Where the Heart Leads (Waiting for Summer's Return Series #2)

A sequel to Waiting for Summer's Return, Where the Heart Leads gives us a look into the Ollenberger's lives once again. Written in that same magnificent way as the first, Ms. Sawyer's book had me quickly captured til the end!!!

Young Thomas Ollenberger fancies himself to be a journalist, so, with his parents' blessings, he sets off to the city of Boston where his stepmother's family lives to attend school. He leaves behind his parents, his friends, and a young woman he's befriended. He doesn't want to hurt her, but while in the big city, he meets someone who quickly catches his heart and it quickly tests his faith and his background, leaving him torn between staying in Boston or returning to his Mennonite family back home in Kansas. The show more problem is, this beautiful city girl isn't allowed to know God. Can Thomas set aside that one fact, and fall for her anyhow, or will his friendship from home with a woman who shares his beliefs be more??

Find out in a novel that will make you smile, and possibly cry...it did me!!!

Many high praises have been written about this book and I have to agree with all of them!! This faith inspiring book is a super great read! Ms. Sawyer is the Karen Kingsbury of Mennonite/Amish fiction!!!! show less

My family roots on my mother's side had many Mennonites so I picked this book out at a used bookstore. I didn't know that there was book before and that it was in a series. I agree with a lot in the book but was not a fan of the story line in two areas. One of them was. The ending really surprised me, I was not prepared for the strands of the story being tied up in ways that I thought were not believeable.

It was interesting reading, I took the night off and read more than half the book last but I didn't believe that the characters would do what they did, I was not prepared for the turn of events.

The historical aspects were educational about the presidental election and the candiates after 1904, the settings of Boston and in the show more Mennonite community in Kansas were a great contrast in social life and income levels.

I really liked the step mother of the main character, Thomas Ollenburger. Summer was a very gentle and loving character. Her charcter was consistenly good hearted and loving. I might be tempted to read the book that preceded this one because I understand her character more than the others.

The author slips in German words, a few times, she goes over the meanings but I felt left out often. The author could have provided note of translations of the phrases in the back of the book. show less

I did not read the first book in this series. Perhaps if I had, I would have found this novel more enjoyable. Regardless, I thought the story was shallow and the plot lacking. The outcome was predictable and the characters, stereotypical. The narrator in this audio version was just plain annoying, especially with her imitation of children's voices. Not much to commend in this novel.

Sawyer reminds the reader of the pain of others. Sometimes knowing the background and family of another can help understand their reactions. Family has a strong tie that calls these characters to do what they do. But some with love-less families choose to move beyond what they know to find why others are different. Her characters move through this process and grow to love and accept love.
Expectations are not what they seem and dreams are not always what they want.

Enjoyed the twists and turns of the book, that went beyond what was expected.

Although this story revolves around the Mennonites in early America, the story line could well be adapted into any country regardless of religious beliefs, in my opinion. Family sends eldest son to College//University in a big city where he is exposed to a whole new way of life. With romantic ties in both his hometown and the big smoke we are left wondering the outcome until the the last page or so. My second Kim Vogel Sawyer book of this genre and I will go back for more.

NCLA Review -Thomas, a young Mennonite man from Kansas who has just completed college in Boston, has made friends with some prestigious people with backgrounds very different from his. His best friend’s sister dotes on Thomas and makes it clear she would like to marry him. But Daphne is not a Christian and Thomas has been warned about being unequally yoked, and, he has a girl back in Kansas waiting for him. He is torn between remaining in Boston, where he has promised Harry and Daphne he would work for a presidential candidate, and returning to Kansas, where his family anxiously awaits his return. He goes to Kansas for a few weeks, much to the delight of his father, who has plans for him to open a business there, and enjoys spending show more time with his parents and younger sisters, but eventually returns to Boston to keep his promise. Working for the election turns sour when he learns things about his candidate's background that conflict with everything Thomas has been taught. He turns to God for help in making these important, life-altering decisions, but God seems strangely silent. Should he follow the lead of his heart? Rating: 4 —MW Bethany House 2008, 347p, paper, 9780764202636, $13.99 [FIC] show less

I noted this as #2 in the Heart of the Prairie series. Good story of settling the west, black & white.