Book Review: Simple Deceit

Simple Deceit by Nancy Mehl is the second book in her Harmony series. I was given an advance copy of this book to review through NetGalley and Barbour publishers. Grace Temple is returning to Harmony, a small Mennonite Commuinty after finishing her job and moving out of her apartment to live in the house her late Uncle Benjamin left her. She also going back to work on a freelance project her boss has given her. She is working for a group who is trying to build a retirement center close to Harmony that is anticipated to bring lots of needed customers for the small town of Harmony. Once again, as soon as Grace enters Harmony she is dealt with conflict, as she sees a mother leaving her baby on the steps of the church. That starts lots of conflict going on in Harmony. The community members start to blame Grace for what is going on in Harmony. Gracie and her boyfriend Sam also get into a fight and Gracie thinks the relationship might be over. The people in Harmony also get caught in a huge blizzard and once again the community comes together to help each other. Once you thought nothing else bad could happen more awful things happen to the community. At the end, we learn of the deceit that had been going on the entire time. We also understand the secrets and mysteries that the reader has been trying to figure out are finally revealed and just when you think they have all been revealed we learn of another secret that I feel sure the author will deal more within the next book to the series.


This is the second book that I have read by this author and I really enjoy her writing style. I just can’t seem to put the book down. So much happens in one day in the story and in the few days that the story is happening that the reader is trying hard to guess or find out who did it and what the real story is behind the things that are happening. I would highly recommend this book, but read the first book in the series first. That book lays a lot of groundwork for the second. This book would be a perfect read during a winter storm. I felt like I was right there with the characters in the storm. Simple Deceit comes out December 1, 2010.

Book Review: Simple Secrets

Simple Secrets by Nancy Mehl is the first book in her Harmony series. I was able to read this book through Net Galley and Barbour Books and was provided with a digital copy for this review. I love Amish fiction and after recommendations from friends, I decided to read this book. While it is not about the Amish it is about Mennonites, a close relative of the religion. The Simple Secret in the book really is not so Simple! The story starts off introducing us to Gracie Temple, a graphic designer who loves her job in the big city. Gracie gets a phone call at work from her dad telling her that her uncle Benjamin, who has placed the Bann on his family, has died and left her his house, land and everything in the house. She decides to take two weeks off from work to go to the Kansas Mennonite Community of Harmony and collect some family heirlooms and sell the property. When she gets to the house, she discovers a letter her uncle left her about a secret he has been keeping. The secret told her that a man was killed and he buried the body on his land to protect Gracie’s father who he thought killed the man. Gracie and a neighbor, Sam Goodrich, who befriends her and introduces her to the town and then later helps her try to solve the mystery of who is the real killer. Gracie finds out that Harmony has a lot of secrets and someone even tries to scare her out of town. Will they find out who the killer is? Will the town secrets come out? Read to find out how the story all comes together. Sam and Gracie also seem to be falling for each other after only knowing each other a few days. How will they act on those feelings since Gracie has her dream job in the big city and Sam has no plans of leaving Harmony?

I was drawn to the story from the first chapter. My friends were right. If you like Amish fiction, you will love this book. This book had mystery, romance and even suspense. Sometimes I felt like the day in the life of Gracie and Sam went on forever since so much happened in one day. Overall, I LOVED the story and can’t wait to read the second book to the series called Simple Deceit. Simple Deceit comes out December 1, 2010. You can find Simple Secrets in stores now.