This was an enjoyable read.

Elizabeth and her daughter have to leave Kansas City and head back to Elizabeth's home town due to some bad luck.
In this town with bad memories lots of good things start happening.

Although I really liked it - I also had a few issues with it. A few things just thrown in there for dramatic effect maybe.

I don't think this book stood out - it has the same story line of a lot of books that I read but I enjoyed it. ( )

I'm not a big fan of the Amish/Mennonite genre that seems to be all the rage in Christian fiction in recent years. So, I was a bit hesitant to read Inescapable. This was also the first book by Mehl that I have read. I have to admit, I was pleasantly surprised-I REALLY enjoyed it. I know a lot of people will be put off by the first person point of view, but I actually enjoy them. I enjoyed the story line quite a bit. There were parts that were predictable though. I easily figured out who the "bad guy" was pretty early on. There were quite a few unexpected twists that kept me on my toes to make up for that. I also felt the ending was just a little rushed.

As I am not normally a fan of the Amish/Mennonite genre, I was surprised by how much I enjoyed that aspect of the story line. I also liked how Mehl worked in the themes of forgiveness and mercy. I found the struggle between tradition and God's mercy to be intriguing. It was interesting to see how the older church members concentrated so much on God's judgement, almost to the point of losing the importance of God's loving mercy. This is something that I certainly see in the modern world as well. I also felt that Lizzie's struggle with forgiveness true to life. She doesn't feel God can forgive her for her past sins, as she struggles with forgiving her father for his harshness towards her.

Overall, I really enjoyed Inescapable and am looking forward to reading more from Nancy Mehl. I am especially looking forward to reading more in the Road to Kingdom series.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Bethany House in exchange for my honest review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising." ( )

Lizzie Engel ran away from home as a teen because of her pregnancy and the attitudes of the people in her small Mennonite town. Now she’s running back home because she’s been fired, falsely accused and is being stalked. But Lizzie has no idea what to expect when she returns, along with her young daughter, to Kingdom, the one place to which she thought she’d never return.

Lizzie finds Kingdom is everything—and nothing—that she remembers. Some people are still pretty closed-minded while others are more progressive than she ever would have imagined. As she begins to settle in and rediscover not only the town but her faith, Lizzie is constantly reminded of the lurking danger that followed her home.

INESCAPABLE is part suspense and part romance. It’s also part women’s fiction as Nancy Mehl draws a realistic picture of a young mother, a woman still searching for her place in the world as an adult even as she is responsible for a child. In Kingdom, old hurts and old feelings color Lizzie’s perceptions of people and circumstances, but over time, she begins to see how her immaturity years ago may have heightened her sensitivity and blinded her to the full context underlying the actions of others.

This is a story about family and forgiveness. There’s a simplicity in the prose that mirrors the simplicity of the Mennonite faith. However, both are more complex than they appear on the surface. Where Mehl’s writing soars is in the narrative, her descriptions of setting, characters, and even the Mennonite faith, those descriptions vivid and easy to digest.

Mehl is definitely a storyteller, able to wind the multiple threads of the story into a tightly wrapped and satisfying climax while keeping the readers largely guessing until the end.

Fans of Amish and Mennonite fiction will enjoy INESCAPABLE. ( )

At eighteen years old, Lizzie Engel left her hometown of Kingdom and her Mennonite faith, planning never to return. But five years later, the appearance of a mysterious stalker drives her back to the safety of the little unknown community. Although she is unsure of the reception her parents and former friends will give her, she knows that the paranoia of the town will only work to her advantage. As she begins to settle back into her hometown life, she renews old friendships, especially that of Noah Housler. But soon, her problems follow her to Kingdom and it becomes even harder to know who to trust.

Nancy Mehl has written an excellent suspense novel with a Mennonite twist. She succeeds in portraying a splinter group with cult-like tendencies which moved away from civilization many years before. Anyone who has watched the news in recent years knows this type of thing does happen, and of course is not limited to one belief or denomination. The Mennonite angle really excited me when I first saw the novel. As I have said in previous reviews, although I enjoy the Amish novels, for the most part they have almost run out of ideas. Now that everyone is moving on to the Shakers, Quakers, and Mennonites, it is obvious that the Christian fiction genre will not be returning to the lackluster blandness of the past. Kudos to Ms. Mehl for continuing to raise the standard for Christian authors.

5 stars

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the Litfuse Publicity Group book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.” ( )

Inescapable
Nancy Mehl

Book Description: Lizzie Engel is used to running away. At eighteen, she left her Mennonite hometown, her family, and her faith with plans never to return. Five years later, Lizzie finds she'll have to run again. False accusations at her job, a stalker, and a string of anonymous threatening letters have left her with no other options. This time, however, her escape is back to Kingdom, her hometown. As Lizzie becomes reacquainted with Kingdom, she realizes she may not have left her Mennonite roots and her faith as firmly in the past as she thought. She draws on the support of Noah Housler, an old friend, as she hides out and attempts to plan her next steps. When it becomes painfully clear that the danger has followed Lizzie to Kingdom, suspicions and tensions run high, and she no longer knows who to trust. With her life and the lives of those she loves at risk, Lizzie will have to run one last time--to a Father whose love is inescapable.
Review: I enjoyed the characters, town and story line. It was just enough suspense with plenty of breaks to enjoy meeting all the people in the town and I enjoyed the storyline it was a fun fast pace story that is engrossing. The descriptions of the town and the people were vivid. It made for a quick read and enjoyable overall. The downside was ‘who did it’ that was not so hard to figure out. Despite that the ending was exciting and made reading it worthwhile. The entire book was enjoyable and looking forward to part 2.
I would like to thank Library Thing and Bethany House Publishing for allowing me to read and review this book in return for a free copy and I was never asked to write a favorable review by anyone. ( )