Samuel Miller worked hard to fit into his Amish community despite his clubfoot. But when his father learns Samuel is gay, he is whipped and shunned. With just a few hundred dollars to his name, Samuel responds to an ad for a farmhand and finds himself employed by a city guy who has strange ideas about animals, no clue how to run his small farm, and a gentle heart.
Samuel isn’t the only lost soul to serendipitously find his way to Meadow Lake Farm. There’s Fred and Ginger, two cows who’d been living in a garage, a gang of sheep, and a little black pig named Benny who might be the key to life, love, money—and even a happily ever after for two castoffs.
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| Average! |
Lorix - 5 Hearts
This book was a delight to read. It was a pure romance - innocent even - born out of respect and friendship and love. This kind of book makes me happy to read because it is simple in a way, and I respect that.
Eddie has a dream to run a sanctuary for rescued animals - who doesn't like a bloke who loves animals? I love the goodness of him. I love his determination despite things not going according to plan. The world needs dreamers, but it needs dreamers like Eddie, dreamers who are prepared to work for their dreams. His idea, his dream, isn't easy - from the outset there are hurdles - but like a true understated hero he works through them. Yes, there are times when it seems impossible, times when he's ready to give up... and I guess that is where Samuel comes into play.
Samuel is that Amish version of innocence seen many times in books (and I have to admit, my entire knowledge of the Amish comes from books and films). Innocence can be confused with ignorance. His family, his father, was ignorant; ignorant and cruel, afraid, as many are, of things outside their understanding. His ignorance is inexcusable though. Samuel is also ignorant but he's not cruel - he's willing to learn and try to understand the world which is so foreign to him. He was an innocent caught up in a small world. A world in which he was punished and abandoned just for being him. He is utterly resilient though. Resilient and hard-working to a fault.
Together, slowly, he and Eddie start to understand each other and trust each other and, as a whole it works beautifully. I love these quiet characters, each with their own battle, uniting and learning together. It really is a joyful book to read. Neither character expected the other to become something they weren't. Both characters grew through the story without losing the essence of themselves.
I recommend this book to everyone. Late summer, early autumn has been a goldmine of reads for me and this too is one of my favourites from 2017.
Lost in a Book - 4 Hearts
I could totally get on board with the no electricity, horse and carriage lifestyle the Amish are rockin’ if it meant I’d get a Samuel.
Well, minus the hate they're peddling out to their own if they show any man on man interest. I just
Samuel is an 18 year old Amish man that worked on his parent’s farm until his father whips and shuns him for being gay. He is sent away with the clothes on his back from the only life he has ever known. Samuel is devastated with the loss and is even more heartsick over his father’s parting words. He is smart though and quickly secures a farm hand position at Meadow Lake Farm with Eddie as his boss. I absolutely LOVED Samuel. He was shy, sweet, hard working, lacked confidence, needed love, craved acceptance, and had a quiet strength about him that won me over within the first couple of sentences.
Eddie is a New York transplant that has big dreams of owning a farm animal sanctuary. With zero knowledge on how to run a farm but a huge heart for saving animals, Eddie hires Samuel to run the farm. Eddie was more standoffish due to his ex’s cut and run right before they moved to the farm. He carries the weight of the world on his shoulders when there are others, especially Samuel that would love to share the burden.
Samuel and Eddie have a very slow start to their relationship. With Samuel being shy and so desperate for a job that he is afraid to make the wrong move and Eddie closed off and hiding behind his “boss” role, they take a while to get there. Once they finally form a friendship through card games and books, they have a hard time denying the attraction and all consuming need for each other. I appreciated the relationship development. With both of their backgrounds, the journey to each other was authentic and meant that much more when the walls came down.
The farm was up and running with a minimal amount of animals. They were finally together and all was looking bright as the sun…until the dark clouds of needing money rolled in. A point of frustration for Samuel and myself was Eddie’s inability to ask for help until it was almost too late. It suited Eddie’s personality but it seemed to take forever for him to see Samuel as his equal and to share the status of the farm. After they get together, their relationship is no longer a focus on page due to the issues on the farm. I get it. It’s about a farm sanctuary. BUT… in my defense, the build up to them getting together was so sweet and sexy that I wanted more. I wanted a united front, a focus on their relationship, AND some detailed time in the sheets…or anywhere else, I’m not picky. But, I do wish the farm shared the spotlight in the second half instead of overtaking the story because some parts dragged a teeny tiny bit for my taste; Even if the animals were adorbs.
For those that are curious, David and Christie from the first book have a short cameo in this one but this is a complete standalone. I’m looking forward to the next book in the series and wouldn’t mind a possible love match with the cheeky Devin and Amish Matthew. What? Too much to ask? Gotta dream big and all that jazz. Definitely recommended.
A copy of this book was given in exchange for honest reviews.
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