In March 1989, word reached a much younger me that the oil tanker Exxon Valdez had run aground on Bligh Reef and spilled eleven million gallons of crude oil into the pristine Alaska water of Prince William Sound. Hundreds of thousands of birds and animals died. Oil smeared and poisoned shorelines.
Heartsick, I wailed over the damage with my grandfather, an Alaska pioneer who had skippered his boats in remote Alaskan waterways and knew those seas and their wildlife intimately. He’d also lived through other Alaska spills during World War II, and understood better than most the harm that oil could do. He was equally grieved, but less reactive than I. Crying over the mess, I had exhausted myself, when his comment brought me up short.
“It’ll heal, honey.”
“But the weather! That wild water! How will teams . . . ?”
“It’ll heal without them.”
I stared at him, and he shrugged. “It will.”
Now my granddad knew nothing about the biology of recovery, but since he was an old guy, and he’d watched restoration happen more than once, I took his words to heart. Research I later pursued corroborated his comment, and in years since, though clearly the consequences of some disasters persist for generations, I’ve seen land and species recover in part or completely from all sorts of ecological abuses.
Truth is, the natural world is designed to heal. And since we’re part of that creation, the same applies to us. In a world that often seems broken beyond repair, that truth keeps me going, gives me hope.
And it’s a theme that undergirds my new novel What the River Keeps. Historically grounded, it’s the story of the Elwha River in Olympic National Park and of biologist Hildy Nybo, who joins scientists working to help restore the ecosystem—including its magnificent salmon—as two century-old dams are demolished. As the story begins, both the river and Hildy are trapped: the river by dams that have decimated salmon runs and sediment passage; Hildy, by generational lies that isolate her and threaten her sanity. But when those barricades of concrete and deception fall, both the river and Hildy are set free to heal.
And they do. True to my grandad’s predictions, the Elwha sees salmon return to its upper reaches, and the surrounding watershed and wildlife grow healthier. Free-flowing mountain sediment restores the estuary where multiple species again thrive. The Tribe grieving their strangled river can fish its waters again.
Likewise, Hildy, freed from lies that paralyzed her, experiences healing only truth can accomplish. Like the restored river, the fragmented parts of her history reunite. Reconnected to community, and she learns to trust and love.
Nature and hearts created to heal?
Yes.
About the Author, Cheryl Grey Bostrom
A keen student of the natural world and the workings of the human heart, Pacific Northwest author Cheryl Grey Bostrom captures the mystery and wonder of both in her lyrical, riveting fiction. Her novels Sugar Birds (Christy finalist, Amazon bestseller, and Book of the Year) and Leaning on Air have won more than two dozen industry honors, among which are CT’s Fiction Award of Merit and American Fiction, Reader’s Favorite, Carol, Nautilus, Best Book, Foreword Indies, and International Book Awards.
An avid birder and nature photographer, Cheryl lives in rural Washington State with her husband and three irrepressible Gordon setters.
You can follow the author at:
Website: https://CherylBostrom.com
Birds in the Hand (blog): https://cherylgreybostrom.substack.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cgbostrom/ and https://www.facebook.com/cherylgreybostrom/
IG: @cherylgreybostrom https://www.instagram.com/cherylgreybostrom/
WOW! WOMEN ON WRITING TOUR
of
What the River Keeps
By Cheryl Grey Bostrom
Book Summary
Kirkus Reviews recently chose What the River Keeps for its “Best Indie Books of June 2025” list
***
Reclusive biologist Hildy Nybo returns to her childhood home on Washington’s Elwha River, where she untangles her mysterious past.
Hildy Nybo is a successful biologist, her study of the Pacific Northwest’s wild fish both a passion and a career. But behind her professional brilliance, Hildy’s reclusive private life reflects a childhood fraught with uncertainty. Haunted by the confusion of her early years, she now records her life in detailed diaries and clings to memory-prompting keepsakes.
Then her mother’s health fails, and Hildy accepts a job near her childhood home, joining a team of scientists who will help restore her beloved Elwha River after two century-old dams fall. There Hildy settles into a cabin on her family’s rustic resort—a place she both loves and dreads, for reasons she can’t fully explain.
When a local artist rents an adjacent cabin for her pottery studio, Hildy resists the intrusion—until intriguing Luke Rimmer arrives to help with the cabin’s renovation. Now a few years beyond a tragedy that brought him to his knees, Luke recognizes a kindred soul in Hildy. As he earns her trust, they uncover her mysterious history, and Hildy dares to wonder if she can banish her shadows—and follow her river’s course to freedom.
Publisher: Tyndale Fiction (August 12, 2025)
ISBN: 1496481585
ISBN: 978-1496481580
AISN: B0DK3ZW85L
ASIN: B0DYG3PK8T
Print length: 368 pages (also available as ebook and audiobook)
Purchase a copy of What the River Keeps on
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/What-River-Keeps-Cheryl-Bostrom/dp/1496481585/ref
Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/what-the-river-keeps-cheryl-grey-bostrom/1146416644?ean=9781496481580
Bookshop.org: https://bookshop.org/p/books/what-the-river-keeps-cheryl-grey-bostrom/21884304?ean=9781496481580&next=t
You can also add this to your GoodReads reading list
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/220587152-what-the-river-keeps
Blog Tour Calendar
August 11th @ The Muffin
Join us as we celebrate the launch of Cheryl Grey Bostrom's nature infused love story What the River Keeps. Read an interview with the author and enter to win a copy of her book.
https://muffin.wow-womenonwriting.com
August 12th @ One Writer's Journey
Stop by for a post about the Five Birds that Make Life Better and a review of What the River Keeps by Cheryl Grey Bostrom.
August 13th @ Writer Advice
Novelist Cheryl Grey Bostrom is visiting with her thoughts on The Deliciousness of Book Clubs.
https://writeradvice.com/blog/
August 14th @ Knotty Needle
Read a review of What the River Keeps and author Cheryl Grey Bostrom's guest post: Re-wilding Ourselves Through Nature Novels.
http://www.knottyneedle.blogspot.com
August 16th @ Boots, Shoes and Fashion
Enjoy a fun interview with novel writer Cheryl Grey Bostrom.
https://bootsshoesandfashion.com
August 18th @ What Is That Book About
Luxuriate in nature with a spotlight on the novel What the River Keeps by Cheryl Grey Bostrom.
August 19th @ Word Magic
Author Cheryl Grey Bostrom is stopping by to write about Nature as Guide through Wilderness of Heart.
https://fionaingramauthor.blogspot.com
August 20th @ Nikki's Book Reviews
Nikki's sharing her thoughts on the novel What the River Keeps by Cheryl Grey Bostrom.
http://nikkitsbookreviews.wordpress.com
August 21st @ Lisa Haselton Book Reviews & Interviews
Meet the author behind What the River Keeps and other novels set in the Pacific Northwest.
https://lisahaselton.com/blog/
August 25th @ Beverley A. Baird
Need a good read for the waning days of summer? Beverly's sharing her review of What the River Keeps.
https://beverleyabaird.wordpress.com
August 26th @ A Wonderful World of Books
Enter to win a copy of What the River Keeps. Have fun with author Cheryl Grey Bostrom translating Bird Language for Our Inner Lives.
https://awonderfulworldofwordsa.blogspot.com/
August 27th @ Create Write Now
Cheryl Grey Bostrom writes about the power of nature in Created to Heal: How Nature Illustrates the Design of Our Hearts.
https://www.createwritenow.com/journal-writing-blog
August 28th @ Words by Webb
Jodi reviews a novel that is ideal for nature lover and women's fiction: What the River Keeps.
https://www.jodiwebbwriter.com/blog
August 29th @ Beverley A. Baird
Author Cheryl Grey Bostrom is visiting with a guest post on What's the Draw to Faith in Women's Fiction?
https://beverleyabaird.wordpress.com
September 2 @ A Storybook World
Novelist Cheryl Grey Bostrom is writing about Three Ways Nature Novels Speak to Our Hearts and recommending a few of her favorites.
https://www.astorybookworld.com/
September 4th @ Reading Is My Remedy
Take flight with author Cheryl Grey Bostrom with Bird Lessons - What Winged Creatures Can Teach Us. They'll also be a review of her latest novel What the River Keeps.
https://www.instagram.com/reading_is_my_remedy/
September 5th @ Storeybook Reviews
Check out the spotlight on Cheryl Grey Bostrom and her latest novel What the River Keeps.
https://www.storeybookreviews.com
September 9th @ Boys' Mom Reads!
Looking for a new book for a new month? Karen's reviewing the novel What the River Keeps by Cheryl Grey Bostrom.
https://karensiddall.wordpress.com/
September 10th @ Choices
Cheryl Grey Bostrom shares lessons she's learned after writing three novels.
September 12th @ Chapter Break
Today's guest is Cheryl Grey Bostrom, author of several novels set in the beautiful Pacific Northwest.
September 14th @ Jill Sheet's Blog
Today's the last day for the blog tour for What the River Keeps! We're ending on a high note with a post by author Cheryl Grey Bostrom about Improving Your Writing through Photography -- and Other Art.
https://jillsheets.blogspot.com/
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