Reclaiming Hope in Wishing Bridge: Author Guest Post + Enter To Win

 

 

Welcome to the Blog Tour for Reclaiming Hope in Wishing Bridge by Ruth Logan Herne, hosted by JustRead Publicity Tours!

ABOUT THE BOOK

Title: Reclaiming Hope in Wishing Bridge 

Series: Wishing Bridge #5 

Author: Ruth Logan Herne 

Publisher: Independently Published 

Release Date: October 22, 2022 

Genre: Women's Fiction with romantic elements (clean) 

She swore she'd never come back to Wishing Bridge. 

She needed nothing. No family. No links to a past that broke her heart. Heather Johnstone was successful in her own right, by her own actions. She'd built a pristine life and gave no one the right or opportunity to disrupt it, but then her father called... the one person who'd loved her. Who'd cared. 

And there was no other choice, it seemed. 

She'd go back and face a past that was now tragically changed and fairly unimportant, but that's the thing about growing up. You don't always know what's important until it's too late. 

Hank Reynolds had spent over a decade trying to inspire change. Change in a shrinking town adjacent to Wishing Bridge, and a school district that serviced several towns. Hank took his teaching and coaching seriously. Seriously enough to help no small number of kids find their way to success, but when a tragic flood takes a major toll on the little town of Hopewell, the aftermath stuns the surrounding communities with the loss of life and livelihood. Who can help? Who can help them re-establish the good old days in a place that had lost their grip on good a long time ago? 

Hank knows what the school needs the minute he sees Heather. Northeast Wyoming Central needs an administrator that puts kids first, all the time. Not just when it looks good for a photo op. And when his phone calls bring back more of their high school football teammates, Hank knows something else is happening... Coming back to Wishing Bridge isn't just good for the town and the schools... It's good for the prodigals. 

Because whoever said you can't go home again was wrong and Hank Reynolds intends to prove it, but when Heather's life takes a sudden turn, he realizes something else: sacrificial love means putting others first. Even if it's the person you love more than anyone else on the planet. 

Grab a cup of coffee, a Coke or a spot of tea and join the folks of Wishing Bridge, NY as they gather folks in to help, to love, to fix, to nurture... Welcome back to Wishing Bridge... where prayers and wishes mingle to make dreams come true.

PURCHASE LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Multi-published, award-winning and bestselling inspirational author Ruth Logan Herne has worked with multiple publishers and has published over seventy novels and novellas: Basically, Ruthy is living her dream of being a published author and having a great deal of fun doing it! With words to warm the heart and ease the soul, Ruthy takes her readers on the journeys of some unforgettable characters and situations, but in the spirit of being a true Pollyanna at heart, she loves a happy ending! She has a heart for women as overcomers and that spirit of faith and strength shines through every one of her stories. A mother of six with a seventh "daughter of her heart", Ruthy has fourteen grandkids, runs a busy big pumpkin farm with her husband Farmer Dave, and has an absolute love for God, Jesus, her family, country, dogs, chocolate and coffee....

Connect with Ruth by visiting ruthloganherne.com to follow her on social media or subscribe to email newsletter updates.

GUEST POST

Building Wishing Bridge: Creating a Fictional Town Readers Want to Visit Again and Again.
by Ruth Logan Herne

“I missed the 4^th of July fireworks over the Hudson River because I couldn’t put this proposal down. That’s how much I love Wishing Bridge.”

     That’s no small praise coming from the senior editor at Waterfall Press, Amazon’s Christian publishing arm. She was in New York that weekend. My proposal landed in her in-box. And she skipped the fireworks.

     Wishing Bridge is different.

     Sure, it’s small-town pastoral and it’s got hills and forests and good folks and a few bad apples, but it’s atypical in that the people are so real, they jump off the page to be your new next-door neighbor or BFF.

     It’s a haven of sorts… but also a place of reckoning. And it started (like so many stories do) from multiple objectives.

     First, I wanted to honor Greg O’Connell, the retired NYPD officer who was instrumental in renovating Red Hook downstate and Mount Morris here in upstate. He inspired Max Reichert, a strong character throughout the series, a Mike Rowe-type fellow who came to town years ago (with no small number of past regrets) and made a difference. And he’s still making a difference today. Publishing logistics would call Max a secondary character.

They’re wrong.

He’s absolutely primary in my book because Max had already helped set the tone for resurgence in Wishing Bridge… which meant I’d laid an organic foundation for everything that was yet to come.

     A hugely successful series like this evolves as time goes on and that’s part of the blessing of Wishing Bridge. It began with three foster-care “sisters”, three gals who’d pledged to drop everything and come running if ever one of them was in trouble and that’s what brings the three initial women to Wishing Bridge. It’s archaic, it’s old-fashioned, it’s small, it's a little smothering because everybody knows everyone, but it’s exactly what the doctor ordered… and so it began.

     It’s rural and it’s village… it’s got a new upscale development that shuns villagers and it’s got old folks and young folks and kids walk the streets on their own to get an ice cream or visit the library.

     It’s everybody’s hometown.

     And yet it’s minutes from interstates that allow future growth.

     It’s Brigadoon... and Bedford Falls.

     And yet, different.

     Because it’s Wishing Bridge, New York.

     The little town where wishes and prayers combine to make even the smallest dream come true.

     We’ve got great giveaways going on and while Reclaiming Hope in Wishing Bridge is book five of the series, you can read it as a stand-alone… Or head back to “Welcome to Wishing Bridge” and begin with Kelsey’s story.

     I promise you won’t regret either choice.

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TOUR GIVEAWAY

(1) winner will receive a lovely book bundle from Ruthy including several books, chocolate, and a $20 Amazon Gift Card... cozy just got a little bit better.

Full tour schedule linked below. The giveaway begins at midnight November 14, 2022 and will last through 11:59 PM EST on November 21, 2022. Winner will be notified within 2 weeks of close of the giveaway and given 48 hours to respond or risk forfeiture of prize. US only. Void where prohibited by law or logistics.

Giveaway is subject to the policies found here.

ENTER GIVEAWAY HERE

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Follow along at JustRead Tours for a full list of stops!