Goddess Fish Promotions Presents: A School Of Daughters by Kate Rene MacKenzie; #ReviewTour, #BookTour, #NowAvailable, #OutNow, #TBR, #Live, #Review, #Giveaway

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions.  

Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

A SCHOOL OF DAUGHTERS

by Kate René MacKenzie

GENRE: Literary Women’s Fiction

Rating: 3.5 Stars

Told in the first person.

Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received this book for review from Goddess Fish Promotions and the author. I was not compensated nor was I required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am posting this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising".

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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.

Buy Links:

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

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My Thoughts:

Kate is sharing her life's ups and downs with the reader. She has a husband that I personally would have kicked to the curb. She also doesn't seem to have much self-esteem, doesn't seem to believe in herself. This story is told from her point of view.

I found myself being confused a lot of the time. There were times when I thought that I was finally figuring out where the author was trying to have my mind go and then Kate would say or do something and then I'd be confused once again. There came a time where I knew that this is a story that takes a lot of concentration on my part in order to understand what was going on. I kept waiting for a chapter but soon realized there aren't any. It's broken down by dates.

This is not a book if you have people that don't seem to realize that you are concentrating on a book that you are reading. Interruptions are aggravating and some people haven't got a clue. And that just added to my confusion. Sometimes I even had to go back a few pages and read the section again.

I might have had a different opinion if I could relate to the type of life she had with her husband. But I don't have those experiences to rely on. I could pick up on the feeling of betrayal but there were times when I didn't understand why Kate didn't feel she had any recourse. I liked the affinity she had with her animals but kept waiting for her to see this was a job that gave her purpose. And by the time I got the end of her story, it left me feeling sad. My hope is that you will see the things that I seemed to have missed. Will probably attempt to read again at some point to see if I can really figure out why Kate kept confusing me.

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EXCERPT:

Before I begin my morning chores, I must tidy up the crime scene. Fortunately, it’s only 5:30 in Anchorage; Brian is still asleep and nowhere near his office. In his e-mail In box, I open the new message from Bank of America notifying him of a passcode change.

After I hit delete—and go into his trash file and permanently delete—I take a gander at the new e-mails, opening the message from AT&T. I hit the link that takes me to his account. I’ve been here before, but my access was thwarted by the unknown password. I type in KateRene930…

Before all my sleuthing, I had one, pretty easy password that, if you know me, could be guessed. Now I have one, hard password. 

The screen displays the long, long list of calls to and from Brian’s cell phone during the last 30 days. My number is there, but most have a 907 area code—

I jerk back. My heart pounds at the number I know as well as my own. Searching for additional calls having the same number, I find another incoming, one outgoing. One call I might justify—and ignore—but three? 

Courageous or stupid, I’m not sure which, I move out of this bill and click the link to prior months.

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Author Bio:

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. 

Author Links:

 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:

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

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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