'God's not a 'thing' to me, Ethan. He's like 'the' thing. The strength. The Rock. The fortress.'

I have been eagerly anticipating the second in Ruth Logan Herne's 'Wishing Bridge' series because I fell in love with the people and the town in the first book. Can I please go live there? It's a wonderful little small town that just draws the reader right in and truly makes you wish it was a real place.

Thea Anastas grew up hard on the city streets until taken in by a wonderful foster mother, where she met two other young girls, Kelsey and Jazz, and they became fast friends who swore to be there for each other no matter what. Thea was called to Wishing Bridge last winter by Kelsey, who was in trouble and needed her friends. Now, Thea, a Nurse Practitioner, has joined in with Ethan Brandenburg, a doctor, as a short term fill in at the small medical clinic in town. She has absolutely no intentions of staying because she intends to go to the city and help children who have no voice. But sometimes God has plans that just floor us, plans that are just as good as the ones we thought we had. Both Ethan and Thea have loads of pain in their life, Thea's just horrendous. But again, God makes all things new. Ethan is raising his brother two children after their parents die in a car accident and is having a rough go of it, when his much younger sister shows up out of the blue with nowhere to go. Thea is trying to help a young seven year old girl who nearly died of peritonitis while being raised by a great grandmother with dementia.

Oh, I just loved this book. Ruth Logan Herne writes directly from her heart and you feel every moment of it. I wept, I laughed, I praised God during this book. This precious town and its inhabitants will take their place right up there with Mitford and other wonderful fictional places. I look forward to the last in the series with Jazz's story. Highly recommended.

*My thanks to Net Galley for a copy of this book. The opinions stated here are entirely my own.

At Home in Wishing Bridge is another heartfelt read that I was emotionally invested in with all the characters that were loveable, flawed and real. Thea and Ethan had other dreams than practicing medicine in a small rural area. Ethan caring for his niece and nephew, flooding in the old practice, a move to a restored home with living space brought some unexpected happenings that just might be the answer to their dreams. There’s plenty of love in Wishing Bridge with members caring for others without expected any compensation. Ruth Logan Herne never fails to create a story showing her love for God, family, children and friends. At Home in Wishing Bridge was a touching story to show how caring for others can be the best medicine that will bring peace and strong deep friendships. It’s not about big dreams, lots of money and snubbing others but the day to day compassion for others. To bad Wishing Bridge is not a real town to go visit and perhaps make it home.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley and the author. I was not required to write a positive review but have expressed my sincere thoughts. I look forward to the next book in this wonderful series.

“Life doesn't always come with smooth trails and easy choices. Sometimes it takes a broken road to bring us where we need to be. Our broken roads brought us to each other first. To Hannah's Hope”~Thea

To Thea, Wishing Bridge was just a temporary stop-over to her dream road. What she didn't anticipate was how it got hold of her heart and made her wish for things she never thought she'd have. Spending most of her growing up years in Hannah's Hope foster home along with her two best friends, Kelsey & Jazz, has her disillusioned to anything permanent. Along with her less than stellar childhood under the care of a druggie mom, made her jaded for anything good. That is until this small town feel gave her hope for a brighter future. Along with Maggie and Jeb who opened their hearts & home to her.

“And after years of nothing even close to charming, the quaint town was calling to her. The questionn was—Did she dare answer?”

Then there's her temporary partner in the business—Ethan. He has goals, big ones, to return to Chicago and a prestigious job in a major hospital doing genetic research. It's what he was born to do, or so he thinks. Until God derails his plans and he became a parent to his niece & nephew after the untimely accident that killed their parents almost a year ago. Setting down roots in Wishing Bridge was suppose to be a short term time of regrouping and redefining the new “normal” for this unlikely family. When the time comes, will he be able to uproot the kids and sever all ties to a town that gets under your skin? A bond not so easily broken!

“A family. Not by blood. But by love. And maybe that was the best kind of family to have.”

This story is so emotionally packed and snags you from the start. Having read “Welcome to Wishing Bridge”, I was long anticipating Thea's story! And it's not just Thea...but Jazz, Kelsey & Hale, Ethan, Mara, Keegan, Max, Maggie & Jeb and a new cast of characters that I was looking forward to reconnecting with. The depth of this story will sweep you away and make you wish that the town of Wishing Bridge was a real place to visit. The town that embraces its own and nobody is a stranger; it makes you feel right at home from the get-go. This also deals with some pretty heavy and downright ugly topics, but with the grace and gentleness I've come to expect from a Herne novel. I can read the authors God-given wisdom through the pages and her ever encouraging words in difficult situations. Her characters speak right to my own heart, embracing me in their love & devotion to each other. A bond of friendship that can't be broken by anything in this world. I'm already missing them! Definitely looking forward to the next installment when Jazz gets to tell her own story. Faith, love and hope is what this series is all about...and don't forget the hard won happily-ever-after!

*I received a complimentary copy from the author and NetGalley and was under no obligation to leave a favorable review. All opinions are my own. *