Tuesday, August 25, 2015

Review : Rachel's Deception by Karen Ann Hopkins

*Warning: This review may contain spoilers. Read at your own risk.

Publisher
CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform
Release Date: May 8, 2015
Pages: 324
Source: Own

The Story:

"I loved joining Rose and Noah during their journey in the Temptation series by Karen Hopkins."-Katie McGarry, acclaimed YA author
Growing up Amish is difficult…but leaving it behind is even harder.
Noah was Amish...Rose wasn't. Being together should have been impossible. But somehow they found a way to make it work. They are finally a family, but their happily-ever-after is still a long off. Will Rose and her friends be able to force real change in the community?
Karen Ann Hopkins returns with a gripping new book in the YA Temptation series. The powerful family saga continues with Rachel's Deception, as events spiral out of control in the sleepy farming community of Meadowview. And Rachel Miller has her own secrets to hide. Noah’s younger sister has been living a double life. That is, until Justin Cameron, Rose's little brother, catches her in the act. Rachel is not the obedient Amish girl that her sister was, and her rebelliousness takes her to a very dangerous world. A world that only her true friends can help her escape from.
As Rachel questions all she has been taught about love, family, and commitment, Rose discovers what it really means to be shunned. And an evil shadow looms on the horizon, threatening not only Rose, but everyone she holds dear.
via Amazon

Rating
THREE Gold Stars!!!



My Review

Honestly, I was disappointed with 
Rachel's Deception. I absolutely adored first three books of the series. But did not quite capture my attention. Do not get me wrong, I enjoyed it, only it did not have the same spark the first books did. I suppose Rose and Noah's story is going to be hard to top - which is no surprise since it was an amazing one. Nevertheless, I will continue to read the series as long as Hopkins releases them.

Tag Line:

Growing up Amish is difficult . . . but leaving it behind is even harder.

Opening Line:

I paused on the staircase to listen once more.

Plot:

Apparently in 
Rachel's Deception, Rachel -- Noah's younger sister -- is a bit of a wild child. Had no clue in the first three books in the series and appreciated it in this book. Haunted by her older sister's death, Rachel turns to alcohol to ease her grief and to keep the nightmares at bay. The story focused on Rachel's struggle to cope with the dullness of Amish life and dodging the affections of the boy who loved her sister. 

Unfortunately, nothing drastic actually happened with Rachel on the romance side. There was not a romance dilemma -- at least not to the extent I would have preferred. I thought Rose and Noah's story ended with Forever but I was so ecstatic to see them -- especially Rose -- have such a presence in Rachel's Deception. Which help alleviate the sting of Rachel's severely neglected romance dilemma.

Character Breakdown:

Rachel - I enjoyed getting to know Rachel's character. She was a feisty one and it made the story more interesting. Her struggle with trying to cope with her sister's death felt very real. And I am glad because it helped pull me in.

Here is one of my favorite quotes from 
Rachel's Deception:

Rachel"I certainly didn't want to court a boy who was still in love with my sister. It didn't matter to me that she wasn't around anymore to compete with. I wanted to be the greatest love of a man's heart -- not second best" [page 78]. 


Meet the Author:


You can visit Karen Ann Hopkins at her website: www.karenannhopkins.com. 

Karen Ann Hopkins resides in northern Kentucky with her family on a farm that boasts a menagerie of horses, goats, peacocks, chickens, ducks, rabbits, dogs and cats. Karen's main job is home schooling the kids, but she finds time to give riding lessons, coach a youth equestrian drill team, and of course, write. She was inspired to create her first book, Temptation, by the Amish community she lived in. The experiential knowledge she gained through her interactions with her neighbors drove her to create the story of the star-crossed lovers, Rose and Noah. 

Karen grew up about a mile from Lake Ontario in Upstate New York. She was bitten by the horse bug at the age of five, and after diligently taking riding lessons for several years, was rewarded with her first horse at the age of eleven. The feisty horse's name was Lady, a Quarter Horse-Thoroughbred cross, who became Karen's steadfast companion. Through the years, the constant force in her life was horses. Eventually, she found her place as a riding instructor herself. Before accepting her fate in the barnyard, she worked a short stint as a paralegal, traveled abroad, and guided tourists on horseback riding tours in the Smoky Mountains of Tennessee. 

Karen is currently working on her Amish mystery series, Serenity's Plain Secrets, along with the YA paranormal/fantasy series, The Wings of War and the continuation of the Temptation series. Karen is also excited to announce the Temptation series has been optioned for TV by Pilgrim Studios.


***Check out Karen Ann Hopkins' website for more information about her and the Rachel's DeceptionHERE

Happy Reading!



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