Grieving after the loss of a patient, midwife Miriam Kemp returns to her Amish roots and vows to leave her nursing life behind. But when she accidentally hits Aaron Lapp on a rain-drenched road, she offers to help the scarred and handsome—if somewhat cranky—bachelor while he recovers. Could this arrangement allow them to heal…while finding a love they never expected?
From Love Inspired: Uplifting stories of faith, forgiveness and hope.
Living on a remote self-sufficient homestead in North Idaho, Patrice Lewis is a Christian wife, mother, author, blogger, columnist and speaker. She has practiced and written about rural subjects for almost thirty years. When she isn’t writing, Patrice enjoys self-sufficiency projects, such as animal husbandry, small-scale dairy production, gardening, food preservation and canning, and homeschooling. She and her husband have been married since 1990 and have two daughters.
Years ago, a tragic accident changed Aaron Lapps' life. A fire not only took away his looks, but badly scarring his face. But also causing his soon to be wife to abandon him. Totally devastated and determined to withdraw from society and their prying eyes, he moves to Montana to 50 acres and solitude. Becoming totally sufficient so he rarely needs to leave his land.
And then enters Miriam. She used to be a midwife but is fleeing that life to come back home and rejoin the Amish community. She wants to abandon her profession after a loss of life with her last patients.
On her way to her brothers, the weather gets in the way and causes her to hit Aaron, who was chasing his dog. Miriam, feeling guilty for hurting Aaron and realizing he's her new neighbor, is determined to help at his home until he is healed.
Aaron is grumpy, snappy, and angry, but he agrees to her help. She's determined to stick it out and help him despite his demeanor. She finds over time that she is curious about Aaron, and as his walls come down and she learns more about him, she starts to see the true man. He is a beautiful, intelligent man who is hiding from the world, and she's determined to help get him out there.
Aaron, at first, isn't interested in her help, but over time, he's used to her coming by daily. He's enjoying not being alone anymore and starts opening up. But that's just it. She's here to help him... that's all, right? Once he's healed, she'll be gone?
This story totally reminds me of Beauty and the Beast. In fact Aaron refers to himself as the beast a few times. She's there helping at the home until a set time to make up for the accident. He's cold, angry, and honestly, just hurt. But she starts breaking through that exterior and sees beyond all of that.
A very sweet story of beauty and the beast. Aaron whose face was burned in a fire and has chosen a life of solitude. Meets Miriam when she hits him with her car on a stormy night and breaks his arm. Miriam makes amends by helping Aaron with his farm chores until he can get his cast off. Will he let her in his life? Can Miriam overcome her own demons?
When I read the blurb for this book, I had a pretty good idea of the story's course and that it would keep me glued to the pages. While that was the case, it also offered a few nice surprises that I didn't expect, making it that much more enjoyable. All in all, Miriam and Aaron's story is an enjoyable read that should not be missed.