Clouds without Rain

In "Clouds without Rain," P. L. Gaus has again written a superb mystery wrapped around a social concern. Land is important to the Amish for farming, for food and a modest living; it is important to developers to generate money and for a profit, the bigger the better. In this mystery, the two worlds collide, and the result is disastrous. The Amish cannot believe one of their own would treat them unfairly in his lust for money. But seems to be the case, or is it? When the ownership rights to eight farms are threatened, the Amish feel they have little recourse. Add to this mix an unstable Amish man, an English woman intent on turning a huge profit on some not-quite-legal land development, and an unscrupulous businessman threatened with the show more loss of his business, you the makings for one fine tale. show less

Gaus has written another Amish mystery. In this one, the driver of a buggy is killed when a semi-trailer rig hits the buggy as the buggy driver makes a left turn into his own driveway. The county sheriff is seriously burned in the aftermath while trying to rescue a deputy sheriff who was also killed in the accident. Professor Mike Branden sets out to unravel the events of that day while also going undercover as an Amishman to try to catch some kids who are robbing Amish buggy occupants of large sums of cash. Missing is the professor's wife, Carolina, who is off visiting relatives in Arizona. Perhaps that was why this entry in the series seemed slightly weaker than the others. Caroline is usually an important part of Mike's show more investigations. Nonetheless, it's still an enjoyable read, and its short length makes it a quick read if that is what is desired. show less

Professor Michael Branden, who works on the side with the sheriff's department, is trying to catch a couple of Amish youth who are robbing Amish buggies while wearing masks. As he is returning the borrowed buggy, he hears a call to the scene of an accident involving a truck and a buggy. The accident leaves more questions than answers, including the question of whether it could have been murder. Real estate developers have been less than honest in their dealings with many Amish and will soon foreclose on a number of Amish farms. A new bishop is concerned about the effects on his flock. All the angles of the story work together to create a satisfying read (or listen). The audio version is narrated by George Newbern who does a commendable job.

The scene of the accident was a mess, an Amish horse and buggy hit by a jack-knifed semi, with several other vehicles involved. The Holmes county sheriff was badly burned while attempting to rescue the driver of a car. Questions remain as to why the horse appeared to falter while turning into the driveway of the farm.

Separately, Professor Mike Branden has been acting as a decoy to catch the goat-masked men who have been robbing some of the Amish farmers as they are driving around in their buggies. And his friend, Pastor Cal Troyer, has been lending a ear to the new Amish bishop who wants to get his people back into stricter adherence to the Ordnung, the unwritten rules and regulations that guide Amish life.

While I enjoyed this book, I show more will say that I liked the two previous books by the author better. Following the thread of the plot was a bit more confusing. However, it has not stopped me from ordering the fourth book in the series from my library. show less

The title of this book comes from the Bible. It is from Jude who refers to people who are self-involved. These shepherd to feed only themselves. They are clouds without rain, blown along by the wind; autumn tree's, without food and uprooted – twice dead.

Specifically it refers to JR Weaver who has been killed in an buggy accident. He had become a very liberal member of the Amish faith and had become a real estate developer. He used electricity, telephones and fax machines but still drove a simple horse and buggy.

There has been a new more conservative Bishop elected who wanted to change back to the old ways and there was some dissention about who of the group would chose to stay. There were also rumblings about shady land deals which show more were costing many families their farms and Weaver was behind this. Was there more to the fatal accident?

Professor Michael Braden, Pastor Cal Troyer and Sheriff Robinson work together to find the answers. It is a difficult path that the Amish must follow as farms become too expensive to own and keeping the faith becomes increasingly difficult when these folk must pursue jobs in towns or in doing work that is tourist oriented.

This is an excellent series and I learn a bit from each book. In one scene a woman scrubs her floor with a strip of 2x2 wood covered with cloth wrapped around it so that a new area of cloth is available when an area becomes soiled. I might just try that. show less

The scene of the accident was a mess, an Amish horse and buggy hit by a jack-knifed semi, with several other vehicles involved. The Holmes county sheriff was badly burned while attempting to rescue the driver of a car. Questions remain as to why the horse appeared to falter while turning into the driveway of the farm.

Separately, Professor Mike Branden has been acting as a decoy to catch the goat-masked men who have been robbing some of the Amish farmers as they are driving around in their buggies. And his friend, Pastor Cal Troyer, has been lending a ear to the new Amish bishop who wants to get his people back into stricter adherence to the Ordnung, the unwritten rules and regulations that guide Amish life.

While I enjoyed this book, I show more will say that I liked the two previous books by the author better. Following the thread of the plot was a bit more confusing. However, it has not stopped me from ordering the fourth book in the series from my library. show less

It's a small book and it features an Amish part of Ohio. I thought it could be interesting to get into the Amish side of it.

The protagonist is Professor Michael Branden, who assists the Sheriff's department when crimes are suspected of the Peaceful Ones. Branden borrows a buggy and other equipment and blends in. In this case, he has been asked to find out who is committing a series of robberies. The suspicion is that it is some teen Amish boys. While investigating the robberies, Branden becomes involved in a review of a horrific car crash. A buggy is slammed by a semi truck, the Sheriff is injured while trying to control the situation, and others lie dead.

Branden looks at the scene and hears the witnesses. Something doesn't sit right. show more It takes him some time to figure out not only what actually happened but why and who was involved.

I did not get much of a sense of the Amish world here. We learn that there are different groups of Amish, ranging from very conservative to remarkably liberal, and this becomes the crux of the case.

The vehicle incident by itself is complex and I found myself wondering why such an elaborate plot. Perhaps the most interesting part of the book, to me, was the origin of the title. show less