Fly Girl says, “Like a warm summer breeze, warm and soft…”

A single father gets an unexpected second chance at love in the heartwarming new novel from the author of The Curious Charms of Arthur Pepper

It’s summer in the city and passions are soaring along with the temperature—for everyone but Mitchell Fisher, who hates all things romance. He relishes his job cutting off the padlocks that couples fasten to the famous “love story” bridge. Only his young daughter, Poppy, knows that behind his prickly veneer, Mitchell still grieves the loss of her mother.

Then one hot day, everything changes when Mitchell courageously rescues a woman who falls from the bridge into the river. He’s surprised to feel an unexpected connection to her, but she disappears before he can ask her name. Desperate to find out her identity, Mitchell is shocked to learn she’s been missing for almost a year. He teams up with her spirited sister, Liza, on a quest to find her again. However, she’s left only one clue behind—a message on the padlock she hung on the bridge.

Brimming with Phaedra Patrick’s signature charm and a sparkling cast of characters, The Secrets of Love Story Bridge follows one man’s journey to unlock his heart and discover new beginnings in the unlikeliest places.

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Here is the beautiful UK cover!! Which one do you like better?

Fly Girl’s Review

This book was not what I expected. I actually thought it was going to be a historical fiction when I read the blurb, not a contemporary romance, but even worse for me, it turned out to really be women’s fiction. It’s like a warm summer breeze, warm and soft. The story is really about how a man overcomes the loss of his partner and daughter’s mother. He is terribly in love with her when she suddenly passes, and the rest of the book is about him realizing he isn’t able to live in the past, and he can’t make time stand still or take on guilt for the accident.

After she passes, he quits his upscale job for something with more stable hours so he can raise his young daughter. By doing this, he reverts to lists and schedules to keep them surviving but doesn’t realize all he’s doing is keeping them both from discovering there is still life out there and how to be a part of it. By happenstance, he creates a situation where he becomes the center of attention in his community and with a young lady that draws him out of his routines and shows him that life is going on with or without him.

When he starts to have feelings for Liza, he fights them because he feels he will betray Anita. Liza tries to show him that he can still have both, but like a man, he messes it up and just about loses her too. That’s when he really wakes up and makes changes in his life to live again and not be stuffed away in an attic apartment. His daughter is also more intuitive than I think she would be at age 10, and helps him realize she will always remember her mother but needs to move on also.

With all of that said, the characters are heartwarming if a little discombobulated. I never really did get a good feel for what any of them except Anita looked like. Also, I didn’t feel invested in this story and it was slow to read. There was a little action and that portion I breezed right through, but truly the whole story seemed almost as depressing as the top floor attic he lives in. There are a few prose in the book that were profound about recovering from death, but otherwise I’m not sure I will remember this one except for the fact I gave it a 3.5 which I rarely do. If you are into Women’s fiction and like unusual points of view, this one’s for you. If you are trying to figure out how to move on after a death, this one might help.

3.5 of 5 Propellers

Connect with Phaedra Patrick

Website | Goodreads | Amazon

Phaedra qualified firstly as a stained glass artist before gaining her professional Marketing qualifications. She has worked as a waitress, stained glass designer, film festival organiser and communications manager. She enjoyed her first real writing success when she entered and won several short story competitions, and she now writes full time.

She lives in Saddleworth, UK and is represented by Clare Wallace at Darley Anderson Literary, Film and TV Agency

All photos came from the author’s website.