Once more Murray Pura has hit one out of the park—at least to this reader. As compared to other books by the author I have read, this one is definitely a romance novel, which isn’t bad, just not exactly my favorite genre. But what drew me to this book was not the romance—I can see why Love Inspired picked this one up!—but the Colonial time period at the dawn of Amish existence in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, as well as that little thing Murray Pura excels at called What if? What-if the witch-craze of Salem, Massachusetts, in the 1690s had found its way into Lancaster and its dark, hideous lies twisted itself in among the Amish in the late 1720s to snuff out their existence before they even get established? After all, they spoke differently than the Englisc around them, practiced their faith differently, and generally held themselves to a different standard among those with whom they lived.This is a what-if story that portrays a simple rural community of Amish and English torn apart by lies and rumors and unfounded fears. And as usual, it is the innocent, the pure of heart, who suffer. Sound familiar? Whether it is 1720s or 2020s, the same thing happens all the time, but as is so often the case when attitudes of love and forgiveness overwhelm the darkness, we come away with a story that lifts the human spirit and redefines what means to truly love one’s neighbor.In this story, Rose Lantz—the titular Rose of Lancaster County—defends her friend Lydia Beiler from accusations of witchcraft, only to find herself accused of the same and facing execution by being burned at the stake. Did I mention the romance? Enter one Ethan Daniels, a frontiersman living on the edges of society with secrets of his own. For Rose Lantz, love nor the object of that love is what she expects, especially when that love comes from someone outside the circle of her tight-knit community. And when nearly all others forsake her, she, too, will discover the depths of her own unfounded prejudices against a man she hardly knows—and a love of the purest kind that she’ll need if she hopes to survive the storm of evil rising against her.Friendships and faith are tested, love and hatred exposed, and an unexpected ending revealed which is not so surprising given this is a story about the Amish. If you love romance novels, this one is for you; if you love historical fiction, this is a great read! Unfortunately, at present, this is only available in book form, but worth the price!