âMarta Perry illuminates the differences between the Amish community and the larger society with an obvious care and respect for ways and beliefsâ¦. She weaves these differences into the story with a deft hand, drawing the reader into a suspenseful, continually moving plot.â
âFresh Fiction on Murder in Plain Sight
âLeahâs Choice, by Marta Perry, is a knowing and careful look into Amish culture and faith. A truly enjoyable reading experience.â
âAngela Hunt, New York Times bestselling author of Let Darkness Come
âLeahâs Choice takes us into the heart of Amish country and the Pennsylvania Dutch and shows us the struggles of the Amish community as the outside world continues to clash with the Plain ways. This is a story of grace and servitude as well as a story of difficult choices and heartbreaking realities. It touched my heart. I think the world of Amish fiction has found a new champion.â
âLenora Worth, author of Code of Honor
âMarta Perry delivers a strong story of tension, fear and trepidation. Season of Secrets (4.5 stars) is an excellent mystery thatâs certain to keep you in constant suspense. While love is a powerful entity in this story, danger is never too far behind.â
âRT Book Reviews, Top Pick
âIn this beautifully told tale, Marta Perry writes with the gentle cadence and rich detail of someone who understands the Amish well. Leahâs Choice kept me reading long into the night.â
âLinda Goodnight, author of Finding Her Way Home
Dear Reader,
Thank you for deciding to read this second book in my Amish suspense series. As a lifelong resident of rural Pennsylvania, I have always lived near the Plain People. My own family heritage is Pennsylvania Dutch, so it has been a pleasure and a challenge to draw on those experiences in my books.
It can be difficult for outsiders to understand the tight bonds of the Amish community, so that it is sometimes seen as secretive or unkind in its efforts to avoid conforming to the world. For many people, the extent of their knowledge about the Amish is derived from the movie Witness, but there is far more to be understood about a unique people trying to live as they believe God wishes.
In this story, Marisa Angelo is the outsider whose personal needs require that she penetrate Amish society to learn about her motherâs disappearance. She comes in with a great many preconceptions, most of which are put to the test as she tries to uncover the truth about her motherâs background and the events that led up to her disappearance. Iâve tried to present Amish belief and practices as honestly and respectfully as I can, and any errors are my own.
I hope youâll let me know how you like my book, and Iâd love to send you a signed bookmark and my free brochure of Pennsylvania Dutch recipes. You can email me at [email protected], visit me on the web at www.martaperry.com or on Facebook at Marta Perry Books, or write to me at HQN Books, 233 Broadway, Suite 1001, New York, NY 10279.
Blessings,
Marta Perry
This story is dedicated to my husband, Brian, who always believes I can find another story to tell.
Iâd like to express my thanks to all those whose expertise helped me in writing this book: to Erik Wesner, whose Amish America blog is enormously helpful; to Donald Kraybill and John Hostetler, whose books are the definitive resources on Amish life and beliefs; to the Plain People I have known and respected; and to my family, for giving me such a rich heritage on which to draw.
The righteousness of the blameless makes a straight way for them, but the wicked are brought down by their own wickedness.
âProverbs 11:5
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
CHAPTER NINETEEN
CHAPTER TWENTY
EPILOGUE
LINK MORGAN NARROWED his focus to the heavy sledgehammer and the satisfying thwack it made when it broke into the old paneling.
The paneling shattered beneath Linkâs sledgehammer, its shoddiness a contrast to the solid double-plank construction of the rest of the old farmhouse. Setting the sledgehammer down, he pulled fragments loose with gloved hands, tossing them into a pile in front of the fireplace. The last bit of the section came free, revealing what lay behind it.
He stared, methodically wiping the sweat from his forehead. Shaking off the foreboding that gripped him, he reached into the wall and pulled out the object that lay there. A suitcase. Not empty, by the feel of it.
Carrying it to the makeshift worktable, he set down his find. An inexpensive suitcase, its fabric sides coated in dust and marred by stains. How long had it lain there, inside the wall of Uncle Allenâs house? More important, why was it there?
He snapped open the latch and swung back the lid. Womenâs clothes, by the look of itâslacks, a skirt, several blouses. Beneath them something black. He picked it up, shook it out and recognized it. An Amish womanâs black apron. His stomach twisted, rebelling the way it had in Afghanistan when they were coming upon a perfect place for an ambush.