Molly was raised by the worst of parents. They are grifters. Originally the word may have been used for circus people who swindled patron, especially with games of cards. However, with the loss of circus entertainers in general and it being such a cool word, it’s definition broadened a bit. It now means anyone who illicitly acquires money or property from another person (formerly designated as the ‘mark’). The first time it was used in an American novel appears to be in 1915: George Bronson-Howard’s God’s Man. Here’s the reference: "Grifting ain't what it used to be. Fourteenth Street's got protection down to a system—a regular underworld tariff on larceny." In Saving Molly, when Molly was a child, she had an adorable smile and sweetest personality, so her ‘parents’ used her in their cons. Molly was the perfect distraction while they would lift wallets or create untrue reasons why the mark should give them money. Whenever a con would go awry, they would blame Molly and once they got home, beat the poor child painfully. But in public, they seemed the nicest couple, and Molly had the brightest smile on her face. ALWAYS. Saving Molly By Liza O’Connor Book 2 of the Requires Rescue Series ∞ Contemporary Suspense ∞ Sometimes even the strong requires a helping hand. Blurb Molly Brown always faces life with a smile, even when a frightening thug is intent upon killing her. At first, Detective Sean Cushing finds Molly’s cheery disposition unnatural, especially when he discovers the seriousness of her injuries. When she asks for police protection, he instead offers her a job and home being a nanny to his five-year-old daughter, hoping her cheery disposition can pull his child from her dark hole of misery. Never did he expect he’d be proposing marriage within a day, but life has a way of going in odd directions when Molly Brown is involved. EXCERPT Suddenly a hand gripped her arm. “Hey, you okay?” The nice lady officer had returned for her. “Thank you for coming back. I’m sorry; I couldn’t keep up with you. Normally, I could, but I think I’ve pulled my hamstrings,” she explained with her best smile. The bathroom turned out to be only about twenty feet from where she stopped. Had she continued on her own to the door and entered the hallway, she could easily have found it. Now she felt doubly stupid. Why hadn’t she done that? She wasn’t a kid in Kansas anymore. She stumbled as fast as possible to the bathroom stall, and barely got her butt on the seat before her bladder exploded. The smell was vile. Someone coughed outside the stall. “You don’t have to wait for me…Go while you can still breathe!” A moment later, she heard the door open and close. She covered her face with her hands. Why can’t I be like everyone else? Why do I have to be so freakin’ weird? But she knew why. Her college roommate, Sandra, who did her psychology thesis on Molly, gave her a copy to read the day they graduated. In one horrible day she discovered how strange she appeared to others, her parents’ manipulations of her difference for their own gain, and that her only friend she’d ever had actually had seen their relationship as one of researcher to lab rat. That had been the worst day of Molly’s life, far worse than today. She smiled. If she could survive that day, she could survive anything. She was unsinkable! No matter what, she would come up smiling, because that’s who she was. BUY IT NOW! SAVING MOLLY AMAZON DON’T FORGET—- 99 CENT PROMO 7/1-7/7 SAVING CASEY AMAZON NOTE: EACH BOOK STANDS ALONE AND CAN BE READ IN ANY ORDER. ABOUT THE AUTHOR Liza O’Connor lives in Denville, NJ with her dog Jess. They hike in fabulous woods every day, rain or shine, sleet or snow. Having an adventurous nature, she learned to fly small Cessnas in NJ, hang-glide in New Zealand, kayak in Pennsylvania, ski in New York, scuba dive with great white sharks in Australia, dig up dinosaur bones in Montana, sky dive in Indiana, and raft a class four river in Tasmania. She’s an avid gardener, amateur photographer, and dabbler in watercolors and graphic arts. Yet through her entire life, her first love has and always will be writing novels. FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT LIZA O'CONNOR Investigate these sites: Liza's Blog and Website Facebook Twitter My Review...Molly deserves a happily ever after and not only does she get one but she brings about a fairy tale ending for a child and a group of dogs in this amazing tale!
Saving Molly is a wonderful story of how we don't always know what one person has going through just by looking at them. Molly is always smiling but we quickly learn that her smile hides a horrible childhood and now death threats. The action in this book grows as Molly finds herself in one situation after another. And when Sean enters her life, she finally gets the protector she deserves...even if no one really believes she is innocent. Ms. O'Connor writes characters who are likable and very honest. I could easily see myself being friends with Molly--although I think I would have understood her different smiles and her past. Even with danger, childhood issues and thugs, Ms. O'Connor writes a story sure to make you smile. Her wonderful sense of humor comes through in her writing. Even the outrageous is possible and always true! I love each of her books and can't wait to see what happens in the next Saving book! I'm the first to admit that I can't be friends with guys. Somehow, someway I end up wanting more. So could I live with a guy friend, even have benefits without falling in love?? No way! Could you?? Here's the #sexy new book, now available for pre-order which explores this idea... ![]() Can you heal a broken heart? AJ Ross has always focused his attention on two things, women and medicine. He was the best at both. He was the “love ‘em and leave ‘em type. But when he moves in with a girl he had a fling with, a girl he cannot remember, his life slowly begins to unravel. Katherine had always done what was expected of her. She was daddy’s little obedient girl. But when her father arranges a marriage between her and her friend she begins to rebel. Katherine bumps into a man who gave her a night she could never forget. The problem is, he can’t seem to remember her. So when they end up living together all Katherine wants to do is make sure AJ remembers her—and the night he took her virginity. Will she succeed? Will AJ remember her and want more, or will Katherine’s arranged marriage stand in the way? Pre-order Your Copy Today!! AMAZON KOBO
SUMMER LOVIN'
Book 5 of the Wounded Hearts series
by
Jacquie Biggar
Cover Designer: Killion Group
Official genre of book: Contemporary Romance
Mitch Taylor and Rebecca Sorenson share a secret.
Rebecca’s job as secretary of Cascade Elementary, the same school she attended as a child, is rewarding. She has a great group of friends, many of whom are married now. And if sometimes she wished it were her up there in that sparkling white dress…
Except, wait—she did get to wear bridal white. Granted, it was a slinky party dress and the justice of the peace was Elvis in a gold lame jacket, but still, the deed was done.
She’d tied the knot.
Mitch Taylor doesn’t do regrets. It would be a waste of energy bemoaning the mistakes he’d made in his life. The end of his promising football career taught him nothing in life was a guarantee.
Like love.
What were the chances two people from the same po-dunk town in Washington would end up together in a nightclub in Las Vegas? A few too many drinks later, a hasty ceremony performed by the king of rock ‘n’ roll, and they’d been hitched. The night that followed lived on in his dreams, but when he’d woken the next morning she was gone.
Can these two mismatched lovers find a way past their mistakes, or will they keep their lonely hearts forever guarded?
Mitch’s gaze zeroed in on her lips and darkened. “You and me—later. I’m tired of waiting. It’s time we settled our past so we can move forward with our lives.” He leaned in and gave her a quick, hard kiss, their breath co-mingling and tasting of the coffee he’d stopped and bought for her.
Rebecca sighed and gave herself up to the moment, though in the back of her mind his words nipped and stung, warning her that it was going to hurt when he left. How did this happen? When did Mitch Taylor become necessary to her happiness?
God. She was in love with him.
Her mouth slackened. Mitch sat back and looked at her quizzically for a moment, then he turned away to help young Jasper, and she tried to pay attention, she really did. But, all the time he was asking Tommy what happened, and running gentle fingers over the injury, and she was smiling and murmuring reassurance, her heart was breaking into a million tiny pieces.
I live in paradise along the west coast of Canada with my family and love reading, writing, and flower gardening. Oh, and I can't function without coffee! Preferably at the beach with my sweetheart. :)
I write Romantic Suspense with tough, alpha males who know what they want until they're gob-smacked by heroines who are strong, contemporary women willing to show them what they really need is love.
I've been blessed with a long, happy marriage and enjoy writing romance novels that end with happy-ever-afters.
Growing up I always felt like I was plain. No one noticed me. Or if they did notice me, it was to tease me for something that I did or said. Eventually, I learned that if people were talking about me, they weren't talking about my friends and family...so I gave them something to talk about!! In The Pixie Queen, Jane believes she is plain.... Excerpt: Well that’s too bad. She was sick of blending into the background. She was sick of not being noticed. Today she’d turned sixteen and drowned plain Jane. “I’m sorry you don’t like it, David.” She brushed her hair back off her face and smiled. “But I’m not sorry I made a change, and I’m not sorry I waded out into those waves.” Why would she be sorry? Especially when she knew her magic had made them. She had power and fire running through her veins. “Even though you almost drowned?” He cocked one handsome eyebrow and crossed his arms over his chest, emphasizing his muscles. She ignored the way her heart fluttered. “Even though I almost drowned,” she repeated, raising her chin defiantly. David could waste his charming looks on another sucker. She wasn’t some silly schoolgirl with a crush. He smiled, softening his features and bringing out dimples in both cheeks. And just like that, Jane’s heart pounded wildly once again. So much for not being one of those silly girls, she thought bitterly. “I guess I shouldn’t have saved you, then,” he teased, shrugging his shoulders. “Maybe you shouldn’t have,” she clipped back, as if she hadn’t a care in the world. Too bad she was already standing straighter and pressing her chest forward, which only made her washboard curves more obvious. Her efforts paid off as his eyes did that “sneaky travel up and down her body” thing again. She saw interest in his disarming gaze that made her thankful she’d let plain Jane drown. “Well there’s still time, Jane.” His voice dropped an octave when he said her name, making her shiver with delight. “You could go back into Lake Huron, and this time, I’ll stand right here.” Jane felt the need to smile and turned toward the lake to hide it. She didn’t want David to know the effect his teasing had on her. It was time to play it cool. “Maybe next time,” she responded and then forced a yawn. “I’m ready for bed.” She walked past David, refusing to look at him again, knowing he was displaying those dimples, the ones that made her knees weak. “Thanks for the save, David,” she called over her shoulder, offering him a parting salute. “Hold it.” David jogged to catch up with her. Jane refused to stop, even as her heart felt as if it would crawl out of her chest. “Let me walk you home.” “Home? I live right up the hill, David.” She glanced over at him and of course wasn’t prepared for his striking brown eyes and terribly distracting dimples. Why hadn’t she noticed how handsome he was before? But Jane isn't really plain... she has magic which had been hidden inside her... and when it awakens, she must go on a journey to find herself and save the world... ![]() In the small town of Caseville strange things have occurred… From the time Jane Hensley was little, she knew she was different. Instead of hanging out with friends, she was often in the woods, alone, chanting magical words that filled her with power and effected the environment around her. A sudden summer storm on a perfectly sunny day. Monster waves crashing into the shores of Lake Huron. Strange things happening in nature with no rhyme or reason. Residents are mystified by these occurrences, but would never dream they could come from Plain Jane Hensley, the girl that was so quiet, it was like she wasn’t there at all. But David Reynolds, the town’s football star, has noticed Jane. In fact he has been secretly in love with the strange girl for years. And on the morning of her sixteenth birthday, he is determined to finally reveal his heart to her. Instead David discovers Jane’s powerful secret. A secret that has brought a magical stranger to their town. One who claims to be a Pixie King, and entices Jane on a quest. Now David must choose whether to allow the girl of his dreams to disappear forever. Or follow her on a journey that defies logic. Grab Your Copy Here: |
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January 2025
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