The Bridge Tender

Sunset Beach #4

by Marybeth Mayhew Whalen

Emily must realize that her dreams didn't have to die with her first love.
When Emily Shaw, a young widow, learns that her late husband's last surprise for her involves returning to Sunset Beach, North Carolina, to realize an old dream of theirs, she reluctantly embarks on a summer of discovery in the midst of grief.
There, in the oasis of the beach community, she meets a host of townspeople with their own broken dreams and unexpected situations. As the island citizens divide over the fate of the nostalgic bridge, Emily happens upon a man who just may be the one to restore her faith in dreams, hope, and even love.

Genres: Romance, Contemporary, Christian Fiction, Fiction, Inspirational, Southern, Chick Lit

326 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 3, 2014

About the author

Marybeth Mayhew Whalen is the author of When We Were Worthy, The Things We Wish Were True and five previous novels. She speaks to women's groups around the US. She is the co-founder of the popular women's fiction site, She Reads www.shereads.org. Marybeth and her husband Curt have been married for 26 years and are the parents of six children. The family lives in North Carolina. Marybeth spends most of her time in the grocery store but occasionally escapes long enough to scribble some words. She is always at work on her next novel. You can find her at www.marybethwhalen.com.

Reviews

[Carmen Miller · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 ⭐️

[Gloria · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the fourth book in the Sunset Beach series and I have read them all and enjoyed them all. The Bridge Tender tells the love story of Ryan and Emily and how it ended too quickly. They spent their honeymoon at Sunset Beach and Ryan promised that they would own a home there one day. In his will he left money for Emily to buy a home at Sunset Beach. She does find and buy a home and spent the summer vacation from teaching there. The book tells the story of how she gradually heals and moves out of her time of grief. Part of her healing process takes place when she reaches out to help others. She makes new friends along the way and does come to feel at home. This is a sweet story with a surprise ending that wraps everything up in a special way.

[Athornton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Easy, beachy read (after crying the first 20 pages). Even a little religion thrown in!

[Hallie (Hallie Reads) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Marybeth Whalen’s newest novel, The Bridge Tender, is a charmingly sweet read. With a few moments that brought tears to my eyes and many more that made me laugh out loud, this story drew me in and would not let me go. Whalen beautifully explores love and loss and grief and hope, using the bridge as a central image to develop these themes. While I must admit that the intention behind the bridge metaphor comes across a bit overstated and obvious at times, I believe Whalen makes an important commentary on moving forward into the future - important to remember no matter the tragedies and trials of life. I enjoyed reading Whalen’s The Bridge Tender and would recommend it to anyone looking for an encouraging, heartwarming story. I am certainly looking forward to reading more novels by Marybeth Whalen. I greatly appreciate BookLook Bloggers for providing me with a copy of this novel and the opportunity to honestly review it. I was not required to write a positive review, and all the opinions I have expressed are my own. (I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”)

http://pagebypagebookbybook.blogspot....

[Tima · Rating 4 out of 5]

Emily is left devastated and heartbroken when her husband passes away from cancer. But before his death he left her with a strange request and the means to fulfill it. He wants her to purchase a summer house on "their" island. It was their dream and he wants her to go ahead and fulfill it, even though he's gone. Emily finally makes the trip, a year after his death. What she finds on the island goes way beyond a house. She finds healing and a community to belong to.

I've been a fan of this author after I picked up her first book several years ago. Her stories are sweet, even when sad. Beautiful, even when there is tragedy. The imagery alone is worth the read, but the spiritual messages and romance that are woven into the story make it one that is heartwarming as well as convicting. I lived for eight years on the coast of NC and the author does an excellent job of capturing the essence of living on the outer banks. I can't wait to read her next book.

I received this book free of charge from BookLook Bloggers in exchange for my honest review.

[Lisa Carter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sweetly compelling.

[J · Rating 2 out of 5]

Main Character is rather self centered. Once can predict the ending in less than half way through the book.

[Misty · Rating 1 out of 5]

Filled with cliches and outdated views. Not my cup of tea.

[Sara Hickman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Emily finds herself recently widowed. Her husband's last wish was for her to buy a house in Sunset Beach, a place where they honeymooned and dreamed of taking their future children. In the midst of her grief, she buys a house and spends the summer fixing it up. Will her new community help her to not move on from her grief, but move to forward?

If you have never read a book set in a place you have lived, this is my suggestion to do so! It was so fun reading The Bridge Tender because I lived just minutes from Sunset Beach. There were so many real moments in this book. From Whalen's description of how people deal with death and how it impacts one's faith, to God's sovereignty in ALL situations (even the hard ones), to intriguing and entertaining neighbors, I found myself laughing and crying. Well worth the read.

[Sarah Chapmon · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is my second time reading this book! After 10 years, I wanted to give it another go. I enjoyed the main character Emily and getting to know her insecurities, humor, and quirks. Although the first several chapters are wrapped up with grief, I love that the majority of the book is about her looking around, helping others, and trying (and struggling) to move on. Kyle is another character I enjoyed reading, as well as Amber, Claire, and the kids. I like that this story is multifaceted and not just about romance (although I love me some romance). This story shows how grief and healing are journeys paved with meaningful relationships, looking outward instead of inward, honesty, grace, laughter, tears, and more than anything—hope.

[Carol · Rating 5 out of 5]

When a young widow Emily Shaw learns that her husbands last surprize involves returning to Sunset Beach, North Carolina to realize an old dream of theirs she embarks on a summer of discovery in the mist of grief. She meets the towns people with their broken dreams and unexpected situations. As the citizens divide over the fate of a bridge Emily meets a man who just maybe the one to restore her faith in dreams,hope and love. A truly great read and hope to visit Sunset beach to see for myself the town and its people. Hope this author writes more about the town and its people.

[Linda C · Rating 3 out of 5]

In the prologue, Emily and Ryan are spending their honeymoon at Sunset Beach, NC where Ryan's family used to spend summers in his youth. They promise to save for a place their in the future. However, in chapter 1 Emily is grieving for the loss of Ryan to cancer 5 years later and find that he has left a special gift for Emily. The story shares her depth of sorrow and the changes his gift brings to her future. Serious religious theme. Plot was a bit predictable.

[Laura]

Great Christian Fiction, quick read, book about a woman whose husband's life insurance has to be used for a house at Sunset Beach. She takes her time buying a house but gets fully immersed in the island once she makes the purchase. Great people, and a reminder that we should all reach out to others and try to help them, as needed. It's also important to be patient with others and hear them out since different people handle illness, mourning, and loss differently.

[Janice Branning · Rating 4 out of 5]

Didn’t realize this was a beach read, but it wasn’t all bad. I sometime find books like this a little realistic, but with the cold weather here, I enjoy a happy story with a small town charm. Emily a widow is left money from her husband with the wish for her to buy a summer home on the beach. In this small town there is a bridge that is old and go up and down at Inconvenient times. As with most towns some people don’t want change, but change must come if a town is to succeed.

[Marisa Carter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sweet, well written story with deeper meanings of grief, loneliness, forgiveness and choosing to see blessings in each day because of circumstances and people in our lives. "The only way you could safely get from one place to the other was to count on God to get you there" I will be reading more from this author!

[Lisa M · Rating 5 out of 5]

LOVED it! I have enjoyed all of the Sunset Beach books, and this one not only made me cry, but laughed and loved. Here's to another great beach read!

Merged review:

LOVED it! I have enjoyed all of the Sunset Beach books, and this one not only made me cry, but laughed and loved. Here's to another great beach read!

[Margie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading this book because it is set in Sunset Beach, near to where I live. There are references to the old swing bridge connecting Sunset Beach island to the mainland, and the discussion in the community about whether or not to build a new bridge to replace it. There's a lot of references to stores and places I've been, so it made it entertaining.

[Aimee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Took a minute to get there

Great book! I originally discovered this gem in half priced books but didn't buy it. After not being able to get it off my mind I decided to get it on amazon, and I am so glad that I made that decision.

[Vivian · Rating 3 out of 5]

Picked up this book because it’s set in my favorite place in the whole world. The story itself is Hallmark movie channel stuff...sweet romance, which is just not a genre I’m really into anymore which is the reason I only awarded three stars.

[Debbie Huey · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book! So well written. Being a widow myself, it was as if the author looked in my heart and wrote this story based on what she saw. The feelings, the thoughts, the unfulfilled dreams of losing your husband….Thank you Mary Beth Whalen for writing what I could not put into words.

[Kim Wingo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great book by MaryBeth. Her books are written around Sunset Beach and that is what draws me to them not to mention she is a NC author.

[Sally Andrews · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good summer read. Nothing earth-shaking, but I DID love the Christian tones in this book. Sweet story, poignant and tender.

[Carol · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a sweet story with many twists and turns. I enjoyed the story line immensely .

[Cindy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Another Christian writer who just doesn’t have much depth in her writing. This story was too sappy for me!I only read it because I love Sunset Beach, NC.

[Vicki · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've loved every Marybeth Mayhew Whalen book that I'd read so far, and this one didn't disappoint! It is a wonderful story of loss and learning to live again. Definitely recommend it!!

[Jen Fitzgerald · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bittersweet book of loss and finding love again. Easy read and set along the North Carolina beaches which is an area and setting I like to read about.

[Cathy Bickerstaff · Rating 3 out of 5]

A young widow's story of grief and hope, and how you never know how your life can effect others.

[sandy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very sweet and light reading. A 3 1/2 for me.

[Robbin Golden · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sad, real emotions, tender, good character development, good ending. I like this author.

[Melissa Campbell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sigh. I miss the beach. So glad this is the book we got to read for book club this month! It is part of the Sunset Beach series.