The Believer

This book is very informative about the belief of the Shakers. I learned things I never knew about their beliefs. The romance is really wonderful. The coming together of two different beliefs.

As a young boy, Ethan escaped from what promised to be a life of violence and dishonesty when he was rescued by a kind man who took him to live in a Shaker community near Harrodsburg, Kentucky. Ethan embraced the Shaker life, grateful for the peace and plenty his Shaker brothers and sisters provided. But fifteen years later, another orphan arrives and sends his well-ordered life into a tailspin. The death of Elizabeth's father has left her at the mercy of a man who terrifies her. In order to provide for her younger brother and sister, Elizabeth has no choice but to marry him. Until she remembers her father mentioning the Shaker community, a kind and peaceful people who turn no one away. Elizabeth leads her young siblings to Harmony Hill, where they try to conform to the strict and sometimes harsh rules of the Shaker life. But the Lord she loves is vastly different from the deity the Shakers worship. Still, she could probably conform to their odd beliefs as her little brother has done, except for two loves that the Shakers tell her are both sinful: her young sister, whose wild spirit will have to break before she becomes a Shaker; and the handsome young man she can't seem to stop thinking about - Ethan. Ann H. Gabhart is an amazing writer with a gift for bringing history to life. As I read The Believer, I felt as though I stepped backward in time, to the deceptively peaceful Shaker village of Harmony Hill in the 1800's. The characters are vivid and real - from the very first pages, I shivered in fear with the young Ethan, and my heart broke for Elizabeth at the loss of her father. Ann Gabhart skillfully blends so much fact into her stories that I came away feeling like I've been given a glimpse inside the Shaker meeting rooms. I loved The Believer, and I recommend it to anyone who likes historical fiction with a satisfying touch of romance. If you enjoy Shaker fiction, be sure to look for Ann's other Shaker book - THE OUTSIDER

THE BELIEVER is a romantic and insightful story that will leave Christian readers wanting to learn more about the Shaker religion, the main focus of Ann H. Gabhart's story. The Shakers, whose beginning originated in England in the 18th century, are known only to a few, but Gabhart has set out to change that. Ann Lee, the vivacious leader of the Shakers, was believed to be the second coming of Jesus Christ in female form. Her group came to America in 1774, settled in the state of New York, and eventually spread into neighboring states. Interestingly, the Shakers espoused communal living, celibacy and a belief that perfection could be attained in this present life, but they forbade marriage. Their name "Shakers" came about since they worshiped in such a way as to "shake all over" when the "spirit" came upon them. It is in this curious setting that Gabhart centers the bulk of her fictional tale of the growing faith in God and in the growing love between Elizabeth Duncan (a teenaged orphan and Christian) and Ethan Boyd (a Believer --- someone who has become part of the Shaker community). Ethan is rescued by a Shaker man named Brother Issachar when he was just a boy to escape from his abusive father. Ethan, from childhood up, lives as a brother in the Shaker community but finds himself increasingly discontent and troubled by "sinful" thoughts that counter the Shakers' strict rules for living. Elizabeth, after the death of her father, finds herself in the undesirable position of either marrying an older predatory landlord to protect herself and her younger brother and sister or make a run for it in the dead of night. She decides that her best option is flight, and the three manage to escape after Elizabeth's brother Payton burns their tiny cabin in order to prevent the awful Colton Linley from getting hold of their personal belongings. Elizabeth, fearing swift reprisal, urges Payton and little sister Hannah on as quickly as possible to the neighboring Shaker village her father had visited the year before. After an arduous journey, Elizabeth and her siblings meet up with Brother Issachar and Ethan. Encouraged by their kindness, the trio enters the Shaker community and asks for refuge. Little do the three realize how, in return for food and lodging, they must give up their lives for the community. Working in silence morning until evening in a place where the sexes are divided and talking is discouraged, Elizabeth and Hannah rankle against those in authority over them. Young Payton, however, soon gives in to the Shaker ways and by outward appearance becomes one of them. All the while, Ethan and Elizabeth find themselves thrown together in unlikely circumstances where a budding attraction takes root and blossoms. For her part, Elizabeth tries to refrain from interacting with Ethan in respect to his commitments to the Shakers and their belief that marriage is evil. Ethan, too, tries to fight his increasing love for Elizabeth but to no avail. It isn't u

"Shakers got their name from their worship style. They sometimes get so stricken by a feeling from the spirit that their bodies shake or they whirl about in a sort of dance." This author's curiosity for this religious sect grew as she walked down some of the streets of a restored Shaker community about thirty miles from her home in Kentucky. The Shakers never turned away someone in need. They were generous with there food and providing a roof over the travelers head in exchange for hard work in the community. "The worldly-joining of a man and women in marriage causes much strife. That is why we live a life of purity here at Harmony Hill without the sin of matrimony to cause problems among us." This is the Shakers view of marriage. Since they believed in taking a vow of celibacy the only way their community could grow was by taking outsiders into their group in hopes they would accept their ways and stay. Everyone had a story to tell about how they arrived at Harmony Hill. Ethan Boyd was six when he was found by Issachar, who saved his life and brought him into the Shaker community to be raised. Elizabeth Duncan sought help from the Shaker village to escape matrimony. It was a safe place to bring her siblings since the Shakers thought matrimony was a sin. But the longer Elizabeth lived there she realized she wasn't ready to live there forever and have everyone be your brother and sister. She wouldn't see her real brother and sister for days because of the work details. . The believer is a sequel to the Outsider! Again, Ann spins a tale that grabbed my heart strings when I saw the struggle these young ones were having living by the law--which was easy when their emotions didn't get in the way! That's what communal living was all about. No feelings. Everyone was the same. No heart felt conversations--everything was done in a group!! No one was on a one to one relationship with anyone else. That was forbidden. What was the truth? Ethan and Elizabeth were both in a desperate search of it. Their minds were not in harmony with their hearts. This author captures the time period and the point of view of a soul awakening to what the real mission in life is for them. It wasn't about a religion but a relationship with God and with each other? Nora St. Laurent Finding Hope Through Fiction

Other than the name, I was not familiar with the Shaker religion at all, and found it fascinating: their founder was believed to be the second coming of Christ in female form; and, among other things, they believed in celibacy, communal living and hard work. Like the Amish, they were often ridiculed for their beliefs, their manner of dressing and their way of life. The story of Elizabeth and her family is an interesting one. After their father's death, their landlord attempts to force Elizabeth to marry him, and she knows she must leave with her young brother and sister. Her father had often talked of the peace he felt when visiting the Shaker community, and as Elizabeth knows, the Shakers never turn away those in need. Finding their beliefs different than her own, Elizabeth nonetheless tries to adapt and assimilate herself and her siblings into the community. Ethan came to the Shakers by chance as a young child, and has never had reason to doubt his religion, or the belief that marriage is a sin and only brings conflict and trouble. Until he meets Elizabeth. While somewhat predictable and a bit preachy, I still found the story compelling and interesting. It's a fast, easy read, but not a completely light one. The exploration of doubting one's core beliefs and the descriptions of Elizabeth's and Ethan's struggles to understand what God really wants for them were well done. Even as Ethan doubts and Elizabeth finds it hard to commit to this new way of life, the Shaker religion was never ridiculed. Rather, Brother Issachar's character served to teach Ethan that God did know him and that the most important thing was to follow his own heart. Enjoyable and easily recommended, especially to fans of Amish books.