His father Lucy entered into the wine business in Oporto,[1] and Kingston lived there for many years, making frequent voyages to England and developing a lifelong affection for the sea.

While still living in Oporto, he wrote The Prime Minister, a historical novel based loosely on the life of Sebastião José de Carvalho e Melo, 1st Marquis of Pombal, and Lusitanian Sketches, descriptions of travels in Portugal.

His stories number more than a hundred; the best known are: He travelled widely on the ordinary routes of travel, and described his experience for the young in: His popular records of adventure and of discovery included: He published translations of several of Jules Verne's stories from the French (see below on the actual translator), and wrote many historical tales dealing with almost all periods and countries, from Eldol the Druid (1874) and Jovinian, a tale of Early Papal Rome (1877) downwards, and undertook some popular historical compilations such as Half-Hours with the Kings and Queens of England (1876).

Feeling his health failing, he wrote a farewell letter on 2 August 1880 in touching terms to the boys for whom he had written so much and so long, and died three days later at Stormont Lodge, Willesden, near London.

She sang well, was an accomplished musician, studied art and languages in Europe, and spoke both French and German fluently, a skill which was to be of benefit during her husband's later financial troubles.

Beginning in the 1870s, Kingston entered into a contract with publishers Sampson Low and Marston to translate some works of French author Jules Verne.

[6] This fact was generally known in literary circles, and actually mentioned in Mrs. Kingston's obituary in 1913, but it was apparently forgotten until it was revived in the 20th Century edition of the Dictionary of National Biography in 2004.

His first book for boys Peter the Whaler was published in 1851 and had such success that he retired from business and devoted himself entirely to the production of this kind of literature and, during 30 years, he wrote upwards of 130 tales, including: He also wrote a tale about the notorious outlaw Ninco Nanco called Ninco Nanco, The Neapolitan Brigand, from Foxholme Hall.