The Forbidden

Title: THE FORBIDDEN
Author: Beverly Lewis
Publisher: Bethany House Books
May 2008
ISBN: 978-0-7642-0311-4
Genre: Inspirational/women’s fiction

Nellie Mae Fisher and her love, Caleb Yoder, are separated by a church split. Caleb’s father is not allowing Caleb to see Nellie Mae anymore since her father has left the Old Order Amish Church and started attending a New Order one. Nellie Mae assures Caleb she intends to stay Old Order, but she can’t deny the pull she has toward the New Order church her parents attend.

Caleb can risk everything if he disobeys his father and continues seeing Nellie Mae. Nellie is worth it to Caleb, but he doesn’t know how he can support a family if his father takes his inheritance away. He promises Nellie Mae that he will find a way for them to be together, but it is getting more difficult. How can Caleb and Nellie remain true to each other, yet satisfy the expectations of the People?

THE FORBIDDEN is the second book in The Courtship of Nellie Fisher series, and readers will want to read these books in order, starting with The Parting. The final book in the series will be available in September 2008.

I love this series, and enjoyed reconnecting with Caleb, Nellie Mae, and the other characters. It has been a while since I read The Parting so it took me a few pages to remember what happened with Nellie and Caleb so I could get back into the story. The secondary story involving Roseanna and her cousin Kate, took me a little longer to remember. But once I could recall the previous story line, I thoroughly enjoyed THE FORBIDDEN.

Ms. Lewis is a wonderful storyteller, and her writing just keeps getting better. I couldn’t wait to read this book, and now that it’s finished I’m disappointed as it will still be several months before I can read the next book in the series. The faith message is an important part of this story, and the struggle between two different cultures. Beverly Lewis is one of my favorite authors, her stories as detailed as some of the Amish quilts I’ve seen. You’ll not want to miss THE FORBIDDEN or any of the books in this series. $13.99. 350 pages.