Kate’s 2¢: “The Marriage betrayal” by Shalini Boland

“The Marriage betrayal” by Shalini Boland

Kate’s 2¢: There is a plethora of in-depth biographies of authors and reviews of their books, that state the title, author, published date, and genre; as well as,     describing what the book is about, setting, and character(s), so, Kate’s 2¢ merely shares my thoughts about what I read.  I’m just saying…

   The many back-flashes are well marked, where the fore-shadowing is more subtle. The ending isn’t really the ending, is it?

   Well worth your time to read this story.

https://freshfiction.com:

Shalini Boland is a USA Today bestselling author of psychological thrillers The Girl from the Sea , The Best Friend , The Millionaire’s Wife , and The Child Next Door . Shalini lives in Dorset, England with her husband, two children, and their cheeky terrier mix. https://freshfiction.com/author.php?

From NLS/BARD/LOC:

The marriage betrayal DB104000

Boland, Shalini. Reading time: 7 hours, 39 minutes.

Read by Gabriella Cavallero.

Suspense Fiction

Psychological Fiction

Faye Townsend has planned the perfect summer trip for her family at the small seaside town her husband Jake grew up in. When Jake and their son Dylan go for a walk and don’t come back, Jake’s and Faye’s secrets must be revealed. Strong language, some violence, and some descriptions of sex. 2019.

Downloaded: October 7, 2021

Kate’s 2¢: “The Story of Kennett” by Bayard Taylor

“The Story of Kennett” by Bayard Taylor 

Kate’s 2¢: There is a plethora of in-depth biographies of authors and reviews of their books, that state the title, author, published date, and genre; as well as,     describing what the book is about, setting, and character(s), so, Kate’s 2¢ merely shares my thoughts about what I read.  I’m just saying…

One of the items my sister-in-law recently brought me that she’s had since my mother’s passing in 1976, was “The Story of Kennett” by Bayard Taylor. It was written in 1866 and quite lengthy. I located it in the ‘Project Gutenburg™’ list of digitized books.

   I found the story interesting because I lived in the Kennett Square area twice. The first time was in Cedarcrof, then Marboro.  True, the town, landscape, and buildings were very different when I lived there, but I recognized many of the towns and, of course, the way the Brandywine River floods its banks.

   The story is  a romance that takes place in the rural, rolling hills surrounding Kennett Square, PA, during the horse and buggy era of Quakers in the area. There are, of course, entanglments, which makes the story move right along. Personally, I enjoyed the detailed descriptions of the flora and fauna as people walked on foot or rode their horses through the country-side.

From, Kennett Library, Kennett Square, PA, ©2021

Bayard Taylor Biography

The healing of the world is in its nameless saints. Each separate star seems nothing, but a myriad scattered stars break up the night and make it beautiful. – Bayard Taylor.

Bayard Taylor was born to Joseph and Rebecca Way Taylor on January 11, 1825, in the village of Kennett Square. At that time, the predominately Quaker village was only a crossroads with a few dwellings, including a tavern, a hotel, and the stone-plastered building of two-and-a-half stories where the Taylors lived. Bayard Taylor was named in honor of the esteemed Delaware senator James A. Bayard. Bayard’s mother had taught him to read at age four, and early in his life, he found his real refuge in books, never tiring of reading poetry and books about the countries he longed to visit.

Early Travels and Work

Bayard was a curious and voracious reader as a child, and by the time he finished his formal schooling and tutoring in 1842, Bayard knew that he wanted to be a poet. His desire for literary recognition also prompted him to begin a correspondence with Rufus W. Griswold in November, 1842. At that time, Mr. Griswold was the editor of Graham’s Magazine (1842-43) and the compiler of The Poets and Poetry of America (1842). It was Bayard’s first literary friendship, and by October 10, 1843, he had his first interview in Philadelphia. Griswold encouraged Bayard to publish a collection of his early poems, and in February 1844, Ximena; or, the Battle of the Sierra Morena, and Other Poems was published.

Around the same time, Bayard’s cousin Franklin was enticing him to accompany Barclay Pennock and himself on a forthcoming trip to Europe. Unfortunately, Bayard could not afford the journey. He hoped to finance his trip by persuading some local publishers to agree to pay him for sending back reports of his travels. This plan seemed doomed to failure until, at last, several individuals agreed to such an arrangement, including representatives from the Saturday Evening Post, United States Gazette, and Graham’s Magazine. On July 1, 1844, Bayard, Barclay Pennock, and Franklin Taylor, departed New York and sailed for Liverpool on the packet ship Oxford, and arrived in Liverpool on July 29th. The next two years were spent traveling through England, Germany, and Italy, living on approximately six cents per day. His letters tell of his delight and of the financial crises that occurred.

His letters to his newspapers were widely read, having been written in an insightful and engaging manner. On his return to America, he was advised to collect them into a book, which was published in 1846 as Views A-foot, or, Europe Seen with a Knapsack and Staff, with a preface by N. P. Willis. From the beginning, it was extremely popular, going through twenty-four editions within thirteen years. After his return from Europe, Bayard wished to marry and settle down with Mary S. Agnew, who had been his sweetheart since their early school days. Despite the objections of her parents, who thought Bayard lacked secure employment, Bayard and Mary became engaged soon after Bayard returned to Kennett Square. Immediately, Bayard began looking for employment that would provide a fixed income sufficient for him to marry. After a failed attempt at newspaper publishing, he went to New York in late November or December 1847. There, he obtained editorial work at the offices of the New York Tribune and Union Magazine. While working at the Union Magazine Bayard was visited by Horace Greeley, publisher of the Tribune. Greeley said to Bayard, “Now you must do something for this young man. His name is Thoreau. He lives in a shanty at Walden Pond, near Concord, on $37.21 a year, and he must be encouraged. Bayard read the manuscript, Katahdin, and the Maine Woods, and persuaded Greeley to pay Thoreau seventy-five dollars for it. Unfortunately Bayard’s good intentions were overshadowed by an editorial mistake that brought immense indignation from Thoreau. While in New York, he continued to write, and in December, 1848, published Rhymes of Travel, Ballads and Poems, which was approvingly criticized by Edgar Allan Poe, who enjoyed the glowing imagination and sonorous well-balanced rhythm… In June, 1849, Bayard sailed to California via the Isthmus of Panama in order to report on the gold rush for the Tribune. During the next five months, Bayard visited San Francisco and the mines of the Mokelumne River, Stockton, the Sonoma Valley, and Sacramento. An account of his experiences in California was published in May 1850 under the title Eldorado, or Adventures in the Path of Empire. This book has proven to be Bayard’s most enduring work. Many letters passed between Bayard and Mary Agnew during this period of separation, their marriage having been twice postponed because of Mary’s health problems. When Bayard visited her upon his return from California, he found her greatly weakened, and realized that their time together would be short. With this knowledge, they were married at her home on October 24, 1850 in the presence of her parents and his mother. Within two months, on Saturday, December 21st, Mary died of complications due to tuberculosis.

Bayard found it difficult to write after the death of his wife and began to consider the possibility of traveling again. After a short period of grief, he departed Philadelphia on August 22, 1851 with his brother William. They arrived in Liverpool and traveled to London and then the continent, parting company in Vienna. From November 4, 1851 to April 14, 1852, Bayard traveled through Egypt with August Bufleb, a wealthy German of forty-five, whom he met in December. They shared adventures and became good friends on a trip that was full of good fortune and camaraderie.

After he departed Egypt, he journeyed to Lebanon, Syria, Palestine, and Asia Minor, finally arriving in Constantinople. While in Constantinople, Bayard learned that he would be traveling to the Far East on assignment for the Tribune . He journeyed throughout India, and then went on to China, touching at Singapore, and arriving at Hong Kong on March 16, 1853. In 1853, he received an appointment as master’s mate in the United States Navy in order to travel to Japan with Commodore Perry on the U.S.S. Mississippi. This trip resulted in A Visit to India, China and Japan, in the Year 1853.

Bayard found on his return from the Orient, that through the Tribune letters, his name had become widely known. Invitations to lecture poured in, and a new and prosperous career opened before him. His unusual experiences and engaging stage manner made him a popular speaker. The next few years were spent in lecturing, writing of his Eastern adventures, and revising the books he had already published.

In July 1856, he departed New York once again for Europe in order to travel through the northern countries and gather material for a future book. On December 6, 1856 Bayard arrived in Stockholm, Sweden, and after a week, departed for a two-month tour of Lapland and the Arctic regions. Bayard writes in his journal that the temperature was minus 47 at noon on January 28, 1857. Before continuing his northern travels, he briefly visited Germany and England. While in England, he spent two days with Alfred Lord Tennyson. Bayard and Tennyson spent their time together discussing poetry, religion, politics, and geology. After this brief visit, Bayard joined his friend August Bufleb in Norway, were they spent the summer traveling together. The experiences of these trips, sent back to the Tribune as letters, formed the basis of his book, Northern Travel: Summer and Winter Pictures of Sweden, Denmark and Lapland, which appeared in the fall of 1857.

After Bayard’s trip to Norway he returned to Gotha, were he to Bufleb’s home in Gotha, were he became acquainted with Mrs. Bufleb’s niece, Marie Hansen.  In June 1857, they became engaged, and on October 27, 1857, they were married. That winter, they made a trip to Greece, a place he longed to visit. He and his wife returned to Gotha in the spring of 1858 to await the birth of a daughter, Lilian, and on October 1, 1858, the family sailed for America.

After settling the family, Bayard departed on a lecture tour to obtain money to begin the building of Cedarcroft, his future country estate north of Kennett Square. The estate was finished in the summer of 1860, and was dedicated with great celebration on Saturday, August 18, 1860 with a production of a comedy, Love at a Hotel , written by Bayard and his friend, Richard Henry Stoddard. Guests included Ralph Waldo Emerson, John Greenleaf Whittier, James Russell Lowell and Horace Greeley, among others.

His new home proved to be an expensive luxury (it cost $15,000 to build), and it was frequently necessary to set aside the poetry that he loved for more lucrative writing, as well as continuing with his lecture tours. In 1862, he accepted an appointment as chargé d’affaires of the Russian legation in St. Petersburg. In December 1863, Bayard was in Washington, D. C. for a series of three lectures on the topic of Russia, its people and place in history. President Abraham Lincoln attended Bayard Taylor’s lecture in Willard’s Hall. The President, impressed by Bayard’s lecture, wrote him a brief letter of admiration. Later, in 1869, Bayard published his Ballad of Abraham Lincoln , “one of the earliest compositions in verse about Lincoln, prepared especially for children.”

The Middle Years

Bayard’s first novel, Hannah Thurston: a Story of American Life, was published shortly after his return to America in 1863, and was followed with John Godfrey’s Fortunes; Related by Himself: a Story of American Life in 1864. Both of these novels sold very well, and were popular long after their initial publication. Nathaniel Hawthorne wrote to Bayard about Hannah Thurston and called the book “an admirable one, new, true, and striking,—worthy of such a world-wide observer as yourself, and with a kind of thought in it which does not lie scattered about the world’s highways.” He also spent the year of 1865 working alternately on his poem, The Picture of St. John, and a novel, The Story of Kennett , which were published in 1866. Both of these works also received favorable reviews. Then, in June and July of 1866, he made a trip west to Colorado, which resulted in the publication of his travel work, Colorado: a Summer Trip , in early 1867. By this time, Bayard was becoming weary of traveling and found it increasingly difficult to carry on any sustained work away from Cedarcroft . He became determined to give up lecturing and depend solely on writing. Although Bayard was never in debt, Cedarcroft proved to be a drain on him financially. In 1869, he purchased more land and completed the first draft of his translation of Faust , but again it was necessary to embark on a lecture tour. In early September 1869 Bayard accepted an emeritus position at Cornell University in German literature. For the next several years he delivered lectures on Goethe, Humboldt, Lessing, Schiller, and others. Bayard enjoyed these lectures and the friendships he developed at Cornell, but he was grateful when they were over so that he could return to his writing. In 1870, his last novel, Joseph and His Friend: a Story of Pennsylvania , was published. Bayard considered this to be his most successful novel, although it was not well received by the general public.

The Final Years

By the time the Taylors departed once again for Europe on June 6, 1872, they had decided to give up Cedarcroft. The Taylors remained in Europe until September 1874, when they returned to Kennett, and in November, the Taylors returned to New York and made it their permanent home. In 1877, he began to write what was to be his last work, the poem Prince Deukalion: a Lyrical Drama. Once the poem was finished, he had decided to begin a life of Goethe and a life of Schiller. Fortunately, he was given the opportunity when he was appointed Minister to Germany in 1878. He knew the country and its people well, had a deep interest in German literature, and as he said, he would also be in the midst of the material he most needed. This appointment gave him a new hope of being able to complete his contemplated biographies.

Before leaving New York for Berlin, Bayard was able to visit Kennett Square. There was a reception for the author in Borough Hall on the evening of February 27, 1878. Bayard and his family departed for Europe on April 11th. During the voyage, Bayard spent some time with Mark Twain, who was also aboard the ship. Twain called Taylor “a genial, lovable, simple-hearted soul,… happy in his new dignity… He was a poet… and had also made the best of all English translations of Goethe’s ‘Faust.’” Unfortunately, shortly after meeting Twain, Bayard became seasick, and was forced to remain in his cabin until they arrived in Germany. The new Minister found a cordial welcome in Berlin and Bayard wrote enthusiastic letters about his experiences in Berlin to the people at home, but he was never really well after arriving in Germany. Extremely conscientious about his official work, he was unwilling to allow illness to interfere. That previous August, he had already lost twenty to thirty pounds, and on October 12, 1878, he was diagnosed with a liver condition and edema. On the December 19th, about 2:00 pm in the afternoon, he fell asleep in his chair, and by 4:00 pm, he had passed away quietly in his sleep. He was temporarily buried in Berlin, and then in March 1879, his body was transported back to America, where it arrived in New York on March 13, 1879. His remains lay in state in the Governor’s Room at New York’s City Hall, and the next day his casket was taken to the railway station, loaded on a special train, and transported to Kennett Square. The train arrived at the Kennett station at 5:30 pm, whereupon the casket was carried through the village of his birth, returning once more to Cedarcroft , where he was laid out in the library. On the following day his neighbors and literary associates followed in a funeral procession to his final resting place in Longwood Cemetery.

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Kate’s 2¢: “Pandemic: the Extinction Files, Book 1” “Genome: the Extinction files, book 2” by A. G. Riddle

“Pandemic: the Extinction Files, Book 1” “Genome: the Extinction files, book 2” by A. G. Riddle

Kate’s 2¢: There is a plethora of in-depth biographies of authors and reviews of their books, that state the title, author, published date, and genre; as well as,     describing what the book is about, setting, and character(s), so, Kate’s 2¢ merely shares my thoughts about what I read.  I’m just saying…

   Well, now that most of us have been scared into getting the Covid-19 vaccine, this story makes us pause and wonder if fiction follows life or does life follow fiction.

 This story isn’t as far off the mark as the air ships in the Buck Rogers stories  and all that came true.

From Riddle’s website:

A.G. Riddle spent ten years starting internet companies before retiring to pursue his true passion: writing fiction.

   His novels have sold over four million copies worlwide and been translated in twenty-four languages. Several of his works are in development for feature films.

   He lives in Raleigh, North Carolina with his wife, daughter, and an eccentric dog.

   No matter where he is, or what’s going on, he tries his best to set aside time every day to answer emails and messages from readers. You can reach him at: ag@agriddle.com

   Released in 2017, his fifth novel, Pandemic, focuses on a team of researchers investigating an outbreak that could alter the human race. The sequel, Genome, concludes the two-book series.

From NLS/BARD/LOC:

Pandemic: the Extinction Files, Book 1 DB103172

Riddle, A. G; Ballerini, Edoardo. Reading time: 18 hours, 56 minutes.

Read by Edoardo Ballerini.

Suspense Fiction

Science Fiction

Medical Fiction

As a pathogen becomes a global pandemic, epidemiologist Dr. Peyton Shaw investigates the disease’s origin and unearths a shocking conspiracy. Meanwhile, Desmond Hughes awakens in Berlin with no memory, but as he begins to piece together what happened to him, he learns he might have been involved in causing the outbreak. Unrated. Commercial audiobook. 2017.

Download Pandemic: the Extinction Files, Book 1

Genome: the Extinction files, book 2 DB103265

Riddle, A. G; Ballerini, Edoardo. Reading time: 13 hours, 3 minutes.

Read by Edoardo Ballerini.

Suspense Fiction

Science Fiction

Dr. Peyton Shaw and her mother hunt down Dr. Paul Kraus’s missing research on DNA. If they can decrypt the secrets hidden in the human genome that Kraus discovered, Shaw may be able to stop a global conspiracy. Sequel to Pandemic (DB 103172). Unrated. Commercial audiobook. 2017.

Download Genome: the Extinction files, book 2

Kate’s 2¢: “Wings of Fire” series by Tui Sutherland

“Wings of Fire” series by Tui Sutherland  

Kate’s 2¢: There is a plethora of in-depth biographies of authors and reviews of their books, that state the title, author, published date, and genre; as well as,     describing what the book is about, setting, and character(s), so, Kate’s 2¢ merely shares my thoughts about what I read.  I’m just saying…

   The “Wings of Fire” series has captured my 10-1/2-year old grandson’s attention. He has not only read all of the books, but he can list all the many dragons, their names and tribes and recite the prophecy. So, as I’ve done with all my children, I down-loaded several stories in the series, to know what he’s reading.

   I liked the vocabulary that doesn’t talk down to the target audience. Do you know how to use the words ergo and erst-while? The plots are, of course, fanciful with lots of magic, flying, and fighting. You know, just like in real-life, but, all the characters are dragons.

   The dragons deal with all the human real world issues, although, the solutions are a lot easier with a touch of magic.

   I can see where this series would appeal to the middle schoolers, as well as, older children and adults who are young at heart. I like that my grandson is holding a hard (okay, a soft) copy of the stories to read under the covers at night.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

tuibooks.com Edit this at Wikidata

Tui T. Sutherland (born July 31, 1978 in Caracas, Venezuela)[1] is a Venezuelan-American children’s book author who has also written under the pen name Heather Williams. She shares another pen name, Erin Hunter, with writers Kate Cary, Cherith Baldry, and others when they collaborate with editor Victoria Holmes on the Seekers and Warriors series of novels. She is also known for writing the Wings of Fire series of novels.

In 2009, she appeared as a contestant on Jeopardy!, becoming a two-day champion and winning a grand total of $46,200.[2]

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Contents [hide]

Early life[edit]

Tui T. Sutherland was born on July 31, 1978 in Caracas, Venezuela. Her mother, who is from New Zealand named her after the tui, a bird native to that country. Sutherland lived in Asuncion, Paraguay; Miami, Florida; and Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic; before moving to New Jersey in high school. While in high school she began doing theater, which consisted mostly of backstage work.[3]

Sutherland graduated from Williams College in 1998, after which she abandoned her ideas of a career in theater in favor of a career in fiction writing, which she found to be more stable.[3]

Personal life[edit]

Sutherland lives in Boston, Massachusetts, with her husband and their two children.[3]

From NLS/BARD/LOC:

The brightest night: Wings of fire DB97829

Sutherland, Tui. Reading time: 8 hours, 5 minutes.

Read by Shannon McManus.

Adventure

Fantasy Fiction

Sunny has always taken the Dragonet Prophecy very seriously, and Morrowseer’s devastating news changes everything. Now she must forge a new identity and find a way to stop the futile war between the dragon clans. Sequel to The Dark Secret (DB 97828). Commercial audiobook. For grades 4-7. 2014.

Downloaded: November 5, 2021

Download The brightest night: Wings of fire

Talons of power: Wings of fire DB97833

Sutherland, Tui. Reading time: 7 hours, 54 minutes.

Read by Shannon McManus.

Friendship Fiction

Adventure

Fantasy Fiction

The war is over. The false prophecy has been fulfilled. But the dragonets still have enemies. A dark evil, buried for centuries, is stirring. Sequel to Escaping Peril (DB 97832). Commercial audiobook. For grades 4-7. 2016.

Downloaded: November 5, 2021

Download Talons of power: Wings of fire

Moon rising: Wings of fire DB97830

Sutherland, Tui. Reading time: 7 hours, 32 minutes.

Read by Shannon McManus.

Fantasy Fiction

When Moonwatcher, a young NightWing with secret powers, begins school at the academy started by the dragonets of destiny after the end of the war, she soon realizes that someone is attacking the students. Sequel to The Brightest Night (DB 97829). Commercial audiobook. For grades 4-7. 2015.

Downloaded: November 5, 2021

Download Moon rising: Wings of fire

Escaping peril: Wings of fire DB97832

Sutherland, Tui. Reading time: 7 hours, 4 minutes.

Read by Shannon McManus.

Friendship Fiction

Adventure

Fantasy Fiction

Peril is possibly the most dangerous dragon in Pyrrhia, because she has firescales that can kill an opponent with a touch, but now she has a mission–find her former queen, Scarlet. Sequel to Winter Turning (DB 97831). Commercial audiobook. For grades 4-7. 2016.

Downloaded: November 5, 2021

Download Escaping peril: Wings of fire

Darkness of dragons: Wings of fire DB97834

Sutherland, Tui. Reading time: 10 hours, 28 minutes.

Read by Shannon McManus.

Adventure

Fantasy Fiction

Determined to stop Darkstalker, Qibli believes that if he had magic he could change everything. But prophecies are not easy to rewrite. Qibli may be the force Pyrrhia needs or he may be the one to bring everything crashing down. Sequel to Talons of Power (DB 97833). Commercial audiobook. For grades 4-7. 2017.

Downloaded: November 5, 2021

Download Darkness of dragons: Wings of fire

Against the tide DB80566

Sutherland, Tui. Reading time: 4 hours, 59 minutes.

Read by Nicola Barber.

Adventure

Fantasy Fiction

Conor, Abeke, Meilin, and Rollan have traveled across the world, seeking a set of powerful talismans in order to keep them from enemy hands. But a traitor in the group seems to be in league with their shadowy pursuers. Sequel to Fire and Ice (DB 80565). Commercial audiobook. For grades 4-7. 2014.

Downloaded: November 5, 2021

Download Against the tide