Title: Kellynch
Author: Kwen D. Griffeth
Genre: Jane Austen Fanfiction / Romance
Jane Austen completed “Persuasion” in August
1816. It was to be her last book. She left us with the story of Anne Elliot and
Captain Wentworth and she left them approaching “happily ever after.” What happens the day following “happily ever
after?”
The story of Kellynch picks up three years after the
couple married and were able to secure the Kellynch estate from Sir Walter and
Cousin William Elliot agreed to waive the entailment.
It would seem all is well with the young couple, but
all is not as it seems.
Kellynch is a story of deceit and treachery as well as
courage and overcoming the odds. It is a
story in which those who were assumed to be friends are not and where support
comes from unexpected places. Love
again, will, be tested in a story set against the backdrop of historical
events.
Throughout the book, I have tried to remain true to
the characters as Miss Austen created them.
I sought to develop and introduce new characters that would meet with
her approval.
Author Bio
When describing my life, I think Douglas Adams said it best, “I may not
have gone where I intended to go, but I have ended up where I needed to be.”
Books have always been a large part of my meandering.
I grew up on a ranch in southeastern Idaho and my friends were a mixed
and rowdy bunch. Louis L’Amour told me
tales of the west, but Edgar Rice Burroughs took me to the jungles of
Africa. Sir Author Conan Doyle walked
with me through the fog-covered streets of London, and Jane Austen taught me to
be a gentleman.
I read several other authors but I was fourteen when I met the man. Sitting in an English class, I chose a book
from a required reading list and I was introduced to Ernest Hemingway. His book, “For Whom the Bell Tolls,” allowed
Mister Hemingway, Robert Jordan, and I to fight in the Spanish Civil War and I
never left Idaho. When I closed the back
cover, I knew that no matter whatever else I did, I would be a writer. Even today, when I think back, I am still in
awe of how Hemingway’s words touched the soul of an adolescent boy.
I entered the Army a year after high school and stayed in uniform for
the next two decades. The military
offered me the opportunity to live my own adventures separate from the ones I
lived vicariously in books. While in
uniform, I worked in a variety of fields, Infantry, Military Police, and
Military Intelligence. I worked on a psychiatric
ward and later at a drug and alcohol rehabilitation center. I took trips to Mexico, Canada, and twice to
Germany. I have visited the forty-eight
contiguous states and desperately want to see the other two.
Along the way, I met and kept
printed friends Allister Maclean, Robert Ludlow, John Grisham, and Tom
Clancy. I had flings with several
others, Joseph Wambaugh, Clive Cussler, and Stephen King.
I started to write and failed.
Repeatedly, I would start a story, only to end it and discard it as it
sounded too much like the works of one of my friends. I went through periods when I refused to
read, because I was frustrated and angry with those friends. Those friends who were what I wanted to be.
Fifteen years ago, I got sick. I
got sick and it was misdiagnosed. I
almost died, but then I met the doctor who figured out the riddle and, with his
help, I started working my way back. As
I got better and my brain got stronger, stories, characters, and plots started
to form. I found my voice and I published
my first book, a novella called “Dear Emma,” in February 2012.
I used to feel strange telling people, “I got better and now I hear
voices,” but the statement is accurate.
I feel I am in good company as several authors have made such
references. As I said at the beginning,
I am exactly where I need to be.
Links
Book Excerpt
Sir Walter turned toward the door, but was stopped by
the urgency in the Prime Minister’s voice.
“Sir Walter, please, do not leave.”
Elliot turned back.
“Sir Walter, those men you mentioned, including your
son, deserve all the credit and admiration you give them, but do you realize
the service and sacrifice they willing give is for you? Yes, you live a life far removed from the
challenges of the day, but your life is important and it has value beyond what
you may think. You and others like you
represent the ideal, the perfect English life, if you will. You put a face on why these men do what they
do. They know they will never be a part
of your world, and truth be told, most would not enjoy the idleness of it, but
they admire it just the same and they plant the seeds to spread it around the
globe.”
Sir Walter responded with a closed lipped smile, “Sir,
you have no need to patronize me, but I appreciate your efforts.”
The Prime Minister rewarded him with a full-toothed grin,
“Patronize you? Is that what I am
doing? Sir, do you now reside at
Kellynch?”
“I do.”
“I have been informed, by my wife, that we will be
visiting Kellynch next month. Perhaps
you and I will find time to continue our discussion. On my word, sir, I have no desire to
patronize.”
“Do you mind if I ask why you will visit and rest
assured I welcome your company and your wife’s.”
“I am told Kellynch boasts some of the finest flower
gardens in the county and my wife dearly loves the gardens. Is it true? Do you
have the finest gardens?”
“I have been told that, though, I would not know. I am not a bug; I have no interest in flowers
and other such housing for insects. Any
time spent in a garden is wasted and better spent at the card table, in my
mind.”
The Prime Minister’s eyes brightened, “You play cards,
then?”
Sir Walter cocked his head, as if to indicate what a
silly question, “I do.”
The Prime Minister’s eyes narrowed as if he was
circling prey, “For money?”
Sir Walter was taken back and he huffed before
answering, “Is there any other kind of card games? For adults, I mean.”
The indignation was met with a laugh, “No, I do not
believe there is. I suddenly find myself
much more enthused about our upcoming visit.
I look forward to seeing you across from me at the table and I hope your
purse is full.”
Sir Walter grinned, “And I sir, hope you bring your
coin. Is there a particular drink you
would prefer to be served to lessen the sting of losing?”
The Prime Minister laughed loud enough that several
men in the vicinity stopped and looked at the couple. “Good heavens, man, you would have me elevate
myself to the truly aloof. No, I will
happily drink whatever you choose to serve as I take your money.”
Sir Walter bowed at the waist, “In a month, then.”
The Prime Minister followed, “Indeed, in a month.”
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