The Wishing Bridge by Viola Shipman

With unabashed winter. Charm, The Wishing Bridge sparkles with humor and heart, fans of Kristy Woodson Harvey.

Henri goes back to her hometown, at Christmas, to convince her parents to sell their fa,mous Xmas store or she will be fired. Can she do it? Break her parents’ hearts?

Very interesting story about families and relationships. I thought it could have been shortened a bit. It reminded us of what is really Important. Great job.

Thanks to Net Galley for sending me an advanced reader’s copy for my review..

No one can tell a story like Viola Shipman. The Secret of Snow and A Wish for Winter are two of my favorite novels, both by this author, so I jumped at a chance to read this latest Christmas tale, The Wishing Bridge.

From early Grinch references to the incredible, over-the-top Christmas store owned by the main character’s parents, readers are in for a holiday treat. This book reminds me more of a Hallmark movie than the previous two and for good reason: it would make a great one!

Main character Henri used to adore Christmas and the magic her father created around the holiday, helping as the family started a Christmas-themed mega business in the small town in northern Michigan. After decades of distancing herself from home, she returns with the plan to convince her parents to sell their business to benefit her faltering career in mergers and acquisitions.

Readers of a certain age will relate to the many awesome ‘70s and ‘80s references. (Anyone else remember Glamour Shots?) The fact that the story will have a happy ending is never in doubt, yet just how Henri will get through her Scrooge-like lessons is. Shipman wraps up the story well, making me want another story with her as the heroine.

The book also features the Christmas novella Christmas Angels, a sweet tale to remind readers to believe.

Thank you to NetGalley and Graydon House for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

The Wishing Bridge has a lot of elements that make for a lovely holiday read: a German Christmas-themed small town in the midwest, a middle-aged protagonist, and a second-chance romance upon returning home.

To keep her ambitious job, Henri must convince her elderly parents to sell their local Christmas store to "the big guys." So, she heads back to her charming hometown to spend December making the deal.

There, she's surprised to find her old flame and memories that make her second guess her career and her life.

It's quick and super cozy in all the right ways!

There is nowhere else in today's fiction that captures the heart and soul of Christmas as eloquently as a Viola Shipman novel. The Christmas novels that Viola/Wade writes are instant reads for me, I know I will connect with them on a deeper level than most Christmas stories. The nostalgia of Santa, family and Christmas, ornament, candy, friendship, all of that is present in all of the Viola Shipman Christmas novels.

In this novel, Henri finds herself promising her corproate boss that she can get her parents to sell their Christmas legacy, everything her dad has put his blood, sweat and tears into for decades. As she returns home after a decade of being away at Christmastime, she finds herself reconnecting with family, friends, her first love and memories she hadn't let into her heart in a long time. Can she follow through and convince her family to sell or will she have a change of heart?

This is the perfect blend of Christmas and family for this holiday season. If a cup of cheer is your cup of cocoa, read this book as the warmth of the season surrounds you.

Thank you to the author, Harlequin Trade Publishing, and NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you Netgalley for this arc! This was a fun heartfelt Christmas read! I really enjoyed this! Henri has memories of her father working very hard to make his dreams come true. He built the most famous Christmas store in the small town of Frakenmuth a couple hours near Detroit. Henri left the small town to make something of herself separate of her families legacy. She works for the most cut throat corporate merger company. When her job is on the line and her boss tells her she has to get her father to sell his family business she’ll do anything to keep her job. What she wasn’t expecting was the memories and feels she got going home at Christmas. The feelings she’s been avoiding for decades.. Will she convince her father to sell? What will she learn by going home?

It was like stepping straight into a Hallmark Christmas Movie. I’ve had a secrete love affair with Michigan since I was a child and so I couldn’t wait to read this gem. It’s my first book by the author but oh my you’ve stolen my heart. It was everything about why we leave and why we come home. I don’t even have words in this moment, as I sit here on the plane with tears in my eyes. I can’t wait to share this one with others.

Oh I’m always so happy to see when Viola Shipman (Wade Rouse) has a new novel out! The books are always engaging and touching and they never disappoint! This one was perfectly timed as it has a Christmas theme. Protagonist Henri returns home to get her parents to sell their Christmas store (in Frankenmuth ,MI) and Henri has to deal with family and old boyfriends and her cutthroat job – while being reminded of the old saying “you can never go home again”. Of course I had NO idea that Frankenmuth is a real place! And it’s Bavarian (almost like Solvang in CA but Bavarian not Danish). And Christmas is a HUGE deal there! There is even a huge Christmas store there in real life like in the book!
Thank you for my copy and for having me as part of the tour!

If you’re new to Viola Shipman, you’re in for a treat. I adore this author and these books are always so warm and meaningful. Auto buy for sure for me.

The Wishing Bridge by Viola Shipman is a Christmas story. Having read many other books by this author, it is definitely not one of my favorites. The daughter returns home to try to convince her father to sell his business and in return will save her job. You know how it is going to turn out; pretty predictable.

The Wishing Bridge by Viola Shipman is a wonderful Christmas story with themes of memories and how to make our own future.Henrietta Wegner grew up with a father who wanted to celebrate Christmas every day.He started his business in a basement and it grew into a wonderful Christmas store in Frankenmuth Michigan.Now Henri works to shut down small businesses and streamline them with big ones for Tolliver and Company. Her boss wants her to talk her parents into selling their business.Will she be Herz Henri or Hart Henri?And what about Shep her high school boyfriend.When Henri was younger Shep broke her heart but they have very different memories of how that happened.The Wishing Bridge is another warm Viola Shipman novel!Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to read this ARC!

When Henrietta “Henri” Wegner was a child, she and her parents lived with grandparents. Her father started a small handmade Christmas business in the basement. It was his dream to own a store that celebrated Christmas all year long.

Fast forward a few decades. In Detroit, Henri is now 52 years old and a hotshot with a mergers and acquisitions corporate giant, Tolliver & Co. Their goal is to go after small businesses and sell them to larger companies. When the owner of Tolliver’s has a massive heart attack, his son, Benji, takes over.

It’s been a rough couple of years for Henri because she could not meet her goals. Henri sees the writing on the wall, the new kids coming in are hungrier, greedier, and less caring than ever before. They do not mind tearing people’s lives apart.

In desperation, Henri promises that she can get her parents to sell their store, Wegner’s, before Christmas. If she doesn’t come through, Benji will fire her in the new year. So, Henri heads back to Frankenmuth, Michigan, her hometown, to convince her parents to sell.

Wegner’s has indeed become the Christmas store capital of the world. Visitors come by the busload all year to enjoy the handcrafted items and experience the Hallmark-like-town Bavarian town.

When Henri arrives, memories flood back, and as the season progresses, she’s finding it harder and harder to discuss the store sale with her parents. Benji, the spoiled brat that he is, bullies her with texts about losing. And to top it off, her high school sweetheart, the one who proposed to her, is also back in Frankenmuth after a divorce.

I love Viola Shipman’s novels. They speak to a woman’s heart. This one was not as good as his other novels*, but I can’t put my finger on what the problem is. I do think that “The Wishing Bridge” would make a wonderful Hallmark movie.

The Wishing Bridge gets 4 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.

*In case you didn’t know, Shipman is the pseudonym of Wade Rouse. It was his grandmother’s name.

Thank you Harlequin and Netgalley for an ARC of The Wishing Bridge in exchange for my honest opinion.

After reading a few intense books, Viola Shipman is exactly what my brain and heart needed. A perfect Christmas book to show the meaning of family, love, and friendship. One to get my emotions going.

Henri thought she was following her dreams when she left her hometown to work in a big city after college. When her job is on the line, she makes a promise to her boss that may end up costing her her family in the long run. Returning home at Christmas to possibly destroy the family business, Henri begins to realize everything she has missed out on. Will she have a change of heart or will she carry out what she came to do?

This is the perfect Christmas book! It would make a great movie too. The setting came to life on the page and I loved reading about all the traditions.You'll find yourself laughing, crying and smiling right along with all the wonderful characters. A beautiful , feel good Christmas story that was just a delight to read, I didn't want it to end.

This wasn't my favorite Viola Shipman book but I did like that it was based on the real life Christmas town of Frankenmuth, Michigan and featured a second chance romance with a FMC in her 50s who returns to her small town hoping to win a promotion but falling for all the charm she ran away from. Good on audio with a bonus short story and note from the author included at the end.

Another great read by Shipman. Loved the Frankemuth setting and really enjoyed learning more of the history of the area.

I enjoyed this new Christmas novel by Shipman. However, I found it a bit slow at the beginning. Once the plot got better, it was a very quick read. Solid storyline about families, one's past, and making the right choices for the future. It's definitely a good Christmas read. Thanks NetGalley for the advanced copy. #NetGalley #TheWishingBridge

The prodigal daughter returns home with a goal of convincing her parents to sell their Christmas empire for her own career gain. However, when she returns to her small Michigan town, literally a Bavarian style Christmas town, with her father at the helm, she can't help but feel nostalgia for the past. Basically a cozy Hallmark Christmas movie all wrapped up with a bow.

Frankenmuth, Michigan - Present Day

Henrietta (Henri) Wegner has devoted her life to big business deals, putting her in an executive position at the firm where she has worked for her entire career. But the original owner has died, and his son has taken over, bringing a cutthroat business policy with him. Henri is warned just before Christmas that if she doesn't come up with a fantastic deal, she will be fired in the New Year. Impulsively, and in a panic, she promises her boss that she will do so by getting her parents to sell their extremely popular and much loved Christmas store to one of her firm's clients.

Located in the town of Frankenmuth, Michigan, Wegner's Winter Wonderland is the largest privately owned Christmas store in the world. Henri's father, devoted to Christmas and everything about it, has built it into the fascinating, and gigantic enterprise that it is today. Along with Henri's mother and brother, it's also a family store employing hundreds of locals, as well as keeping small businesses around the world busy by supplying Wegners with handmade ornaments, and other gifts.

Henri hasn't been home for Christmas for many years. Her parents and brother are surprised to see her, but also pleased, although her brother, Finn, suspects something right away. Not wanting to spring her plan on them too soon, Henri begins to investigate the company's finances, and business practices, sending this information to her boss back in Detroit. While she feels guilty doing this behind her father's back, she is hoping that there is some way she can convince him to sell to her company's client. And this would save her job.

Fitting back into the community, Henri begins to have doubts about her plan as she is constantly reminded that Wegners supports the very people and businesses in the little Bavarian styled town. How will they handle having a big corporation in their midst, especially knowing that it's all about profit, and not about the community? Is she really doing the right thing?

THE WISHING BRIDGE is a tough one to read at times. Henri isn't exactly someone who warms a reader's heart with her often cold hearted thoughts about her job. Will seeing old friends, an old love, and the warmth of her family's love loosen her own heartstrings? The ending may come as a surprise. (As an aside, having been to Frankenmuth and to Bronners Christmas Wonderland, the author nails the description of the town, and its surroundings!).

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC. In my mind Viola Shipman is the queen of holidays books. This story centers around 3 generations of woman and what they hope for the future.

Such a heartwarming story. Setting: Frankenmuth, Michigan a small Bavarian village with it's own unique history and culture. The author's descriptions are so interesting. The general feeling I got when reading the book is of Christmas's past as I grew up in the Midwest. Henri, the main character being an older women was relatable to me too. Nice Christmas read!