Anne Krist
Sweet and romantic–forever love!
Sweet and romantic–forever love!
[emotional, forever love, heartfelt, star-crossed lovers, betrayal, soul mates, eternal love, military romance]
Winner, Gold Medal! Best Romance 2020 by Coffee Pot Book Club!!
A sailor’s heart is hardened by betrayal. A woman wonders how things went so wrong. Burned bridges can’t be rebuilt. Or…can they?
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Not your typical "secret baby" romance. This Southern tale of love lost, love found will stir your emotions!
Consider the role of strangers in our lives. An unknown postman in Virginia hides a bag of mail one day. His simple action sets in motion untold consequences for many others—strangers—all over the country. How many bridges were burned in that forgotten mail pouch?
Sara Richards’s world is rocked when three love letters from 1970 are delivered decades late. The letters were written by Paul Steinert, a young sailor who took her innocence with whispered words of love and promises of forever before leaving for Vietnam. Sara is left behind, broken hearted and secretly pregnant, yearning for letters she never received.
Then Paul died.
Now, years later, she discovers the betrayal wasn’t Paul’s, when her mother confesses to a sin that changed their lives forever. How can Sara reveal to Paul’s parents that they have a granddaughter they’ve missed the chance to know? Even worse, how will she find the words to tell her daughter that she’s lived her life in the shadow of a lie?
Picking her way through the minefields of distrust and betrayal, Sara finds that putting her life together again while crossing burning bridges will be the hardest thing she’s ever done.
"Sara Richards was young and innocent when she met and fell in love with Paul Steinert. With whispered words of endearment, he promises things a young woman yearns to hear. But when Paul leaves for Vietnam, he leaves Sara crushed and pregnant. Her parents never liked him and this proves they were right. Or were they? Flash forward thirty years and Sara received three love letters from Paul before he was killed in Vietnam. Armed with the letters, she realizes the betrayal wasn't Paul's but someone she thought would never hurt her. Armed with the truth, she must cross burned bridges to forge a new future for herself and her daughter.
"Burned Bridges is a compelling family drama filled with young love, best intentions, regret, betrayal, forgiveness, and second chances. Anne Krist builds the conflict and emotional trauma with the same flair as a pastry chef makes a showcase cake. Layer upon layer, emotion rises until the characters have no choice but to react. The plot moves at a good pace with plenty of characters to interact with. Superb characterization of the main characters, especially Sara. The conflict is very realistic but over overly done. The finale left me a little empty, as if I had cried for an hour but in a good way. Life is often a series of events out of our control. How we react and move forward is the key to a well-lived life. If you love dramatic family sagas with plenty of emotion, you have to read Burning Bridges. Highly recommend!" - 5 stars, N.N. Light
"...an emotionally captivating tale from beginning to end. ... a beautiful story about a young love ripped apart that burns bright through two decades of separation." - 5 Ribbons, Chrissy, Romance Junkies
"I absolutely adored this story ... packed with real emotion
... There was a powerful "WOW" factor..."
5 Hearts and Reviewer Top Pick, Diana, Night
Owl Romance
"Rarely does a story come along which touches one in countless
ways from every affecting scene, yet this writer does so with her
first release. The name of Anne Krist will become recognized as
an author who conveys genuine and heightened feelings between her
memorable characters.
....
With surprising twists and believable interplay between characters,
BURNING BRIDGES is an unforgettable love story filled with passionate
desires and potent emotions."
5 Stars, Amelia, eCataRomance
"Burning Bridges is a yummy romance. Anne Krist has a talent
for conveying great emotion. Keep a box of tissues close at hand
when you read Burning Bridges. I was wiping tears throughout the
book. The plot quickly captured my interest, and I felt I was part
of the drama. The tension between Paul and Sara (both are stubborn
and hardheaded) left me tingling. The love they shared was obvious.
I did not want this story to end. Fans of romance should place Burning
Bridges at the top of this summer's reading list."
5 Stars, Anne, Review
Your Book
"...a strong and poignant love story... Displaying unwavering
talent when dealing with delicate situations, Anne Krist's BURNING
BRIDGES stayed with me long after I finished."
5 Pixies Recommended Read, Twila King, Dark
Angel Reviews
"Ms. Krist has a heart-warming, emotional story on her hands.
... This is one I highly recommend!"
5 Cups, Krista, Coffee
Time Romance
"...a beautiful story about a love that lasted through
years, distance, and lies."
4.5 Lips, Alisha, Two
Lips Reviews
"The story of Burning Bridges hooked me from the very beginning.
Anne Krist knows how to bring out my emotions. I was mad, frustrated,
sad and happy, and that was just the first fifty pages. Anne tells
a story thats bittersweet and sexy and I wanted to read more. I
would highly recommend Anne Krist's Buning Bridges."
Kate, a reader
"I just finished reading BURNING BRIDGES. Thank you for writing such a powerful story about how real love can overcome all obstacles. I appreciate the fact that Sara and Paul were imperfect and made mistakes. They needed each other to polish off their rough edges and make them complete. How nice that characters of middle age were written as attractive and sexual human beings." A reader, Virginia
"I have to stop reading Anne Krist (and Dee S. Knight) stories before bed--I stay up way too late to finish them!" A reader, Daniel
"I give Burning Bridges 6 stars out of 5!! A true love story ... I'm ready for more." - A reader, Byron, TaylorMade Bod
"Intensely emotional."
Jasmine Haynes, author of Show
and Tell
"I read 'Burning Bridges' by Anne Krist in one sitting. From
its powerful, immediate opening I was captivated. ... There are
twists and turns throughout the story and I always cared for and
believed in the characters - I really wanted them to win through
in the end. ... if you are looking for a poignant yet powerful love
story, 'Burning Bridges' is it."
Lindsay Townsend, author of Flavia's
Secret
"...without a doubt one of the best books I've read. From
the moment I started reading I couldn't put it down. ... Thanks
for writing a book that touched my heart so much."
Judith Leigh, author of When
the Vow Breaks, coming this September from Highland Press
"Loved it. Just loved it." - Beverly, a Beaufort reader
"Compelling characters and a full, satisfying ending."
Margie, a reader
"I loved it! And now my daughter's reading it." -- Sherry, a reader
"[a] wonderfully written story with a universal message." -- Breia, Paranormal Romance Reviews
"I couldn't put it down."
Caroline, a reader
The brown mailing envelope lounged against the back door, appearing deceptively like a friend passing the time. Sara Richards snatched it up with one hand while fitting the key in the lock with the other. A quick glance showed the addressee to be Mary Ellen Noland, her mother. Tape held the flap end closed and her mother's scrawl crossed the other end. "Call me when you've read this."
Strange. She hung up her keys and dropped her purse on the table, examining the return address. Department of the Navy. Her father had been dead over ten years. What would the Navy be sending her mother now?
She loosened the tape and pulled out a letter then spilled a second envelope onto the table. The smaller pouch was addressed to her, Sara, from the U.S. Postal Service and had been forwarded to the Navy. Frowning, she skimmed the letter: Recently recovered bags of mail...hidden in a storage shed in Virginia Beach since 1970...enclosed FPO letters sent to Sara Noland...forwarded from Oceana NAS to the Department of Navy...sent in care of Mrs. Mary Ellen Noland for Sara Noland...
Boneless, she dropped into a chair and stared at the USPS envelope. 1970. So long ago and yet like yesterday. Only one person would have written her from overseas, and he hadn't sent any letters. In fact, he'd disappeared, forgetting she lived and leaving her to face the disastrous following months alone.
Then he'd died.
No, these letters couldn't be from Paul Steinert.
But who else?
Sara's Siamese, Pi R Squared, rubbed his head against her ankle and pled for food, but she ignored him. With surprisingly steady hands, she opened the postal service pouch. Someone—her mother?—had slit the end of this also, and then taped it closed. Three smaller envelopes fell out. She'd seen his handwriting only once but recognized it immediately. Her hand flew to her mouth. Blood roared in her ears, blocking Squared's plaintive meow.
An image filled her mind. Not how he looked the first time she'd seen him, but after they'd been meeting for several weeks. The wind off the ocean ruffled his short blond hair and love filled his eyes, eyes bluer than an autumn sky. That was Paul as she dreamed him after he left and later, when she damned him for forgetting her. When she heard he'd been killed in action and all during those interminable months when she longed for one last chance to hold him, she pictured him there, on the beach at Sandbridge.
For the first time in years, the pain of his death crashed over her. Her grief now was nothing compared to the agony when she'd first heard, when she'd wanted to die, too. Worn down over the years, his memory was a dull ache, familiar, like a friend she counted on to be there.
She picked up one of the small envelopes. On a back corner, he'd noted it as number twenty-nine. Checking the other two, she saw a twenty-eight and thirty. He'd written thirty letters? How could that be? She hadn't received even one. Thirty letters couldn't have been lost due to a foul up in the mail.
Mechanically, she dumped a packet of dry food in Squared's dish and then called her mother.
"I thought it would be you. Have you read the letters?"
"No. What happened, do you know?" Scattered on the table, the three packets drew her gaze and she stared as though trying to read their meaning through the sealed paper.
"Only what the Department of Navy letter said. Some bags of mail were lost. I suppose if I weren't still receiving part of Dad's retirement, they wouldn't have found me."
Sara closed her eyes and leaned against the wall. "I mean, do you know what happened to the rest of the letters?"
"What?" There was no mistaking the naked fear in her mother's voice.
"The envelopes are numbered. I have twenty-eight through thirty. What do you think happened to the others?" Tension radiated through her shoulders and neck. Her mother was about to say something she didn't want to hear, she knew it.
"Sara, you have to understand, Dad and I only wanted what was best for you. You were a child, a high school senior with a wonderful future in front of you. You'd been accepted at William and Mary. The last thing you needed was to get mixed up with a sailor who would love you and leave you. Which, I might add, is exactly what he did."
Sara could barely suck air into her lungs. Her fingers whitened with the hold she had on the phone cord. "What did you do, Mother?"
