I see brides...everywhere! by @Peggy Jaeger

 Until recently, I don't think I ever considered just what a social phenomenon the business of being a bride is in today's society.

Take reality television for instance.

TLC has SAY YES TO THE DRESS, cataloging various brides-to-be as they shop for the perfect dress for their big day. This show is so popular, it spawned spinoffs SYTTD Atlanta, SYTTD Randy Knows best, not to mention the UK version of the show.

BRAVO brought us KANDY'S WEDDING, detailing RHOA star Kandy Burress's wedding prep, TAMRA'S OC WEDDING, I DREAM OF NENE: The Wedding, and DON'T BE TARDY for the Wedding. All feature Real Housewives of various cities as they become brides.

And don't think other networks are missing out on taking a bite of the lucrative bridal pie. There's  My Big Fat American Gypsy Wedding, Married at First Sight, My Big Redneck Wedding, Four Weddings, Bridezillas, Bridalplasty, and Wedding SOS just to name a few American bridal-themed shows.

The amazing thing to me is that all these shows bring in huge revenue for their networks which means they are being watched. A lot. More than a lot. And continually. SYTTD is in syndication now.

The business of being a bride isn't relegated to the small screen only, though. In recent years big blockbuster movies about brides have made their way into our collective consciousness. 

BRIDAL WARS, The Runaway Bride, Bridesmaids, My Big Fat Greek Wedding, Made of Honor, 27 Dresses,  are just a few of the more popular ones, but there are dozens more.

Most of the big-screen versions of being a bride are romantic comedies set in the contemporary world, much like the books I write.

When I decided to write a series about a wedding planner and her sisters who reside in a small town in New England, I never realized what big business the wedding industry is. It's been a looooooong time since I got married. Back in the day, there were no bridal planners unless you were a Rockefeller or a Kenndy and planning a political or family merger shindig where you really did need the help. The bride and her family and friends planned everything. I'm sure there were some brides-to-be who could have been labeled bridezillas, but back then, their behavior was simply referred to as wedding jitters and nerves.

The research I did on the wedding industry so that I could give  Colleen O'Dowd, my wedding planner, a truthful and realistic feel, really opened my eyes to this multibillion-dollar industry and the way it has become a needed entity in the everyday lives of brides everywhere.

My  MATCH MADE IN HEAVEN Series along with the 2022 release of my HEAVEN'S MATCHMAKER series, tap into this bridal mania. Using humor and the love of a family to navigate through the craziness of weddings, brides, and inlaws, both series were a labor of love to pen.

A MATCH MADE IN HEAVEN is available now in print and ecopy everywhere digital books are sold.

 HEAVEN'S MATCHMAKER will release beginning in June 2022 with cover reveals coming soon!

Are you attending any weddings this June ( or summer?) I've already been to 1 and it was fab. Comment below for a chance to win an ecopy of any of the MMIH books ( 1-3)

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What's Love Gotta Do With It?

 

By: Marcia King-Gamble

www.lovemarcia.com

June, and the perfect month for weddings and love. But in this modern day and age, are some of these marriages arranged? Is it love, or as Tina said, what does love have to do with it?

Let’s say the marriage is arranged, has this age-old tradition undergone a change?

One article, recently written, estimates that over 50% of marriages are arranged ones. I tend to agree.  Call it what you will. People marry old family friends, the guy or girl next door, the old school chum, and even the deceased spouse’s bestie. People marry those they feel comfortable with. So, does love or respect have something to do with it?

The old school way of looking at a traditional marriage is that it’s one planned by the respective families, mostly that of the bride’s and groom’s. To date, over 20 million of these marriages exist in the world today. Given that the divorce rate is somewhere between 40% to 50%, these marriages have a surprisingly low rate of divorce, and are allegedly as low as 4%. This may be for a variety of reasons.

With lust and passion out of the equation, rash decisions aren’t often made. The blush of infatuation only lasts so long. There better be mutual admiration and respect. This can develop over time if the right foundation has been laid.

So, does this mean arranged marriages work, or does it mean the people who agree to them are likely not to file for divorce?  Let’s face it, it does require a certain personality type to agree to this kind of union. A physical attraction plays a big part in what we like and don’t like, and some may never have seen their partner until they walked down that aisle.

Arranged marriages have been around for years, and while not considered popular in western culture, (although that is debatable,) they are now widely promoted on the Internet, and on TV shows. An amazing number of websites have sprung up, giving families even a wider variety of places to cast that net and find that match.  There are TLC shows like Married by Mom and Dad. The difference today, however, is that this age-old practice allows one or the other party to have some say and decline the match.

Reality shows like Married at First Sight and 90 Day Fiancé are popular, and contestants, line up out the door to get on them. In the first, the bride and groom put their fate in the hands of relationship experts and hope for the best. In the second, one party meets the other abroad, brings them back to the USA on a K1 visa. They then have 90 days to seal the deal, or the non-American goes home.

While we’re on the subject of arranged marriages, how many royals do you know that actually married for love? In most cases they married family members (3^rd or 4^th cousins removed), or the match was made with another foreign royal considered in their league. Like begets like and money often marries money.

But it’s June, folks, and weddings are the flavor of the month. It can be a campy backyard ceremony, or a fancy country club soiree. It might be a quick courthouse nuptial, or the destination of the bride’s choice. Is it held on land, air or sea?

 Whatever the venue, there’s something about a June bride that makes us hopeful that love will blossom. Except for this Russian couple (pic taken by me.)

 

Do you think this marriage was arranged, or is he just more comfortable with his cell phone?  Will the groom put it down long enough to help his bride into the car?

Still shaking my head as to the wonder of it all.

 

 About Marcia King-Gamble

Romance writer, Marcia King-Gamble originally hails from a sunny Caribbean Island where the sky and ocean are the same mesmerizing shade of blue. This former travel industry executive has spent most of life in the United States. A National Bestselling author, Marcia has penned over 34 books and 8 novellas. She has contributed to Michael Fiore’s DigitalRomanceInc and served as a moderator on the now defunct eHarmony advice boards.  Having witnessed the bad, the ugly, and the not so good in relationships, she still prefers to write about happily ever after. Caring for her animal family keeps her grounded and sane.

Visit Marcia at www.lovemarcia.com or “friend” her on Facebook: http://bit.ly/1MlnrIS

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June Brides: Happily Ever After by Jan Scarbrough

The RWA website: Two basic elements comprise every romance novel: a central love story and an emotionally satisfying and optimistic ending.

So, to have an optimistic ending, hero and heroine need to “come together” at the end of the book. Maybe it’s a declaration of undying love. Maybe it’s a proposal. Romance writers don’t often write about what happens AFTER the wedding. Those are stories for another day.

I’ve included actual brides in my books. In Heart to Heart, I simply indicated the bride-to-be by an engagement announcement in the newspaper.

Legend Post-Dispatch

Six months later in the society section:

Martha Fields, a professional animal communicator, is to be married to Jeremy Hamilton, owner of Hamilton Staffing located in Louisville, Kentucky. Ms. Fields is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Nate Fields of Legend, Tennessee. Mr. Hamilton is the son of the late David Hamilton of Louisville, Kentucky. A June wedding is planned.

One of my books I actually used “bride” in the title. In Kentucky Bride, I included a newspaper announcement of the wedding.

The Chicago Tribune Online

Aimee Elliott and Camden Brennan were recently married at St. Peter Catholic Church in Skokie with a reception following at the Chicago Botanic Garden. The bride is the daughter of Ray and Martha Elliott of Skokie. Mr. Elliott is the president and CEO of Elliott Construction Company of Chicago. The groom is the son of Henry and Virginia Brennan of Louisville, Kentucky. The bride, 25, received a BS in animal sciences and is the program director for The Hope Therapeutic Riding Center, Shelbyville, Kentucky. The groom, 30, graduated from the University of Kentucky with a MS degree in business. He is president and CEO of Brennan Equipment Company. The couple honeymooned in Ireland, Scotland, London, and Paris and reside in Louisville.

Amazon: https://amzn.to/2OeizPx 

Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/2M5fT8q

Nook: https://bit.ly/2A3TpzP

iBooks: https://apple.co/2O7PSmr

Kobo: http://bit.ly/2MbaZ9U

In Mercer, Stef and Brody (hero and heroine from book 1) get married. Mercer attends the ceremony.

Stef was a beautiful bride, relaxed and happy and dressed in an off-white, lace-lined, floor-length dress with a short train. It had a corset style bodice with drawstring laced-up back. With her natural-colored boots, she looked pure Montana, ready to ride off into the sunset with her man.

When the minister proclaimed, “You may kiss the bride,” Brody swept her into his arms and bent her backward in a long, drawn-out kiss. The audience broke into cheers and applause. Mercer didn’t think she would ever stop clapping. It was so darn romantic she wanted to cry.

Writers are often told to start a story where it begins. In Tangled Memories, I realized the story started when my characters married, so the beginning of the story describes the wedding.

His eyes were gray. I had never noticed before. They weren’t the color of slate but smoky and mysterious.

Swallowing a hard knot of dread that surfaced in my throat, I walked down the silent aisle toward him. Chin held high, very lady-like in posture and demeanor, a trace of smile upon my lips—I was the picture of confidence.

Inside, I trembled.

I stopped in front of the altar. A cloying scent of gardenias assaulted my senses. How curious the delicate white flowers in my bouquet should be so overpowering. Just like the man beside me. Just like the deep, heady gray of his eyes.

I extended my hand. He took it, and I drew a breath and held it. The firmness of his fingers surprised me.

“Friends.” The minister glanced up at us and smiled. “We are gathered together in the sight of God to witness and bless the joining together of Mary and Alexander in Christian marriage.”

Kindle: http://bit.ly/TM_Amazon

iBooks: http://bit.ly/TM_iBooks

Kobo: http://bit.ly/TM_Kobo

B&N: http://bit.ly/1P8RfzW 

Amazon UK: http://bit.ly/TM_AmazonUK

Romance Gems authors honor June Brides this month. Please take time to add some of our brides to your summer reading list.

HOW'S EVERYONE DOING? By Kathleen Lawless @kathleenlawless

Tomorrow marks the day Steel and I were supposed to attend a Rolling Stones Concert, which means today we would have been on our way to the city where the performance was scheduled. 

I must confess I don’t really love big concerts the way I once did.  These days I prefer a more intimate venue with comfy seating, and perhaps a bottle of nice wine.  But hearing the Stones in person has been on my bucket list since I first spent my allowance on a Sticky Fingers album with a working zipper on the jeans.  As neither I nor the band are getting any younger, it was now or never. 

When the concert might get rescheduled, and if we'll be able to attend . . .   Such is the stuff of these uncertain times.

One thing that’s for certain is that romance continues to bloom.  It’s just over five years since my very own hero, Steel, went down on one knee and asked me to become his wife.  We were vacationing on a tiny island in the Caribbean that had no cars, only scooters, golf carts and tuk-tuk cabs.   Somehow, he convinced the restaurant to open just for us on a night they were normally closed, and cook us lobsters.  That evening was more romantic than anything I ever could have written, and a total surprise, right up to the moment when he was actually kneeling on the towel from our finger bowls, so he didn’t cut his bare knees on the shale rock floor.

 Steel, being a true hero, understands that I write romance novels with larger-than-life characters and situations.  He knew that a special moment like the one he spent months planning had to be over-the-top extraordinary.  And it was.  The man “gets” me.  He understands what I want and need, often before I do.  I count myself extremely lucky. 

We’ve yet to formalize things with a wedding ceremony.  When we do, it will be an intimate event, most likely on a beach in the Caribbean, attended by family and a few close friends.  With uncertain travel being part of the foreseeable future, I’m glad we didn’t choose 2020 as the year.  I know a lot of people have had wedding plans derailed, and I hope they have come through it to make their romance continue to bloom despite global changes and uncertainty.

Being a sucker for weddings and bride stories, I’m really excited for the June release of Mail Order Olivia, Book 17 in the popular sweet western series: Widows, Brides and Secret Babies.  Here’s a sneak peek at my secret baby, second-chance romance.    

               

          As the train slowed to a stop, Olivia rose, settled her wiggly daughter on one hip, and reached for her valise, which was light enough to lift with only hand.  Because she had left Philadelphia in a hurry, she had packed only the bare necessities for Chloe and herself.

          She waited as passengers jostled past her, impatient to disembark.  No need to wonder if she would recognize Robert; she would know him anywhere.  When she stepped from the train, she spotted him instantly on the far side of the platform, talking to a plump, dowdy-looking woman.

          Pushing aside her fears and uncertainty, she covered the ground between them and reached the pair just as the other woman fisted some money Robert handed her, and rushed off. 

          Olivia knew exactly what had happened.  Robert had changed his mind.   Again.  The same way he had when her left her high and dry in Philadelphia, in a family way.  That wouldn’t be happening a second time!

          “Robert!  Her tone was more shrill than she intended, but it got his attention.  As he turned toward her, a myriad of expressions crossed his face.  Surprise and delight quickly faded to wariness.  His steps were hesitant as he approached her.

          “Livie!  What are you doing here?”

          “Looking for you, obviously.”

          “I don’t understand!”  

          “Neither do I.”

          Olivia was vaguely aware that the platform had emptied around them as they stood, gazes locked. 

          “You look well,” he said finally.  “I see congratulations are in order.  Where’s Harry?”

          “Harry died a few weeks ago.  Stumbled blind drunk in front of a train.”  She stated the facts with no more emotion than she had felt at the time, except relief that Harry was out of her life.

          “I’m sorry to hear that.”  His gaze darkened with emotion, only to vanish as quickly as it appeared.  “If you came to me for comfort, you’ve come to the wrong place.”

          “Nothing of the sort.”  She had come to ensure she and Chloe remained safe. 

Pre-order Mail Order Olivia here.  https://www.amazon.com/dp/B086JFJ6YC

Check out the rest of the series here.  https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B084WYL1QX

And don’t forget to enter this month’s Rafflecopter

 http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/21df08a237/

Till next month, stay safe and read lots.

Kathleen  

COUNTING DOWN TO VALENTINE'S DAY By Kathleen Lawless @kathleenlawless #romancegems

My honey might roll his eyes when I pull out the Valentine’s decorations in early February, but I know he secretly enjoys my passion for the day when one hundred and fifty million Valentine’s Day cards are exchanged worldwide.  Not to mention it is a great excuse (as if I need one) to drink champagne and eat chocolate.

And yet Valentine’s Day is not just another day brought to us by Hallmark.  From early days to modern times, poems and songs have been written, stories have been penned, and rings and vows have been exchanged.  Which sent me on a quest for romantic poetry.  Here are a few classics to get you in the mood.

“Love is a single soul inhabiting two bodies.”  Aristotle

“If I had a flower for every time I thought of you, I could walk through my garden forever.”  Alfred Tennyson

“How do I love thee?  Let me count the ways.”  Elizabeth Barrett Browning

“Age does not protect you from love.  But love, to some extent, protects you from age.”  Anais Nin

“Love is like quicksilver in the hand.  Leave the fingers open and it stays.  Clutch it and it darts away.”  Dorothy Parker

“The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched.  They must be felt with the heart.”  Helen Keller

“My bounty is as boundless as the sea, my love as deep: the more I give the more I have for both are infinite.”  William Shakespeare. 

I don’t know a single romance writer who doesn’t embrace Valentine’s Day because in our world every day rivals Valentine’s Day as we write about love and romance and happy endings.   

I am thrilled to announce the upcoming release of BARRON'S BRIDE, Book 6 of my sweet western historical series, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, as soon as I get it back from the editor.  Readers have waited long enough to see Barron meet his match, and in this classic "enemies to lovers" tale he has not cooperated with me or with poor Lily, although she gives as good as she gets.  Here is a sample.

          Barron should be no stranger to weddings, what with five of his brothers having recently taken the plunge.  So why did he feel so uneasy standing here listening to his twin pledge himself to Rose till death?  Sounded like one heck of a long time. 

          He glanced reluctantly at Rose’s sister, Lily.  There was something about the woman he didn’t trust.  Far better for everyone if she high-tailed it some place far, far away.  He knew, sure as he drew his next breath, that if Lily stuck around she was bound to raise havoc on all their lives.

          He didn’t buy any part of her story other than she had been kidnapped, and only because Rose claimed to have seen the whole thing.  When they found her, Lily pretended like she’d lost her memory, along with her ability to speak.  Pretended to not even know her own sister.  Convenient how fast her memory returned when it suited her.

          He started when his arm was pinched, bringing him back to the present.  Lily stood next to him, practically on top of him.  “The ceremony is over, in case you hadn’t noticed.  This is where you take my arm and we follow the bride and groom down into the yard.”

          “Right,” he said with a near growl.  Just his luck to be best man to Lily’s maid of honor.  As if the woman before him had any sense of honor. 

          Not that he was exactly anyone’s idea of a “best man”, given the things he’d seen and done.   

          He gritted his teeth as Lily tucked her arm through his.   

          “The receiving line will be over here.  In case you weren’t paying attention the other day.”

          Barron’s breath hissed between his teeth.  Why did the woman irritate him so much every time she opened her mouth?  “I paid attention.  It’s not exactly my first time at the rodeo, you know.”

          Once they had taken their places in line, she said. “I hope you have your speech all prepared.  I’d hate to see you make more of a fool of yourself than usual.”

          He ground his teeth together and clamped his lips tightly shut.  Lots of things he’d like to say to her, none of which was appropriate on his twin’s wedding day.  

If you've been following this series, you'll want to preorder here        https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07ZCBP1VR

And in honor of Valentine’s Day, Check out this collection of Valentine’s Novellas from an amazing line-up of Harlequin authors.

8 brand-new Christmas Town novellas from some of your favorite Harlequin Heartwarming authors. Valentine’s Day—and Christmas Town—will never be the same!

Calling all bachelors!

The Knotty Elves decide a Valentine’s Day Bachelor Auction kills two birds with one stone – raising money to save the library while working their matchmaking magic. From a personal chef to the town’s snow plow operator, there’s one thing all these handsome, homespun heroes have in common: they’re about to find love, Christmas Town style.  

https://www.amazon.com/Be-My-Heartwarming-Valentine-Christmas-ebook/dp/B07Z8CXBWP

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/be-my-heartwarming-valentine-anna-adams/1134146353?ean=2940163127962

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!  And remember to enter our Rafflecopter Draw here.  http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/21df08a234/