I like to read books that have multiple
connecting stories that revolve around a common theme. Eva Marie Everson’s new book Five Brides is just that kind of story,
and it’s one that she has woven very well.
The central theme is a wedding dress purchased by five single young women
that is to be worn by each in succession. I expected five simple love stories, but they
actually weren’t, and not all of the girls even got it right the first
time. This story was not traditional,
and that may be one of the main reasons that I loved it so much.
Betty, Joan, Evelyn, Inga and
Magda live together in a basement apartment in Chicago in the early 1950s. Betty has rich parents, but she has defied
them by moving out on her own, working a job and refusing to marry the man they
have chosen for her. Joan has returned
to the United States from England, and has left her struggling family behind
her. She works multiple jobs to have
enough money to send home to them.
Evelyn has traveled to the big city from a small town in Georgia. She’s determined to impress a man and win his
love—even if she must change herself completely to satisfy him. Inga and Magda are sisters who left their
strictly religious parents behind to create a new life for themselves. Inga is a stewardess on an airline, and she’s
looking for fun and love on the West Coast.
Magda loves to read, and works as a secretary to a book editor. The girls’ lives and schedules are so
different, they rarely spend any time together, but are thrown together one
warm, Saturday afternoon. They spend the day taking in a movie, and
then they decide to do some window shopping.
They discover a beautiful wedding dress, and even though not one of them
is engaged, they pool their money and buy it.
Each of them will get to wear it on her wedding day, then pass it on to
the next girl. The last to get married
will get to keep the dress forever. It
was fun to watch each one of them fall in love—sometimes getting it wrong, and
then, hopefully getting it right. The
love stories were just as different and unique and the characters were.
This is one of my favorite reads
so far this summer. I stayed up way too late to finish it. I love the characters, and felt like they
were very true-to-life. I like how this author
lets her characters make mistakes, and sometime even do stupid things. I like that this book is about independent
women who are finding their way on their own, but still looking for the perfect
man to spend their lives with. My
favorite characters were Magda and Betty, but yours may be different. I think there’s something for every romance
reader to love here. Five
Brides is a definite summer must-read.
Thank you so much for your kind review. It means more than you can know!
ReplyDeleteEva Marie Everson
Author
Five Brides