An Amish Girl in Manhattan


Book Description

"An Amish Girl in Manhattan: Escaping at Age 15, Breaking All the Rules, and Feeling Safe Again (a memoir) is the story of a girl whose childhood was so crushing that she literally escaped in the middle of the night at age 15, without telling anyone goodbye. Her departure was permanent. She left the only world she had ever known, crash-landing into a world that didn t speak her language, wear her clothes and understand her problems. She gave up everything family, security, community in the hopes that one day her dreams might come true. An Amish Girl is about the darkness she encountered navigating a foreign world alone and grappling with her demons. It's about her inner and outer quest for truth that took her all around the world. It's about her search for true freedom, love, and safety, after recurring sexual assault and Stockholm syndrome. In the end she emerges from the aftermath, from her tortured psyche, and creates a life of beauty and confidence. She wouldn't be telling her story otherwise."--Amazon.




Amish Girl in Manhattan


Book Description

"Torah's tale is one of immense trials followed by towering triumphs. I don't reread often, but this is a book that I will read again just to remind myself that if Torah can get through what she has, then I can, too." -- BRIAN YOUNG, Healer of the Water Monster How far would you go for freedom, love, and safety? About Torah. Torah Bontrager is 11 when she decides to leave the Amish. After four years of planning her escape, she flees in the middle of the night with only the clothes on her back and $170 in her pocket. Her departure is permanent. About the book. Amish Girl in Manhattan is a true crime collection of stories about a girl whose childhood was so crushing that she literally escaped in the middle of the night at age 15, without telling anyone goodbye. She left the only world she had ever known, crash-landing into one that didn't speak her language, wear her clothes, and understand her problems. She gave up everything--family, security, community--in the hopes that one day her dreams might come true. Branded a traitor destined for hell by the Amish, she endured repeated sexual abuse, multiple suicide attempts, and extreme poverty. In the eyes of the Amish, she deserved these things for having dared to want an education past the 8th grade and a life outside the religion. Eventually Torah graduated from one of the most elite schools in the world, Columbia University in New York City. The Amish are an insular, underserved, ethnic minority population in America who use horses and buggies for transportation, prohibit electricity, and forbid education past the 8th grade. If you have read true crime books or child abuse, sexual abuse, and religious trauma true stories like Know My Name, Educated, or You Are Your Own, then Amish Girl in Manhattan is a must-read. Each chapter is a stand-alone story.




An Amish Girl in Manhattan


Book Description

"Torah's tale is one of immense trials followed by towering triumphs. She guides us through various moments in her life with such honesty and artistry that I felt like I was there by her side. I don't reread often, but this is a book that I will read again just to remind myself that if Torah can get through what she has, then I can, too." - BRIAN YOUNG, author of Healer of the Water Monster How far would you go for freedom, love, and safety? About Torah. Torah Bontrager is 11 when she decides to leave the Amish. After four years of planning her escape, she flees in the middle of the night with only the clothes on her back and $170 in her pocket. Her departure is permanent. About the book. Amish Girl in Manhattan is a true crime collection of stories about a girl whose childhood was so crushing that she literally escaped in the middle of the night at age 15, without telling anyone goodbye. She left the only world she had ever known, crash-landing into one that didn't speak her language, wear her clothes, and understand her problems. She gave up everything-family, security, community-in the hopes that one day her dreams might come true. Branded a traitor destined for hell by the Amish, she endured repeated sexual abuse, multiple suicide attempts, and extreme poverty. In the eyes of the Amish, she deserved these things for having dared to want an education past the 8th grade and a life outside the religion. Eventually Torah graduated from one of the most elite schools in the world, Columbia University in New York City. The Amish are an insular, underserved, ethnic minority population in America who use horses and buggies for transportation, prohibit electricity, and forbid education past the 8th grade. If you have read true crime books or child abuse, sexual abuse, and religious trauma true stories like Know My Name, Educated, or You Are Your Own, then Amish Girl in Manhattan is a must-read. Each chapter is a stand-alone story.




An Amish Girl in Manhattan


Book Description

True life story of an Amish girl who literally escaped in the middle of the night at age 15. She is the first Amish escapee to graduate from an Ivy League university.




Rumspringa


Book Description

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Hometown


Book Description

When Tessa's big-city plans take the A Train to disaster, she lands in her sleepy hometown, smack in the middle of the most unlikely love triangle ever to hit Pennsylvania's Amish Country. Hot-shot Dr. Richard Bruce is bound to Green Ridge by loyalty that runs deep. Deeper still is Jonas Rishel's tie to the land and his family's Amish community. Behind the wheel of a 1979 camper van, Tessa idles at a fork in the road. Will she cruise the superhighway to the future? Or take a slow trot to the past and a mysterious society she never dreamed she'd glimpse from the inside?




Finding Mercy


Book Description

Return to Home Valley with book three in Karen Harper’s fan-favorite romantic suspense series Quiet, cautious Ella Lantz has spent her entire life in the Home Valley. Tending her lavender fields, she finds calm and serenity in purple blooms, heavenly scents and a simple life. But the sudden arrival of a strange visitor heralds a host of new complications. Alex Caldwell is unlike any man Ella has ever met—in fact, he’s a Wall Street whistle-blower under witness protection…and he's brought a world of trouble to the Lantz doorstep. As Ella comes to trust—even love—a man so utterly worldly, she realizes her life has already changed forever. When it becomes violently clear that even the Home Valley is no refuge, Ella and Alex are driven into the wider world to hide. And, with such a high price placed on their silence, they may not survive to share their love…




Assaulted Caramel


Book Description

A New York chocolatier lands in a sticky situation when she returns to her Amish roots in this debut cozy mystery by the Agatha Award-winning author. Bailey King is living the sweet life as assistant chocolatier at a famous New York chocolate company. But just when she’s up for a major promotion, she gets word that her grandfather Jebidiah’s heart condition has worsened. Bailey rushes to Harvest, Ohio, where her grandparents still run Swissmen Sweets, the Amish candy shop where she first learned about delicious fudge, truffles, and other assorted delights. Unfortunately, Baily’s grandparents are suffering from more than just heart trouble. A local Englisch land developer is trying to take over their shop. And when the man is found dead in the candy shop kitchen—with Jebidiah’s chocolate knife buried in his chest—the sheriff suspects Bailey. Now, with the sweet help of a handsome deputy, Bailey is out to clear her name. But as a cunning killer tries to fudge the truth, she may be headed straight into a whole batch of trouble . . . Recipe Included!




A Plain & Fancy Christmas


Book Description

Raised in a Pennsylvania Amish community, young mother Rachel Yoder has led a simple life within her close-knit family. Widowed three years ago, she has moved back in with her parents, attempting to raise her daughter, Katie, without further emotional upheaval. Meanwhile, four hours and a whole world away in New York City, Ellie Lawrence is laser-focused on a high-powered public relations career, with too little time for her family, her friends, or even her boyfriend. Then one fateful day, these two very different women receive shocking news of a mistake made three decades earlier and long kept hidden: Shortly after their births, the two were accidentally switched in the hospital. Shaken to the core by this momentous news, Rachel and Ellie are plunged into an exploration of who they are and where they really belong. While Ellie is eager to learn more about her Amish family and their life in the countryside, Rachel cannot help but feel jealous as she watches the only mother she has ever known bonding so easily with her natural daughter. But Rachel also knows that her own biological family is out there, and with Katie at her side she heads for Manhattan, where she establishes a connection with the raucous, spirited Lawrences. As Ellie and Rachel make their way through unfamiliar landscapes, they face life-altering challenges and grapple with a crucial question: Will their old conventions and desires give way to new customs and yearnings? With the Christmas holidays fast approaching, it takes the love of two families for Rachel and Ellie to discover their own paths to fulfillment and happiness.




Missing You


Book Description

When she spots her ex-fiancé's photo on an online dating site, NYPD Detective Kat Donovan reaches out to him, hoping to rekindle the past, but her hope turns to suspicion and then terror as an unspeakable conspiracy is revealed.