An Amish Family Christmas Book Review

In Shelley Shepard Gray’s fourth book in her Charmed Amish Life series, An Amish Family Christmas, an unlikely Amish romance reveals that Christmas is a time for family, miracles—and love.

About An Amish Family Christmas

Ever since his father died in a tragic fire, Levi Kinsinger has felt adrift. Newly returned to Charm, Ohio, Levi is trying to fit into his old life, only to discover he seems to have outgrown it.

But when Julia, his young widowed neighbor, asks for his help with a Christmas project, Levi finds a sense of purpose for the first time in months. She and her daughter are new to Charm and could use a friend, a job Levi takes personally. Soon enough, friendship grows into attraction, but Levi can’t help having doubts. There’s something about Julia that doesn’t ring quite true.

Like Levi, Julia Kemps has survived her fair share of hardships—but only by hiding the truth of her past. Being an unmarried mother in an Amish community was unthinkable. Feeling hopeless, Julia did the only thing she could do: she moved to a new town and pretended to be a widow. But meeting Levi, she’s hopeful for the first time. Little by little, she begins to imagine telling him her darkest secret, and eventually . . . perhaps even sharing her life with him.

Christmas is a time for family, and as the holiday draws closer, Julia and Levi will have to face their pasts together . . . in order to find the healing, support and love they so desperately desire.

My Thoughts

A wonderful continuation in this series by Shelley Sheppard Gray. This books focuses on Levi, who was hit the hardest with his Father’s death and fire at their company. He was so devastated and angry that he actually had to leave his hometown to deal with his emotions. When he returns, he finds he can deal with those emotions but he can’t quite deal with his family all the time. He wants, craves and needs more freedom. Which is what finds him moving out on his own, a decision his family can’t quite understand.

This is where he meets Julia, in a rather unusual manner! Julia is one of the strongest characters I have ever read. She is young, unmarried but trusted someone with her whole heart, and out of this came the birth of her daughter. To hide this pain, she moves as far away as possible from the only home she ever knew. She also hides the truth from everyone around her, which anyone can see is unhealthy but I can relate to her fears about being judged and treated differently.

Their meeting sparks hope, faith and respect. Both of them understand each other on a different level. But both of them hold back just a little out of fear. It is this holding back that causes them the worst pain. They need to learn how to face this pain in order to move forward.

A beautiful story of forgiveness, faith, trust and moving forward. It inspires hope and restores your own faith. I loved every moment of this book in this series (I have to say it was my personal favourite!).

You can find more reviews on the Litfuse blog tour page. You can purchase a copy of the book here.

Rating: 5/5

About the Author

Shelley Shepard Gray is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author, a finalist for the American Christian Fiction Writers prestigious Carol Award, and a two-time HOLT Medallion winner. She lives in southern Ohio, where she writes full-time, bakes too much, and can often be found walking her dachshunds on her town’s bike trail.

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.