A SCHOOL OF DAUGHTERS

by Kate René MacKenzie

 

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GENRE:   Literary Women’s Fiction

 

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BLURB:

 

It’s funny how things sneak up on you…

 

Kate Willoughby is a champion for throwaways—discarded dogs and cats, abandoned horses bound for slaughter, and all creatures great and small. But now it's Kate who's alone in a hostile world like a dog dumped by the side of a road. Is there a champion for Kate?

 

After 22 years of marriage, Kate loves her husband, Brian, with an even greater passion than when she spoke her vows. “My world spins on his axis,” she often says. But when Kate finds a love letter to Brian from Micky, she’s torn between proving Brian’s innocence and nailing him to the wall with his guilt.

 

Throughout her marriage, Kate has been trusting and trustworthy —to a fault, friends have said. Now, she steals into Brian’s emails and accesses his credit card accounts, phone records, bank statements, friends and activities, discovering the metaphoric iceberg beneath Brian’s affair.

 

Turning to the one constant in her life, Kate is guided by her family of animals: shelter dog Molly; Premarin horse Quinn; packrat Winston; owls Albert & Victoria; Stubby, the chipmunk; rattlesnake Cassandra; and Phineas, the determined grosbeak. These wise and wonderful teachers, along with a wild menagerie on her Arizona ranch, deliver lessons on life, love, and letting go. But it’s Molly, in a heartbreaking act of courage, who leads Kate back to her true self, before she became lost in love with Brian.

 

Shining a light on the childhood events and adult choices that, like steppingstones, brought her to this moment, Kate illuminates a familiar and well-worn path. Narrating her story with equal doses of heartache and humor, Kate comes to understand that nothing sneaks up on you that isn't already here. Learning from Phineas, the determined grosbeak, Kate realizes that even after a devastating injury, you can soar again.

 

  

EXCERPT: 

“I will never do this again.”

 

It’s Christmas, five years ago. There is a mound of dirt in the corral and Chance is five feet under it.

 

Our Thanksgiving hosts, Felicity and Barry, have trailered over one of their horses so Petunia won’t be alone…

 

After 18 years in Alaska, stuck in a stall and paddock, Chance was supposed to enjoy many years of sun and warm and wide open spaces in Arizona. Truth be told, the main reason I moved to Juniper Verde was so Chance and Petunia could finally be horses. Chance’s life in Arizona wasn’t supposed to end after only 15 months.

 

Felicity and I stood in the drizzle, watching Petunia and Sabrina get to know each other.

 

"You’ll get another horse,” Felicity said.

 

Numbed by my sudden loss, I knew better.

 

Felicity looked at me. “You love too much.”

 

I heard Felicity’s accusatory assessment and felt…anger.

 

How is it possible to love too much? How can you put limits on love, miserly rationed in appropriate doses? Love is nothing if not everything. It’s every tick, every beat, every breath.

 

Love is…what love is. It shouldn’t be controlled, like a simmering pot, fearful of boiling over.

 

Love done right has no regrets. There is grief, certainly, at loss—sometimes overwhelming grief that empties you. But while sorrow hollows, love comforts and eventually… eventually... fills us with gratitude for having the courage to love with such abandon, with such hope, when we know the future is uncertain.

 

Not loving doesn’t insulate us from pain, it robs us of joy. We should all love too much, knowing that love’s loss will absolutely devastate us. If we don’t know that, feel that, then we don’t love enough…

                                                                         REVIEW

This story was so very good and so very close to what a marriage ending feels likes. The author takes you on Kate's journey of survival. She is going through something tough even though it is what is best for her and her future. This was one heartfelt and emotional. I feel many can relate to this one. This was such a favorite of mine. A definite must read!

AUTHOR Bio and Links:

 

Kate Rene’ MacKenzie is the women’s fiction alter ego of romance novelist and Golden Heart nominee Maggie McConnell (Spooning Daisy). Kate (and Maggie) spent her childhood overseas, the daughter of US diplomats. Attending college in Illinois, she volunteered at the local humane shelter, eventually becoming director. While earning a BA in Art and then an MBA, Kate worked at various jobs including go-go girl, bartender, and teaching assistant. At 26, she sold her 280Z and packed her dog and cat into a Ford truck and drove the Alcan Highway to Alaska where she spent 23 years exploring The Last Frontier in a single-engine Cessna. Her next adventure was in Arizona on a no-kill ranch at the end of the road. A vegan and animal rights advocate, Kate provides a sanctuary for all creatures great and small, but her immediate family includes horses Quinn and Hershey, and cat Noelle.

 

Amazon buy link: https://www.amazon.com/School-Daughters-Kate-Rene-MacKenzie-ebook/dp/B08RJYMQVS

 

 Websites:

 

https://www.KateReneMacKenzie.com

https://www.Maggie-McConnell.com

 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MaggieMcConnellwriter

 

Amazon buy link for Maggie McConnell/Spooning Daisy:  

https://www.amazon.com/Spooning-Daisy-Otter-Bite-Romance-ebook/dp/B015VA3O10/

 

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GIVEAWAY INFORMATION and RAFFLECOPTER CODE:

 

The author will be awarding a $50 Amazon/BN GC to two randomly drawn winners via rafflecopter during the tour.

Enter to win one of two $50 Amazon/BN GC - a Rafflecopter giveaway