Letters of Comfort

Doretta Schwartz used to be a happy person and passed her positive attitude along to her friends in several letters that she wrote each month. All that changed the day she learned of her fiance William’s death and a heavy weight of depression fell upon her. Feeling empty, she puts away her letter writing and won’t even respond to calls from friends. William’s twin brother, Warren, is also grieving his loss, while at the same time, trying to be supportive to his parents and Doretta. Doretta responds to Warren’s friendship, but the question is has he just becoming a replacement for the once-in-a-lifetime love she lost?

Letters of Comfort is the second book in the author's Friendship Letters duology. While we all know Amish fiction ends on a positive note, don't let that make you believe that the plot is simple. Brunstetter gives us several twists and turns in Doretta's recovery as well as showing how deep someone can fall into depression. In many ways it is a medical mystery novel albeit one that is light and in which you can predict a lovely ending. The Author's Note tells us that she intended to write a book with depression as a theme. 

I was surprised to learn that Doretta's boyfriend William was not as good a person that she originally thought he was. Was it necessary to show this in order to make his twin Warren look good? I kind of wish he remained the perfect person. Nevertheless, Letters of Comfort is a primer on what lies beneath a person's exterior.

5 out of 5 stars.