Fall from Pride

By Karen Harper

Sarah Kauffman sought permission from church elders to paint murals on the Amish community's barns. Each was designed like an old-fashioned quilt square, representing a piece of the Amish traditions Sarah loved. The works of art were intended to draw more tourists to the Home Valley. But instead, they invited a menace. One by one, each barn is set ablaze and destroyed...

The arson fires spread fear through the communityamongst Amish and Englischers alike. Sarah wonders if she's being punished for her pridefulness...or whether there's a more malevolent will at work.

As an outsider, arson investigator Nate MacKenzie struggles to investigate the crimes while adhering to Amish ways. With Sarah as his guide, he warms to the Plain People and their simple ways. As the fires rage, beliefs are challenged, a way of life is questioned and family secrets are exposed. In the aftermath the people of the Home Valley must join together to raise their barns and their hopes for the future.

Includes bonus short story by Karen Harper.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Harlequin MIRA
• Release date: Aug 1, 2011
• ISBN: 9781459208902

Karen Harper

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author KAREN HARPER is a former Ohio State University instructor and high school English teacher. Published since 1982, she writes contemporary suspense and historical novels about real British women. Two of her recent Tudor-era books were bestsellers in the UK and Russia. Harper won the Mary Higgins Clark Award for Dark Angel, and her novel Shattered Secrets was judged one of the best books of the year by Suspense Magazine.

Reviews for Fall from Pride

[iambookish-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I didn't like this book as much as usual like a Karen Harper novel. It read more like a romance novel which is not a genre I usually enjoy.

[skstiles612 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This was a good mixture of Romance and Mystery. Sarah is a young Amish woman who loves to paint. Her bishop allows her to do it from the standpoint it might bring in tourists. Sarah sees it as an acceptable way to do what she loves without appearing prideful. The barns she has painted symbols on are burning and this causes an outsider to be brought in to investigate the crimes. Sarah now faces her feelings for a man who is not Amish. This is another no-no. I loved the way the author didn’t try to put the character’s in an all restrictive, “don’t talk to the Englishers”, type of story line. I live in a community in Florida that has both Amish and Mennonites. The postal clerk in this small community is Amish and is one of the most pleasant people I know. For this reason I felt the book was much more on target than what is often pictured in Amish books. The characters were well thought out. I loved the idea of a budding, yet forbidden romance. The ending was okay. It was good enough to make me say, I can’t wait to see what is next in this series. So if you are the type who loves Amish fiction with a twist of mystery then this is probably the book for you.