Book Review-Christian's Hope- Ervine R. Stutzman

                                                 
About the book (provided by Litfuse)

When Christian Hochstetler returns to the Amish after seven years in captivity, he finds that many things have shifted.

Captured as a child during the French and Indian War, Christian has spent much of his life among Native Americans, who cared for him and taught him their ways. Now that Christian is home, his father wants him to settle back into their predictable Amish life of farming, and Christian’s budding friendship with Orpha Rupp beckons him to stay as well.

Yet Christian feels restless, and he misses his adoptive Native American family—who raised him as their own son. When faced with a life-altering decision, will Christian choose the Amish identity that his father desires for him? Or will he depart from his family and faith community yet again?

Christian’s Hope tells the story of the younger brother of Joseph and son of Jacob, whom readers have come to love in the first two books in the Return to Northkill series. Based on actual events and written by a descendant of the Hochstetler family, Christian’s Hope brings the sweeping epic of the Return to Northkill series to a soul-stirring end.

About the author

Ervin R. Stutzman is author of "Jacob’s Choice," "Joseph’s Dilemma," "Tobias of the Amish," and "Emma, A Widow Among the Amish." Born into an Amish home in Kalona, Iowa, Stutzman based the Return to Northkill series on the life of his ancestor, Jacob Hochstetler. He has been featured on TLC’s “Who Do You Think You Are?”

About the series
Book 1
 Jacob Hochstetler lives peacefully with his Amish family at the foot of the Blue Mountains of Pennsylvania. His beliefs are severely tested one night in September 1757, after a raid on the Amish settlement near Northkill Creek leaves his wife, daughter, and a son dead, and their home in ashes. Jacob and two teenage sons are captured and taken to different Lenapi Indian villages, unsure of their fate. After a long, hard winter in the Lenapi village, Jacob makes a harrowing escape downriver and returns home to Northkill, only to find all that he has known and loved are gone. Will Jacob and his sons ever be reunited? Can Jacob find romance, reconciliation, and happiness amidst the ashes of his former home?

Book 2
 Unwilling captive or adopted son? Amish teen Joseph Hochstetler is taken into captivity by Native Americans during the French and Indian War. Initially he resists the Indians attempts to help him adapt to their ways their food, games, and relaxed pace of life.

In this story of forbidden love, Joseph finds himself pressed between his unfolding romance with a young Indian woman and the tug of his heritage. His eyes newly opened to the wrongs committed by the white settlers, Joseph determines never to go back to his Amish community.

Available at 

Mennomedia, Amazon , Barnes and Noble , CBC

And I thought . . .
Where do I begin.  Honestly I didn't like this book.  I received a complimentary copy from Litfuse and was asked to review by a certain day and post my review.  I am late posting because I was really trying hard to get into this story. 

I appreciate the opportunity to have been able to read this book. 
I was interested in the description when I received the offer to be a part of this blog tour.. 

Christians Hope is the third title in the Northkill series by 
Ervin R.Stutzman.  I didn't get a feeling that the opportunity to read the other books in the series was really necessary.  There weren't a lot of characters and the story line didn't for the most part require knowing what was going on before in previous titles.  I felt this was a 'stand alone' title.

What I didn't like...
Honestly I din't like Christian.  I kind of thought he was a bit of a whinner.  He was so intent on returning to the indian tribe that he had lived with that I felt through Chapter 6 (which is as far as I got) he didn't really give anyone he came in contact with a chance to 'accept' him because he didn't make any attempt to accept them. 
I think if he had been a bit younger I would have understood him a little better. But he was 18. Old enough to reason and make more mature decisions.
His step mother made great strides in accepting and including him.  
His father tried in his own somewhat harsh way. 
His brother actually kind of coddled him. I actually had more of a liking of Joseph and so I am interested in reading at least book 2.

While preparing this review I noticed that there are many very kind reviews and very good ratings.  I encourage you to read other reviews.

Thoughts I had while reading. . . I was interested when I read the background information about the book.  That fact that it was based on true events was really interesting to me.  
And made me wonder just how much research was done into 
Christian's real character and how much was fiction.  

These thoughts left me intrigued and interested in giving 
Christian's Hope another chance in the future.  

I received a complimentary copy of Christian's Hope from 
Litfuse.

This review will be posted at Amazon, Barnes and Noble,
CBC and Goodreads.
This post will appear at My Reading Journey