
Ruth “Dok” Stoltzfus is the kind of doctor who still believes in house calls, addressing not just her patients’ physical needs but their emotional ones too. When newly widowed Bee faces a breast cancer diagnosis, Dok connects her with Fern Lapp for support. When her painfully shy assistant Annie finds herself drawn to a new calling, Dok goes to great lengths to help her achieve her dream. And when an abandoned newborn mysteriously appears at her office one frosty morning, Dok’s world takes an unexpected turn as ripples of change touch several lives.
A Healing Touch is a captivating tale of compassion, resilience, and the bonds that form in surprising places. Bestselling and award-winning author Suzanne Woods Fisher invites you into a new story that’s like medicine for the weary soul. Join Dok, Annie, and the tight-knit Stoney Ridge community as they navigate the twists of fate, discovering that sometimes the greatest healing comes from the heart.
My Review:
What a thrill to be back in Stoney Ridge and meet up with so many beloved characters from the author’s previous series. ‘A Healing Touch’ could be read as a standalone, but I think readers familiar with some of the Stoney Ridge books, especially the ones featuring Dok, will appreciate this story so much more.
Dok was raised Amish but left the faith and her community to pursue a medical degree. Circumstances have brought her back to Stoney Ridge where her brother is the Bishop and she has an interesting mix of Amish and Englisch patients in her thriving Family Medicine practice. Dok is the kind of physician we’d all love to have – old-fashioned enough to still make house calls, caring enough (aka bossy enough) to push for the best outcomes for her patients, whether they want her to or not! And she has a creative approach to meet the needs of some of her most stubborn patients!
Mind you, Dok, knows a thing or two about stubbornness — just ask her husband! Love the insights we get into her married life (he’s the sheriff!) as they work their way through some tough situations. I might have cried at one point.
This story is told from three different women’s points of view. Dok, of course, and her busy practice and challenging home life; her receptionist, Annie, a young Amish woman who yearns for something more in her life, and Bee, Dok’s recently widowed patient who has just been given an unwelcome diagnosis.
There’s love and laughter, frustrations and tears — all woven together with the promise of divine hope and faith shared. An emotional journey realistically depicting a slice of real life.








