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Immortal Faith
In the small, Old Order Mennonite community of Mitternacht, Iowa, the people pray that God will deliver them from evil. They should have been more specific. Sophia Brucker is on the threshold of womanhood, standing in the door between her religion’s way of life and the possibilities of the world outside. She is also torn between two young David Fischer, whom she has known since childhood, and Gabriel Langford, the new arrival. In a community that only grows when people are born into it, a convert—young, single, and male—is the most exciting thing that has happened in years. When Sophia’s uncle is found dead in the barn with his throat slashed and bitten, the community grieves—except Sophia, who has been abused by him for years. And when the local mean girl is killed the same way, Sophia hardly dares to voice what she that only the worst among them are being weeded out. Under the elders’ approving eyes, it seems Gabriel is dedicated to worshipping God. But his methods may not stand up to too close a scrutiny . . . and Sophia is getting very close indeed . . . “Adina is a literary master in her field.” —BookLoons.com
248 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 29, 2011
7 people are currently reading
109 people want to read
About the author
Shelley Adina
91 books628 followersShelley Adina is the author of 24 novels published by Harlequin, Warner, and Hachette, and a dozen more published by Moonshell Books, Inc., her own independent press. She writes steampunk and contemporary romance as Shelley Adina, and as Adina Senft, writes Amish women’s fiction. She holds an MFA in Writing Popular Fiction from Seton Hill University in Pennsylvania, where she teaches as adjunct faculty. She won RWA’s RITA Award® in 2005, and was a finalist in 2006. When she’s not writing, Shelley is usually quilting, sewing historical costumes, or hanging out in the garden with her flock of rescued chickens.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
October 28, 2011
Everyone loves a good vampire story, especially close to Halloween. But in a religious community? You've got to be kidding.
Right?
Nope. Shelley Adina scores a huge hit (at least with me) for her stunning, deeply inspirational Inspirational Vampire YA novel, Immortal Faith. I have to confess, though. I took a workshop under her direction about plotting at Seton Hill University (she's a mentor there) and we threw out ideas like candy. "Let's do a plotting party," she said after introductions. "Pick a genre."
"Horror!"
"Oh, dear. Okay." She wrote that on the board. "Vampires!" She wrote that too. "What kind of community?" Shelley asked. "Your setting has to take place in a social community where characters interact."
"How about Pennsylvania Dutch," someone else called out, half joking.
Shelley raised her eyebrows in surprise. "Well... how about a closed community like them?" she asked, and I could see the wheels turning in her head. She was raised in a small town community "set apart" from the world, and hey, everyone says to write what you know. So we dutifully came up with characters and motives. It was a stretch for the rest of us, but she was game enough to lead us through how to come up with a viable plot. Exercise done, we forgot all about it. But not Shelley. Although she changed the setting to a French Huegonot close-knit community, plus the characters and motives while putting her own stamp on the plot, she took that idea and ran with it. We all thought she was crazy. It was just an exercise, right?
Wrong. Immortal Faith is deep. It explores how a wolf might invade a fold of trusting sheep. Except the wolf doesn't believe he's a wolf, but a protector. A shepherd. A savior. Incredible -- yet totally believable as a story. Once you start reading, you won't be able to put this one down.
No more spoilers from me. GO. READ IT. NOW.
Before Halloween. It's perfect timing.
Right?
Nope. Shelley Adina scores a huge hit (at least with me) for her stunning, deeply inspirational Inspirational Vampire YA novel, Immortal Faith. I have to confess, though. I took a workshop under her direction about plotting at Seton Hill University (she's a mentor there) and we threw out ideas like candy. "Let's do a plotting party," she said after introductions. "Pick a genre."
"Horror!"
"Oh, dear. Okay." She wrote that on the board. "Vampires!" She wrote that too. "What kind of community?" Shelley asked. "Your setting has to take place in a social community where characters interact."
"How about Pennsylvania Dutch," someone else called out, half joking.
Shelley raised her eyebrows in surprise. "Well... how about a closed community like them?" she asked, and I could see the wheels turning in her head. She was raised in a small town community "set apart" from the world, and hey, everyone says to write what you know. So we dutifully came up with characters and motives. It was a stretch for the rest of us, but she was game enough to lead us through how to come up with a viable plot. Exercise done, we forgot all about it. But not Shelley. Although she changed the setting to a French Huegonot close-knit community, plus the characters and motives while putting her own stamp on the plot, she took that idea and ran with it. We all thought she was crazy. It was just an exercise, right?
Wrong. Immortal Faith is deep. It explores how a wolf might invade a fold of trusting sheep. Except the wolf doesn't believe he's a wolf, but a protector. A shepherd. A savior. Incredible -- yet totally believable as a story. Once you start reading, you won't be able to put this one down.
No more spoilers from me. GO. READ IT. NOW.
Before Halloween. It's perfect timing.
April 7, 2012
I'll be frank - vampires and organised religion aren't things that appeal to me in the slightest - the 'v' word on the back of a book is enough for me to put it back on the shelf and walk away without a second thought. But after reading a sample of this story attached to Adina's fabulous 'Magnificant Devices', I was curious. I saw similarities between this and Jodi Picoult's Plain Truth, which I enjoyed.
The premise for this story is original - set in Idaho, a religious group with similarities to the Amish and Mennonites called the Brethren is established, and a new comer named Gabriel has caught the eye of the teenage girl population. Except Gabriel is a vampire. As said by a character in the book, "hello train wreck."
Frankly, this book is strange. It's well written - Adina knows how to tell a story, and as I said, the premise is unique. Sophie was reasonably likeable as the protagonist and Gabriel was a carefully crafted character that you almost wanted to root for . Rachelle was an interesting, if under used character
There wasn't anything inherently bad about this book - the ending is very sudden but I think that is the nature of the story rather than any failings on Adina's part. Gabriel
The discovery
As for the parallels with Plain Truth, they are broken down to a handful of things - the central character is a teenage girl practicing a secular religion, there is a crime that draws the police. 'Plain Truth' has no supernatural or magical aspects at all, and examines the culture of the Amish from the point of view of an outsider for much of the story; 'Immortal Faith' is set from within the community and sometimes it feels like Sophie isn't as absorbed in her faith as the story needs you to believe for the sake of the readers - she needs to explain for context. I think, when it comes down to it, the religious community and protagonist were the only similarities between the two, and I was trying to like the book more - 'Plain Truth' is brilliant and the only one of Jodi Picoult's novels that I like, whilst 'Immortal Faith' was simply strange.
In the end, no I probably won't ever reread this book, and - frankly - all it did was prove to me how much vampire stories bore me. What redeemed this book was I liked looking at how Sophie's community worked and the expectations that came with it, and that Adina has a writing style that is very easy to read. I hope she skips the vampire stuff in the future, and sticks to the steampunk genre a la 'Lady of Devices'.
The premise for this story is original - set in Idaho, a religious group with similarities to the Amish and Mennonites called the Brethren is established, and a new comer named Gabriel has caught the eye of the teenage girl population. Except Gabriel is a vampire. As said by a character in the book, "hello train wreck."
Frankly, this book is strange. It's well written - Adina knows how to tell a story, and as I said, the premise is unique. Sophie was reasonably likeable as the protagonist and Gabriel was a carefully crafted character that you almost wanted to root for . Rachelle was an interesting, if under used character
There wasn't anything inherently bad about this book - the ending is very sudden but I think that is the nature of the story rather than any failings on Adina's part. Gabriel
The discovery
As for the parallels with Plain Truth, they are broken down to a handful of things - the central character is a teenage girl practicing a secular religion, there is a crime that draws the police. 'Plain Truth' has no supernatural or magical aspects at all, and examines the culture of the Amish from the point of view of an outsider for much of the story; 'Immortal Faith' is set from within the community and sometimes it feels like Sophie isn't as absorbed in her faith as the story needs you to believe for the sake of the readers - she needs to explain for context. I think, when it comes down to it, the religious community and protagonist were the only similarities between the two, and I was trying to like the book more - 'Plain Truth' is brilliant and the only one of Jodi Picoult's novels that I like, whilst 'Immortal Faith' was simply strange.
In the end, no I probably won't ever reread this book, and - frankly - all it did was prove to me how much vampire stories bore me. What redeemed this book was I liked looking at how Sophie's community worked and the expectations that came with it, and that Adina has a writing style that is very easy to read. I hope she skips the vampire stuff in the future, and sticks to the steampunk genre a la 'Lady of Devices'.
September 2, 2013
Un-put-downable! This is a young adult romance novel, which would have led me to believe it could be cheesy, especially with a vampire involved. But, like all of Shelley Adina's novels, it's incredibly well-written. There are only a handful of writers who could have convinced me to pick up a romance novel about a vampire in an Amish community, and Shelley Adina is one of them.
Sophie is a 16-year old Amish girl in a typical Amish community. She is devout, and does her best to follow the rules and strive to be what God wants her to be. But Sophie hides a dark secret, and prays every day to just be able to fade into a crowd, and to avoid the embarrassment of ever being found out. Sophie has been molested by her Uncle for years. She struggles with feelings of worthlessness, of being unloveable and unfit for a devout husband from among her peers.
Gabriel Langford is a 200-year old vampire. He is a devout Christian as well, and struggles to reconcile the eternal life he has been living with the eternal life promised in the Bible. Gabriel finds the Amish community a place where he can live the simple life that he knew as a mortal man and a place to work and worship with God's people. It is only after he begins to realize that God's flock harbors wolves in sheep's clothing that he feels that he has truly found his calling - his mission from God.
Without spoiling the story, this is so much more than just a young adult romance novel. It's suspenseful and insightful, and the message behind the story is a positive one for women of any age. Ms. Adina provides great cultural insight into the Amish community, and I even learned some French along the way. I also cannot give her enough credit for handling such a tough subject in such an appropriate way. The book is never graphic, despite dealing with sexual abuse. And, I feel like Ms. Adina weaves an incredibly important message about self-worth into the story not only via Sophie's secret pain, but also through how Sophie attempts to work through it in the story, and the ultimately different conclusion she reaches at the end.
Sophie is a 16-year old Amish girl in a typical Amish community. She is devout, and does her best to follow the rules and strive to be what God wants her to be. But Sophie hides a dark secret, and prays every day to just be able to fade into a crowd, and to avoid the embarrassment of ever being found out. Sophie has been molested by her Uncle for years. She struggles with feelings of worthlessness, of being unloveable and unfit for a devout husband from among her peers.
Gabriel Langford is a 200-year old vampire. He is a devout Christian as well, and struggles to reconcile the eternal life he has been living with the eternal life promised in the Bible. Gabriel finds the Amish community a place where he can live the simple life that he knew as a mortal man and a place to work and worship with God's people. It is only after he begins to realize that God's flock harbors wolves in sheep's clothing that he feels that he has truly found his calling - his mission from God.
Without spoiling the story, this is so much more than just a young adult romance novel. It's suspenseful and insightful, and the message behind the story is a positive one for women of any age. Ms. Adina provides great cultural insight into the Amish community, and I even learned some French along the way. I also cannot give her enough credit for handling such a tough subject in such an appropriate way. The book is never graphic, despite dealing with sexual abuse. And, I feel like Ms. Adina weaves an incredibly important message about self-worth into the story not only via Sophie's secret pain, but also through how Sophie attempts to work through it in the story, and the ultimately different conclusion she reaches at the end.
July 12, 2012
Huguenots and vampires are a great literary mixture.
Immortal Faith: A young adult novel of vampires and unholy love by Shelley Adina
Sixteen-year-old Sophie Dupont lives in Minuit, Idaho in a Huguenot community. She follows all of the conventions expected of her until she meets a handsome eighteen-year-old boy who has been working in the community and was recently baptized into the faith.
Sophie falls head-over-heels for the dashing and exotic Gabriel. So have all of the girls who generally only have their own home-grown stock from which to choose. But the difference is that Gabriel loves Sophie back. They get to know each other through delicious and illicit midnight rendezvous. Her mysterious beau does everything within his power to protect her. But as a result complications pile up. I won’t go into any more detail in order to not spoil the plot, but Shelley Adina deals with some difficult and topical issues within the course of this novel.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The characters were engaging. Even though Sophie has been brought up to be obedient, she proves that she is plenty capable of thinking for herself and standing up to any conflict that might arise.
Sophie possesses a refreshing honesty. In fact, she remains honest even when it’s against her best interest to do so, so strong are her religious convictions. Yet, the religious aspect of the book is never heavy handed.
Though the subject matter seems incongruous, when you think about it, a Huguenot community would be the perfect place for a vampire to hide. This book took those reasons to their logical conclusions.
Shelley Adina is a skillful writer who knows how to develop suspense in order to hold an audience’s attention. I always find it interesting to read about traditional American cultures, and I love paranormal tales, so this was a perfect read for me. I’d highly recommend Immortal Faith as an entertaining, fast-paced read.
Immortal Faith: A young adult novel of vampires and unholy love by Shelley Adina
Sixteen-year-old Sophie Dupont lives in Minuit, Idaho in a Huguenot community. She follows all of the conventions expected of her until she meets a handsome eighteen-year-old boy who has been working in the community and was recently baptized into the faith.
Sophie falls head-over-heels for the dashing and exotic Gabriel. So have all of the girls who generally only have their own home-grown stock from which to choose. But the difference is that Gabriel loves Sophie back. They get to know each other through delicious and illicit midnight rendezvous. Her mysterious beau does everything within his power to protect her. But as a result complications pile up. I won’t go into any more detail in order to not spoil the plot, but Shelley Adina deals with some difficult and topical issues within the course of this novel.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The characters were engaging. Even though Sophie has been brought up to be obedient, she proves that she is plenty capable of thinking for herself and standing up to any conflict that might arise.
Sophie possesses a refreshing honesty. In fact, she remains honest even when it’s against her best interest to do so, so strong are her religious convictions. Yet, the religious aspect of the book is never heavy handed.
Though the subject matter seems incongruous, when you think about it, a Huguenot community would be the perfect place for a vampire to hide. This book took those reasons to their logical conclusions.
Shelley Adina is a skillful writer who knows how to develop suspense in order to hold an audience’s attention. I always find it interesting to read about traditional American cultures, and I love paranormal tales, so this was a perfect read for me. I’d highly recommend Immortal Faith as an entertaining, fast-paced read.
December 31, 2012
It happened! It happened! It finally happened for me!
I. LOVED. A.
*wait for it...wait for it*
VAMPIRE NOVEL.
I never thought the day would come. I ate up this book like it was so much dark chocolate souffle. Or something equally yummy.
Combining a cloistered community of religious people with vampires? It's like Grave Mercy's assassin nuns. Or The Scorpio Race's killer Irish horses. Or anything by Ann Patchett. Seriously, I am just going to fill up a bag full of the craziest plots ever, shake them up, draw out two, and then write my next book. This is my plan, so help me.
One of the most crazy amazing things is the way Adina made you root for the vampire from the beginning. Nutty, obsessed, undead demon, ferreting out the creeps who have infiltrated this religious commune? Why, yes. Good plan. I like it. Go, vampire, go! No, wait! Can't have that! I've read my bible. This is probably bad. Murder not good. Drinking blood - very very bad. Yes. I knew that.
I. LOVED. A.
*wait for it...wait for it*
VAMPIRE NOVEL.
I never thought the day would come. I ate up this book like it was so much dark chocolate souffle. Or something equally yummy.
Combining a cloistered community of religious people with vampires? It's like Grave Mercy's assassin nuns. Or The Scorpio Race's killer Irish horses. Or anything by Ann Patchett. Seriously, I am just going to fill up a bag full of the craziest plots ever, shake them up, draw out two, and then write my next book. This is my plan, so help me.
One of the most crazy amazing things is the way Adina made you root for the vampire from the beginning. Nutty, obsessed, undead demon, ferreting out the creeps who have infiltrated this religious commune? Why, yes. Good plan. I like it. Go, vampire, go! No, wait! Can't have that! I've read my bible. This is probably bad. Murder not good. Drinking blood - very very bad. Yes. I knew that.
March 4, 2013
As a Christian and vampires story lover, I never once thought that you could have both vampires and a religious setting, but Shelley Adina pulled it off beautifully!
Immortal Faith follows Sophie as she lives in the world of the Brethren in a small religious community. A new guy in town, comes to live with them, working on farms and helping out. He's attractive, gaining the attention of all the single girls in the community. But he falls for Sophie, must to her disbelief.
This book has everything. Christian beliefs, lessons learned, new beginnings and endings. What I liked most about this book is the fact that Shelley Adina has crafted the popular world of vampires with Christian values.
I would recommend this to all vampire lovers, Christians, and young adults! It can easily be read and enjoyed by all!!
Immortal Faith follows Sophie as she lives in the world of the Brethren in a small religious community. A new guy in town, comes to live with them, working on farms and helping out. He's attractive, gaining the attention of all the single girls in the community. But he falls for Sophie, must to her disbelief.
This book has everything. Christian beliefs, lessons learned, new beginnings and endings. What I liked most about this book is the fact that Shelley Adina has crafted the popular world of vampires with Christian values.
I would recommend this to all vampire lovers, Christians, and young adults! It can easily be read and enjoyed by all!!
August 22, 2014
Wow, what an interesting read! I thought this book would be a bit different but I was pleasantly surprised how it turned out. The story takes place in a Mennonite community in Idaho, where life is simple and peaceful for young Sophie. Her biggest worry is who will she fall in love with and marry. She has her choice of two suitors who pursue her. First is young David who grew up in the faith, and then there is young Gabriel an outsider who was recently baptized into the church. With both of them wanting to marry her, Sophie has a choice to make. However, it's not that easy when a family member and a friend is murdered, and a Detective is attacked by a supposed wild animal. All the evidences cast suspicion on both young men. Or maybe it was just one? This is great read with a twist! So don't pass it up!
February 25, 2013
I picked up this book on the recommendation of a friend and WOW. Could hardly put it down. The writing is excellent and has a literary flavor, and the story, well, it keeps the Kindle pages flipping. With themes of culling and self-worth running through a young-love-story and a vampire with 'God's call', this book pulled me and didn't let go until the last page. A crazy premise, a compelling read, all with a message of faith in the faces of evil from within and without. A side note--I want to live in a dorm with Gordo and Rennie!!
July 12, 2012
I'd give this 3.5 stars
I mostly enjoyed this novel. The characters were decent enough, but Gabriel's turn at the end wasn't very authentic. Or maybe I was just disappointed. It definitely was different for a YA vampire novel though.
I mostly enjoyed this novel. The characters were decent enough, but Gabriel's turn at the end wasn't very authentic. Or maybe I was just disappointed. It definitely was different for a YA vampire novel though.
Read
March 30, 2014I was looking up Amish + vampire. Don't ask why--I don't even remember. But this turned up and was readable. It's one of those books that goes along fine for the first two thirds or so, but you don't want to look too close at those last hundred pages.
May 9, 2012
Truly not what I expected but I completely enjoyed the surprising ending.
June 10, 2013
I wasn't expecting much, but I found this a cute little love story. And Sophia is the type of character that you really do care what happens to her.
February 19, 2015
I thought it was a great take on this theme - an old school vampire without any modern aspects.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews