Palace of Rubinia: A Heartfelt Story of a Princess Who Falls in Love with a Commoner (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9780648255406)

Mary Michaels grew up in Melbourne, Australia at a time when walking to the Milk Bar and meeting the other kids in the neighbourhood for a bike ride at the park or a tennis match across the road was fun and safe. The only prerequisite was to get home before it got dark! Reading books allowed Mary's imagination to run wild and the emotions were felt deeply in her youth. She was inspired by Rudyard Kipling's jungle books, his exotic animals and adventures allowed a suburban child to be transported to places where danger lurked just around the corner and everything was possible. Needless to say, English literature was Mary's favourite subject. "I still remember the excitement I felt heading back to school after the Christmas break, in blistering heat, with brand new sandals on my feet and it did not matter if the leather was not worn-in as yet, straw hat on my head and summer uniform dress draped loosely over me to fight-off the sun. I couldn't wait to get into the English class and see what novels we were going to study." Mary married at the end of her nineteenth birthday and never got a chance to go to University. However, she and her husband spent two years in London and three in the USA where she matured and resolved to go to university when she returned to Australia. Mary graduated in English Literature and International Studies, and went on to do Post Graduate Studies. "I loved every second of it." This led Mary to do a Diploma of Education and naturally, to become a teacher. "What a privilege it was to teach those wonderful senior students and even more so when I meet them as adults getting on with their professions, trades, businesses and lives!" It seemed a natural progression for Mary to write. She dabbled as a child in poetry and short narratives. Now, she wanted to see what her life experiences and knowledge could bring to her own stories. "The joy of writing was nothing short than the elation of first day back at school." Mary Michaels resides in Adelaide, South Australia and Palace of Rubinia is her first novel, published in 2018.