Amish romance is a literary

subgenre Genre () is any style or form of communication in any mode (written, spoken, digital, artistic, etc.) with socially agreed-upon conventions developed over time. In popular usage, it normally describes a category of literature, music, or other for ...

Christian fiction Christian novels are a genre of novels in the tradition of Christian literature, written as a work of fiction focusing on religious events and worldviews. The tradition of Christian fiction Christian novels are works of imaginative literature dr ...

featuring

Amish The Amish (, also or ; ; ), formally the Old Order Amish, are a group of traditionalist Anabaptism, Anabaptist Christianity, Christian Christian denomination, church fellowships with Swiss people, Swiss and Alsace, Alsatian origins. As they ...

characters, but written and read mostly by

evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide, interdenominational movement within Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that emphasizes evangelism, or the preaching and spreading of th ...

Christian women. An industry term for Amish romance novels is "bonnet rippers" because most feature a woman in a bonnet on the cover, and "bonnet ripper" is a play on the term "bodice ripper" from classic

romance novel A romance or romantic novel is a genre fiction novel that primarily focuses on the relationship and Romance (love), romantic love between two people, typically with an emotionally satisfying and optimistic ending. Authors who have contributed ...

History

The genre has proven lucrative for publishers, many of which are Christian publishers, such as Bethany House, Thomas Nelson, and

Zondervan Zondervan is an international Christian media and publishing company located in Grand Rapids, Michigan, United States. Zondervan is a founding member of the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association (ECPA). It is a part of HarperCollins, Ha ...

. The first commercially successful Amish romance novel, according to writer Valerie Weaver-Zercher, was Beverly Lewis' ''The Shunning'', published in 1997 by Bethany House. In addition, over 150 Amish fiction

e-book An ebook (short for electronic book), also spelled as e-book or eBook, is a book publication made available in electronic form, consisting of text, images, or both, readable on the flat-panel display of computers or other electronic devices. Al ...

s were

self-published Self-publishing is an author-driven publication of any media without the involvement of a third-party publisher. Since the advent of the internet, self-published usually depends upon digital platforms and print-on-demand technology, ranging fr ...

between 2010 and 2013. The three most successful authors of Amish romance—Beverly Lewis, Cindy Woodsmall, and Wanda Brunstetter—have sold over 24 million books. While primarily written for and marketed to adult readers, some

young adult In medicine and the social sciences, a young adult is generally a person in the years following adolescence, sometimes with some overlap. Definitions and opinions on what qualifies as a young adult vary, with works such as Erik Erikson's stages ...

Amish romance titles have been published as well. According to a September 2013 ''

Library Journal ''Library Journal'' is an American trade publication for librarians. It was founded in 1876 by Melvil Dewey. It reports news about the library world, emphasizing public libraries, and offers feature articles about aspects of professional prac ...

'' survey, Amish fiction is the most commonly carried subgenre of Christian fiction in public libraries, although the survey did not distinguish between Amish romance and other Amish-themed literature.

Themes

Most works of Amish romance have protagonists with

socially conservative Social conservatism is a political philosophy and a variety of conservatism which places emphasis on traditional social structures over social pluralism. Social conservatives organize in favor of duty, traditional values and social institu ...

values, especially

chastity Chastity, also known as purity, is a virtue related to temperance. Someone who is ''chaste'' refrains from sexual activity that is considered immoral or from any sexual activity, according to their state of life. In some contexts, for exampl ...

, who engage in romance in ways which are socially and religiously acceptable in their communities. Similar works may also feature other religious minorities, such as

Mennonite Mennonites are a group of Anabaptism, Anabaptist Christianity, Christian communities tracing their roots to the epoch of the Radical Reformation. The name ''Mennonites'' is derived from the cleric Menno Simons (1496–1561) of Friesland, part of ...

Shakers The United Society of Believers in Christ's Second Appearing, more commonly known as the Shakers, are a Millenarianism, millenarian Restorationism, restorationist Christianity, Christian sect founded in England and then organized in the Unit ...

, or

Puritan The Puritans were English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries who sought to rid the Church of England of what they considered to be Roman Catholic practices, maintaining that the Church of England had not been fully reformed and should b ...

s. Unlike many mainstream romance novels, Amish romance novels do not rely on the portrayal of sex and most other forms of physical intimacy. Valerie Weaver-Zercher states, "Despite the suggestion by some that the appeal of Amish fiction must lie in the arousal of coverings coming off, or suspenders being suspended—hence the coy industry term 'bonnet rippers'—most Amish novels are as different from ''

Fifty Shades of Grey ''Fifty Shades of Grey'' is a 2011 erotic romance novel by British author E. L. James. It became the first instalment in the ''Fifty Shades'' novel series that follows the deepening relationship between a college graduate, Anastasia Steele, ...

'' as a cape dress is from a spiked collar."

Literary criticism

Reactions to works of Amish romance among the Amish themselves range from baffled (by things like deadly buggy accident themes) to repulsed (by evangelical notions of personal relationships with Jesus Christ which are inconsistent with the Amish view of salvation).

Notable authors of Amish romance fiction

* Jean Brunstetter * Wanda E. Brunstetter * Amy Clipston * Tricia Goyer * Shelley Shepard Gray * Kelly Irvin * Beverly Lewis * Ruth Reid * Beth Wiseman * Cindy Woodsmall

References

External links

Popular Amish romance novels
at

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{{Romance novel Romance genres Literary genres Romance Christian literary genres