“BELONGING,” by Karen Ann Hopkins, Harlequin Teen, April 30, 2013, softcover, $9.99 (young adult)
If you’ve read my review of Karen Ann Hopkins’ “Temptation,” then you already know I liked but didn’t love her tale of an Amish boy and an English girl falling in love.
Now Karen’s back with the second book in this series. And once again, I’m left feeling much the same as I did the first time around.
At the center of the series are Noah and Rose. The two don’t ever want to be separated, even though their two upbringings don’t exactly mesh. In “Belonging” the duo takes the next steps to making their relationship a reality. Rose gives up her modern life, moving in with an Amish family and studying to become a member of the church.
But things aren’t that simple. Rose misses her family and her old life. And she’s not used to all the rules she now must follow. Rose’s father and brothers aren’t too keen on her new life, either, and they can’t wait for her to fail — even if it means giving her a little push to get her started…
Many of my earlier concerns are continued here. Even though Rose and Noah are considered to be of marrying age, they act so immaturely they might as well be in junior high. And while it is true that gender roles are defined within the Amish community, I felt as if the author was pushing some of her own feelings through.
Yes, Rose should be expected to feel lost and perhaps undervalued, but I never felt like the author gave her a reason to feel otherwise. For the most part, her female supporting characters are silent, though at times spunky. More could have been done here to show the love and partnership that Amish couples also experience.
The scope of “Belonging” is much larger than “Temptation,” and because of that, the book loses some of the intimacy created in its predecessor. It’s a shame, because parts of the story seem to get away from the author and it feels at times like she’s trying to rein things in.
“Belonging” ends in a definite cliffhanger that’s not completely a surprise, but definitely sets up the next book in the series. It’s not a horrible book, but I would suggest checking it out from the library first to see if you like it enough to purchase it on your own.
