Plain Jayne (48 page)

 

Check out Hillary's website at
hillarymantonlodge.com

Writing acknowledgments for a book is hard. At least I think so.

 

It takes a village to write a novel, and two villages to get it published.

 

I couldn't have written this book without my husband, Danny (who also took my fantastic author photo), whose calm suggestions helped me climb my way out of writer's block. He knew I was a writer and married me anyway—that's how great he is.

 

Exceptional thanks to the people in my life as I began my writing journey—my parents, Scott and Ruyle Manton, who filled my childhood with books and stories. Thanks to my brother, Geoff, who keeps me laughing, and my sister, Susannah, who reads my chapters every week.

 

Many huge thanks to my dear friend Kara Christensen, for reading aloud chapters with me and asking critical questions.

 

Many thanks to Bobbie Christensen (mother of Kara), who took me to Oregon Christian Writers' conferences, advocated for me, and introduced me to wonderful people like Kara Christensen and Bonnie Leon.

 

Many thanks to Bonnie Leon, who read my manuscript when I was sixteen and told me I was “publishable,” helped me with my book proposals, and answered my questions about publishing houses.

 

Many thanks to my parents-in-law, Ray and Denise Lodge, whose assistance with wood and coronary bypass knowledge proved invaluable.

 

Thank you to my draft readers: my mom, my sister, Aimee, Diane, Rachel, Kara, and Bobbie.

 

Many thanks to my agent, Sandra Bishop, for all of her help and encouragement, and to the Harvest House team as they've seen this project through. Kim and Carolyn—I couldn't ask for better editors!

 

Additional thanks to the mentors and encouragers I encountered throughout my journey to publication—Lorna Eskie, Esther Barton, Helen Kelts, and the rest of my extended family. I love and appreciate you all!

Mystery, romance, and a beautiful Amish setting are all found in…

Englischer
Kristie Matthews' move to an Amish family farm in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, couldn't have started on a worse note. The young schoolteacher is bitten by the farm dog, and on her trip to the local ER she has a strange encounter with a man who has just had a heart attack…

Suddenly he raised his head and looked at me with an intensity that made me blink. “Will you do me a favor, Kristie Matthews?”

I leaned close to hear his weak voice. “Of course.”

“Keep this for me.” He fumbled in his shirt pocket…“But tell no one—
no one
—that you have it.” He slipped a key into my cold hand and folded my fingers over it.

When her life is endangered, Kristie suspects a connection to the mysterious key. While solving the mystery (and trying to stay alive), Kristie must decide whether her lawyer boyfriend, Todd Reasoner, is right for her…or if Jon Clarke Griffin, the local man she's met, is all he seems to be.

 

Book One in the Amish Farm Trilogy

A
nna Bailey thought she left the tragedies of the past behind when she took on a new identity and moved from Pennsylvania to California. But now that her brother has vanished and his wife is crying out for help, Anna knows she has no choice but to come out of hiding, go home, and find him. Back in Lancaster County, Anna follows the high-tech trail her brother left behind, a trail that leads from the simple world of Amish farming to the cutting edge of DNA research and gene therapy.

 

Following up on her extremely popular gothic thriller,
Whispers of the Bayou
, Mindy Starns Clark offers another suspenseful standalone mystery, one full of Amish simplicity, dark shadows, and the light of God's amazing grace.