The Wishing Bridge by Viola Shipman

With the storytelling perfection, we have been used to by Viola Shipman, comes another extraordinarily, magical Christmas story, The Wishing Bridge, which is about yes, a bridge you walk on, but also about those life bridges we have to cross, those decisions we have to make and sometimes regret and those relationships of past loves, which including family we try to mend. It’s about how some dreams realized in life, perhaps fulfilled, may not be one’s true calling. But how do we know?

Henri, (short for Henrietta) Wegner knows she’s about to lose her job, a job she has cultivated and grown for years. She’s put her whole heart and soul into finding small businesses and making them sell to larger corporations. And she has been great at it. But not this year. So, when her boss begins his speech informing her of his decision, she blurts out that if he gives her until after Christmas, she would be able to give him her family’s business back in Michigan on a silver platter.

Henri’s family owns Frankenmuth, a famous year-round Christmas store which puts out a one-of-a-kind holiday catalogue every child dreams about. Based in Michigan, it was her father’s dream years ago and he was able to see it through and watch it grow. So of course, her greedy boss agrees and gives her only days to close the deal.

But you see, Henri has not been back to her small town in Michigan for years. Perhaps too many memories or perhaps too many ghosts. So, when she surprises her family and friends with a visit just before Christmas, they are excited, yet concerned, her brother suspicious. Why is she here? Henri guiltily begins her examination of the family business and working at the store to get a feel on how things are going. And she finds they are not going well. Her dad seems to be stuck in a time warp and does not want to move into the new century. She sees the waste of money and how tired and stressed her parents seem. She knows she could convince them to sell, but now she questions if she really wants that.

On top of all this guilt, she must face the love of her life whose marriage proposal she turned down all those years ago because she wanted to make a name for herself in business. She also knows if she is able to persuade her parents to sell, so many people will be devastated. Those who have come to rely on this magical store for generations. And as she relives some of her most favorite past memories of the importance of the store and the holiday season in her life, she begins to change in so many ways.

But with time running out and her boss growing angrier for not getting what he wants, she must make a life-changing choice. What is more important. The career she has nurtured all of her adult life, or the family and friends she ran away from. Can you ever really come home?

The Wishing Bridge is a beautiful story with delicate plot twists. It’s that life-balance we all feel at one time or another; am I on the right path, have I done what I need to do, who am I doing this for? It’s about emotional reunions, difficult choices, and touching memories of family both present and past, and finding the forgiveness inside yourself to truly open your heart and love.

VIOLA SHIPMAN is the pen name for internationally bestselling LGBTQIA author Wade Rouse. Wade is the author of fifteen books, which have been translated into 21 languages and sold over a million copies around the world. Wade writes under his grandmother’s name, Viola Shipman, to honor the working poor Ozarks seamstress whose sacrifices changed his family’s life and whose memory inspires his fiction. Wade’s books have been selected multiple times as Must-Reads by NBC’s Today Show, Michigan Notable Books of the Year and Indie Next Picks. He lives in Michigan and California, and hosts Wine & Words with Wade, A Literary Happy Hour, every Thursday.

Author Website 

Twitter: @Viola_Shipman

Facebook: Author Viola Shipman

Instagram: @Viola_Shipman

Goodreads

“A beautifully written story about second chances. Fans of women’s fiction won’t be able to put this down.” –Publishers Weekly on The Secret of Snow

“Viola Shipman knows relationships. The Clover Girls will sometimes make you smile and other times cry, but like a true friendship, it is a novel you will forever savor and treasure.” –Mary Alice Monroe, New York Times bestselling author

“The perfect winter warmer!” –USA TODAY bestselling author Sarah Morgan on The Secret of Snow

Thank you #NetGalley #GraydonHouse #TheWishingBridge #ViolaShipman for the advanced copy and the honor of being included in the blog tour. You can buy the book now at the links below:

HarperCollins: https://www.harpercollins.com/products/the-wishing-bridge-viola-shipman?variant=41011395461154 

Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-wishing-bridge-viola-shipman/1142950495 

BookShop: https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-christmas-bridge-original-viola-shipman/19612178 

Amazon:  https://www.amazon.com/dp/1525804863/keywords=holiday%20books?tag=harpercollinsus-20