The Bridal Veil

by Alexis Harrington

Book Overview

Despite the fact that Emily Cannon is not at all the mail-order bride Luke Becker had expected, Luke needs a mother for his precocious young daughter and decides to marry the plain, tall, and desperate Emily, a woman who is determined to teach him a valuable lesson in second chances, trust, and lov

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0312979541
• ISBN13: 9780312979546
• Release Date: January 2002
• Publisher: St. Martin's Press
• Length: 312 Pages
• Weight: 0.37 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 4.2" x 6.8"

Customer Reviews

A treasure...

Ms. Harrington once again delivers a rewarding story, one with characters that keenly reflect the most intense human emotions...loneliness, despair, heartache, grief, anger and finally shared love and passion. I find her use of a 19th century historical setting to be an exciting diversion to our contemporary times and hope that she continues to present her stories and characters in settings that reflect different times and places. We cannot fully understand the ways and thoughts of people of long ago, but it is intriguing to see Ms. Harrington's interpretation. "The Bridal Veil" is a story that remained in my thoughts and heart as I fell asleep the night I finished it, and was on my mind the next morning. I felt I knew these characters by then and who wouldn't want to forget your friends?

Great story!

Widower Luke Becker had decided that his eleven-year-old daughter, Rose, needed a mother. He chose Alyssa Canon by her letters. However, when he went into Fairdale to pick her up, he found Alyssa's sister there instead. Emily had nowhere else to go. Her dear sister, Alyssa, had died two months before and Emily no longer worked as an etiquette teacher in a girls' school. Besides, Luke's letter said he needed a wife NOW and who better to teach proper manners than an etiquette teacher? **** Very well written! Much tension in the home and in the pasts of each character to keep roadblocks happening and Readers reading! Recommended! ****

A very satisfying read!

"The Bridal Veil" is an enjoyable and feel good historical romance that is bound to bring a sigh of satisfaction to most readers. Normally, I don't read historical romances set in the America, as I'm ashamed to admit, my knowledge of American history is extremely spotty. But I did enjoy "The Bridal Veil" very much, and given my limited familiarity with the material, felt that Alexis Harrington has done a wonderful job in evoking the feel and realities of what is was like to live in a homestead in Oregon in the 19th century.Luke Becker needs a wife. When his beautiful wife, Belinda, passed away three years ago, his cantankerous mother-in-law, Cora, moved in to help him raise his eleven year old daughter, Rose. But Cora seems to be spoiling Rose and Rose has changed from an affectionate and happy child into a sullen and morose one. Luke's hope is that the influence of a nice and intelligent woman will affect Rose for the better, and since there is no one in his small town that he wants to marry, Luke puts an advertisement in a newspaper for a bride. A Miss Alyssa Cannon from Chicago answers his advertisement, and net result is that Luke asks her to come to Oregon to be his wife. What actually happens however is that Alyssa's elder sister, Emily arrives in Alyssa's stead. Alyssa had been killed in a street accident, and with no one and nothing to hold her in Chicago, Emily impulsively decides to take her place, especially when she reads Luke's latest letter imploring her to come at once. Will Luke be willing to accept tall and plain Emily as a substitute bride for that beautiful one he was expecting? Luke has no choice: his desperately needs help in raising his daughter, and so decides to marry Emily after all. And now Emily has the difficult task of trying to be a mother and friend to a difficult child, a wife and helpmate to Luke, and of trying to ignore all of Cora's cruel gibes as well as undo all the harm that her poisonous presence has wrought. Will she succeed?While Alexis Harrington does a wonderful job of bringing to life Luke and Emily's budding romance, and a really good job in charting the friendship and affection that develops between Emily and Rose, the last two chapters however felt incredibly rushed. I, for one, would have liked it better if there had been a more detailed account of Cora's comeuppance, esp since she initiates a rather cruel plan in order to wrest Rose from Luke's care. I also think that the authour did a wonderful job of fleshing out the characters of all the major players in this story -- the pain and angst that Emily, Luke, Rose and even Cora feels is deftly related and resonates through the pages. And even though I disliked Cora immensely, I did find myself feeling sympathetic towards her because she was quite unable to let go of all the anger and pain she felt because of her daughter's untimely death. "The Bridal Veil" is wonderfully romantic tale of how a young woman who feared that she would never find love, an

ANOTHER WINNER!

I just finished THE BRIDAL VEIL and was thoroughly enthralled. Alexis Harrington captures the feel of the old West and the emotions of her characters beautifully. In this case Luke and Emily are both tortured souls and unlikely lovers who are bound together by honor and deception. Emily is not the woman Luke expected when he sent for a mail-order bride. He's not certain this prim, proper and slightly plain woman who had the gumption to fill in for her sister is a woman he can trust, let alone marry. Yet he needs a mother for his daughter and Emily desperately needs a family. Their union is tenuous at best. However, Luke and Emily get past their fears and doubts as the story unfolds. Each etches a spot in the other's heart as they learn the true meaning of love and family. THE BRIDAL VEIL is another heartwarming winner from Alexis Harrington!

A winner

Luke Becker's wife Belinda died three years ago so his overbearing mother-in-law, Cora, moved in to help raise his eleven-year-old daughter, Rose. Cora turns the home into a shrine for her daughter while Rose turns into a surly child and Luke hates life, feeling like he lives in hell. Luke concludes he needs a mother for Rose and advertises accordingly. Alyssa Cannon of Chicago responds and agrees to journey to Oregon on the ticket Luke provided for her. Alyssa's sister Emily is depressed, having lost her beloved sibling as well as her job as a teacher. Frantic, she uses Alyssa's ticket to travel west hoping that Luke will wed her. Desperate, but irate over the deception, Luke marries Emily almost from the moment of her arrival. However, Luke makes it clear with his words and his actions that though they are married, she will never be his true wife, something that Emily desires. Powerful realistic characters turn THE BRIDAL VEIL into a stunning tale of second chances at love. The well-written story line hooks the audience through the grieving of Emily, the hopelessness of Luke, the angst of Rose, and the need for Cora to keep her daughter's memory alive. The audience will need a box of tissues handy when reading Alexis Harrington's moving feast.Harriet Klausner