Magic Bridge by Thomasina Burke


Thomasina Burke, in her debut novel, has brought reading to a level that touches your heart and soul. Her characters, Bridgette and Matt, are friends, then lovers, then soul mates. They have a typical life in facing challenges and surmounting them, but that is not where and how the story ends. Magic Bridge takes us to the heart of their lives. Bridgette, a nurse and volunteer rescuer in Crown King AZ, is a damaged soul that isn’t open to love. Matt is a construction worker and bicyclist who is caring and giving. Their meeting is unique, their courtship is fun, and their end is not an end.



It is not a spoiler to let future readers know that Matt will not finish the story; Ms. Burke points that out in her prologue. What she does not do in the prologue is explain to her reader that she is going to touch your heart and soul in ways it may not have been touched before.  Development of the characters, including the cast of secondary characters, allows Bridgette and Matt to have a fullness that is not often found in novels.


Travelling the globe, Bridgette and Matt find new dimensions to their relationship and fall in love over and over again. The description of their visits is fully developed, allowing the reader to see the landscape and feel the breezes. This home-body is almost ready to hop on a plane to experience these travels with Bridgette and Matt.



On the editing side, this is one of the best-edited self-published novels I’ve read. Ms. Burke did not skimp in her endeavor. On  the emotional side, I was touched. I am not a “crier” yet I cried as Bridgette dealt with her sense of loss and mourning.



I was given this book by the author, upon request. She is a friend of a friend. Frankly, I was prepared to think it was an “okay” book. It’s not. I was blown out of the water. I sincerely hope Ms. Burke is working on a new book now. Magic Bridge left me wanting more. Not more of Bridgette and Matt, she gave it all in Magic Bridge, but she left me wanting more of her powerful writing.


Overall, if you don’t read this book, you’re going to miss an experience. Fair warning to future readers: read this book with tissues close by.  Although there is sadness in the book, it is more than that. It is a power of love and devotion that is often missed in today’s fast-paced dog-eat-dog world. If possible I would give this novel 10 out of 5 stars.


Thank you Thomasina Burke, for allowing me to read and experience emotions and feelings that I thought I could never feel. I am praying that this book has given you the impetus to write another.

6/18/2012 07:09:49 pm

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