Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Shelley Shepard Gray's The Caregiver ~ Reviewed




The Caregiver: Families of Honor, Book One [Paperback]
Shelley Shepard Gray
Paperback: 304 pages
Publisher: Avon Inspire; 1 edition (March 8, 2011)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 9780062020611




Description:


Two lives converge one stormy night on a train headed to Cleveland

Lucy is traveling by herself via train to Jacob's Crossing to help care for her cousin Mattie, recently diagnosed with breast cancer. Trying to overcome the sudden death of her husband, she's glad to get away and focus on someone else for a while.

The only other Amish people on the train are Calvin Weaver and his little sister, Katie. When their train breaks down outside of Cleveland, Calvin and Lucy band together to face the outside world. But Calvin also carries the weight of past hurts. When an altercation brings both their wounds to light, they question whether they can trust each other.

Once in Jacob's Crossing, Lucy is occupied with caring for Mattie, while Calvin does his best to run his family's farm. But they can't stop thinking about those special hours spent together. Will the bond they formed last? And will Lucy and Calvin be able to put away the pain in their pasts to recognize the happiness that is suddenly in their grasp?

Review:

The Caregiver is about a young Amish woman named Lucy. Having survived an abusive marriage and the death of her husband, she takes a trip to visit and help her cousin, Mattie, who is going through treatment for breast cancer. On her the train there, she meets Caleb Weaver, his sister, Katie, and his uncle John, who are all traveling home. Despite Lucy’s efforts to keep her feelings at bay, she finds herself drawn to Caleb, though she’s scared to trust a man again. And Caleb, finds himself thinking a lot about Lucy!

I really enjoy Shelley’s books. This one was no exception! I enjoyed watching Caleb’s caring way with Lucy, even from the beginning, as he could sense she was nervous in the presence of men. As he found out more about her past, he was even more kind and caring, considerate of her feelings. It was great to see Lucy’s character open up. I look forward to the next book in the series!

Reviewed by: Sarah Porter

1 comment:

Canada said...

I enjoyed this book very much. It is not anything like the other Christian Amish stories I have read by other authors. I did enjoy the characters Shelley created. Lucy & Calvin were easy to sympathize with. Anyone could see themselves transposed into this story as an outsider or even a friend of Lucy looking in while her life is changing.