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Book Summary and Reviews of The Wedding Veil by Kristy Woodson Harvey

The Wedding Veil by Kristy Woodson Harvey

The Wedding Veil

by Kristy Woodson Harvey

  • Published:
  • Mar 2022, 416 pages
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About this book

Book Summary

This "masterfully woven…literary home run" (New York Journal of Books) follows four women across generations, bound by a beautiful wedding veil and a connection to the famous Vanderbilt family from the New York Times bestselling author of the Peachtree Bluff series.

Four women. One family heirloom. A secret connection that will change their lives—and history as they know it.

Present Day: Julia Baxter's wedding veil, bequeathed to her great-grandmother by a mysterious woman on a train in the 1930s, has passed through generations of her family as a symbol of a happy marriage. But on the morning of her wedding day, something tells her that even the veil's good luck isn't enough to make her marriage last forever. Overwhelmed, she escapes to the Virgin Islands to clear her head.

Meanwhile, her grandmother, Babs, is also feeling shaken. Still grieving the death of her beloved husband, she decides to move into a retirement community. Though she hopes it's a new beginning, she does not expect to run into an old flame, dredging up the same complicated emotions she felt a lifetime ago.

1914: Socialite Edith Vanderbilt is struggling to manage the luxurious Biltmore Estate after the death of her cherished husband. With 250 rooms to oversee and an entire village dependent on her family to stay afloat, Edith is determined to uphold the Vanderbilt legacy—and prepare her free-spirited daughter Cornelia to inherit it—despite her family's deteriorating financial situation. But Cornelia has dreams of her own, and as she explores more of the rapidly changing world around her, she's torn between upholding tradition and pursuing the exciting future that lies beyond Biltmore's gilded gates.

Please be aware that this discussion guide will contain spoilers!
  1. When we first meet Julia at her bridesmaids' luncheon the day before her wedding, she experiences a moment of panic about getting married. She soothes her nerves by thinking "Follow the rules. Follow the rules" (pg. 9). How do each of the narrators "follow the rules"? Do they ever decide not to follow the rules? Discuss how Julia's mother, Meredith, did follow the rules, and how it affected her life and marriage.
  2. The wedding veil is what weaves the characters and their stories together in the book. Discuss how it impacts each person who wears it. What does it represent for each of them?
  3. Throughout the book we see characters creating second chances for themselves: Julia by making the decision to leave Hayes, forge her own ...
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Reviews

Media Reviews

"The author easily switches between the time periods to locate momentous events in the characters' lives and connect each story line with the veil at the center. Harvey, ever a fine storyteller, manages to keep the pages turning." —Publishers Weekly

"Finding inspiration in the true story of Edith Vanderbilt and her mysteriously disappeared wedding veil, Harvey intertwines a veil's generations-spanning journey, the lives of the women who wore it, and the strength required to remove the veil and follow one's heart instead." —Booklist

"Kristy Woodson Harvey seamlessly intertwines the past and present in a multi-generational tale as elegant and charming as the elusive Vanderbilt veil itself. Through an exploration of love, family, and identity, The Wedding Veil guided me on a heartfelt journey brimming with endearing characters and delightful twists. I absolutely loved it." —Kristina McMorris, New York Times bestselling author of Sold on a Monday

"Kristy Woodson Harvey weds history and modern day into a fascinating and astonishing marriage. With Harvey's signature charming and heartfelt prose, The Wedding Veil explores love in all its dazzling facets across four generations and two families. Seeking answers to the extraordinary mystery of the Vanderbilt's lost heirloom, Harvey unveils the past to bring truth to the future. Including an unrivaled and elegant Biltmore setting, The Wedding Veil is enchanting, surprising and Harvey at her story-telling best." —Patti Callahan, New York Times bestselling author of Becoming Mrs. Lewis

This information about The Wedding Veil was first featured in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.

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Author Information

Kristy Woodson Harvey

Kristy Woodson Harvey is the New York Times bestselling author of nine novels, including The Wedding Veil, Under the Southern Sky, and The Peachtree Bluff series, which is in development for television with NBC. A Phi Beta Kappa, summa cum laude graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill's school of journalism, her writing has appeared in numerous online and print publications, including Southern Living, Traditional Home, USA Today, Domino, and O. Henry. Kristy is the winner of the Lucy Bramlette Patterson Award for Excellence in Creative Writing and a finalist for the Southern Book Prize. Her books have received numerous accolades, including Southern Living's Most Anticipated Beach Reads, Parade's Big Fiction Reads, and Entertainment Weekly's Spring Reading Picks. Kristy is the cocreator and cohost of the weekly web show and podcast Friends & Fiction. She blogs with her mom, Beth Woodson, on Design Chic, and loves connecting with fans on KristyWoodsonHarvey.com. She lives on the North Carolina coast with her husband and son where she is (always!) working on her next novel.

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