Courting Cate ~ A Book Review

I have a great book to review for you today.  It's called Courting Cate by Leslie Gould

Synopsis: When Amish farmer Pete Treger moves to Paradise Township, Pennsylvania, seeking a better life, he meets sisters Cate and Betsy Miller. Both are beautiful, but older sister Cate is known more for her sharp tongue and fiery temper than her striking appearance. Betsy, on the other hand, is sweet and flirty--and seems to have attracted most of the bachelors in Lancaster County!

However, the sisters' wealthy father has made one hard and fast rule: elder sister must marry first, before the younger can even start courting. Unfortunately for poor Betsy, and for the men who want to court her, her older sister, Cate, doesn't have any suitors--until Pete comes to town, that is.

Though he finds both sisters attractive, something about Cate's feisty demeanor appeals to him. Soon the other bachelors in the district convince Pete to court Cate. She hardly seems receptive to his overtures, though. Instead, she's immediately suspicious of his interest.

My Review: I absolutely loved this book.  This was another one of those story lines that kept me reading until 4am, as it was too fun to put down.

I felt a kinship with Cate as she struggled with trusting men since she was concerned they were really pining for her younger sister.  I liked her personality, her brains and her ornery tongue.   Being a bit of a feisty lady myself, I wanted to thump her little sister Betsy and Betsy's friends many times throughout the story.  Cate had enough support around her, if only she would open herself up to trust them.

Pete was really wonderful for much of the book, though the halfway point got really frustrating for me.  Cate and Pete had a great connection that Cate struggled to resist.  When their circumstances change and Cate is thrust into hardship, I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have been as gracious as she was, but it was fun watching her grow and mature through the adversity that is sent her way.  

This is the first book I've read by Leslie Gould and I truly enjoyed it.  I like her writing style, characters and descriptions.  Though this is Amish Fiction, I would say this book is less about the Amish traditions than it is about the particular characters in the book. 

 In exchange for my honest review, I received a copy of the book from Bethany House