Good morning, dear readers! As soon as I read the premise of this novel, I knew it was one to share with you. Gail Ward Olmsted has found a fascinating historical woman to feature, and you all know how I love the kind of story that shines a light on a lady who has been left too much in the historical dark. Read on about Katharine Prescott Wormeley, a Civil War Nurse and road trip adventuress!

~ Samantha

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Katharine's Remarkable Road Trip: An Excerpt

Guest Post by Gail Ward Olmsted

The history behind the story:

In the fall of 1907, Katharine decides to drive from Newport, Rhode Island, to her home in Jackson, New Hampshire. Despite the concerns of her family and friends, that at the age of 77 she lacks the stamina for the nearly 300-mile journey, Katharine sets out alone. Over the next six days, she receives a marriage proposal, pulls an all-nighter, saves a life or two, crashes a high-society event, meets a kindred spirit, faces a former rival, makes a new friend, takes a stroll with a future movie mogul, advises a troubled newlywed, and reflects upon a life well lived; her own!

Join her as she embarks upon her remarkable road trip.

Here's a sneak peek from Katharine's Remarkable Road Trip!

The lighter side of serving as a volunteer nurse on a hospital ship during the Civil War

“But it wasn’t all bad,” I told him. “When things settled down a bit, we nurses were able to chat with the soldiers or read to them. We even wrote letters to their loved ones for them.” I smiled brightly. “That was my favorite activity, the writing of letters. Just to know that they could tell their families back home how they were faring . . . well, it was quite the rewarding experience I can tell you that.”

I felt tears well up in my eyes, and I quickly wiped them away. Many of those letters would have arrived at their intended destination long after the soldier who had dictated it had died from his injuries. I hoped that the last words they received had provided some solace to the grieving families. It had been an honor and a privilege to be involved in their lives in that way. I remembered trying and failing to imagine what it would have been like to receive a letter like that, dictated by a loved one, transcribed by a well-meaning stranger.

Keep reading Katharine's Remarkable Road Trip

More about the remarkable Katharine:

Katharine Prescott Wormeley (1830-1908) was born into affluence in England and emigrated to the U. S. at the age of eighteen. Fiercely independent and never married, Kate volunteered as a nurse on a medical ship during the Civil War, before founding a vocational school for underprivileged girls. A lifelong friend and trusted confidante of landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted, she was a philanthropist, a hospital administrator, and the author of The Other Side of War: 1862, as well as the noted translator of dozens of novels written by French authors, including Moliere and Balzac. She is included in History’s Women: The Unsung Heroines; History of American Women: Civil War Women; Who’s Who in America 1908-09; Notable American Women, A Biographical Dictionary: 1607-1950 and A Woman of the 19th Century: Leading American Women in All Walks of Life.

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Connect with Gail Ward Olmsted

Gail Ward Olmsted was a marketing executive and a college professor before she began writing fiction on a fulltime basis. A trip to Sedona, AZ inspired her first novel Jeep Tour. Three more novels followed before she began Landscape of a Marriage, a biographical work of fiction featuring landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted, a distant cousin of her husband’s, and his wife Mary. After penning a pair of contemporary novels featuring a disgraced attorney seeking a career comeback (Miranda Writes, Miranda Nights) she is back to writing historical fiction featuring an incredible woman with an amazing story. Watch for Katharine's Remarkable Road Trip on June 13th.

Connect with Gail on her website, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Book Bub, Amazon Author Page, and Goodreads.