Every year, 30-40 young Amish men descend on the cozy little town of West Kootenai, Montana, arriving in the spring to live there for six months and receive “resident” status for the hunting season in the fall. They arrive as bachelors, but go home with brides!
Sarah Shelter has lived in West Kootenai for the last ten years and wonders if she will ever fall in love. Since the tragic death of her best friend, she carries her memories in a jar along with the small items connected to them. For just as long, she’s also been carrying around her emotions instead of allowing them to penetrate deep into her heart.
Now she’s met a kind and gentle man who may be able to break down the wall. But can Sarah risk her heart to finally achieve her dreams?
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That is what the Memory Jar asks and I enjoyed finding the answer to that question.
I like that the book made it’s characters seem like people just like you and me-Sarah has doubts, she’s struggling with letting go of her pain and growing up without someone who was a really big part of her life.
I felt that the author did a really good job of conveying Sarah’s feelings and why she was unable to move past her pain.
I can’t really explain why but reading this book had a calming effect on me. The settings and the people were so good and maybe that was why. I’m not saying that these people were not flawed because some of them were very flawed! I am saying thought that the entire book was a joy to read.
I have to admit that I do tend to enjoy books about the Amish community but this one was different to others that I have read. The Amish community of West Kootenai are not as strict as other Amish communities I have read about in the past. That Sarah has a job in an English bakery seems to be okay, that she wants to decorate her baked goods “fancy” doesn’t go over quite as well.
The title of the book has to do with Memory Jars that Sarah collects and that aid her in finally embracing her future in the end.
I have gone on a lot about Sarah here but she did capture my attention as a reader, I generally liked her character and sympathized with it. The love interest in the book,Jathan, honestly had me very frustrated most of the time. I felt that a lot of the problems between Sarah and Jathan would have been avoided had Jathan been more true to his feelings rather than just doing as he was told by others. (I get the honor your parent thing, I do but…) 
Overall I really liked this book and would recommend it to others. I hope to read more from this author soon.
**I received this book from the publisher in exchange for my honest review as part of a Litfuse Publicity Blog Tour. To see more about the book, author, and other reviews please click HERE.**
