Cyndi's Reviews > Courting Cate

I enjoyed the premise of Courting Cate being a take-off of The Taming of the Shrew. I liked that they were a little more "modern" than most Amish because of their business (I've often wondered if allowances were made sometimes in the Amish community because of that). I liked the way Cate softens by serving in a very difficult situation.

However, I did NOT like how wordy the author was throughout the book. Sometimes, in her attempt to explain the Amish way of life, etc., she went overboard. For example, during the kayak outing, as part of the details of getting into the kayak, she wrote, "I quickly slid my free hand down the back of my skirt and tucked the length of it under my legs as I sat, covering the seat." And then she repeats that 2 pages later. Not necessarily a bad thing but add that with other similar sentences, and it bogged down the story... at least, in my opinion. I didn't like how quickly the decision was made with Pete and Cate before checking all the facts... though, the author may have thought that was the only way to get them from point A to point B (trying not to give spoilers - lol). For being such a wonderful homemaker-type, Betsy was just a spoiled brat. I could not believe how she treated Cate and Cate let her... though I guess as a parent, I understand that we allow things and attitudes we really shouldn't. I also didn't like Pete's reason for his behavior with then no explanation for his thoughts during that time.

I really wanted to like this book more than I did but although I was annoyed with a few things, I gave it 3 stars because I still think it's a good book. I'll be reading the next one to see if it gets any better. :-)