As a midwife’s daughter, Ruth had seen it all, or at least most of it. When her mother is called to an emergency delivery in the dead of night, Ruth accompanies her. She takes care of the younger children and meets Moses King. After being away for three years, Moses King has returned from Ohio as a wiser farmer and a way more attractive man. Their connection is instant and for the first time, Ruth finds herself thinking of the future. Ruth’s joy is short-lived when she learns that Moses is courting Elizabeth Beiler.

When Beth, Naomi’s sister, lost her husband unexpectedly, Naomi knew she couldn’t let her sister face the grief alone. With two little boys and a baby on the way, Naomi put her own life on hold to help Beth deal with the grief, the pregnancy, and the children. Naomi and Isaac had been courting for a few months, but ever since Beth’s husband passed away, Isaac couldn’t help but feel neglected. He knows Naomi needs to support her sister, but surely she can’t ignore him completely.  

When her mother passed away, Abigail mourned. But two long years later, she was concerned that her father hadn’t yet stopped mourning their loss. While Abigail tried to move on with her life, her father retreated to his chair. He sat in that chair day in and day out, watching as the seasons and life passed him by. With bills mounting and the farm work piling up, they had hired Aaron as their farm hand. 

Detective Olivia Mast would rather run through gunfire than return to her former Amish community in Unity, Maine, where she killed her abusive husband in self-defense and witnessed her family's murder. After an Amish man is murdered, the community will not answer questions from the police, so she begrudgingly dons her old prayer kapp and heads to Unity to investigate the murder undercover. To make things even worse, her captain also orders her to protect the man she dated as a teen: Isaac Troyer, who was attacked on the night of the murder but can't remember the incident.

As the only daughter, Sylvia Miller of The Tinderbox has always held a special place in her Old Order family, one Adeline Pelham jeopardizes when she shows up at the Millers' Hickory Hollow farm. It isn't that Adeline means to be a threat, but her very existence is a reminder of the painful secret that has so recently upended the Miller household. And with Sylvia and her mother still struggling to come to terms with that news, this is a challenging time to welcome an Englisher - especially this Englisher - into their midst.