Illuminating the Past - Lighting in the 18th and 19th Century by Jo-Ann Roberts

 

Let's face it...when we walk into a darkened room or come into the house late at night, we automatically flip the switch, and the space is filled with light. But for the pioneers, and before that, the colonists, illuminating a room wasn't quite that simple or automatic.

Folks in the 18th and 19th centuries rarely held nighttime activities, especially in rural America. They carried wood torches from place to place. Fireplaces were used for food preparation and domestic activities such as cleaning or reading. In larger cities, an iron basket held burning embers that illuminated the streets and walkways and were typically the homeowners' responsibility to maintain.

Rush Lights

A rushlight is a type of candle or miniature torch formed by soaking the dried pith of the rush plant in

fat or grease. For several centuries, rushlights were a common source of artificial light for the lower class in England. When the colonists settled in America, then pushed further west, they continued using the same method but with native plants. They were extremely inexpensive to make.

Candlesticks

Candlesticks came in various forms and were made from brass, pewter, tin, iron, and later glass. A familiar form included courting candles, which were used by fathers as a timer to determine the length of a suitor's visit. When the candle burned down to a specific length, the fella had to leave! Hog scraper candlesticks derived their name from a similar-looking device used to scrape bristles from a hog hide after slaughtering. Some primitive candlesticks could be as simple as an iron socketed spike driven into a piece of wood.

Candles

Tallow candles were made from rendered animal fat, typically from cattle, sheep, or hogs that were butchered in the fall. Tallow, even though it was a useful byproduct, did have its drawbacks...the foul odor that was emitted when burning, and its tendency to produce black smoke. They were also a tasty treat for mice and other rodents. 

Beeswax candles were the preferred choice for the upper class in the 18th century. However, since they were taxed at eight times the rate of a tallow, not many could afford them. Beeswax candles burned cleaner, lasted longer, and had a more pleasant scent. They could be hand-dipped or poured into a mold.

Lamps

Pan lamps were used as far back as the Greeks and Romans. It consisted of an open-top metal bowl to hold the fuel, with a channel to hold the wick. In the early years of the industry, before there was electricity, the mainstay of the carnivals and traveling shows was lit by the trusty "pan lamp".  These were safe and more dependable than torches or candles and were the lighting of choice for decades until electricity was made available to fairgrounds in rural America.

The "Betty lamp" was constructed of either iron, tin, or brass. By adding a cover to the top to confine the heat, it decreased the smoke and made the oil burn more effectively. Thought to be of German or Austrian origin, it came into use in 18th-century America. These lamps burned fish oil or fat trimmings and had wicks of twisted cloth. It differed from earlier oil/grease lamps in that it used an internal wick holder to eliminate the fuel drip that was common with older lamp designs. This internal wick holder feature made the Betty lamp design very popular.

Lanterns

Colonists and pioneers, known for their thrift and ingenuity, made lanterns out of materials available to them. The more popular lanterns in the 28th and mid-19th centuries were made of tin or wood. Tin lanterns, sometimes referred to as ship lanterns, were some of the earliest forms. They used boiled cow horn that was thinly shaved and made into panels to expose the light.

In 1775, a familiar four-sided tin and glass paneled design lantern was hung in the belfry of the Old North Church in Boston as Paul Revere stopped on his way to Charlestown to signal that the British were coming.

A common reproduction form of a lantern is one made of punched tin perforated outward. This design allows light to shine through while protecting the candle flame from extinguishing.

Chandeliers

The word chandelier is derived from the French "chandelle", meaning candle or candlelight, and became popular from the mid-1700s to the early 1800s in America. Constructed of wood, tin, pewter, or brass. By the mid-1800s, glass, along with lead crystal beads hanging from ornate arms, became the medium of choice for the upper class in America.

In this age of electricity, we take for granted the instant gratification of being able to flick on a switch, and our world instantaneously becomes illuminated. No dripping oil or wax to clean off the floor, no smelly scents permeating our homes. We are accustomed to having light, anytime and anyplace. The colonists and pioneers didn't have that luxury. They were, however, creative enough to adapt and develop lighting sources to extend the hours of the day. 

One can truly appreciate the ingenuity and resiliency of our forefathers and how they overcame the darkness.

**********

My September 20th Release...

There’s always one risk in life worth taking.

Caroline Stoddard clung to Sister Benedict’s words like a lifeline as the train took her across the country from Boston to Pine Ridge, Colorado. After learning the orphanage was closing and she’d be without a roof over her head and her teaching position, she couldn’t have been more surprised when the Prioress referred her to Millie Crenshaw, owner of the Westward Home and Hearts Matrimonial Agency.

But life had another surprise in store for Caroline when she stepped off the train in Pine Ridge, Colorado. Instead of the new start she expected with James Murdock, her intended groom, he is nowhere to be found. With only a few coins to her name and no reason to return to Boston, she’s determined to make the best of it in this rugged land.

As the deputy sheriff in Pine Ridge, Knox Manning is haunted by a robbery gone wrong, making him question his ability to protect the town, and a stranded woman at the train depot with nowhere to go is the last thing he needs. But walking away isn’t in his nature. The badge he wears is both an anchor and a burden, one that caused him to sacrifice the one thing he always wanted—a chance for a home and a family.

Just as they begin to see each other in ways neither expected, and Knox dares to dream about a future with Caroline, the town of Pine Ridge is threatened by the same outlaws he’d been tracking for two years.

When Caroline is abducted, Knox realizes the gang had given him something worth fighting for—worth dying for, if necessary.

But more importantly, worth living for.

Pre-Order Link

Homes on the Range - Dugouts vs. Sod Houses

 

"The path went across the short sunny grass, to the edge of the bank. Down below it was the creek, rippling and glistening in the sunshine. The willow trees grew up beyond the creek.

Over the edge of the bank, the path turned and went slanting down, close against the grassy bank that rose up like a wall.

Laura went down it cautiously. The bank rose up beside her till she could not see the wagon. There was only the high sky above her, and down below her, the water was talking to itself. Laura went a step farther, then one more step. The path stopped at a wider, flat place, where it turned and dropped down to the creek in stair-steps. Then Laura saw the door.

The door stood straight up in the grassy bank, where the path turned. It was like a house door, but whatever was behind it was under the ground. The door was shut."

On the Banks of Plum Creek, Chapter 1, The Door in the Ground

Imagine yourself as a pioneer living in a hole in the ground. Now imagine that floodwater is rising toward the ceiling. Welcome to the prairie!

While the sod house is iconic of the frontier, many pioneers started out in an even simpler form of housing the dugout.

In short, pioneers had to dig a rectangular hole into a hillside or a ravine. The open side faced the east to catch the morning light. Its position also kept blowing snow away from the door. They enclosed the open front with a wall of logs or sod and left a space for a door; a window was optional. Finally, they roofed the hole with "poles, brush, hay, and earth." Sod shingles, rectangles of soil about 4 inches thick with grass and roots intact were laid over wooden supports. Because wood was scarce, the supports were frequently more optimistic than substantial.

Dugouts were cool in the summer and warm in the winter. They also were dirty. Chunks of the ceiling continually flaked off. Water added to dirt flakes equaled mud. And every time it rained, the roof leaked muddy water. It dripped during the storm and sometimes for days afterward. Some pioneers held umbrellas over pots and pans while they cooked. Frequently, the sod became so waterlogged the entire roof gave way burying the occupants and all they owned in mud.

Under all these leaking, dripping, falling roofs were dirt floors. Some dirt floors were left "au natural" that is, covered with grass and weeds. Others, where the layer of sod had been dug out, were smoothed with a spade. In some dwellings, the floor was tamped down with a fence post. Folks who really wanted to show off tamped the dirt, flooded it with water, and later burned dry grass on it. Repeating this process several times produced a hard, pottery-like surface. Clay mixed with sand or gravel gave the floor a stucco-like surface.

But water turns all dirt floors to mud.

The next step was carpeting. Pioneers added rags and burlap to mats and skins In some cases, straw was put down and walked into a mat that was called the purest kind of pioneer luxury.

"In those days, we did not have any such things as rugs. We tore the old worn-out clothes, dress skirts, shirts, and aprons into small strips, sewed them together, and wound them into a big ball. Then we could buy carpet warp of some pretty colors and have carpet woven out of the rags. It would be woven into strips one yard wide and as long as the room. The strip had to be sewn together by hand then you had a carpet large enough to cover all the floor. Some people put straw under the carpet before it was tacked down to the floor."

Mrs. W.H. Hodge, from "Sod Walls" by Roger L. Welsch   

 

The dugout would be cheap, quickly built, cool in summer, and warm in winter. It would also be cramped, dark, dirty, and full of every critter in the ground. But it would do until the family planted the first crop and had time to build a proper soddy or frame house.

Sod houses were mostly built on the plains, where the prairie grasses were thick, and trees were scarce.

A sod house, also known as a "soddy," was constructed of blocks cut from the thick sod of the prairie grasslands. The blocks were piled on top of one another and then packed tightly together to create the walls of the house. The walls of the soddy curved slightly, similar to an igloo. the wider base allowed the walls to support the weight of the bricks. The roof was often made of wood or canvas, and the floor was typically made of packed dirt.

Sod houses were a cheap and relatively easy way to build a house on the frontier, where there were few trees and traditional building materials were not readily available. They provided insulation against the cold and kept the interior cool during the hot summer months. Plastered or wallpapered walls on the inside made them feel more like regular houses, although not all "soddies" had these luxuries. However, they were also prone to leaks and could be infested with pests such as mice and insects. Also, they were not very durable and had to be rebuilt frequently.

 

In my upcoming release, "Olivia's Odyssey", the heroine from Boston, Olivia Talbot, has never been in a dugout let alone seen one. But on an outing with the hero, Sheriff Sam Wright, she begins to see the land through his eyes. When they stop at a dugout her reaction is what you might expect. The absence of natural light, the packed dirt floor, flakes of dirt falling from the ceiling, and the dank smell of earth are definitely not what she's been accustomed to in a home. Reminding herself that she's now living in the West, she slowly embraces the situation in which she finds herself.

As a mail-order bride to a cattleman, Olivia Talbot expected her life would change.

What she didn't expect upon her arrival was to discover she was a widow before she was a bride.

Things go from bad to worse after Olivia Talbot is let go from her position at the Butterick Pattern Company in Boston and her beloved Auntie Dee passes away. Armed with only her sewing machine and a letter of introduction to Mildred Crenshaw, proprietress of the Westward Home and Hearts Matrimonial Agency she soon finds herself corresponding with a cattleman from Cottonwood Falls, Kansas.

Arriving in Kansas, her hopes for a future with Nate Forester are dashed when the handsome sheriff delivers the news she won’t be getting married.

Sheriff Sam Wright can handle most trouble that comes his way in Cottonwood Falls. Yet, Olivia Talbot’s sapphire eyes and dark curls are a threat of a different kind, and soon she’s taking over his time and his thoughts.

As they grow closer, Olivia begins to hope there may be a future for her and Sam. Soon, however, doubts and fears start to plague her. What if he didn’t care for her as much as she cared for him? What if he fell in love with her only because he felt sorry for her?

But when an outlaw’s bullet threatens to crush the fragile seeds of love, Olivia is faced with losing him even before she has a chance to tell him she cares for him.

Will a leap of faith promise a new beginning? 

CLICK HERE for Pre-Order

Raising a Glass - Irish Women in America by Jo-Ann Roberts

 

Happy March! Happy Spring!  As we speak, I'm in the middle of writing my upcoming release, Olivia's Odyssey (July 2024). This is my first mail-order bride book, and admittedly, it's been a bit of a challenge to plot. Since I've never written one before, so the research on who, why, where, and when these women chose to travel hundreds or thousands of miles to marry a man sight unseen was a bit daunting.

When I finally decided on the heroine's 4w's (who, why, where, when) Olivia Glennon, an Irish American shoe factory worker from South Boston, Massachusetts emerged. With the loss of her mother, she was raised by her father, spending most of her formative years sleeping in saloons while her father lost money playing cards. The plot is still in the formative stages, so I'll stop there!

The Irish, like many, many ethnicities, had a tremendous impact on American history and culture. It is estimated that 36.9 million Americans claim Irish roots. The Irish are the second-largest heritage group after the Germans. However, the Irish were unique among all immigrant groups...

...they sent more daughters than sons to America!

Between 1820 and 1860, the Irish constituted over one-third of all immigrants to the U.S., and by the 1840s--at the height of the Potato Famine--they comprised nearly half. Even after the crisis, Irish women continued to migrate in increasing numbers. By the end of the 19th century, single women accounted for 53% of Irish immigrants.

These girls and women moved to America for the same reason as men: opportunity and freedom. They left behind hard scrabble farms where they worked as long and as hard as men to bring in a crop while maintaining homes and taking care of children. Poor as church mice, the women--many of them widows or orphans--had few employment opportunities and diminished marriage prospects as the Famine had driven many men to leave the Emerald Isle...so they, too, left for America. Determined not to work in the fields, they settled in cities where many took jobs as servants, domestic workers, or seamstresses. 

More than 60% worked as maids, cooks, nannies, or housekeepers. Living with wealthy or middle-class American families came with advantages. They exposed the Irish women to American culture speeding up their assimilation to their environment. However, the greatest advantage was financial. Not only were the wages higher than those for factory workers, but as live-in help domestics, they had no housing expenses, enabling them to save money.

Women sent money back home to support families and also paid the passage for their female sisters, nieces, cousins, and friends. They were young, most under the age of 24, unmarried, and had a desire for independence. (Think of all the mail-order bride books you've read with Irish heroines!)

These girls were literate as well, having been educated in Catholic schools in Ireland. Building on their success in Ireland, Irish-Catholic nuns and priests established scores of schools and colleges in America, adding social and economic mobility for successive generations.

Education also helped pave the way for Irish American women's entrance into the workforce. Second-generation women became teachers, bookkeepers, typists, journalists, and nurses, turning their back on servitude, preferring regular hours found in government and business.

Once in the workplace, these second-generation Irish American women protested discrimination and were among the first to organize and join labor unions, rising through the ranks in union leadership, and introducing unions to service and professional fields. They organized teacher unions to eliminate male and female pay discrepancies.

Irish American women also made their mark through literature and journalism, their choice of subject matter revealing abuse of the mentally ill, and addressing subjects like body images, alcoholism, and difficulties in marriage.

Irish women found the adventure of a lifetime in America as compelling as the economic opportunities, firmly establishing themselves as a force with which to be reckoned. Their strong bonds, formed by immigration and shared membership in the Catholic Church, nurtured a culture and pride among Irish American women that continues to this day.

Pictures Courtesy of Library of Congress

Raising a Glass to Irish American Women | National Women's History Museum (womenshistory.org)

THE INNOCENCE OF BARE SHOULDERS by Marisa Masterson

Old daguerreotypes and photographs intrigue me. It's a small window into the past, but I also like to study how the sitters in those relics are clothed. As I studied some of the oldest from the 1840s and 1850s, I noticed a trend for children--bare shoulders.

Notice the hair parted on the sides and piled on top.
A common style for young boys in 1840s.

And I say children. This was also done at times with little boys. Before they reached the age of four, boys and girls would have been dressed in the same fashion. Only the part of the hair would be a clue to gender. Boys had their hair parted on the side; girls had theirs parted down the middle.

President Grant's wife, Julia Dent Grant, once wrote about her early years and commented on children's fashion. "...the children's arms and legs were bare in those days..." (American Victorian Costume in Early Photographs) 

Parents apparently admired the dimpled shoulders and knees of their children. It was associated with innocence. (Interesting that some women's ballgowns also were worn off the shoulder at this time. Still to indicate innocence?)

Baring the shoulders surprises me. It's amazing to me in a time when there was no central heating and the United States was experiencing what later came to be known as the Little Ice Age. 

As I studied photographs, I noticed that this trend quit by the 1860s. No more bare shoulders. Mrs. Grant's comment reinforced that there was a change in fashion for whatever reason. (Was the war responsible? I expect it somehow was.)

Whatever the reason for the change, the bared shoulders in early daguerreotypes connect the image with the 1840s and 1850s. It was a time of innocence before a war ripped apart the United States.

If you are interested in old photograph and fashion, I recommend Priscilla Harris Dalrymple's easy to read book, American Victorian Costume in Early Photographs (published by Dover). I use it as a resource while writing my novels.

She fell in love with an ideal. Too bad the man that she meets is so different.

Jack Dixon knew his mother was right. It was time he married. He'd go along with whatever she writes in her letter to the matchmaker.

Priscilla Pringle fell in love with the man who wrote such a tender letter. Too bad that when she meets the man in Missouri, he is the complete opposite. 

She'd leave and return immediately. But what would happen to the orphaned piglet she is bottle feeding?

Will she stay after the piggy is weaned? Is Jack the only one who needs to change to make their marriage work?

Read on Amazon to find out. Also available in Kindle Unlimited.

PRE-ORDER NOW! RELEASING FEB. 1OTH.

LIVING ON 12 CENTS A DAY by Marisa Masterson

Research recently led me to the first few years of the Good Housekeeping magazine. Did you know it was first published in 1875? I had no idea it was that old. Its original issues advertised corsets even! 

No fun covers yet at that time. The contents were listed on the cover like you would see now. 

In one issue, I found the results of a study on how much nutrition a man needed and where he should get that. Sounds boring, right? 

What interested me was the listing of prices. For an author who writes historical fiction, primary sources like this one with actual prices is like hitting gold for a miner. 

The article suggests that the normal man would live on 12 cents a day. I love this line from it. "If a man wants to gorge himself, and spend almost 22 cents a day on his stomach..." 

How can anyone live on 12 cents each day? It wasn't only a matter of things being lower in price (comparably) in the year of this article (1885) but also what the person would eat. 

The source of protein was very different from ours today. Steak, hamburgers, Kentucky Fried Chicken. None of those. 

According to the study from Wesleyan University, the average man would eat 1/2 pound of beef neck and 1/4 pound of beans to get his protein. After all, beef neck was only 8 cents per pound! A real buy!

The largest part of his diet would come from potatoes. He should be eating 2 pounds of these each day. I think this remains true for some people today. For me, I grew up eating potatoes daily, though not that large amount. Even McDonald's promotes eating potatoes as they group french fries with their sandwiches in meal deals.

To read more about this study or the recommended diet for 1885, you can find this magazine online. Simply click on the icon to the left. No membership or library card is required and it is interesting reading. (https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015023904959&view=1up&seq=179)

Since I have you thinking about the 1800s, here's a new read to consider. 

LOVING YOUR NEIGHBOR by Marisa Masterson

 It started with a name and then a title. Sookie's Silence. I wanted to use that unusual nickname for my next heroine. I needed a word to go with it, so I chose silence. But why was this heroine silent?

Had she been assaulted? Threatened? I considered all of these and dismissed them. It came to me that Sookie was silent because she could not talk. How would I write a novel where the key female had no dialogue?

Sign language! I had to create a language for her.

I started by researching whether sign language was even invented at that time. Through this research, I discovered the sweet story of a minister who lived out Christ's command to love our neighbors.

It was in Connecticut and the year was 1814. Minister Dr. Thomas Gallaudet had a neighbor whose daughter was deaf. Despite her handicap, Alice appeared to be extremely intelligent. Gallaudet tried to teach the girl to read and write. Quickly, he realized he didn't have the skills to educate her. 

Instead of giving up, the minister raised money to go to Europe. There, he studied at the National Institute for Deaf-Mutes. When Gallaudet needed to return to America, he convinced one of the leading teachers from that school to move to Connecticut. The man agreed, knowing he would help set up a school for the deaf in the United States.

The two men established the American School for the Deaf. This school was free for its students. Over the next forty-five years, many more schools came into existence because of Gallaudet's efforts.

American School for the Deaf

And why? Because one many loved his neighbor enough to make a difference in her life and others in desperate need. I've never read Gallaudet's personal writings, but I am guessing he felt the Lord's calling to do this. And his efforts were certainly blessed.

Back to Sookie. My heroine doesn't have the benefit of learning in a school for the deaf. And, she isn't deaf after all, only mute. She and her sister create a language between themselves and even record it in a dictionary of sorts. This language appears throughout my book as well as a page from their dictionary.

Intrigued? Sookie's Silence releases April 13. Pre-order today if you want to be sure it's on your reading device right away.

AND YOU THOUGHT A ROLEX WAS GREAT...by Marisa Masterson

 Patek Phillipe. Have you ever heard of the company? I hadn't but it was exactly the watch I was looking to include in my next novel.

I wanted a watch that royalty would covet and a wealthy lady of distinction might proudly display on the lapel of the jacket covering her walking dress. Research turned up this brand name. An old brand, actually, that is still in business today.

This company gained acclaim soon after it started in the 1830s because of the owner's design for a keyless watch. Yes, keyless. Watches and clocks required keys to wind them. This company premiered the design to wind using the fob. By 1851, Queen Victoria purchased one and proudly wore it.

In my novel, Sookie's Silence, the wealthy matchmaker wears a Patek Phillippe watch pinned to her mauve walking dress.

The elegantly dressed woman who rose from the room’s single chair stepped around the ripped sofa and held out an inviting hand, palm up. Her clothing and manners brought a longing to Sookie. The woman somehow reminded her of the mother she lost only months before.

The stranger’s clothing fit the elegant air of the woman. A mauve jacket trimmed with gray covered a walking dress of the same color and material. She had a lovely piece of blue jewelry pinned to the lapel. A Patek Phillippe keyless watch, if Sookie was any judge of it.

Sookie's Silence releases in April and readers are able to pre-order now so you won't miss out on the release...

Mildred Crenshaw's latest match in the Westward Home and Hearts Mail-Order Brides series--

The accident that kills her parents leaves Sookie Donaldson mute. She grasps at the chance to be a mail-order bride. The only catch is that she must also be able to teach school.
Since Sookie taught school for a number of years that is no problem. Hopefully in Nebraska, people will welcome any trained teacher--even one who cannot speak. She fits all the requirements outlined by Milly Crenshaw, the matchmaker. The man in Nebraska is a perfect match. She hopes.
Will her surly groom send her back on the first train east when he realizes Sookie is silent? And who is the man who shadows her every movement in her new hometown?
Suddenly, Sookie's silence stands in her way of both happiness and safety.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08T6N9TJF

WHAT COFFEE REALLY WON THE WEST by Marisa Masterson

Last month, I wrote about tea. As I researched for that blog article, I ran into information about an unusual sort of Texas conflict. A war over coffee--

Coffee was so important to soldiers and frontiersmen
that some guns had coffee mills built into the stock.

Pioneers and frontiersmen depended on coffee. They craved the beverage and drank it at every meal. Julie Bier, one of the first pioneers to cross Death Valley, is quoted as saying, "Our coffee was a wonderful help and had that given out, I know we should have died."  (https://truewestmagazine.com/cowboy-coffee/) This was before our modern roasted and ground coffee that had a long shelf life.

Chuck Wagon Buffet

Cowboys also relied on coffee, preferring it barefooted (black). It was a standard item served from by chuck wagon, kept available constantly for the wrangles. One chuck wagon cook wrote that he used 175 pounds of beans every month. Ground beans were added to the previous pot's grounds until the pot. Something that was repeated until the pot couldn't hold anymore. 

At this time, the roasted coffee beans weren't available. The beans were sold green and then toasted in a skillet. One burned bean ruined the entire batch. But a new invention made possible this  battle to be the cowboy's favorite brand of the brew . A way to roast the beans and turn them during the process was invented. Then a man named John Arbuckle patented a recipe to coat the beans so they had a longer shelf life. (He used moss as one of the ingredients, believe it or not!)

In Texas, Arbuckles Ariosa coffee was known as the coffee that tamed the west. Coupons attached to each package were saved so that housewives could earn free items. (Twenty coupons earned a free apron.) Texans were devoted to their Arbuckles.

A coffee maker in San Francisco by the name of Folgers decided to win the hearts of Texans away from the Ariosa coffee. Folgers sent Frank Atha to Texas to set up an outlet there. Folgers was a much more expensive coffee than Arbuckles and Atha focused on that in his advertising campaign. Folgers' expensive Golden Gate Coffee was the one sold in Texas. Atha would travel around Texas in a wagon, giving away free samples to housewives. He limited the number of grocers who could carry the brand also, making it seem like a harder to buy item. That in itself made the popular Arbuckles seem more common and less desirable.

Atha did one more thing. He tried to convince Texans that Arbuckles was all about gimmicks. Folgers Coffee in Texas came with a slogan--No prize--no coupons--no crockery. All that came with Folgers was satisfaction.

So did it work? Folgers is the leading brand of ground coffee in the United states. Even so, to this day many older cowboys still think of Arbuckle's Ariosa blend as the original cowboy coffee. (https://www.arbucklecoffee.com/pages/history)  Folgers has won over everyone but the cowboys it seems.

https://www.amazon.com/Rubys-Westward-Hearts-Mail-Order-Brides-ebook/dp/B07YBK98P8