To Love Again by Anne Edmondson Barbour

Sixth in the Love Connections series

Romance Comes Full Circle in Anne Edmondson Barbour’s Newest Love Connections Novel, To Love Again

TRAVERSE CITY, MICHIGAN—Author Anne Edmondson Barbour has always been a romantic at heart.

Now 90 years old, she and her late husband married just two months and two days after their first date. Together, their love formed the foundation for a 58-and-a-half-year union, five children, a brood of grand-and great-grand children, and hundreds of miles spent exploring the Oregon Trail, which they traveled as avid enthusiasts.

To Love Again

So it comes as no surprise that Barbour also loves romance novels; both as a reader and as the brains behind the Love Connections book series, the first installment of which hit shelves in 2020. “I believe we need more stories that demonstrate people can fall in love [and expect] their marriage to be happy and forever,” she said. “I wanted to see if I could be successful writing them myself.”

Since then, Barbour has crafted a whopping six Love Connections novels, all of which are connected by overlapping characters and themes of organic romance. Per Barbour, the literary forces by which these characters intersect often vary, but they’re “always ready to find their special someone and feel a mutual attraction which leads to that.” The series’ newest installment, To Love Again, is no exception.

The Story Continued

In it, readers follow fated couple Jefferson Tate and Martha Wilson, both of whom are widows and the respective parents of fellow Love Connections characters Josh Wilson and Jerilyn Tate (aka, the protagonists of the collection's second book, Journey to Forever). Though neither Jeff nor Martie is seeking a second chance at love–“they’d both experienced wonderful marriages,” Barbour noted– their inevitable meeting at their children’s wedding nevertheless forms the foundation of a long-distance friendship, which gives way to an enduring love, and in a full-circle twist, a wedding of their own.

As Barbour explained, this particular duo were all but destined to find each other, both from a literary perspective (readers had previously encouraged the match, she said), as well as a way to emphasize that love can arise when we least expect it. In fact, she said, one of the greatest and most rewarding challenges of the series thus far has been dreaming up similar connections among her characters that readers might want to follow.

That, and the art of crafting stories imbued with simple, meaningful romance that are both accessible to, and make a lasting impression on, audiences. “A romance novel can be sweet, clean, and filled with obvious love demonstrated day-to-day,” Barbour added. “I’m still surprised to be an author who has written books that readers like and look forward to!”

Author, Anne Edmondson Barbour

The Author

Anne Edmondson Barbour is a farm girl who grew up in southwest Missouri. At age seventeen, she graduated from high school. Shortly afterward, she got a job in the advertising department of a daily newspaper in the county seat. Though it consisted mostly of secretarial work, occasionally there was the opportunity to write copy for some of the ads. There were other jobs after that, but through the years, she put her writing talent to work in various circumstances, from writing skits for her Cub Scout den, to newsletters for various organizations, to PR for different entities as part of her job. She took a writers’ course by mail, but it wasn’t until she was in her eighties that she ventured into writing novels—romances. To Love Again is the sixth book in the Love Connections Series. Anne was happily married for almost sixty years, and is now a widow with five children, ten grandchildren, and nine great-grandchildren.

The Book

To Love Again: Sixth in the Love Connections Series

Anne Edmondson Barbour

260 pages, 5.25 x 8, B/W

Fiction/Romance/Romance Later in Life/Romance Christian

ISBN: 978-1-968761-15-8, $17.95 (Softcover)

Mission Point Press, February 12, 2026

Copies are available for preorder at Amazon and Bookshop.com. On its February 12, 2026, publication date, it will be available for purchase wherever books are sold. For information or to arrange for signings and events, contact the author at barbouranne36@gmail.com or visit annebarbourauthor.com.