I’m so happy to announce the release of book 5 in my Indiana Amish Market series, A Courtship for the Amish Spinster. This series follows the story of widower, Amos Yoder and his five daughters. While it is traditional Amish romance in once sense, in another sense it’s something quite different.

During my times visiting Amish communities in Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Oklahoma, Wisconsin, and Colorado I learned that stereotypes are just that. They describe people “in general.” But when you meet those people, you find that they defy stereotypes.

Amos and his daughters are exactly that. They’re characters–people–who are different from what we might expect.

• Amos is a traditional Amish father, but he runs the biggest outdoor market in the midwest. This market is a real business in Shipshewana, and I’ve had the pleasure of visiting it many times. You can read more about it here.
• Sarah is the oldest daughter. She’s taken over the roll of mother to her younger siblings. But Sarah is not traditional in that she’s given up her own chance at marriage and a family in order to be there for her sisters. I’ve met women like this in the Amish community. Although many do marry young, some wait until they’re older.
• Becca is the 2nd oldest, and she has a dream to see the world. She eventually does leave her hometown to serve with the Mennonite Disaster Service (MDS) who do mission projects around the U.S. My husband has served on a MDS site here in Texas, and he had the privilege of meeting and working with many Amish and Mennonite men and women.
• Eunice is the middle child, and she’s something of a tomboy. I was often surprised, when I visited Amish communities, to see Amish women drive a team of 6 Boucheron horses, or mow a yard with an industrial-sized mower. These women defied the stereotype of “Amish women” that I had in my mind.
• Bethany is probably the most traditional of the family. She loves to quilt and sew and craft, and I have definitely met many Amish woman like her.
• Ada is the youngest of the group. She’s full of energy, outspoken, and ends up working for the local chapter of the SPCA. She’s fun to be around and funny to listen to. One of the first Amish women I met was outspoken and hilarious. She definitely broke the stereotype for me as I was beginning to write Amish fiction.

This is a picture of me with Kris Stutzman who, for many years, ran Lolly’s Fabrics in Shipshewana.

Kris is Mennonite. She’s a very friendly person–outgoing, talkative, and happy to answer my questions. She also loved to talk about her children. Several of her children were National Merit Scholars!

Kris helped me a lot in my early years of writing Amish fiction. I could mail her with questions, and I’d promptly get a reply back.

This has been a wonderful series to write, and I do hope you’ll give it a try. As many of my readers have said, “They’re not your traditional Amish books.” And yet, within every story, I try to give a glimpse into these traditional, conservative communities. Book 6, The Amish Widow’s New Love will release in April and will end this series. If you have any questions about these books, Shipshewana, or the Amish in general, feel free to post them below. I’d love to hear from you!

Sincerely,