"The Petals Fall One by One" chronicles the rollercoaster of love, life, heartbreak, and new beginnings. It is based on the author, Armond Gray Jr's, authentic experiences and his loved ones' experiences. The poems take the reader through the hills and valleys of life, but in the end, the poems remind us all that we're human and to take it one day at a time. Additionally, the author's motivation stemmed from quarantine and the Covid-19 pandemic. His goal was to find a way to connect with others on a mental and emotional level without being physically together. More importantly, his motivation stems from his grandparents, great-grandparents, and uncles, who have transitioned onto the next realm. Each chapter in the book has a flower's name, and each flower has a different representation. The poems within each chapter relate to the literary understanding of that specific flower. The chapter "ROSES" represents romance and passionate love. The chapter "PROTEAS" represents change and transformation. The chapter "DAFFODILS" symbolizes rebirth and new beginnings. The chapter "ORCHIDS" exemplifies themes of refinement and maturity, and lastly, the chapter "SWEET PEAS" represents appreciation and departure. The intentionality of Armond's creativity as he penned the expressive art of his poetry is meant to engulf you in the emotions that each poem evokes. An ageless and timeless masterpiece, "The Petals Fall One by One" is a special treat.

I am but a flower withering in the soil in which I have been planted......... Rose Stanley does not seem to fit into her prominent family with their lavish style and high society galas. She does not care to marry the wealthy Astor Boyle that her mother has chosen for her. She would much rather be in the kitchen up to her elbows in flour learning how to cook or down at the old slave quarters teaching a young mute boy the gift of communication. She sees nothing wrong with spending time with a boy she has befriended, even if he is just a stable boy. Her idea of happiness was much different from her mothers But, there is a secret at the Plantation. A deep, dark secret being kept from Rose. Some seem to hate her for it, some will do anything to protect her from it, but it seems to surround her. What will happen when the secret is revealed and what will be found Where the Rose Petals Fall...?

WHERE PETALS FALL is a gripping and emotional novel with an undercurrent of suspense

On the heels of the successful Lifetime TV version of Flowers in the Attic comes the TV movie tie-in edition of Petals On the Wind, the second book in the captivating Dollanganger saga. Forbidden love comes into full bloom. For three years they were kept hidden in the eaves of Foxworth Hall, their existence all but denied by a mother who schemed to inherit a fortune. For three years their fate was in the hands of their righteous, merciless grandmother. They had to stay strong...but in their hopeless world, Cathy and her brother Christopher discovered blossoming desires that tumbled into a powerful obsession. Now, with their frail sister Carrie, they have broken free and scraped enough together for three bus tickets and a chance at a new life. The horrors of the attic are behind them...but they will carry its legacy of dark secrets forever.

David Barnato was born in England in 1942 of Irish, Scottish, Welsh and English ancestry. He attended King James The First., school in Newport, Isle of Wight. After extensive travelling around the world he started and sold several businesses including a publishing company, insurance brokerage and fi nally a debt advisory service based in a remote Scottish castle. Rather than retire completely, he and his wife Jane decided to retire to South Africa and buy a farm and grow olives. Despite fires and floods David and Jane won a silver award for their olive oil, but sadly Jane suffered strokes and died of a heart attack in 2010. David’s passions are his five dogs, several of whom were rescued. He is also a great fan of opera and loves blues, especially when sung by Bessie Smith. He is now a full time writer. When the Jacaranda Petals Fall, is David’s first novel.