In the mid to late nineteenth
century, the arrival of the circus provided a major form of entertainment,
attracting huge crowds, particularly in Western cities, an area of the country starved
for entertainment.
In the East, Philadelphia boasted America’s first circus building in 1783, but by 1825 Joshua Purdy Brown started a new trend with the use of large canvas tents to host the performances. Thus was born the traveling circus. Before long, circus organizers expanded to the multi-ring format, heightening the excitement by allowing different acts to take place simultaneously in several different rings at a time.
As train tracks rolled out across the country in the latter half of the eighteenth century, the use of train cars to transport the circus from town to town made the popular traveling shows more accessible than ever.
In my series, SEVEN BRIDES FOR SEVEN BROTHERS, backstory for one of the brothers saw him run away from an unhappy home life when he was young and join the circus, whose members became his surrogate family. Bradley had a true gift with animals, which served him well later as part of his new family on the ranch where the series takes place. He found his place and his calling in Arizona (not to mention love) and was often called upon by neighboring ranchers when one of them had an ailing member of their herd.
This entire series of Sweet, Western Historical Romances is currently available in single title or as two complete box sets, each with a bonus novella. You can find out more here. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07XDY2JGS
I still remember the thrill of seeing my first circus when I was young, even though after World War 2, the circus’s popularity declined due to new forms of entertainment like radio and television.
If you're a fan of mail order bride stories, allow me to tease you by saying that a new series will be launched in May. I can't tell you any more than that, but hopefully next month we'll have a cover reveal and launch party.
Her
hero, Steele, in HER UNDERCOVER COWBOY, is a modern-day cowboy, so when she was
wooed by a man called Steel— while he’s not a cowboy, he is an Alpha male and
her forever hero. Which is why all of
her stories end Happily Ever After.
She has published close to 40 novels, and a good number of them involve Cowboys.
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Congrats on your upcoming series, Kathleen! And I loved the circus, though I cannot imagine performing any of those tricks myself. Hugs!
ReplyDeleteThanks Julie, I'm afraid of heights, so you won't catch me on a high wire or a trapeze.
ReplyDelete