I just finished reading the Stoney Ridge Seasons novels. I'm reviewing The Lesson by Suzanne Woods Fisher for NetGalley, but hadn't read The Keeper and The Haven so over the last week and a half I read them.
With all three books I quickly found myself caught up in the stories. Suzanne does a great job of weaving people's lives together, throwing in some conflict and a little bit of romance. You don't get a wedding story in any of the books; I was slightly surprised and disappointed by this. I always want to know if they had kids, how many and so forth. I spend a lot of time getting to know the characters and cheering them on so I like to be rewarded with a "happily ever after". In The Haven we learn Julia and Rome got married and moved to Ohio, but nothing else is mentioned about them. Did they have kids? In The Lesson we learn during the seven year span between The Haven and The Lesson Amos and Fern got married as well as Sadie and Gid. Sadie and Gid live local and have redheaded twins; a boy and a girl. I felt more informed about Sadie then I did Julia, but we eventually learn that Julia has four boys. We didn't hear anything about Joe-Jo until the end of the book. =( I was really hoping to hear he lived close to Amos and Fern or at least know how he's doing.
In The Lesson we get to know Mary Kate (M.K.). She's 19 and still acts like a kid. She's VERY irresponsible. How many 19 year olds do you know would ride a scooter down a hill with their eyes closed? Well, her immaturity cost her big time when she runs her scooter into the Amish teacher and is forced to grow up and take her place. At first she's lousy at it, but after hearing some of the kids opinions of her she decides she wants to be the best teacher she can. She seeks out Erma Yutzy an almost 100 year old Amish woman who used to be a teacher. Erma is a sweet old lady who surprisingly lives alone and does very well for herself. Once M.K. takes her teaching serious she becomes really good addressing the needs of her students.
Back on the farm Amos needs help doing things that could make him sick like plowing the fields. On the same day he asks for help Chris, a 20 year old raising his kid sister, started looking for work. They just arrived in the town to claim their grandfather's house; it's their inheritance and will officially belong to Chris when he turns 21. For now it's in their drug addict mother's name. She's off at a rehab in Ohio. Chris starts working for Amos and uses all his wages to fix up the house and to take care of his sister. He avoids all personal conversations in fear someone will learn about his mother. His scumbag mother has spent more of her children's lives in either rehab or jail. Chris and Jenny are actually English, but were mostly raised by Old Deborah, an Amish healer, so when the time came Chris was baptized into the church.
Everything seems to be going well. M.K. is becoming a great teacher; her students are actually learning. Chris and Jenny's house is coming along. And then Jenny starts writing her mom who is about to get out of rehab. Somewhere at this point the roller coaster began. Suddenly Jenny is missing, someone is gambling, dreams are crushed, a future business is lost, and the truth of M.K.'s mother's death is revealed.
Although I was left with questions it's still a great book.
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