Lynette Sowell

Amish widower Jacob Miller believes it was a mistake to visit the Amish village of Pinecraft for winter vacation, especially after his daughter is struck by a car. Stranded in Sarasota until his daughter recovers, Jacob grows increasingly wary of events that unfold in his unfamiliar surroundings--including the strange curiosity of Englischer Natalie Bennett. Natalie never thought her circus career as an aerial silks artist would end with a blown-out knee at the age of 25. She also never knew her late mother had a secret--that she was once Amish. When Natalie meets the Millers at the Sarasota hospital, she is attracted to their warm hospitality and simple ways--and soon wonders if they can help her find her mother's family. As Jacob and Natalie fall in love, their worlds collide. Will their differences tear them apart? Or will their love be strong enough to blend their clashing cultures?

Kelly Frost, a textiles conservator, is invited to the Massachusetts coastal town of Fairhaven to restore the centuries-old Mariner's Compass quilt. But there is one stipulation: she must live and work in Grey House, a former whaling captain's home, where the quilt is stored. There she meets Tom Pereira, the caretaker of Grey House, whose heart seems as hard as the rocky Massachusetts coastline. Over the long-lit months as Kelly works to restore the quilt, she is buoyed by occasional afternoon visits from Tom and other Fairhaven town members, and is drawn into their lives. And each night, as she reads stories in a daily journal penned by Mary Grey, she learns details about her newfound community members that help her see that their lives are as vivid and interwoven as the quilt pieces she is working to restore. But, when Kelly discovers a truth about Tom's heritage hidden in the journal, she must decide if keeping the past to herself is the only way to ensure the hope of a future with Tom.