In THE AMISH WIFE, bestselling author Gregg Olsen has followed the path of murder, horror and lies as he slowly uncovers unsavory truths about a cold case from 1977 involving an Amish family in Ohio.

The facts that were known --- or the version of the circumstances that were propagated ---  in the case of Ida Stutzman pointed to her having perished in a barn fire on the farm she shared with her husband, Eli, and toddler son, Danny. She was eight months pregnant at the time of her death. Eli and Danny would later leave their Amish clan and head west. For Eli, it was not the first time. He made this same getaway before marrying Ida, who was sure their marriage could work and that she could reform him in necessary ways. When he returned, he took a required blood test that showed something was wrong. That “something” was never revealed to Ida, who, like a good Amish woman, did not question what she was told by her menfolk.

"Olsen is a dedicated writer with undeniable zeal for piecing together the tattered remnants of mystery and crime.... The totality of his findings sheds new light on dark events and merits further inquiry."

Olsen previously wrote about the tragedy that later would arise when nine-year-old Danny was found dead in a Nebraska cornfield after Eli had allowed family to believe that the boy was being cared for by distant relatives. He was unable to put to rest the mysteries that surrounded Eli’s perfidies, which would include a conviction for a roommate’s murder. So, with Eli’s brother Daniel Gingerich, Olsen took up a new, problematic search for more clues surrounding Ida’s death. He learned one small but salient fact that seemed to support the suspicion that she was killed before entering the barn: she was fully clothed, but considering the timeframe, she certainly would have adhered to Amish standards and dressed in her nightgown.

Olsen is a dedicated writer with undeniable zeal for piecing together the tattered remnants of mystery and crime. The fates of Ida, her son and others are wrapped in the speculation regarding Eli’s undiagnosed mental state and his lust for boys and men, again ignored and unmentionable because of his family’s religious beliefs. In conversation with many people whose lives were touched by this drama, Olsen was able to gather information not only from their accounts, but also from paperwork that included the poignant, probably forged letters from Danny to those back home. His search has small moments of amusement and human frailties, with car troubles and the weather affecting his efforts.

Those who read Olsen’s earlier works will welcome THE AMISH WIFE. For others, the incidents that are covered here will provide fascinating perspectives and garner a wide readership. The totality of his findings sheds new light on dark events and merits further inquiry.