Prayer for the Night

P. L. Gaus is the author of seven books in the Amish-Country Mystery series. He lives in Wooster, Ohio, an area that is close to the world's largest settlement of Amish and Mennonite people. Gaus lectures widely about the lifestyles, culture, and religion of the Amish.

"Gaus usually writes quiet novels, but this one is harsher than his others, full of suspense, the immediacy of a hostage situation, and in-depth Amish funeral rites." (Library Journal) "An engaging twist in this novel is that, unlike most mystery writers, Gaus spends relatively little time on the motives and personality of the chief 'villain.' Instead, he focuses on the reactions of the direct and indirect victims of the crime—the kids, their parents and extended family, and their developing view of the way the world should work…. (C)learly defined characters and a vivid sense of place." (ForeWord Magazine) "Amish teenagers run wild during Rumschpringe, their time of testing in the outside 'English' world, in Gaus's absorbing fifth entry in this powerful series.... Detailed Amish funeral and wedding rites conclude an otherwise taut tale, offering fascinating insights into this closed society's struggle to maintain traditions amid a rapidly changing world." "Sober and authentic, Gaus's well-paced fifth takes a hard look at the risks the community must take and the compromises it makes to preserve itself in an ever-more-complex world." "Gaus is a sensitive storyteller who matches his cadences to the measured pace of Amish life, catching the tensions among the village's religious factions." "The strength of this book and of all the others in this well-textured and lovingly tended series...is Gaus's great skill in telling his tale of children and adults lost and saved, their various physical, mental, and spiritual crises...."