REVIEW: Portrait of a Sister by Laura Bradford

[I received an electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and Kensington in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary

Even though they were identical twins, Katie always felt like an afterthought where Hannah was concerned. Hannah was the outgoing, energetic, fearless one. Katie was quiet and cautious. The differences between them became even more pronounced when Hannah decided not to be baptized and to leave their Amish community. Katie, the rule follower, stayed. Of course she stayed. This was her home, her family, and her community.

When Katie’s mom got sick, her commitment to home and family was even stronger. Her mother and family needed her. And after her mother’s death, Katie kept the family going. She picked up her mother’s responsibilities in the home and cared for her younger siblings as if they were her own.

When Hannah comes home for the funeral, she discovers Katie’s secret. She’s an artist. She draws in a secret sketch pad. And she’s extremely talented. But the Amish believe that photos or art of people are making “graven images.” A sin. Since Katie was baptized into the faith, she would be shunned if anyone ever found out. And if she chose her art over her community, she would never be able to contact her father or siblings again.

Drawing is the only time when Katie feels like herself, though. It’s the only thing that makes her smile. And it’s been months since her family has seen her smile. So her father sends her off for a week to visit her sister Hannah in New York City. It will be an opportunity to just be herself with no family responsibilities. She can see what life might be like if she chose her art over her faith. Would it be worth all she would lose?

Review

This was lovely! I don’t usually read Amish fiction, but after enjoying Belle and Ella so much earlier this year, I was interested in trying some more. This author’s Amish mystery series is on my TBR shelves, but I haven’t tried them yet.

I didn’t sense the same  level of faith in this story as I did in Belle and Ella. Katie’s commitments felt more like a commitment to tradition and expectation than a strong sense of faith. Katie has a lot of questions about the Amish assertion that her mother’s death was “God’s will” and something to just accept. But that was really the only place where faith was really explored. I completely identified with Katie’s need to do the “right” thing and put others before herself. Her struggles to choose her own path apart from her sister and her wrestling with where art could fit into her life, if it could at all, really clicked for me.

I did not care for Hannah for most of the book. She is bossy and brash and self-centered. She takes Katie’s art and does what she wants with it without respect for Katie’s perspective. Hannah knows the rules it violates but maybe since she doesn’t personally follow those rules anymore, she doesn’t even think about what the violation means for Katie. It’s almost as if she wants Katie on the “outside” with her – like she misses the family connections she once had. If Katie leaves, too, she can have it all, family and freedom. And she’ll risk Katie’s shunning and the fall out to do what she chooses. It was frustrating, but it made me appreciate Katie that much more.

There’s a slight love triangle in this – the Amish man Katie has been promised to and the man in New York who listens and understands her because she is free to tell him everything. I was thrilled with how that all worked out in the end.

This was a terrific story and I highly recommend it to fans of Amish fiction as well as those who enjoy stories about characters looking for – and finding – their identity.

Rating: ♥♥♥♥½