Janice, can you tell
us a little about this series?
Sure! The Bridal Mayhem
series was birthed (partly) out of my own experience! I have four daughters
and they all got married within four years of each other. The first two
weddings (in 2004) were only four and a half months apart! What a crazy period!
Shortly after that one of my editors approached me and asked if I’d ever
written cozy mysteries. I had not, but was perfectly willing to give it a try!
In the writing biz they tell us to “write what you know” and I knew weddings!
I’d been mother of the bride twice in a row, after all. So, I mapped out my
story ideas with Annie Peterson, mother-of-the-bride, as the reluctant sleuth,
solving crimes on her way to the wedding(s).
Sounds like fun! So,
these books released a few years back? If so, why are you just now talking
about them?
They released in print form between 2005 and 2007 and then
released in eBook form with Spyglass Lane. Recently, the rights reverted back
to me (the author) and I was given the opportunity to create new covers and
upload them to kindle. I’m offering the first book free for a week to stir up
interest in the whole series.
Can you tell us about
the first book?
So, this is a series? What are the other books about?
Book two (Gone
with the Groom) offers readers a rollicking good time! In this story,
Annie’s future son-in-law goes missing two weeks before the big day. Does he
have cold feet, or are there more sinister forces at work? In book three (Pushing
up Daisies) a local florist passes away shortly before daughter Candy’s big
day. Can Annie figure out who would want to murder a florist before her
daughter’s wedding day? In book four (The
Perfect Match) the local dating service goes up in flames. Annie’s in the
thick of it, trying to figure out whodunit. In book five (Catering
to Disaster) over 120 wedding guests end up with food poisoning after a
wedding. Did the caterer slip up have they all been sabotaged?
There are five books
in the series?
So far! Book six (Don’t
Rock the Boat) is currently being written. In this story, Annie and her
best friend Sheila are on a Caribbean cruise. An onboard bride goes missing
just before her big day. Does she have cold feet? Has someone thrown her
overboard? Did she re-board the ship after a recent excursion ashore? Annie has
to figure this out so that the bride can have her big day!
You used your
personal life experiences for this story?
In part! As I said, I was mother of the bride four times
over, so I know what it is to be in that frenzied state of mind in the weeks
leading up to your daughter’s wedding day. And though I’ve never solved a crime
(to my knowledge) I enjoyed doing so through my characters. And speaking of
characters: Annie’s best friend Sheila (wacky, crazy, colorful, fun) was based
on my own BFF, Kay Malone. My sweet Kay passed away in May of 2013 from
pancreatic cancer. The Wedding Caper is
dedicated to her memory. As I mentioned above, The
Wedding Caper was written in 2005, long before Kay’s cancer diagnosis. I
was stunned—when reading back through the story—to see that one of the
characters is battling pancreatic cancer. I’d forgotten all about that. Ironic
and bittersweet, for sure.
Thanks for being with
us, Janice. Any last thoughts?
Don’t forget to laugh. Life is hard, but laughter brings
healing. I try to remember that when I’m having a tough day: there’s always
something to laugh at, even if it’s through the tears.
Facebook: Janice Hanna Thompson
Twitter: @booksbyjanice
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