Wishing on Willows by Katie Ganshert Review & Excerpt

Robin Price has her hands and heart full.  Robin owns a struggling cafe, Willow Tree Cafe, that is made from memories of her late husband.  Her spunky son is the center of her life, but single-parenting, and managing the cafe and wearing her thin.

Suddenly her life adds another stress--the town wants to build condos where her cafe and a local ministry are located.  Ian McKay is heading the operation and constantly in her life to persuade her to sell. The town begins to form opinions and pick sides as business and personal mix.

 Ian has his own motives for making sure the condos are built, but all Robin can see is her own need for the cafe.  Ian's family business depends on this business deal and Robin feels that the Willow Tree Cafe is part of her family.  Both Robin and Ian will struggle with the grief that is hidden inside of them, and come to surrender their plans and themselves to a God of second chances.

I was thrilled to get to read Wishing on Willows after reading and reviewing Wildflowers from Winter last year.  Wildflowers from Winter was one of the top ten books I read for 2012, and I can pretty much guarantee that even though it is early in the year, that Wishing on Willows will be on my top ten for 2013.  Here's why.

Katie Ganshert has this uncanny ability to write about really hard topics, topics that matter and people really deal with, in a way that isn't just "writer's fluff."  Novels are often the stuff that we read because it escapes real life, but Ganshert doesn't do that.  She brings in the hard, heart-wrenching things that we deal with and walks us by faith in God's plan.

Robin wrestles with God and Ganshert writes what many of us think and have gone through, "She's believed, with absolute certainty, that God could have healed her husband.  Nothing was beyond His power...But God didn't heal Micah. And now Willow Tree was slipping through her fingers...and she found herself in the exact same place as before.  Certain God could save it, unsure if He would."  Ganshert walks Robin and us through the way God works, not always in our way, but in a way that always shows His love.

Something else really well done was how Ganshert allowed us to love Robin & Micah's relationship and yet feel as Robin allowed room in her heart to let go of the pain and to continue her journey with God passed the pain of the past.

Both Ian and Robin were well developed, as well as the character's that surrounded them.  It was wonderful to learn more about Bethany and Evan--because as readers we get attached to our characters, so I was happy to see them.

I loved this book and would highly recommend it to anyone--but I would want them to read Wildflowers from Winter first.  Both are excellent books.

I cannot wait to read more from Ganshert.  Her two books have been a highlight on my reading list.

Read the an excerpt for Wildflowers from Winter here.
Read the first three chapters for Wishing on Willows here!  I think that with each chapter the book got better.  And that is how a good book should be.