The Warmth of Sunshine by Kelly Irvin Review

 Happy Friday Friends :)

I pray today finds you all doing well, and I want to thank you all for joining me for another book review here on The Preppy Book Princess.

I've been going through a bit of a tough time lately, and other than spending time with Jesus and my hubby, one of my favorite things to do to help myself through hard times is curling up with great Christian fiction books that bring a smile to face, and give my faith a lovely boost.

Today's review is for a wonderful upcoming Amish fiction release, and I'm excited to tell you all about it.

Keep reading below for my full review.

The Warmth of Sunshine by Kelly Irvin:

Source: Publisher via NetGalley

Publisher: Zondervan

Publication Date: July 5th, 2022

Genre: Christian Fiction/Amish Fiction

Series: Amish Blessings

Synopsis:

Abigail’s Amish life has always followed a certain path . . . until an Englisch woman disrupts all she’s known to be true.

Growing up Amish, Abigail Bontrager often felt like a square peg in a round hole. Her pie crusts always turned out tough. Her stitches always ran crooked. She was clumsy. Not ideal for an aspiring Amish wife and mother, but her faith and love of her family, which are so much more important, are solid. Plus, her relationship with the attractive and kindhearted Owen Kurtz is moving in the right direction.

Owen is part dreamer, part entrepreneur. His friendship with Abigail has gradually blossomed into a sweet and loving courtship. Inspired by the hope of a future with the girl of his dreams, he decides to take the next step in building a business of his own—in the promising new industry of growing sunflowers.

When an outsider claiming to be Abigail’s birth mother abruptly enters her life, Abigail’s world comes crashing down. Confused and upset, she is determined to discover who she really is. Her journey of discovery leads to the possibilities of a new life waiting for her in the Englisch world. But is this new life really worth giving up everything and everyone she’s known? How can Abigail and Owen follow their hearts—and God’s plan—when these new paths now lead them into the unknown?

In this second book in the Amish Blessings series, bestselling and award-winning romance novelist Kelly Irvin shares an inspiring story of following your heart while trusting God to lead you into your future.

(synopsis from goodreads)

My Review:

The Warmth of Sunshine is the second release in Kelly Irvin's Amish Blessings series, and I appreciated the fact that it could be read as a stand alone since I didn't personally get the the chance to read the first title before starting this one. I've read a lot of Amish fiction titles over the years, since this genre is one of my all time favorites, and I've honestly never really read something like this one before.

In this beautiful story, we meet Abigail Bontrager, a woman who struggles to feel like she fits in within the rest of the Amish country. Her pie crusts could be paper weights, and she's constantly dumping drinks on the customers at the restaurant she waitresses at. Her life takes a turn she never could have seen coming when she finds out that she was born to a plain teenage couple who ended up giving her up for adoption. Now as she's a young adult, they've decided they want to get to know her, and she's struggling to find her place between the Amish world she knows and the English world that seems to be calling to her. Her Amish beau Owen doesn't understand her need to know, but how can Abigail commit to a future with him, if she never finds out if the Amish world is truly where she's meant to be.

This story truly captivated me right from the start, and I enjoyed it immensely. Kelly Irvin has a lovely writing style that pulled me into the story right from the start, and I was really rooting for both Abigail and Owen, and felt for them having to dive into situations that neither of them could have ever expected. 

It was also really interesting to read about a young Amish woman being thrust into the English world of social media, pop music, and crop tops during a time where she was already confused and more easily influenced. 

All in all, I really enjoyed this one, and I look forward to going back and reading book one, as I really did enjoy this particular Amish community, and also continuing on with book three in the future.

Final Rating: 4/5.

Thanks so much to Zondervan for allowing me to advance read and review this!

I voluntarily read and reviewed a complimentary advance reader copy of this novel from the publisher (Zondervan) via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. I was not required to give a positive review. All thoughts and opinions are my own. 

Thanks so much for reading guys! I pray you all have a great weekend, and that the Lord will do amazing things in all our lives if we're only willing to let Him!