An Empty Cup

Publisher: Waterfall Press

4.5 Stars

Releasing on April 14, 2015

A Brief Book Description:

Amish woman Rosanna Zook lost her self-confidence within the confines of a loveless and abusive marriage. In the years spent quietly dealing with her burdens and dutifully caring for others, she forgot her sense of self and ability to feel. But after her first husband’s untimely death, she gets a second chance with Reuben Troyer, a godly man who welcomes Rosanna and her two children into his life.

Despite the love and respect she finds in her new marriage, Rosanna soon learns that juggling the demands of her family and church community is more than she can handle. When Rosanna becomes ill, she is forced to confront a hard truth: one empty cup cannot fill another. For a woman who has spent her life giving, will Rosanna finally be able to let go and receive? 

I saw this book was up for a review at NetGalley and thought it looked very interesting.  I have only recently been reading Amish stories and I think that is one of the reasons I found it so intriguing.  This story primarily centers around Rosanna who is a very caring and giving Amish woman.  One of the things I liked about this book is how real the characters felt while I was reading.  This story shows both Rosanna's strengths and weaknesses.  We meet Rosanna while she is married to Timothy, her first husband.  As a young girl she had great hopes for a loving marriage and a house full of children, but her life is not what she hoped it would be.  She is the mother of two children, Cate and Aaron, and a wife to a man that has problems no one in the community could have expected.  After Timothy was killed in a vehicle versus buggy accident, Rosanna experiences a difficult life.  Aaron has taken over the farm chores, but he is so young to have so much responsibility.  When she meets Reuben Troyer a widower who owns store closer to town if this is the man God means for her.  Rosanna is a person everyone turns to for help when they need anything, but suddenly she has no time for herself or help. 

This is  a wonderful story about the struggles of a young woman who like anyone else wants what is best for her family.  She works hard and will do everything in her power to not shirk her duties.  The underlying message is that sometimes we have to listen to God's message instead of trying to interpret it to fit our needs.  There are times we pray and feel that God is not listening to us, but we must remember that God is always there.  God does things on his timetable not ours.  Sometimes he's telling to be patient. 

This is a wonderful story and I would recommend it to anyone who likes Amish stories. 

I received this from NetGalley for a honest review without bias as stated above.  All thoughts and opinions are my own.   

Meet The Author:

http://www.sarahpriceauthor.com/

Sarah Price self-published her first book, Fields of Corn, in 2009, a book she wrote thirty years earlier while studying anthropology and writing at Drew University (Madison, NJ). With her Anabaptist upbringing, she was drawn to the amazing culture of the Amish of Lancaster County where Ms. Price is heavily involved with numerous Amish communities where she is considered family by some and friend by most others. Fields of Corn became an Amazon bestseller and fans began asking her for more books.

In 2013, she signed with Realms, a division of Charisma House, to publish the Amish Classics series. Initially focusing on the retelling of Jane Austen's timeless classics from within an Amish setting, her first traditionally published book, First Impressions, A Retelling of Pride & Prejudice, debuted on the ECPA bestseller list. She intends to continue retelling classics, including the Bronte sisters and Victor Hugo, as she enjoys "raising the bar" on her own intellectual stimulation as well as that of her expansive base of loyal readers.
In 2014, she signed with Waterfall Press and published An Amish Buggy Ride which became a #1 bestseller in Religious Romance.
In 2015, she also began writing Young Adult fiction with her first book, Diehard Fangirl launching on April 17, 2015. Her focus is on helping young teenagers with self-esteem issues as well as educating parents about the good and the bad impact of social media on their daughters.