"HUCKLEBERRY HARVEST: The Matchmakers of Huckleberry Hill, No. 5," by Jennifer Beckstrand, Kensington Publishing, $7.99, 362 pages (f)
Four weeks. Anna Helmuth only has four short weeks to find just the right local boy to marry her granddaughter, Mandy, who has come for a visit. Unfortunately, Anna, a gifted matchmaker, cannot think of the right boy. He needs to be Amish and strong and have good skin and teeth. The options should be endless, but not a single good name comes to her mind.
While Anna considers every nearby possibility, her husband, Felty, knows exactly the right boy for Mandy.
Noah Mischler is Amish and strong and his teeth and skin are perfect. He is a hard and gifted worker. But a private tragedy has made him quiet, proud and hopelessly isolated. And it does not help that Mandy has an argument with him on the first day of her visit. But Felty comes to the rescue, hiring Noah to put in a new stove, a new shed and a new roof. Felty knows he has only four weeks, and he does his best to make sure Noah spends many days on Huckleberry Hill.
“Huckleberry Harvest,” the newest book in the Matchmakers of Huckleberry Hill series by Utah author Jennifer Beckstrand, is a prized addition to the series. Beckstrand gets better and better with each book. Her characters are deep, well-defined and likable; every plot twist feels like a physical twist to the heart; and the ending, while not nice and neat, is very satisfying.
As expected, this Amish romance is very clean with a few kisses interspersed between tragic misunderstandings and quick-tempered arguments. The language is clean. There are two situations involving domestic fights, but they end after a few punches.
Although “Huckleberry Harvest” is part of a series, this book stands well on its own and does not require familiarity with the four previous books.
Alicia Cunningham is a graduate of Brigham Young University and George Mason School of Law. Check out her recommendations on her Facebook page: Always Looking For A Good Book.