Lessons in Community and National Life, Series B: For the First Class of the High School and the Upper Grades of the Elementary School (1918)

As Book One of The Sylverthorpe Saga begins, the reader meets self-described arrogant Duke Julian Ashbourne of the English estate, Sylverthorpe. He is a Believer, as is much of his family, though he is prone to sins of the flesh. His lifelong love for his wife begins in Sylverthorpe’s Lake, early one misty morningA[a–A]. Matthew, one of his sons and a vicar, heads toward ruin because of a difficult marriage. Kate, Julian’s daughter, schemes to cover her misdeeds. She blames her parents. William, Matthew’s son, is a horrid child. Between his marriage and William, Matthew feels he’s a failure as a husband, father, and vicar. How Matthew deals with this is a lesson in itself. Victoria is a foundling Kate coaxes her parents to care for. She plays a truly significant part in Adam’s future, Kate’s brother. The final chapter reveals Sylverthorpe’s deepest, darkest secrets.