When my daughter, my best friend, our dog, and I took a road trip last July (Hitting the Road, Just Three Girls and a Dog), we passed through Loveland, CO. We hadn’t planned to stop, but we noticed a giant heart in front of a lake, realized that it was one of those sculptures you “lock your love” on, and decided to stop. Like legit…we had passed it and turned around to go back. This was, after all, a nine-day trip with two specific destinations planned (Loveland was not one of them). Everything else was whatever we wanted to do.

We took some great pictures, met someone who was originally from our area but had relocated to Colorado, and went on our way. It was one of those moments that I wished I could have shared with Dennis, but then again, his not being here was the impetus for the trip. I always told him I wanted to take a huge road trip, but Dennis was a planner. He would never head out on a vacation without a plan for every…single…day.

I find myself wishing a lot of things as Corinne and I navigate life without him (and without my mom). I wish we had taken a vacation to London so he could see White Hart Lane, home of his beloved Tottenham Hotspur Football Club. I wish we had made it to 20 years…or 30…40 might have been pushing it. I wish he could be the one to yell at Corinne so I wouldn’t have to. 😁 I wish I could hear him say “love you, see you” one more time. 💖

There are some things that wishing won’t “make it so.” 💔

Almost a year ago, one of my favorite authors Amanda Prowse invited me to join a Facebook group called My Book Friends. The group was founded by 12 bestselling authors: Kay Bratt, Camille Di Maio, Tammy L. Grace, Amanda Prowse, Steena Holmes, Jamie Beck, Nancy Naigle, Kerry Lonsdale, Barbara Hinske, Leigh Duncan, Elana Johnson, and Tonya Kappes. It has more than 11,000 members and is truly a book lover’s dream. The founders take turns hosting each day, group members share reviews, pictures of book mail, there are giveaways by the founders, a newsletter you can subscribe to. It’s really like a virtual book club and quickly became my favorite Facebook group. (I know, you’re shocked. 🙄🤣)

Recently, the authors started sharing information about a unique series of books: The Wishing Tree series. Book 1 is a prologue that previews the beginning of the next six books in the series. There are 13 books total, novella length, written by eight different authors.

I’ve reviewed Book 1 here, but I pre-ordered the entire series and can’t wait until I Wish… hits my Kindle on March 2. Books 2-7 release weekly until April 6, and books 8-13 release beginning September 1 through October 13. I’ll be reviewing them as I go, probably grouping some of them together since they’re short and only a couple hours of reading.

My wish for today is that you’ll enjoy these books as much as I think I’m going to enjoy them…if the prologue is any indication of the quality of the series.

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Book Review

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
5 Stars for The Wishing Tree (Book 1) by Amanda Prowse, Kay Bratt, Tammy L. Grace, Barbara Hinske, Camille Di Maio, and Ashley Farley

110 pages
Publisher: Red Thread Publishing Group
Publication Date: February 9, 2022
Purchased on Amazon

Publisher’s Description

Wishes in branches tied with string. Someone’s hopes. Another’s dreams.

Welcome to Linden Falls, Vermont, the picturesque small town that everyone dreams of living in. Within the charming streets of a community of people who care about one another, lies the heart of the town—the infamous Wishing Tree on the downtown square. The stately Linden tree is beautiful and made even more so by the shimmer of ribbons that flutter from the sprawling branches.

Tourists from all over the world flock to town and join the locals to hang ribbons of hope from the branches of the majestic tree. Some believe it’s magic, others think it’s old folklore, but one thing that is indisputable is that love, forgiveness, and other happily ever afters are all made possible when someone takes a chance and hangs a wish from a branch.

Enjoy this peek into the quaint town of Linden Falls and the lives of its residents and guests in this prologue novella, then join a handful of bestselling, award-winning authors as they bring the Wishing Tree series alive and leave you with a feeling of peace and happiness from book to book.

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Full Book List:

• Book 1: The Wishing Tree
• Book 2: I Wish… by Amanda Prowse
• Book 3: Wish You Were Here by Kay Bratt
• Book 4: Wish Again by Tammy L. Grace
• Book 5: Workout Wishes & Valentine Kisses by Barbara Hinske
• Book 6: A Parade of Wishes by Camille Di Maio
• Book 7: Careful What You Wish by Ashley Farley
• Book 8: Gone Wishing by Jessie Newton
• Book 9: Wishful Thinking by Kay Bratt
• Book 10: Overdue Wishes by Tammy L. Grace
• Book 11: A Whole Heap of Wishes by Amanda Prowse
• Book 12: Wishes of Home by Barbara Hinske
• Book 13: Wishful Witness by Tonya Kappes

I am so excited to read this series! I can’t wait to meet the residents and visitors to Linden Falls, who I’m expecting will fall under the spell of this small town and its magical linden tree. From reading the excerpts, I can already picture some of the characters. I love that the stories are authored by different women because it gives every character a distinct voice. And I’m really intrigued to see how they will all weave the same characters into each unique story.

Book 1 introduces us to Neva Cabot, the matriarch of Linden Falls. The town’s oldest resident, she owns the Wishing Tree Inn and has deemed herself Curator of Wishes. The Wishing Tree folklore predates Neva, but she intends to make sure its legacy continues forever. She touches on the idea that she knows she won’t be around forever, so I fear for the tears I may shed by the end of the series. But the one-chapter introduction to the series creates the feeling of magic that is Linden Falls.

In I Wish…, we meet Verity, married to celebrity chef Sonny, mother of the teenage Sophie. As Verity uncorks a bottle of wine after a busy day at the restaurant she and Sonny built together, she mourns the life they had 20 years ago when they met. After Sophie reveals a bombshell, Verity finds herself looking for somewhere to escape.

Wish You Were Here begins with Neva heading out to find someone who placed a fairy door by the Wishing Tree. She reaches a home where the Stallard family moved in a few weeks prior: eight-year-old Breeze (who left the fairy door), teenage Carly, and their mom Janie. It’s clear from the tone that Janie is running away from something.

Wish Again centers on Paige Duncan, an illustrator who left Linden Falls for Albany but finds herself returning home to live with her mother Margot, who owns the bookstore. Paige lost her faith in the Wishing Tree with the loss of her father. She doesn’t understand how her mother keeps believing and telling her to “wish again.”

When we meet Pam Olson in Workout Wishes & Valentine Kisses, she is closing up a storage unit in Boston after her divorce from Lance Foster is finalized. On her way back to Linden Falls, she passes by the Wishing Tree and realizes that the belief in the tree’s power is alive and well. It brings her comfort, and a spur-of-the-moment decision kicks off her new life in her hometown.

A Parade of Wishes begins in New York where Liz Guidry, a muralist, meets Neva in an elevator on their way to a nursery reveal for Patricia, Neva’s goddaughter. Liz is surprised to discover that Neva and Patricia’s mother Stella are childhood friends because Stella is so “Park Avenue” and Neva…well, Neva is not. From the preview, we don’t know how Liz will find herself in Linden Falls, but with Neva in the picture, we certainly know that she will.

Mary May’s husband Orville is having an affair in Careful What You Wish. She discovers lace panties in his work pants while doing laundry, and confides in her boss. Mary spent a decade placing ribbons on the Wishing Tree, hoping for a baby, which she thought would have saved her marriage. Now, she just thinks of the tree as a tourist trap.

So many stories, so many characters, so many wishes. I can’t wait. 🥰

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