The
Amish Baker by Marie E. Bast
Paperback, ebook
Mass Market Paperback 224 pages
In stores February 19, 2019 but available
for Pre-order
Publisher: Love Inspired
ISBN-10: 1335479023
ISBN-13: 978-1335479020 (print)
Barnes
& Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-amish-baker-marie-e-bast/1129264755?ean=9781335479020
Books
A Million: http://www.booksamillion.com/search?id=7294368775512&query=The+amish+baker+by+marie+e.+bast&filter=
ChristianBook.com:
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Blurb:
When his son breaks one of baker
Sarah Gingerich's prized possessions,
widower Caleb Brenneman insists the boy
make amends by doing odd jobs in her bake
shop. A childless widow, Sarah can't help
falling for the boy...or his farmer father.
But Caleb is progressive New Order Amish
while Sarah holds traditional beliefs.
Though they're worlds apart, are
they
a perfect match?
An
excerpt from The Amish Baker:
Caleb settled on the
seat and watched his sohn mosey toward the buggy. Jacob climbed in and
plopped down beside his daed. Caleb shook the reins. “Giddyap,
Snowball.”
“Why do we have to go to
Kalona, Daed?” His lips set in a pout.
“We are going to drop
off some of Mary’s pillow covers, pot holders and boppli blankets at a
consignment shop.”
“Why can’t Mary go
instead of me?”
“She is busy with the
housework, cooking, laundry and making things to sell.”
“I don’t want to go.”
Caleb looked at the bu
a moment, trying to figure out what would make Jacob happy. Most kinner
would enjoy a trip to town. “You will go and help. Not another word about it.”
A few minutes later, he
glanced at his sohn. Jacob held his back straight as a stick, staring
straight ahead. What could he possibly do for the bu to take the
stiffness and hurt out of his heart?
Caleb gave up on
conversation and instead rubbernecked at his neighbors’ fields the whole three
miles to Kalona. Jah, his fields looked as gut as these.
Their errands didn’t
take long, as Snowball trotted them around town. Caleb hadn’t eaten much for
breakfast, so a roll and cup of coffee would sure be gut right about
now. He stopped the buggy one shop down from the bakery.
“Where are we going
now?” Jacob looked from one side of the street to the other.
“You’ll see. It’s a
surprise.” Caleb walked beside Jacob and ushered him to the Amish Sweet
Delights bakery, opened the door and motioned for Jacob to enter. As his sohn
passed, Caleb detected a trace of a smile.
Caleb leaned down by
Jacob’s ear and whispered, “You can order anything in the case. Ask for a glass
of milk, too. We’ll sit a minute and refresh ourselves.”
Two customers stood in
front of them. The man at the counter was an Englischer, clean-shaven
and wearing brown trousers and a matching shirt—the same kind of clothing that
Caleb had seen on deliverymen. His stomach tightened as he overheard the man
tell Sarah how nice she looked today.
She didn’t appear to
hear him. “Who’s next?”
The woman in front of
Caleb took her turn at the counter. The bakery door behind Caleb opened, and
two young Amish buwe, Noah and Matthew, entered and stood in line behind
them. The buwe tapped Jacob on the shoulders, letting him know they were
back there. They talked and laughed, trying to coax Jacob into a conversation.
The woman in front paid,
picked up her sack and left.
“We’re next, Jacob.”
Caleb stepped forward as the buwe joked and teased Jacob about a girl in
school. He glanced back over his shoulder. “Jacob, it is our turn to order.”
“Nein, I don’t
like her.” Jacob spouted the words at his friend and gave Matthew a shove.
Jacob whirled back around, stepped on a broken cookie or
something on the floor
and lunged forward. His arms flung out as he slid across the counter, hitting
the walnut bears and sending them sailing through the air. They banged on a
table, bounced off and smashed against the wall.
Jacob’s eyes widened and
his mouth gaped as he stumbled back away from the counter. Caleb caught him and
steadied Jacob until he regained his balance.
Everyone at the tables
stopped talking and stared at the commotion. The men at the table where the
broken bears lay shoved their chairs away from the pieces.
Stunned, Caleb wasn’t
sure what to do. He looked from the bears to Sarah. She shrieked and ran to
retrieve the fragments. Tears clouded her eyes, threatening to spill over as
she hugged the pieces to her chest and walked back to the counter.
Caleb placed a hand on
Jacob’s shoulder. “Jacob, you have broken them.”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t
mean to do that.”
Sarah laid the pieces behind
the counter, straightened and looked at Jacob. “I know you didn’t. They
shouldn’t have sat there. It’s my fault.”
Caleb removed his
wide-brimmed straw hat from his head. “Sarah, I can take the pieces and make
you a new set. They won’t match exactly, but it’ll be close and most won’t tell
the difference.”
She swallowed hard and
shook her head. “No, that’s not necessary. It wouldn’t be quite the same. These
were the last things my husband made me before he passed away.” Her voice
caught in her throat.
Caleb glanced over his
shoulder at every pair of eyes in the bakery boring a hole through his back.
His cheeks burned, and he sucked in a deep breath. “Jacob must pay for the
damage he caused.”
“Nein, Caleb,
it’s not necessary.” She placed an index finger at the corner of her eye and
blotted a tear that had escaped.
“Jacob will be here
early Saturday morning to help you in the shop. He can clean the tables, the
chairs and the floor, and help fetch supplies. Whatever you need him to do, for
as long as you need him, until he pays off the debt. He must make amends.”
###
Marie’s bio:
MARIE E. BAST
has been writing for almost twenty years. Her first Amish book, The Amish
Baker, releases February 19, 2019. Her first contemporary
novel, The Perfect Client won first place in the category of contemporary
in the 2015 Ignite the Flame Contest. She has contributed short
stories and poetry in book compilations: Chicken Soup for the Soul: My Very Good, Very Bad Dog,
Writing So Heaven Will Be Different, and On Golden Wings of Time. She
has devotionals published in The Cup Of Salvation: 8 ounces of Jesus, a
Lenten Devotional and The
Upper Room. Other published
works include The Writer magazine, SEEK, newspaper, church bulletins,
pamphlets, and numerous book reviews. Marie belongs to the Society of
Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, Romance Writers of
America, American Christian Fiction Writers, and Word Weavers.
She holds a
B.A., an M.B.A., and an M.A. in General Theology. Marie lives in
Illinois with her husband of twenty-seven years. When she's not writing, she's
walking, golfing, gardening, or spending time with her two sons and
their families. She loves to bake homemade rolls and bread.
For more
information about Marie E. Bast and her books, visit her at:
5 comments:
Congratulations on your book release, Marie! I really enjoyed reading it.
Thank you, Kathleen. Have a great day.
The Amish Baker sounds like a delightful read. I enjoy Love Inspired Amish stories. Thank you for sharing.
I send a box of Christian novels to my grandmother every month, and last month I sent some LoveInspired books I won. She loved them and made a point of telling me that she likes them because they're shorter and easier to read. I'll have to look for more of these to send her -- this one looks good!
Thank you Marilyn and Dianna for your comments. I would have answered you individually but I couldn't get a reply block after each comment to open up. But I do greatly appreciate your comments. Have a great evening.
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