Status
Available
Call number
Publication
Bethany House Publishers (2008), Edition: Repack, 290 pages
Description
The Powerful Conclusion to The Shunning and The Confession! Katherine Mayfield, the new Mistress of Mayfield Manor, always dreamed of a fancy "English" life. But as the seasons pass, she finds herself grieving the loss of her Amish family and her dearest friend, Mary Stoltzfus. Shunned for the Plain life she once knew, Katherine finds solace in volunteer work with hospice patients - a labor of love she hopes will bring honor to the memory of her birth mother. Unknown to Katherine, her long-lost love, Daniel Fisher, is desperate to locate his "Sweetheart girl", only to be frustrated at nearly every turn. Meanwhile, she delights in the modern world - once forbidden - cherishing the attention of Justin Wirth, her handsome suitor. Her childhood entwined with Daniel's, yet her present life far removed from Lancaster County, Katherine longs for the peace that reigned in her mother's heart. And once again, she is compelled to face the heritage of her past.… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member kairosdreaming
The Reckoning is the third book in Beverly Lewis' Heritage of Lancaster County series. While I loved the first book, and abhorred the second, I have mixed feelings about the third.
The story starts with Katherine becoming accustomed to life at the mansion after her biological mother's death. Just as
Meanwhile, to fill her time she dates the charming painter Justin and volunteers at a hospice where she makes friends with a young boy dying from terminal cancer. She also hosts a quilting class in her home with several friends and also some newer friends, local amish people.
Something is missing from her life though and as the ban on her shunning is partially lifted she returns home to talk with her family and friends and somewhat misses the Amish even though she has found a new religious relationship.
The ending came as quite a surprise for me. While I had a suspicion that it might end up the way it did, I never imagined the destination to be what it was. It was as if Lewis changed her mind literally between paragraphs to a different ending and followed through with it.
While I was pleased to see the development of characters improve in this novel over the second, I have some reservations about the novel. There seemed to be a quite open agenda throughout the entire novel, a theme if you will. While I realize Beverly Lewis' writings are technically classified as Christian fiction, this book was so blatant about its proselytizing it was almost off-putting. While I love reading about the Amish and their culture, the constant references to being saved by Jesus in the Mennonite and regular Christian churches Catherine attends was heavy handed.
Lewis still offers a lot of detail in her writing and a nice history of the Amish. While most of it is written in the 3rd person, the prologue and epilogue are written through Katherine's eyes. It brings a nice change and divide in the novel.
The Reckoning
Published in 1998
281 pages
The story starts with Katherine becoming accustomed to life at the mansion after her biological mother's death. Just as
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she is settling in and getting used to things, Daniel, an old boyfriend whom she thought dead shows up on her doorstep begging forgiveness. Its a little more than Katherine can handle and she send him away.Meanwhile, to fill her time she dates the charming painter Justin and volunteers at a hospice where she makes friends with a young boy dying from terminal cancer. She also hosts a quilting class in her home with several friends and also some newer friends, local amish people.
Something is missing from her life though and as the ban on her shunning is partially lifted she returns home to talk with her family and friends and somewhat misses the Amish even though she has found a new religious relationship.
The ending came as quite a surprise for me. While I had a suspicion that it might end up the way it did, I never imagined the destination to be what it was. It was as if Lewis changed her mind literally between paragraphs to a different ending and followed through with it.
While I was pleased to see the development of characters improve in this novel over the second, I have some reservations about the novel. There seemed to be a quite open agenda throughout the entire novel, a theme if you will. While I realize Beverly Lewis' writings are technically classified as Christian fiction, this book was so blatant about its proselytizing it was almost off-putting. While I love reading about the Amish and their culture, the constant references to being saved by Jesus in the Mennonite and regular Christian churches Catherine attends was heavy handed.
Lewis still offers a lot of detail in her writing and a nice history of the Amish. While most of it is written in the 3rd person, the prologue and epilogue are written through Katherine's eyes. It brings a nice change and divide in the novel.
The Reckoning
Published in 1998
281 pages
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LibraryThing member danaenicole
I was so confident I had read this book years ago, but nothing from it seemed at all familiar, so, for whatever reason, I must have stopped at the second book...
[SPOILERS BELOW]
I will say I was disappointed by this one. For one thing, I hated how there was so much confusion over Daniel calling
I also was very unsatisfied with the ending. Katherine is perfectly happy living in the mansion and using her wealth to help others until she suddenly turns around and decides she's NOT happy living that way, so she ditches the mansion and becomes Mennonite instead. It was so abrupt. And I felt like the book was claiming that it's wrong to be rich or to enjoy nice things. I would have bought her happy medium if she had found herself becoming obsessed with her riches, but that didn't ever seem to be a concern.
I thought there would be more of a love triangle, but it was clear that Justin was never a contender. There wasn't really much substance to their relationship at all. It makes sense to me, though. As if dating Justin was just a part of testing out this new life she has. This isn't really a complaint. I don't mind love triangles, but they are a bit over-used these days.
Combining the last two points, maybe it would have made more sense if Katherine's faith in God wavered and dating Justin was part of that, considering he was so apathetic toward religion. That would have achieved the same end, and been more believable and satisfying, I think.
[SPOILERS BELOW]
I will say I was disappointed by this one. For one thing, I hated how there was so much confusion over Daniel calling
Show More
Katherine "Katie". I don't know why the butler wouldn't have any concept of the possibility that someone from Katherine's old life might try to contact her. Why would he assume Daniel was referring to the impostor? It was too obviously just a way for Daniel to come frustratingly close to Katherine without a reunion actually taking place.I also was very unsatisfied with the ending. Katherine is perfectly happy living in the mansion and using her wealth to help others until she suddenly turns around and decides she's NOT happy living that way, so she ditches the mansion and becomes Mennonite instead. It was so abrupt. And I felt like the book was claiming that it's wrong to be rich or to enjoy nice things. I would have bought her happy medium if she had found herself becoming obsessed with her riches, but that didn't ever seem to be a concern.
I thought there would be more of a love triangle, but it was clear that Justin was never a contender. There wasn't really much substance to their relationship at all. It makes sense to me, though. As if dating Justin was just a part of testing out this new life she has. This isn't really a complaint. I don't mind love triangles, but they are a bit over-used these days.
Combining the last two points, maybe it would have made more sense if Katherine's faith in God wavered and dating Justin was part of that, considering he was so apathetic toward religion. That would have achieved the same end, and been more believable and satisfying, I think.
Show Less
LibraryThing member jguidry
I enjoy reading Amish stories because I enjoy learning about cultures different from my own. This author did not seem to truly appreciate the culture. She was very preachy about why their beliefs were wrong and they should all convert to "true" Christianity. The author seemed so focused on
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converting her main character, she forgot what else she wanted to to with her. This made the story seem very lost at times. Show Less
LibraryThing member KimSalyers
very good book
LibraryThing member Maydacat
In this concluding book of the trilogy, Katherine has embraced her English ancestry, but as much as she likes parts of it, she cannot be fully comfortable in her role as a woman of wealth. She desires a more friendly relationship with her servants than is normally accepted. And there are times she
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craves some of the plain life she left behind. Author Beverly Lewis has written quite an interesting novel, one in which she cleverly solves Katherine’s conflicts as well as the problems faced by her best friend, Mary. This novel is well written and peopled with delightful characters. Show Less