Samson and Amish Delilah: Cover Reveal

 Scroll down to see the full cover!


Official release date: August 19th.



I'm more excited than I can say about this book. It is quite different from anything else I've written.

Below: the binding and back cover

A Story of clashing cultures, hearts laid bare, and the power of forgiveness.

Delilah steps out of the pages of a bestselling Amish novel and into the real world. When media giants discover that she's alive and well, the race to find her is on. A young man named Dave sets out with inside information, hoping to get to her first and cash in. He's as surprised as everybody that there's more than one Amish Delilah-- can he be sure that he's found the right girl?

Dave searches the pages of the novel to be certain he has the right Delilah. Real life begins to merge with fiction and Dave suddenly realizes that he has fallen into the story and become Samson. Worse yet, he fears he is on a collision course with the novel's wild ending.

Cultures collide as big media comes face-to-face with Amish family values. Dave and Delilah are caught in a vice between two worlds. Will they sell out for the almighty dollar?

Coming soon in paperback and eBook 

August 19th

2019

To order your copy click here: Amazon: Samson and Amish Delilah

Direct from the Publisher:CrossLink: Samson and Amish Delilah

Famous Without Knowing It

 If you follow my blog, read my books, or if you "Like" the Amish Horses Facebook page, then you know about Karma and Karla, my team of Percheron mares. I purchased these horses from an Amish friend of mine. Thus, the Amish Horses title. These mares were raised and trained on an Amish farm. They are full-sisters born one year apart. Karma and Karla have never been any further than a ten-mile radius from where they were born. Yet, they are known the world over! Not because they have fancy blood-lines or perfect conformation. Their claim to fame stems from having huge hearts.

 Obviously, you can't see their hearts or personality in a photograph. (Well, maybe you can?)
The way people have come to know these horses are through my books. Karma, Karla and their niece Coke inspired a book series titled The Amish Horses Series.
This set of books share the adventures of sixteen-year-old Lenny Gingerich as he leaves his city life behind and spends time with his Amish relatives.
Lenny's Amish grandpa teaches valuable lessons about life and horses. Lenny learns even more about life and himself from a team of Percheron horses named Tug and Train. My books have been read in several countries. The Amish Horses blog has been viewed by thousands of people all over the world. Without Karma, Karla and Coke, I wouldn't have a story to tell. Their pretty faces are why people click "Like" on my photographs. They have been the subject matter in hundreds of pictures, including several book covers. They were recently filmed to appear on a TV show. (Stay tuned and I'll share more info on that later.)

When it's all said and done, Karma and Karla are just an ordinary team of farm horses. However, that is what makes them so special. They are just real! 

(They probably have seen a camera more than most Amish horses.)

Karma and Karla take us back to the good-old-days of family-farm history and have enriched people's lives all over the world.

And they don't even know it. (Or, maybe they do?)

Amish Park (revealed)

 Once you've clicked on the picture all you need to do is scroll down to see the full cover revealed




Be sure to continue scrolling to read more about Amish Park, a novel.

-What a difference one week can make- 

         Pete and Lisa Heller have already decided to end their marriage long fight with a divorce. However, their 10-year-old daughter has another plan. Natalie believes that Amish Park, a theme resort offering guests a realistic experience on an Amish farm, may be the answer to all her family’s problems. Her 16-year-old sister, Carrie, is uninterested and absorbed with her phone until the power fades and an Amish lantern sheds new light. The Heller family gets a little more than they bargained for when their aging tour guide uses a team of draft horses to soften Pete’s heart. Slip on your work boots and join the Heller family’s Amish vacation; an unexpected journey to a better place.

        (Amish Park is a fictitious theme park. It would be fun if there was a real place like it!)

Amish Park, a novel, will be released this October, through Dove Christian Publishers

Keep up to date by following this blog or Thomas Nye on Facebook.

Dreaming of Spring

 Spring is my favorite time of year. The whole world is resurrected with a burst of new life after laying dormant through long winter months.

When spring arrives little Amish girls will run and play barefoot in Mommy's garden, pick raspberries and climb fences.

In Pennsylvania, little Amish girls don't wear coverings but usually have tight braids wound in coils behind their ears or tied together at the base of their neck.

Over the rest of Amish America, girls wear coverings from infancy. When working or playing on the farm they are often seen with headscarves. Don't rule out the possibility of seeing a little Amish girl with braids running around the yard. But rest assured, Mommy will tie on a scarf or pin on a covering before they leave the lane to go somewhere.

 These little girls are searching Grandma's raspberry bush for early fruit and helping themselves to a snack.

Just looking at these pics, taken two springs ago, makes me start dreaming of spring, again.

Fresh fruit and vegetables, garden tea, bees buzzing, baby lambs, and even dandelions seem welcome at this point.

(By the way, these are pictures of my own granddaughters, Lyla and Kinley, and were photographed with permission from their mommy) They were in these Amish made dresses for the purpose of a cover photo. If you want to see the finished product of the photo shoot, click on the link below.

Cover Photo Link

Amish Friends

        Four families are represented in this photo, some were Amish and the rest Mennonite. Our four families were close friends back in those days but times change and we don't see each other as often. These Children are all grown-ups now, (one of the young men has gone home to be with the Lord.) All of our families grew after this photo, and one of them ended up with twelve children.

        The littlest of them is my cover model for Catbird Singing. Yes, believe it or not, that little blondie in the middle with her yellow dress hiked up, is the same girl pictured below between my team of draft horses. She is 25 now!

We always had a great time together and yes, their parents approved us taking a photo. I'm hoping they will get a chance to see this blog, because I know they will really enjoy this picture.

One of these families left the Amish and I see their daughter (the second smallest blond girl) working at a grocery store on my mail route. I like to remind her that she was a little Amish girl when I first knew her.

The family that stayed Amish, moved to Ohio and we don't see them much anymore.

I don't tell any of our Amish friends personal stories in my books. The experiences we had in their homes are the foundation of what I write.

We have found that our Amish neighbors build their lives around faith, family, and friends.

Catbird Singing on Amazon

Best Kept Amish Secret

There are many wonderful Amish recipes for food and healing, as well as multitudes of  Amish ideas for working with horses and other livestock. In fact, I truly feel the best kept Amish secret has something to do with how willingly Amish children join in with work around the farm.

Maybe this blog post should read: A very well kept Amish secret, Under the Heavens.

Up to this date, my novels have been read almost exclusively by Amish and Mennonites. When my first novel, Under the Heavens came out, I was very nervous for those of Amish background to read it. One of my greatest surprises was how well it was received by older Mennonite folks. Many former Amish enjoy reminiscing about their early days and life on the family farm. Under the Heavens seems to bring back many good memories.

One older Mennonite man in our community actually called me on the phone to ask questions. "Where is this farm? I've been trying to figure out who this family is, do I know them?" I was very pleased that my story was so believable, he wanted to figure out just who the family was. 

My books are novels, however, they are based on my real life experiences with our Amish neighbors and friends. We have had many over the past 35 years.

My draft horses came from an Amish family not far down the road. I have had many wonderful opportunities to learn about farming with horses from that family and others in our community.

I have also been pleasantly surprised to learn that Amish folks themselves want to read books with Amish settings. It does make sense. Many Amish love to read and have made every effort to keep life simple, and separate from the world. Why would they want to dwell on that "other" lifestyle when reading.

If you have memories of life on the old-fashioned farm, these books will take you back to those days of simple pleasures, and good clean fun.

You can purchase a copy of Under the Heavens on Amazon, or receive a signed copy directly through me, Thomas Nye.

Book I  Under the Heavens  $15
Book II Catbird Singing       $15
Please send $5 for shipping costs
Or,
Whispering to Horses           $7
Plus $3 for shipping

(If you order two books, there is no extra shipping charge for the second book)

Make the check payable to:

 Thomas Nye
P.O. Box 495 Kalona, Iowa 52247

Amazon Link  also available as an eBook for $2.99 each! (Amazon or Barnes & Noble)

Whispering to Horses

An old fence separates a modern community from their Amish neighbors, until a little boy opens the gate and breaks down barriers between them. Main characters, Matt and Eli, find friendship, hope, and a future through a mutual need, which creates an opportunity for them to learn to understand each other. Eli and his little sisters will touch your heart by Whispering to Horses.

My newest book is due to be released on November 2nd.

This short novel is about a man who doesn't like his Amish neighbors, that is, until he actually gets to know them.

Whispering to Horses is available for pre-order on Amazon by clicking the link below.

Amazon Link



Blogger Lue Shetler added this review below:

Being formerly Amish, there are certain things I look for in an Amish novel. In Whispering to Horses, Thomas Nye held my attention and did a wonderful job of bringing out the authenticity of farm life for an Amish family. An interesting and quick read about a young man, Matt, who comes back to his roots in Amish country and learns particular life lessons from a very mature youngster, Eli. The bond they form is heartwarming, sincere, and leaves one hoping these two will remain in each other’s lives for a very long time. There are interesting twists regarding Eli and his mother. I look forward to reading more about Eli’s mother, and how she finds peace and an end to the conflict she wrestles with deep within. Oh, and for you romantic types, there is a touch of romance. (wink, wink)
Lue Shetler, blogger, writer, formerly Amish.  lookinginmyrearviewmirror.com

Amish Book Cover

You shouldn't judge a book by its cover... but, an interesting cover does stir a reader's appetite.

 There are several key ingredients to producing an eye catching cover for an Amish novel.

          First of all, you need a lovely actress and a fantastic photographer. It's helpful if you happen to have one of each as daughters. My oldest of four daughters, Robyn, has a photography business, and my youngest daughter, Natalie, agreed to stand in as my actress.

         It is also a good idea to include a horse or two if possible. That wasn't a problem, my own Percheron Draft horses also make lovely cover models. Karm and Coke were raised on an Amish farm and provided inspiration for the Amish Horses Book Series in the first place.

 When Natalie was a little girl she used to sit in my horse barn and read to me as I groomed horses. She graduated from the University of Iowa as a history major and is now a high school teacher.

Robyn, our photographer daughter, was born with artistic flair. She had already read Catbird Singing before the day of this photo shoot. I believe that knowledge of the story and characters helped her understand what we were looking for.

My daughters both grew up around draft horses and were raised in a community saturated with Amish culture.

Karm and Coke seem to enjoy being the center of attention.

  We discussed a few ideas for our cover photo and let my daughters and horses go to work. All of the ingredients came together in a perfect moment, capturing a scene from Catbird Singing, almost as though the characters had come to life. (horses are some of the main characters in the Amish Horses Series)

There were so many good pictures, but one of them stood out as the most special and it became the cover you see below.

In Catbird Singing, a certain Amish girl talks affectionately to horses and uses that as a way to communicate to main character, Lenny.

Check out my daughter's photography website

Ruby Ellen Photography

Robyn

Did the cover photo stir your appetite to read an Amish novel?

Click on this link to order your own copy: Amish Horses Book Series