After The Vows - Indigo Sensuous Love Stories Romance Novel | Perfect for Beach Reading & Romantic Getaways

As a fan of romance novels, I love the thought of happily ever after. Sometimes I wonder what happens after the wedding and/or the birth of a baby. After the Vows is a wonderful collection of stories that look at when love meets real life.Leslie Esdaile explores what happens when you blend two families together. Believe me there are more issues to the joining of the two than the Brady Bunch ever showed. As well the story shows how you have to heal before you can truly be free and move forward. T.T. Henderson deals with the issue all relationships fear -- infidelity. Can you and how do you heal from broken trust? This story shows "I'm sorry and I forgive you" are the beginning of the journey but not the destination. Jaquelin Thomas gives a moving story of a woman relearning to love herself so that she can accept her husband's love. She has survived breast cancer but at the cost of losing her breasts. How do you accept and give love when all you want to do is hide from everyone including yourself?These stories are wonderfully edited by Donna Hill. The stories have all been crafted to show that love is a choice not something you fall into. In order for love to survive, couples have to have the attitude that the vows are forever. Do yourself a favor and pick up this book.As a recently married woman(8 months to be exact), this book was right on time. I couldn't put it down. I loved that it grabbed you from very first few lines. You could easily identify or sympathize with characters. Personally I am a fan for happy endings as well, but ones that are realistic. This book doesn't disappoint in that arena. No matter how much you love your spouse, it doesn't negate the fact that marriage is HARD WORK and will have to stand tests that you never saw coming, yet is BEAUTIFUL despite everything. I recommend this book to everyone. Check it out, you will not be disappointed!!!Three short stories about some of what can happen after years of marriage, or after certain trials that can come afterwards.This is a supurb anthology by 3 highly talented authors. In all 3 stories, you find that the love you felt that took you to the alter, is the same love you have to feel to keep your marriage vows. Leslie Esdaile shows us with Alexander and Edward that marriage the second time around can bring obstacles and guidelines that are crumbs from your first marriage. Scared that you have made a second mistake in choosing your mate, and you don't want to go through another divorce, you hinder the relationship by not being honest. Alexander cannot hold back any longer her own needs to be happy and she has to find a way to tell Edward, at the same time Edward has not faced the turmoils of his first wife and his mother and all the rules and control, he has to realize will ruin his second marriage if he doesn't lighten up and see his wife for who she is. After some disturbing truths are brought to their attention by people who love them, they find there way back to the love that brought them together. Ms.Esdaile tells this story with reality of second marriages with children involved and also when a spouse does not work toward the future and forget the past.T.T. Henderson does a remarkable job of showing how two people strive and build to have a family and through lack of communication can lose it all. Camille and Devon have been married for 19 years, have 2 children and a relatively nice life style, but do to a mistake that took place 5 years ago, the lines of communication have been severed and they are on their way to destruction. Devon has sacrificed to prove to his wife his love for her, but she doesn't see his sacrifice or his pain, so he turns to his friends and drinking to dull the aches. Camille has silently been miserable and has made her career her life, so she is indulging in work to hide her pain. When she serves divorce papers to Devon, the anger escalates and they are on a down hill battle, especially when Handsome high powered business man Alexander Touissant comes into the picture. Camille and Devon are so out of touch, that they don't understand when the other person is trying to wave the white flag, they keep on digging the hole deeper. Through much heartache and pain, Camille realizes how much she really loves Devon and when she is put in a compromising position, she has time to think things through clearly and understand Devon. While Devon is sulking and alone and allows his temper to settle because he can now only be mad at hisself, he realizes that he has jumped to the wrong conclusions and he knows Camille better, they finally both realize that there are some give and takes in marriage and with 2 children approaching college, they have each other and there are no limits to what they can achieve together. Finally realizing each others point of view they are able to recapture the love that brought them to the alter the first time. (I really liked this story, but I hated Alexander from the very beginning).Jacquelin Thomas has brought the effects of a deadly disease and the destruction it can have on a marriage to light. she has shown that when love is the key element in the marriage, even a silent killer has no chance and destroying what God has put together. Reva has been plagued with Breast Cancer and it has comsumed her life, driving her away from Edward and their daughter. Edward has attempted to be understanding and consoling and wants very much to have things back to normal before the cancer. He still sees Reva as the beautiful woman that she was when he first married her, but his space and understanding is misinterpreted by Reva as rejection. Reva is suffering because she hasn't expressed her feeling to him or to herself, she has succumbed to hiding and running away. Jacquelin Thomas brings this story full circle, showing the reality of this situation and the devastation, but also shows us how love conquers all. Edward shows Reva through tough love that she has to face the future and not allow the cancer to stop her from living and she doesn't have to face the battles alone, that is why he is there. Through his strength, Reva gains courage and comfort and also relief. Realizing that love is not just skin deep, they are back on track. So many marriages fall apart when a spouse becomes ill and they don't fight together, so they end up in divorce, this story shows a strong man a couple that are truelly in love.this was everything I'd come to expect from those authors.