SYNOPSIS: You're invited to the wedding of the year! Set in the same charming Coraloo from The Death of Mungo Blackwell, The Marriage of Innis Wilkinson is a quirky, contemporary twist of Romeo and Juliet with an added pinch of glorious chaos, a mysterious marriage, and a murder by scissors!
Roy Blackwell has proposed to Margarette Toft. A controversial decision given their families are sworn enemies!
Soon Coraloo’s feuding clans are competing to organize events for the most talked about wedding of the year… and glorious chaos ensues! But as the depth of the two families’ animosity becomes clear, Roy and Margarette’s relationship begins to falter.
Then Roy unearths a town secret involving the mysterious marriage of Innis Wilkinson and a murder. Parallels between the past and present rock the couple even further. But, as the whole truth comes to light, Roy and Margarette learn more than they could have imagined about love, family, and finding a place in the world.
Utterly heart-warming and charming, The Marriage of Innis Wilkinson will inspire joy and laughter!
REVIEW:
Gemma's Thoughts:
A modern day Romeo and Juliet, with feuding families and a long host of traditions and superstitions. The town of Coraloo was both whimsical and intriguing; it had an old fashioned feel about it that I loved. The colourful, quirky characters with their eccentric manners were both charming and humorous. I was captivated by the mystery surrounding Innis and Wilkin Wilkinson and couldn't wait to reach the chapters dedicated to these characters. I found their story fascinating and loved how it slowly weaved through the main story of Roy and Margarette.
A unique and charming book perfect for curling up on a lazy day, forgetting about the world around you and diving into the town of Coraloo.
Maria's Thoughts:
This tale is somewhat like Romeo and Juliet, two warring families in one town. The Blackwells and the Tofts can't see eye to eye about anything and each have their own turf, but somehow Margarette Toft and Roy Blackwell manage to fall in love and that's when their family troubles start.
The descriptive narrative makes this little town come to life from the Coraloo flea market with its array of brightly coloured stalls to the tiny police station that sees very little crime, thus giving Roy little to do. Roy finds a 'cold case' that he decides to solve which only confuses the families even more.
This story meanders through the lives of the residents, all richly depicted by the author, and takes you to Roy and Margarette's wedding. There was much humour throughout the book especially around the expectations of the demanding Blackwells and the ancient wedding dress! I loved that Innis and Wilkin had a history that added a few surprises to the book and to the town of Coraloo.
Many thanks to Fern at Lion Hudson for inviting us on The Marriage of Innis Wilkinson blog tour.
AUTHOR:
Lauren H. Brandenburg is a mentor, speaker, and author who happily blurs the lines between traditional genres in both middle grade and humorous family fiction.
She has currently written six of the ten books in The Books of the Gardener Series--Orlo: The Chosen (#4) was a finalist for the Selah Award middle grade novel of the year. The Death of Mungo Blackwell, a humorous family fiction (Lion Hudson publishing) was recently longlisted for the People's Book Prize in the United Kingdom.
Lauren is a former junior high and high school English teacher who stepped away from her profession to raise and homeschool her two children.
She lives with her husband, Jamie, and two children in a lovely town just south of Nashville, Tennessee where they laugh a lot.