The Brethren

In the third book of the Annie's People series, The Brethren continues the story of Annie Zook and the people of the Amish community of Paradise. Annie has put away her paintings and is living with her friend Esther, who has been shunned for accepting Jesus and is worried about her husband Zeke who has accepted the responsibility of the death of his brother from long ago. Meanwhile Ben, the Englisher that stole Annie's heart, finds a secret about his past and goes back to Paradise to find answers. His discovery shakes up the entire community and brings new meaning to his and Annie's relationship.

I really liked this book yet I felt the book was a little rushed at the end. I want to know what will happen to Louisa and Sam in the future. show more Her story didn't move that much in this book. It was interesting to find out about Ben's past, yet it felt somewhat predictable once you found out he was adopted. I did finding out more about the culture and the customs of the people. It's very interesting that the Amish can live in modern America and still have a completely different society. I've enjoyed reading all of Beverly Lewis' Amish books and I had been waiting for the conclusion of this series. The Amish lifestyle has always fascinated me. They had been sadly brought into the limelight after the shooting a few months ago.

The thing that has always confused me about the Amish is what do they really believe in. After reading Lewis' books and especially this series, it seems that to have a personal relationship and admit that Jesus is your savior is considered vanity and grounds for being banned. They seem to only read from the Old Testament and even then only the bishops are allowed to really study it. Another series of Lewis' deals with a form of old medicine that can be considered as witchcraft. I understand most of their views about not conforming to the rest of the world and to keep life simple. What I don't understand is that it seems that the Amish are not really Christians if they don't believe in accepting Jesus into their lives. show less

This third book of the series brought together all the loose ends of the previous two books. I enjoyed the way Beverly Lewis laid out and let unfold the different plot lines and how they intertwined and affected each other.



My only quibble with the book and most of Beverly Lewis' writing is her simple style. No literary award is going to be given for these books. He incorporation of Amish terms and voicing is spot on but her use of English is a little too simple.



If you're going to read this book be sure to read the first two in the series. The book stands on its own but having the history of the first two books clarifies some of the plot lines that are about to be tied off and resolved.

While I felt the character of Annie was well developed in her struggles with acceptance of the strictness of the Amish faith and her own questioning nature, I find Ms. Lewis's writing to be a bit "lightweight".

A good ending to this book. There was sort of a "Gift of the Magi" thing going on with her selling her hair and Ben dressing Amish. For a minute there I thought Annie wasn't going to be a Christian because she was going back to being Amish, but then they (Ben and Annie ) decided to be secretly saved. Although she wrapped up some loose ends at the end, I almost wish she had another book in this series--even focused on Lou and Sam, etc.

The end of the trilogy. I found it disappointing in the context of the previous books. There was no mystery & no character development. The focus is on Christian fortitude. Ben turns into Isaac & his father reappears & repents, but not much on the why's and especially nothing on why Ben was taken.

Nothing but praise for this series! It was one of the first series I had the pleasure of reading from this author and it just left me spellbound! I was always giving my mother-in-law grief for reading Amish novels, but boy did I change my mind! These are now some of the most treasured novels in my collection.

Last book in Annie's People series; best Amish series I believe I've ever read. Lots of story lines, English & Amish.