"A Love Undone" by Cindy Woodsmall

Jolene Keim was 19 years old when her parents died. Not wanting to see her five younger siblings parceled out to relatives, Jolene decided to accept the responsibility of raising them herself, even if it meant postponing her wedding and setting aside all of her own dreams and hopes.

Ten years later, Jolene is still single and the youngest of her siblings are now teenagers. Her brother Ray was struck by lightning when he was a small child and still deals with the effects of that, including unstable emotions. Ray is one of the point of view characters and we get to watch him struggle with making good choices, choosing friends wisely, and how to recover when you really mess up.

Although Jolene has done a remarkable job adjusting to the demands that life thrust upon her, she still carries grief and a little bitterness over her engagement that ended not long after her parents' deaths. The commitment of raising five youngsters was too much for that relationship to handle, and she's had to watch as Van has moved on in ways that really hurt her. Now she and Van must work together for the first time in all these years, helping a friend who has agreed to let the Humane Society use his property as a shelter for horses rescued from abuse situations.

Also helping with the rescued horses is an Amishman from another district. Andy Fisher has been raising his son by himself for several years, ever since his wife walked out on him. Jolene misunderstands the explanation of Andy's marital status and thinks he is a widower, and she begins to allow herself to hope that the friendship blossiming between them can grow to be more. Andy greatly admires Jolene but he knows he can never be anything but a friend. With the inevitable revelation that Andy is married, and the situation with Van bursting with frustration, Jolene's heart may know greater brokenness than any it has felt before.

I felt a kinship with Jolene, because I have also chosen to help raise my younger siblings, although it's for other reasons than my parents' death. It is a very non-traditional path, holding its own sorrows and fulfilling joys. It gave me a little more emotional investment in the book, because I wanted Jolene to have a happy ending the way I hope I will have a happy ending. I can't tell you how it ends, but I do know that our God sees every sacrifice that we make for the behalf of someone else. He sees and knows, and He loves those under our care far more than we ever could. For those of us still waiting and wondering how our stories will unfold, He is worth trusting.

Click here to read the first chapter of "A Love Undone".

I received my copy from the publisher in exchange for this honest review. All opinions are my own.