"The Haven" by Suzanne Woods Fisher: Book Review

ISBN:  978-0-8007-1988-3
$14.99 - 320 pages

About the book:  (from Revell) On a warm spring day, Sadie Lapp returns home to her quiet, unassertive life in Stoney Ridge after spending the winter in Ohio.

Gideon Smucker, an awkward schoolteacher, has been in love with Sadie since childhood and eagerly awaits her return. But does Sadie feel the same about him?

Will Stoltz, a charming and impetuous college student, has been banished for a semester and sent to babysit endangered peregrine falcons nesting at the Lapp farm. He'd rather be anywhere else . . . until he befriends Sadie.

As the hopes and ambitions of these three young people converge, life in Stoney Ridge may never be the same.

Once again, bestselling author Suzanne Woods Fisher intrigues and delights with a story that explores the bonds of friendship, family, and true love in this captivating series.


My thoughts:  The Haven takes us on a journey into the daily lives of the Amish but it also brings to the table an outsider thrust into their midst somewhat against his wishes.  The Haven also brings to the forefront bird watching and game preservation, and a study (somewhat) in falconry.  So this is an interesting mixture with which Suzanne Woods Fisher stirs her story and shows us that a haven is not always a haven.

Our story opens with the gentle, healer Sadie Lapp traveling home after an extended stay away from the farm learning at the side of a healer.  On her journey she picks up a basket containing a hidden treasure.  This treasure turns out to be an albatross for the sweet Sadie.  Instead of finding a haven in her home and community, she finds she is virtually locked out of the fellowship a haven brings to the folks who reside therein.

The young outsider who ultimately lives in a cabin on the Lapp farm is tending and watching the falcons as they nest on behalf of the local game warden.  The nesting of the falcons is a major event because it is so rare.  So they must be protected.  Will is just the man to do that.

However, "outsider" Will begins to see a sweet beauty in the lovely Sadie.  But since Sadie is Amish and Will is not, it does pose major problems.  One of the problems though, is Gid who has been "courting" Sadie.

So we have a number problems with which our characters must deal:  the troublesome treasure in the basket, the lack of a haven for Sadie, the "outsider" so close on the scene, and Gid who is so troubled with all that is going on.

Ms. Fisher has woven an interesting and enjoyable read that has multilayers of plot and interest.

Click Here to read an excerpt from "The Haven"

About the author:    Suzanne Woods Fisher is the bestselling author of The Choice, The Waiting, The Search, The Keeper, and The Haven, as well as nonfiction books about the Amish, including Amish Peace. She is also the coauthor of a new Amish children's series, The Adventures of Lily Lapp. Her interest in the Anabaptist cultures can be directly traced to her grandfather, who was raised in the Old Order German Baptist Brethren Church in Franklin County, Pennsylvania. Suzanne is a Christy Award finalist and a Carol Award finalist. For more information, please visit www.suzannewoodsfisher.com and connect with her on Twitter @suzannewfisher.

DISCLOSURE:  I received a complimentary copy of The Haven in order to review it for a vitual  blog tour.  My copy was provided by Litfuse Publicity Group on behalf of Revell, A Baker Publishing Group and the author.