Enjoy a FREE EXTENDED PREVIEW of the new book How the Light Gets In by Jolina Petersheim
From the highly acclaimed author of The Outcast comes an engrossing novel about marriage and motherhood, loss and moving on.
When Ruth Neufeld’s husband and father-in-law are killed working for a relief organization overseas, she travels to Wisconsin with her young daughters and mother-in-law Mabel to bury her husband. She hopes the Mennonite community will be a quiet place to grieve and piece together next steps.
Ruth and her family are welcomed by Elam, her husband’s cousin, who invites them to stay at his cranberry farm through the harvest. Sifting through fields of berries and memories of a marriage that was broken long before her husband died, Ruth finds solace in the beauty of the land and healing through hard work and budding friendship. She also encounters the possibility of new love with Elam, whose gentle encouragement awakens hopes and dreams she thought she’d lost forever.
But an unexpected twist threatens to unseat the happy ending Ruth is about to write for herself. On the precipice of a fresh start and a new marriage, Ruth must make an impossible decision: which path to choose if her husband isn’t dead after all.
Jolina Petersheim is a best-selling author pursuing beauty and truth, one word at a time. Her five published novels have received wide critical acclaim as well as numerous accolades including wins and nominations for prestigious industry awards, starred reviews, spots on year-end “Best Of” and on seasonal “Top 10” lists. In addition, her non-fiction writing has been featured by many print and online outlets. Jolina and her husband share the same unique Amish and Mennonite heritage that originated in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, though they now hobby homestead in the mountains of Tennessee with their four young daughters. Visit her at ModernMarmee/Substack.
I was very surprise that I actually liked this book. It is not something I would normally read. I entered a contest on Goodreads and was lucky enough to win a Kindle copy of this book. I hesitated to enter the contest, but am so glad I did. This is a wonderful novel. I will be adding this author to my favorites list. If you need something to read, this is it. You will not be sorry. I actually thought it was going to be excerpts from the book, but it is the whole novel! Wonderful story of family, love and commitment. Please read it - you will be glad you did.
I won this on Goodreads, but waited til I had the whole book in my hands before I read it. Wonderful, thoughtful story set on a cranberry farm in a Mennonite community in Wisconsin. Ruth and her mother-in-law are both widowed when their husbands die in a bombing on foreign soil. As they come together for the burial, they arrive just ahead of the cranberry harvest. Decisions must be made and hearts must be healed as Ruth and Mabel care for Ruth's young daughters in the home of Mabel's nephew, Elam.
I liked Ruths’s character so much maybe because I can identify with her back and forth emotions regarding her husband’s absence. She was proud of him for doing the work he did but she was also resentful for not getting to share life with him or pursue any adventure/passion of her own.
A preview of sorts with portions of a few chapters. It's intent is to give the reader a taste of what the whole book will be like. It did the job. I’m looking forward to reading all of How the Light Gets In
I’m a fan. Ms. Petersheim is an interesting person with a lot to offer the reading community. It’s clear she has a love for the Lord and a love for his people in community.