse problems his whole life leaves his Mennonite community and becomes a Marine, this is WWII time.
Then we are given a young women who is also a Mennonite and wants to spread her wings. She has a desire to be a teacher and has won a scholarship.
Jude comes home broken, and has a long recovery. Ellie and he are neighbors, and her family believes on helping neighbors, thus they are together a lot.
There are a lot of decisions here, some good, some questionable, but there is also a lot of compassion and love for fellow men.
Will Jude come to terms with all that has happened to him, can he forgive his past? Will Ellie become a teacher? Answers come and we have a great read to lead us to them!
I received this book through Net Galley and the Publisher BooksGoSocial, and was not required to give a positive review.
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