Now a widow, Beth’s marriage was so terrible that she never wants to marry again. But Tyler has other ideas, and tries his best to change her mind. Thus begins a tug-of-war tale that has its share of ups and downs for both. Sprinkled with humor and dosed with romance, this Amish tale may be a bit sappy at times, but still is quirky enough to be enticing. ( )

4.5 stars.

Huckleberry Christmas is the third heartwarming installment in Jennifer Beckstrand's charming Matchmakers of Huckleberry Hill series. In this outing, matchmaking grandparents Anna and Felty Helmuth are pairing up their widowed great granddaughter Beth Hostetler with Tyler Yoder.

Beth and her young son Toby are living with Anna and Felty after her return to town following her husband's death. Her marriage was far from idyllic and she has absolutely no plans to remarry. Beth is prickly and she fiercely guards her newly found independence. She is a little hot tempered, but once she cools off, she is quick to admit when she has made a mistake. Beth uses humor to deflect attention from her past but behind her cheerful facade, she is trying to put the ghosts from her marriage behind her.

Tyler is serious, even-tempered and unflappable. Having had his heart broken when his engagement ended, he is not looking for love when he meets Beth. He respects her need for independence but he finds ways to work around her objections to accepting some of his assistance. He takes her temper in stride and he is quick to forgive.

Tyler and Beth's romance begins as friendship and their relationship evolves slowly over several months. Their interactions are light-hearted and laced with humor. As their friendship deepens into love, Beth is quick to push Tyler away but it is not until her past collides with the present, that she truly begins to heal. As she begins to let go of her anger toward God, Beth is finally able to recognize the blessings in her life.

Huckleberry Christmas is a wonderful novel of love, family and friendship. Once again, Jennifer Beckstrand's gentle lesson of faith is thought-provoking and easy to relate to. The storyline is refreshingly unique with richly developed and likeable characters. Old and new fans are sure to enjoy this heartfelt and engaging addition to The Matchmakers of Huckleberry Hill series. ( )

It was a little hard to get into but as you got into it, I enjoyed the book. ( )

"4 out of 5 stars, two Amish grandparents are up to more matrimony scheming by trying to bring together their granddaughter Beth--a widow with a toddler son who plans to never remarry--and Tyler. This charming romance deals with serious issues yet is still lighthearted throughout with Anna and Felty Helmuth's anecdotes and Beth's humor."

Read more of this review and THREE teasers here: http://frommetoyouvideophoto.blogspot.com/2014/09/feasted-on-matchmakers-of-huck... (Review will be posted on September 7th 2014.)

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WARNING!


This book is hazardous to any other plans you may have! Once picked up, it is nearly impossible to put down.

I had plans to edit 10 pages today but as yet, I’ve not edited even one. I simply could not put down Huckleberry Christmas once I picked it up!

And I am very glad of it!

I woke from a horrific nightmare this morning (very rare for me these days) and the matchmaking schemes of Anna and Felty were precisely what I needed to distract myself from the yuck!

It never takes more than a paragraph to find myself firmly planted in the story and never more than a page or two before I’m laughing and giggling at the antics of grandparents I truly wish were my very own!

And if those stubborn grandchildren of theirs would stop resisting Anna and Felty… well, the stories would not be nearly so interesting!

Jennifer Beckstrand certainly has found the perfect home in Bonduel, Wisconsin and I – for one – never want to leave!

Every single story is a fast-paced, fun romp through misadventure, misunderstandings and mishaps!

No one writes about Love the way Jennifer does. No one makes me laugh out loud the way she does and no one makes me wish more deeply that I were actually Amish.


Where else but in an Amish community, could you possibly find grandparents as wonderful, young women as feisty and young men as chivalrous!

Anna and Felty are the absolute best of the entire family! They are the ones who pull me into the stories and they are the ones that keep me reading! The youngsters they’re matching up are great fun and their community is so very wonderful but it’s the deep, heart-felt love that Anna and Felty have for each other that really holds me tight there in Wisconsin and makes me want to walk right into the pages!

I can hardly wait to start the next one!
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