Welcome to the Blog + Review Tour for Home from the Storm by Laurel Blount, hosted by JustRead Publicity Tours!
About the Book
In this stirring Amish romance about love and second chances, a shunned man returns to protect the wife he left behind—and falls in love with the family he never knew he had.
After a senseless loss, hotheaded Caleb Hochstedler left his Amish faith and his young wife to seek justice. Two years later, he tracks his parents’ killer back home to Johns Mill, where he’s astonished to learn he’s the father of twins. Now he's determined to protect his children and the woman he still loves—if she’ll let him.
Her new husband’s abandonment broke Rhoda Lambright’s heart and proved her father, the bishop, right. Such a stubborn man could never be happy among the peaceful Amish. When Caleb unexpectedly returns, Rhoda is caught between her rock of a husband and a very hard place.
Her church forbids divorce and requires forgiveness, so Rhoda lets Caleb back into their home. But can she ever let him back into her heart? One thing’s for certain sure. This second chance will take all the faith they can find.
PURCHASE LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop | BookBub
More Books in the Series
About the Author
Award-winning author Laurel Blount writes inspirational romances full of grit and grace—with characters who’ll walk right off the page and into your heart! She lives on a farm in Georgia with her husband, their four fabulous kids, and an assortment of ridiculously spoiled animals.
An enthusiastic multi-tasker, Laurel writes for both Berkley/Penguin Random House and Love Inspired/Harlequin. She’s a Publishers Weekly best-selling author and the recipient of ACFW’s Carol Award, The New England Reader’s Choice Award and GRW’s Maggie Award. She’s represented by Jessica Alvarez of Bookends Literary Agency.
Home from the Storm is Laurel’s twelfth book—and more stories are in the works! Stay tuned!
Connect with Laurel by visiting laurelblountbooks.com to follow her on social media and sign up for email updates.
My Thoughts
Home from the Storm by Laurel Blount is a touching Amish tale. I was
happy to head back to Johns Mill for Caleb and Rhoda Hochstedler’s story. I thought Home from the Storm was
well-written with developed characters. Caleb
is a stubborn man with a temper. He has
never taken the time to grieve over the loss of his parents. Caleb is determined to catch his parents’
killer. Caleb learns that there is a
price to pay for his relentless pursuit for justice. Rhoda is a good Amish woman who has found
herself to be that knot in the middle of a tug of war rope. Rhoda was pulled back and forth by her
husband and her father who was the bishop of their district. I liked that the story is told from Rhoda and
Caleb’s perspective. It allows us to
know their thoughts and feelings. The
suspense is well done. There were tense
moments that would find me quickly flipping the pages to discover what would
happen. The romance was nicely
done. I do feel the pacing could have
been a touch peppier in places. I like the new bishop of Johns Mill. Abram King
certainly has a different approach from Rhoda’s father. Trust and forgiveness are the main themes in
the story. Home from the Storm is the
fourth book in A Johns Mill Amish Romance series. While Home from the Storm can be read as a
standalone (the author includes the needed background information), I do
recommend reading the series in order.
It will allow you to get to know the characters, their stories, and the
town. The ending from Home from the Storm
left me smiling. Home from the Storm a
gratifying tale with a killer on the run, bakery troubles, a benevolent bishop,
an indomitable Daed, a hair trigger temper, a double disclosure, and finding
forgiveness.
Excerpt
“Abram said you and I
weren’t to . . . talk about anything until he got here, but while we’re
waiting, I’d like to see the little ones.” He shifted his weight from one boot
to the other. “I hardly even got a good look at them before. If you don’t mind,
I’d rather meet them now, while we’re alone.”
Rhoda hesitated,
sympathy warring with concern.
She needed Abram here.
She wasn’t sure how to deal with this. And she certain sure needed to know what
had brought her husband home and what his plans were before this went much
further. The idea of Caleb being part of the twins’ lives while living among
the Englisch and thumbing his nose at
church rules . . . that worried her.
But she could understand
Caleb not wanting to meet his son and daughter under the eye of the bishop.
He’d never felt comfortable around church leaders, and for good reason.
“All right,” she
conceded. “They’re in the kitchen.”
Caleb crossed the bakery
in a few long strides, but he stopped short at the kitchen doorway.
Rhoda paused behind him,
unsure what to do. Best, she decided, to do nothing. She would step in if the
children showed any signs of being upset, but Caleb would have to handle the
introductions himself. She had no idea how to go about it.
He took a step in the
children’s direction—then halted. He turned to Rhoda, and the raw pain on his
face made her catch her breath.
“What?” she whispered,
alarmed.
“I don’t . . . I don’t know their names,” he ground out roughly.
Tour Giveaway
(1) winner will win print copies of Shelter in the Storm, Strength in the Storm and Courage in the Storm plus a $25 Amazon gift card!
Full tour schedule linked below. The giveaway begins at midnight December 11, 2023 and will last through 11:59 PM EST on December 18, 2023. Winner will be notified within 2 weeks of close of the giveaway and given 48 hours to respond or risk forfeiture of prize. US only. Void where prohibited by law or logistics.
Giveaway is subject to JustRead Publicity Tours Giveaway Policies.
Home from the Storm will be out on December 26 and it can be preordered from Amazon*. The first three books in A Johns Mill Amish Romance series are Shelter in the Storm, Strength in the Storm, and Courage in the Storm. You can find Laurel Blount's other novels here. If you follow Laurel Blount on Amazon, they will send you an email when she has a new book release. Laurel has The Triplets' Summer Adventure coming out June 25, 2024 (Love Inspired Inspirational Romance). Don't forget to enter the giveaway for a chance to win print copies of the first three books in the series as well as a $25 Amazon gift card (Rules above--Sorry, but US Only). Good Luck! Thank you for joining me today. I will return after the holidays on January 2, 2024 with The Dog Across the Lake by Krista Davis. It is the ninth A Paws & Claws Mystery. I always enjoy visiting Wagtail. I hope that you and your family have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Take care and Happy Reading!
The
Avid Reader
*This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
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