Didn't think I could love this one more than Tending Roses, but I do. Bittersweet. About forgiveness and finding the courage to move forward. I was especially touched by the secondary story of Eudora Gibson and June Jaan. An unexpected rightness and joy to that part of the story.Sometimes you have to suffer the loss of everything you think matters, to not miss what truly matters in your life.Thank you, Lisa Wingate, for reminding us to be grateful and to cherish what we've been given.

Good hope roadIn the aftermath of a disastrous tornado the town has to come together to rebuild what once was. Jenilee rescues an old woman stuck in a well which starts a small spark or romance with the grandson.

SUMMARY: Twenty-year-old Jenilee Lane whose dreams are as narrow as the sky is wide, is the last person to expect anything good to come out of the tornado that rips across the Missouri farmland surrounding her home. But some inner spark compels her to rescue her elderly neighbor, Eudora Gibson, from the cellar in which she's been trapped. To make her way to the nearby town of Poetry, where the townspeople have begun to gather. To collect from the landscape letters, photographs, and mementos that...

This is the second installment in Ms. Wingate's Tending Roses series. It's an easy read about human connections and the things we mistake for important instead of treasuring those people who truly are important. I preferred Tending Roses, but truthfully, I'm not sure what really links these two books together in a series other than the onset of dementia in central characters of both books and perhaps the setting -- both take place in the midwest -- Kansas and Missouri. And because I wasn't total...

I like the author's style of writing but the storyline was mediocre. Good character development and good underlying theme, just not the most exciting book to read.

I know I'm in the minority here, but I was not a fan of this book. While I loved Tending Roses (the first book in this series), this book was slow moving and even though I gave it a chance, it never grabbed my attention. Plus, I couldn't connect with any of the characters. They seemed very flat. I wanted to like it so much, because I'm a fan of this author, but after getting more than halfway through the book, I finally gave up.

Maybe I had too high of expectations for Good Hope Road since I loved “Before We Were Yours”. This book is centered around Jenilee Lane who lives down Good Hope Road. This is just all too - unimaginative? Anyway, a tornado hits this town called Poetry (again, really?)and Jenilee is a little girl who has been thought of as the town waif. After the tornado hit, Jenilee finds pictures, mementoes, and letters that are rain soaked and laying everywhere. She decides to pick them up and display them at...

Jennilee Lane is a strong young woman, who took care of her ailing mother before she passed, her teenage brother, and living with an alcoholic father. All while a town turned their head on what they knew was happening behind closed doors. But when the town is devastated by a tornado, it is Jennilee that comes to their rescue, showing them she is strong and can get them through a tragedy when they themselves have trouble. I enjoyed this story of Jennilee and her family, town, and dreams. How when...

Good Hope Road by Lisa WingateYears: Current day? UnsureLocation: Poetry, Missouri (fictional town)Main Characters:Jenilee Lane: Taken care of brother and daddy since mama diedEudora Gibson: Jenilee's neighbor, house gone after tornadoJune Jaans: Jenilee's neighbor, widower (yes, a man)Nate: Jenilee's 16 yr old brotherDrew: Older brother, left years agoDr. Albright: Helped out with injuries at the armoryMazelle Sibley: Mean woman who never liked JenileeThe story is told in first person alternate...

I love Wingate’s writing style. She’s one of the best I’ve read at first-person narratives. This one had great characters and some good storylines. Hard things, but tempered with hope. This is one of Wingate’s secular inspirational titles, so my main objection involves a fair smattering of language and some unresolved threads of immorality. Characters’ ideas of God and angels were also a little off. I enjoyed seeing the siblings come together again, and Eudora Gibson’s own story was a nice addit...

Great storytelling without being preachy. A crisis comes to in a small town in Missouri and how the townspeople react to the situation. The characters were so well drawn that the story could have happened anywhere. A book where families find to themselves and where a so called "worthless trash" show courage, kindness, empathy and real understanding for others.My favorite-- "In the end it is the small things that count"

I don't know what it is about Lisa Wingate. Her novels are easy to read, similar to each other, and fairly predictable. They are also incredibly compelling. Good Hope Road is the the second book after Tending Roses. It's a stand alone novel, although some of the characters from Tending Roses appear, and these characters will appear in The Language of the Sycamores.When a tornado destroys the town of Poetry, Missouri, Jenilee finds herself and her purpose. Finding oneself and place in life is a s...

"Faith is a stalwart ship, carrying us through the gale, not destroyed by the ocean, but strengthened by it. Even the fiercest of life's trials are no match for her sails. Trials pass like a storm. The day rises anew, and we rise with the day."

I liked this sweet story, but for me it was too drawn out. I listened to the audio version and enjoyed the narrators and change in voices, very good. I enjoyed the message of hope and putting aside differences in order for a community to heal and rebuild for the greater good.What confused me: I kept thinking this book would present characters from Lisa Wingate's "Tending Roses" but I missed the connection. I enjoyed the former much more as this one just went on way too long for my liking.

Good Hope Road I finished Good Hope Road last night. I didn't realize I was in for a good cry session! This was a really touching book. It caused me to evaluate myself on many levels. (It wasn't a very long book how did it hit me from so many angles?) For example: How often do I hide behind what I perceive others think of me? How often do I make and hold tight to inaccurate judgements about people? How often do I refuse to allow someone to change? How often does the Lord have to use dramatic eve...

When a cluster of tornadoes strike Missouri, Jenilee's home town of Poetry, Missouri is devastated. Her house escaped damage, but her neighbour's didn't. Jenilee has grown up to be quiet and to stay to herself since her mother died and her father is a long term alcoholic, but like some people do, she finds she can't stay indoors, and steps out of her house to rescue her neighbour and her granddaughter, who are trapped in a storm cellar. She goes on to start collecting photos and letters that hav...

I was gifted this book since it takes place in Missouri, and I used to live in Missouri. A series of tornadoes destroy a wide, multi-state swath of the Midwest/Plains, including the town of Poetry, central to the story. This book was written before the Joplin, Mo tornado, but it seemed like it could have been inspired by it. The author seemed a bit confused about the geography of Missouri, as if she had changed her mind where people lived. The doctor was from St Louis, but later was going home t...

I think I liked this even better than Tending Roses! I read it in two days, which for me is unheard of. It’s the story of what happens to a small town in the aftermath of a bunch of tornadoes. And how badly we can misjudge people. Told I’m the voices of two very different characters. I will admit I didn’t want the story to end.

This is a book that demonstrates how during a tragedy miracles can happen and favorable life changes can sometimes come as a result. Most of the story is about a small town recovering from a devastating tornado and the way many of them learn things about themselves in the process. I am hoping the next book tells what the final result was of these life choices. The author is excellent at character development; I felt like I got to know them well. I also liked the fact that it dealt with forgiving...

4.5 starsI think Lisa Wingate is becoming one of my favorite authors. I didn’t think the second book would have been as good as the first. (Tending Roses) but it was just about as good! The beginning was a little slow for me but the story captured me and I loved it! Great message about what trials can tell us and what they do to help us be better and happier.