Catherine’s Ring – Review by Martha A. Cheves, Author of Stir, Laugh, Repeat 5 Stars
Nicholas deftly opened the package. He had to be careful with it because of how delicate it was from being tossed around the way it had been. Inside was a thick padding of The Boston Evening Globe dated April 21, 1915 and tied with a red ribbon to secure it. As Nicholas removed the ribbon the newspaper began to fall away revealing a note wrapped around a red velvet box which had been placed in the middle of the thick padding for protection. When he opened the box he could hardly believe what he was looking at – a beautiful Diamond, Emerald and Ruby ring was staring up at him. Maria was flabbergasted at the sight of the ring. She couldn’t help wondering how anyone could send something that beautiful through the mail without insuring it. But in those days, I guess they didn’t have to worry about the mail not going through? Hah! The mail didn’t go through then either did it? Never mind, that was then and this is now. Nicholas hadn’t said a word, he just held the ring in his hand and stared at its beauty and wondered who sent it to whom and why? And on that same day, in an elegant Georgian Country Home, in the suburb of Cambridge, England, a young girl named Catherine Alexander-V was presented with a ring that was the twin of the one that Nicholas held in his hand – an incident that neither Nicholas nor Maria could know would have a significant impact on their lives. Maria insisted that Nicholas stop staring at the ring and read the note that was included with it. There had to be a reason and obviously the reason was in the note. Nicholas wondered how she could be so sure, her only answer was, that there was a note with the ring It was obvious. Nicholas opened the note and began to read it while Maria looked on…Catherine’s Letter to Nicholas: 25 April 1915.
The post office in Nicholas Lindin’s home town was being remodeled and when one of the counters was moved a mysterious package was found. The package was addressed to Nicholas Lindin but the posted date was 1915…98 years earlier. The package contained a ring and a letter from Catherine Barton and was addressed to the boy she loved. Nicholas Lindin, the Great-Grandfather of the Nicholas Lindin of today. Apparently Catherine’s father refused to allow his daughter to marry a man outside of the family religion so he decided to separate them by sending her to England for a year. He had no idea that she would never make it to England but instead end up at the bottom of the ocean.
Catherine’s father, Joseph Barton was a gemologist who traveled the world acquiring priceless gems. On one of his trips he ran across a Tribal Leader who was also a Medicine Man and Spiritual Leader of his tribe. He had a pouch of gems that he was willing to sell to Joseph for a mere $500 in gold coins. But, he told Joseph, the gems were special. They were mystical and to prove this, the man cut his own wrist with a sharp rock and placed several of the gems on the bleeding wound. The cut healed almost immediately. Joseph paid the man with the intention of having the stones made into a necklace for his mother, which he did. As time proceeded, Joseph and his wife had twin girls and as a gift to her granddaughters, Joseph’s mother had 2 identical rings made using some of the diamonds, rubies and emeralds for both girls. Their names were Catherine and Caroline and they were inseparable, that is until Joseph decided to send Catherine to England.
Catherine’s twin sister Caroline’s ring was passed down over the generations and finally ended up in the hand of her Great-Granddaughter Caroline Alexander. But what happened to Catherine’s ring? Could it have actually sat under the counter for almost 100 years and not been discovered? That sounds quite unlikely. Could a friend have hidden it and it finally turned up after all of those years? As the 2 rings come back to form a full circle, some of the questions are answered.
Catherine’s Ring is full of mystery, suspense and ghosts. And as an added treat, there you will even learn a little history. The only problem I had with Catherine’s Ring was that I wanted it to continue. I wanted it to take me into the next generation and then the next. But the ending was beautiful, I just hope Author Elena Dorothy Bowman will carry on with the ring’s next journey.
2010
165 pages
