Non-FictionSelf-Help

The Second Bridge: Building Lasting Love

A Practical Guide to Relationships, Love, Marriage, and Family

WHY DO SO MANY RELATIONSHIPS FAIL—EVEN WHEN LOVE IS PRESENT?

Why do intelligent, well-meaning people keep choosing the wrong partners, repeating the same relationship patterns, or feeling emotionally unfulfilled in marriage?

The Second Bridge is a powerful relationship book about love, marriage, and emotional maturity—designed for people who want healthy, lasting relationships, not just romantic beginnings. Drawing on real research, coaching psychology, and lived experience across Africa and the United States, this book reveals why love alone is never enough—and what truly sustains commitment.

The Second Bridge is not a romance manual.
It is a deeply practical, research-informed guide to understanding why we love the way we do—and how to love better. Drawing on original research conducted across Africa and the United States, lived experience, coaching practice, and culturally grounded wisdom, Abas Alhassan challenges the myths we have inherited about relationships, love, marriage, and commitment.

INSIDE THE SECOND BRIDGE, YOU'LL DISCOVER:

Why 15-16% of couples are unhappy but stay anyway—and the gap between unhappiness and actually leaving
The invisible contract governing your relationship right now (and how to make it visible before it's too late)
Why communication is necessary but not sufficient—and what actually creates lasting alignment
The 8 factors that determine compatibility (education level ranks #1; physical attraction ranks last)
How to navigate the adjustment phase of early marriage when reality replaces romance
Money conversations that prevent financial betrayal (because money problems are rarely about money)
The truth about children: They're the greatest joy and the strongest chain—51% of African respondents and 35% of Americans cite children as the primary reason they stay in unhappy relationships
How to compromise without losing yourself—and when compromise becomes self-betrayal
How to rebuild after divorce and find love again (with wisdom, not just hope)

About the Author

Abas is a leadership and executive coach whose debut book, The Second Bridge: Building Lasting Love, is born from over 35 years of personal experience in marriage, family life, and cross-cultural relationships. Raised in a polygamous household in Nigeria and shaped by a cross-cultural marriage of his own, he brings a rare, deeply lived perspective to conversations about love, commitment, and family dynamics.

Blending hard-earned wisdom with research from 225 couples across the United States and Africa, Abas offers practical, data-informed insights into what truly sustains lasting partnerships

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