The Bride's Room

The Adventures of Mildred Budge (Book 3)

By: Daphne Simpkins

Narrated by: Virtual Voice

Always a bride's maid--never a bride. That's part of the story of the life of Mildred Budge in this third novel in the series.

But there is more to know about this Sunday School teacher who has been recruited to be a maid of honor for her good friend's wedding.

As someone who has routinely had to muzzle herself at weddings by not calling out when the preacher asks if anyone knows a reason these two should not be wed, "It's not going to work out," this new role of supporting the bride has its challenges for this church lady of the South, Mildred Budge. But being a bride's maid also has its benefits for by the time the journey is over--by the time the bride herself walks down that aisle--Mildred Budge has become a different woman. Renewed. Refreshed. And she's not alone either. In The Bride's Room, readers will delight in the everyday antics of Southern church women and their neighbors. But readers will also be at ease, at peace, moving at the preferred pace of grace that Miss Budge lives out in her daily life. If you enjoy Southern fiction and stories that showcase an older heroine, you will surely want to live with Mildred Budge and her friends in the garden district of Montgomery, AL, called Cloverdale. And you will enjoy your time in the bride's room, too. It's real and Mildred Budge abides there with her friends.

To enjoy more time with Mildred Budge, download the first novel in the series, Mildred Budge in Cloverdale, and the sequel, Mildred Budge in Embankment. Since the publication of The Bride's Room, the fourth novel Kingdom Come has also been released.
Additionally, a spin-off series that focuses on the friends of Mildred Budge has two novels already. The series begins with Belle, A Mildred Budge Friendship Story and is followed next by A Gentle and Lowly Christmas.

If you enjoy shorter fiction, you'll find three volumes that capture slice-of-life adventures in Mildred's life. Those books are: Miss Budge in Love, The Mission of Mildred Budge, and a Christmas story, Miss Budge Goes to Fountain City.

To learn about new releases, follow Daphne Simpkins on Amazon. Or, you can like the Facebook page for Mildred Budge or Quotidian Books. You can contact her through [e-mail]

life of a believer

The story of an ordinary believer in Jesus Christ: her thoughts struggles
perseverance. I could relate to the ups and downs of life and the abiding direction from Jesus. the story gives one confirmation that our doubts and fears are normal..

Written with such astuteness

This author has the ability to articulate our thoughts better than we can ourselves. Many times she startles me, like she has the ability to see my thoughts. Yet very reassuring.

Mildred Budge & her community are fun to follow

I am posting this same review for each of 10 related books. In the course of a few weeks in early 2026, I listened to all of Daphne Simpkins’ Mildred Budge books. Like many before me, I fell in love with main character Mildred. There is much I recognized from my own experience in the stories. I was born in Alabama (AL), & lived 57 of my 64 years in the South (AL & Tennessee). My mother lived in Mongomery’s old Cloverdale neighborhood a few years, so the setting was familiar. The “church lady” stereotype struck me as a bit dated or too extreme at times, but there is much truth in it. The material is funny, practical, & very accurate as far as human nature. It portrays a church community living out faith, shares the truth of Jesus Christ, the Son of God; & what it’s like to have the Christian experience over the long haul of life, to be convicted & grow as a Christian, & to have the Holy Spirit in your ear.

There are three series featuring the same character (primary, short adventures, friends/friendship). The “primary” four are continuous stories that follow in order from first to last. The short adventures & friends/friendship ones fit around/before/during/after the time frames of the “primary” four. Some of the same events overlap, but titles across the three series do not fully follow each other sequentially, including if you read from oldest to last by original publication date. It is obvious where some would fall, but debatable where to place others. If you want to go everywhere Mildred does, you want to consume all titles as much in order as possible. There are numerous Internet references that list the books in order (not all the same). Here is the order I recommend - (1) Miss Budge in Love, (2) Mildred Budge in Cloverdale, (3) The Mission of Mildred Budge: Short Stories About Church Life in the South, (4), Mildred Budge in Embankment, (5) Belle, (6) Bride’s Room, (7) Miss Budge Goes to Fountain City, (8) Kingdom Come, & (9) A Gentle & Lowly Christmas. Christmas in Fountain City can go anywhere near the beginning, but works best before Mildred Budge in Embankment. It makes no mention of main character Mildred Budge, but lays groundwork for when she & Dixie go there later, & refers to an earlier different Christmas than the one where Mildred Budge visits.

At the close of A Gentle & Lowly Christmas, there is plenty of story for the cast of characters that could still be told IF the author chooses to produce more!

I purchased the main four in large print hard copy paperback to donate to the local Sellersburg, IN library near me. I know plenty of ladies from age 60s into 90s who would very much enjoy them. The author herself helped me to find these through Amazon, as they were not obviously available when I searched. It was a pleasure to correspond with her via electronic mail.

I always prefer authors reading their own works, but most non author narrators on Audible are good. These books were my first Audible experience with artificial intelligence (AI)/virtual narration. I AM NOT A FAN! It was dismal to me. Despite loving the first book & falling in love with the main character, I considered not listening to any more due to the this factor alone. Though it was was generally annoying, I forged ahead due to my affinity for the material, & because the titles were available as part of my membership without costing credits or extra funds. There were mulitiple AI voices - young to middle aged sounding women (black & white) & two males, at least one of which was black. The best fit for narrator would be a white female, aged 60+, from the deep South/with a clear natural Southern accent (such as Fannie Flagg or me!) & familiarity with lingo. It would also be more pleasant to the listener to have the same voice do all titles in the series. The cadence was off. “Breaths” were taken/pauses occurred at wrong places. Emphasis was not always on the correct syllable. Pronunciation was often incorrect. I called Audible & complained & was told my input was being noted. I contacted the author in case she had input into the process & was not aware of how her work sounded. She explained that she had agreed to participate in a program to implement & develop the use of AI/virtual narration with Audible.