Hopeful Blog Tour: Review

I have only started reading Amish fiction in the last two months but I have become a huge fan of this genre. I love the feeling of community, the selflessness and the stories are easy to relate to.

Hopeful by Shelley Shephard Gray is a story centred around Miriam Zehr. Miriam works at the Sugarcreek Inn and has been there for a very long time. The Sugarcreek Inn is a favourite among both the town residents and the tourists. Miriam always keeps herself positive at work but it is a reminder that she is missing her own family to love and care for.

Miriam has always felt like a wallflower and not quite pretty. She has always been a little heavier than the other girls her age making her self conscious. She has always held a special spot in her heart for Junior and when he finally begins to pay attention to her she is elated. She thinks that he has finally noticed her only to realize that he is using her to help him gain the attention of her pretty friend, Mary Kathryn. Miriam is faced with the dilemma to help him and be able to spend time with him or potentially lose him.

I felt like I could closely relate to Miriam. I have always felt self conscious and a bit of a wallflower. I have always been shy and afraid to talk to others in my classes. I was always self conscious about my body and she was just a character that really touched me. You can’t help but like Junior even though the situation is frustrating and you feel bad for Miriam. He is just a likable character! 

The characters in this story are easy to fall in love with and care for and you just want to know more about them. There is a real sense of community and you can see how the series is beginning to develop. I looked into The Sugarcreek series (Seasons of Sugarcreek) as many others have suggested and I am going to start reading from there as many people stated that some of the characters in this novel were also present in her past novels. I love seeing this type of continuation but it also did not affect the plot line at all.

Shelley Shepard Gray is a two time New York best seller, a two time USA Today best seller, a finalist for the American Christian Fiction Writers prestigious Carol Award and a two time Holt Medallion winner (pretty lengthy list right? But very well deserved!). She lives in Southern Ohio and writes full time. You can learn more about her here.

To find more reviews of Hopeful in the Litfuse Blog Tour you can visit their page here. You can purchase your own copy here.

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