by Kassandra Lamb ~ With wedding season rapidly approaching, and a wedding featured in Kirsten Weiss’s new release this month, I thought it might be a good time to rerun this post I wrote in 2013…back when Kirsten was releasing her fourth book in her first series ~ Wacky Relatives and Other Wedding Woes.
First, the Wacky Relatives
When my husband and I were planning our wedding, a few of his, shall we say, less stable family members were being a bit problematic. For the sake of cordial relations with the in-laws I won’t get any more specific than that.
He looked at me one day and said, “ You’re not getting a very good deal out of this marriage in terms of extended family.”
I laughed. “Honey, we’ve got just as many crazies in my family,” I told him. “You just haven’t met them, because they’re not speaking to the rest of us anymore.”
I thought of that conversation as I was reading the fourth Riga Hayworth mystery. In that book, Riga is getting married. Or at least, she’s trying to. But weird and wacky things keep happening. Like a dead photographer who gets up and walks away.
Then some of her crazier relatives show up, and she finds out some things about her family that have her doubting whether she should even get married.
Other Wedding Woes
Is it fair to her fiancé, Riga asks herself, to bring this baggage into his life? But then again, he has his own baggage.
The bottom line is we all have baggage.
Show me someone who has no past trauma, no issues from childhood, no crazy family members that make them cringe in embarrassment, and I will show you a… well, a fictional character, because that’s not reality. Actually it wouldn’t even be a very believable or interesting fictional character.
As a psychotherapist, I was always pleased to see engaged couples giving some thought beforehand to what impact their baggage might have on their relationship. Knowing ahead of time what problems you’re likely to encounter allows you to plan some strategies, or at least not be taken by surprise.
Facing those possible demons head on right from the beginning is a lot healthier than denial and defensiveness.
But I also encouraged them to not let that baggage stop them from getting married. One of the many things that a good marriage does for us is provide healing experiences. Knowing someone loves you unconditionally goes a long way toward countering past hurts.
And a loving spouse can help us realize that just because our family tree may have a few nuts in it, that doesn’t mean we’re damaged goods.
And now, umpteen books later, Kirsten is releasing the story of another wedding (available for preorder now). This one is in her Wits’ End Cozy Mysteries. And again, wacky relatives show up and other wedding woes ensue. But I have faith that Susan and Arsen’s relationship will survive.
What wacky relatives showed up or other wedding woes occurred at your wedding?
The Bantam Menace, A Wits’ End Cozy Mystery, #8, by Kirsten Weiss
Break in wedding shoes ✓
Walk through venue ✓
Solve murder.
Reformed control-freak Susan has organized the perfect rustic mountain wedding with the love of her life, Arsen Holiday. But when an early arriving guest is found dead, Susan doesn’t have a contingency plan for murder.
Susan will have to tread carefully to avoid provoking her soon-to-be in-laws as she unravels the mysteries in Arsen’s past. And she’ll have to move faster than a bridesmaid after the bouquet. Because a cunning killer seems determined to stop the wedding. At any cost.
If you love quirky heroines, twisty mysteries, and laugh-out-loud humor, you’ll love The Bantam Menace.
AVAILABLE FOR PREORDER AT: AMAZON ~ APPLE ~ NOOK ~ KOBO ~ GOOGLE PLAY
RELEASES APRIL 25, 2023!
Posted by Kassandra Lamb. Kassandra is a retired psychotherapist turned mystery writer. She is the author of the Kate Huntington psychological mysteries, set in her native Maryland, the Marcia Banks and Buddy cozy mysteries, set in Central Florida, and the C.o.P. on the Scene police procedurals, set in northern Florida. She also writes romantic suspense under the pen name of Jessica Dale.
Misterio press produces an array of quality crime fiction. We post here twice a month, usually on Tuesdays, to alert you to new releases, to entertain, and to inform.
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