Spicy Roast Beef and Goodbye Lie Trilogy Excerpt

Spicy Roast Beef

Do you know which female
character from The Goodbye Lie series is the subject of the excerpt below? If only she had tried the recipe which follows for Spicy Roast Beef at her dinner party...


 The Goodbye Lie Series Excerpt:


     Grammy's gift was a quart of her meat flavoring. "It's our family secret, _____. Here's the recipe. Memorize it, then burn it. Promise?"
     "Yes, ma'am. I promise."

     Peeper was not to be out done, "I saved the best fer last. It's a bottle a my very own special furniture polish."

     "The way Peep experiments out back in the little house," Michael explained to Trip, "it's no small miracle she hasn't blown us all up. Isn't that the stuff you make from turpentine, alcohol, and ether, Peep?"

     "Yup, but you forget the balsam fir and linseed oil, Michael. That's how come I'm the chemist and you're the architect." 

     The laughter had been strained and everyone had been uncomfortable. The cozy glow from the candles helped hide the chipped dishes and patched linens that came furnished with the house, and no adult noticed or, at least, mentioned the shortcomings of her table. Leave it to her brother to have asked, "How come you use all these cracked plates, ____, when you have a whole hope chest full of brand new dishes and stuff?" Everyone else had been too polite to inquire.

     She'd quickly answered, "I'll bring my chest over as soon as my cooking warrants the beauty of the china." The ladies had made a sincere attempt to reassure her that the meal was delicious. She would have believed them, too, had she not tasted her own food. The salad was gritty with sand, the deviled eggs were runny from the honey and too salty, the butter beans in the stew were hard, and the chocolate frosting was so thin, the cake showed through. ____ saw her mother throw several sharp looks at Jack Patrick each time he'd tried a new course and then opened his mouth to comment. She imagined the lecture the poor boy must have received about how to behave at his sister's house right before they'd left Dunnigan Manor...

******

Jane Marie writes:
My church friend, Kris Mandrick, brought this wonderful "stringy" beef roast to a pot luck.  I loved it.  I mean loved it!  She was sweet enough to let me share it with you.  It's made in the slow cooker with ingredients you probably have on hand.  It makes some rich gravy, is moist, is good for Sunday dinner or sandwiches and freezes well, if there are any leftovers.  Thank you, Kris. -JMM

Spicy Roast Beef

You'll need:

2-3 pound beef roast 
Lightly salt (optional) and pepper all sides.
Sprinkle with minced/powdered garlic or garlic pepper.  Put in crock.

Mix in separate bowl: 

1/4 cup soy sauce (I used lite.)

2 Tbl balsamic vinegar

2 Tbl A1 Sauce or Worcestershire sauce (I used Worcestershire.)

2 tsp yellow mustard, liquid or dry (I used liquid.)

Make several shallow slits in top of roast and pour mixture over roast. Let cook in crock 8 hours on low or 4 hours on high.

 

P.S.  This recipe will also be listed in the Recipes link at the top of this page. 

Chocolate Table- Goodbye Lie Diaries, Nora

Pictured on the right is a chocolate table. Also known as a tea table, note the removable serving tray on top. Owned by my friend, Emmie Noble, she's placed her hot chocolate cup, saucer and chocolate pot set inside.

I discovered some information online by Fay Spencer of Spencer's Antiques in Waynesville, Ohio.  She explained these were especially popular from 1800 to 1850.  I also found most interesting that during our American Revolution, hot chocolate was served instead of tea as a way of protesting the British and their tea tax.

Thank you to Emmie Noble and Spencer Antiques. For more about Spencer's, call 513-897-7775, 274 S Main St., Waynesville, Ohio 45068

*****

Goodbye Lie Diaries
1880s
Fernandina on Amelia Island, Florida

Nora Duffy

Nora Duffy writes: My mother, you know her as Aunt Noreen, or Noreena, as Peeper calls her when she wants to irritate her, has a chocolate table in the parlor of our Duffy Place.  You can't know how many times my brother, Warren Lowell, my father, Clabe, my mother and I sit in that room, carefully sipping our chocolate treat.  Except when the milk was scorched, Mother blamed it on the stove, or that time Father burned his lip and spilled his cup onto the handwoven rug, I have wonderful memories.  I am most pleased to see such a lovely piece of furniture has survived the rigors of time to be appreciated in your century. (Jane Marie - I tried to sound somewhat dignified in my diary entry.  You know the true me and how Breelan and I can get into trouble far too easily to suit our families.  I have some ideas about what we'll do next ...)  

Nora, Aunt Noreen, Warren Lowell and Clabe Duffy live right next door to the Dunnigans on Amelia Island, Florida. Breelan Dunnigan and Nora are first cousins and quite the conspirators in their The Goodbye Lie series.

Goodbye Lie Excerpt- FL House

The Florida House on S. 3rd St. on Amelia Island, FL

Readers often ask me about specific places in my historical Goodbye Lie series, set in Fernandina on Amelia Island, Florida. They want to know what is real and what comes from my imagination. So I did a walk about and took some photos. The Florida House is one such structure that is standing today.  Originally built as a boarding house for railroad workers in 1857, it is the longest running tourist hotel in the state.  

looking at the two story Florida House from the back courtyard

At book signings downtown here, I often point to 3rd Street and tell folks to walk to the Florida House, just a block off our historic Centre Street. I direct them to go inside and through to the back courtyard.  I have set several scenes there amongst the live oaks and pretty fretwork of the place. In the bar, in the front of the hotel, things happen.  Let's just say they are "less than friendly."  Hey, it's a bar, isn't it?

Here is an excerpt from The Goodbye Lie featuring The Florida House. The year is 1882. -

What awaits Breelan Dunnigan up those stairs?

Chapter 18

      The drive from Dunnigan Manor to the Florida House seemed especially slow despite the brisk tempo of the horse's trot. Not a word passed between the young couple. Breelan was silent in case her tears would anger him further, and he for fear she'd continue crying ...

      Despite the darkness, he was well aware of her secret attempts to wipe away the evidence of her unhappiness. He could feel her hushed sobs vibrate the carriage. What the hell was she blubbering for? He was the one who'd been tricked... He steered the buggy along side the hotel's granite stepping-stone. Helping Breelan out, he warned, "Enough of this. I won't have it. Do you hear?"

     She nodded. He was right. She straightened her skirts and inhaled a deep breath of cool river air, while he threw coins to the attendant, directing him to return the horse and carriage to the stable for the night. They climbed the steps of the long, two-story establishment and entered ...  

the trunk of an ancient live oak tree

     Breelan loved to come to the Florida House. She'd never actually stayed in any of the rooms before this, but her family oft-times ate in the dining room after Sunday morning mass at St. Michael's. Railroad folk as well as sailors, vacationers and locals all frequented it. How often had she climbed the old live oak in the back while the grownups pontificated over coffee and dessert? Now she was one of those grownups ... 

    After registering and exchanging niceties with the desk clerk,  they were shown to a second story room. It was quite lovely. The wallpaper spoke of romance with tiny bouquets of pastel flowers and a matching coverlet on the canopied double bed. The window trappings of lace would merely filter the moonlight. It could be an enchanted place if the circumstances were right.

     "I will leave you to your unpacking, Breelan. I'll be downstairs in the tavern." He caught the look of concern she cast his way. "Don't worry. I'll take heed of my drink. I won't let you go unattended in such a pretty room as this," he said caustically. 

     He quietly closed the door behind him and she breathed a sigh of self-comfort. He was gone. She was free if but for a moment. He had mistaken her look for concern. It was not. In truth, she hoped he would imbibe to excess tonight and every night, so he would never be able to ...

     The hour grew late and he didn't return to the room. Worn out, Breelan was still wide-awake. Her mind darted madly from her family, to where she would live, to her job, to the gossip, to... The cacophony in her head was generously peppered with the words and features of Waite. There was his handsome face, his hair, his eyes, his lips. In part or as a whole, the likeness was exact. It teased and tempted her until wriggling among the tangled covers of the bed a minute longer would surely bring her more tears, those of hopeless frustration. She had to get out of the room, to feel the stirring of the breeze against her hot, flushed cheeks. 

     Concealing her nightdress beneath her cloak, she descended the rear stairs, intending to refresh herself in the rain barrel out back. She splashed the cool water on her cheeks. It trickled down to her elbows, tickling her to irrational giggles. She languished in the luxury of laughter. She hadn't laughed since, since when? She couldn't remember. Resting the heels of her hands on the edge of the barrel, she hung her head. "I wish this were the ocean. I'd put my toes in the water and let the cool waves creep up my ankles. I'd ..."

     "You'd what, Breelan?"

     She heard the resonant voice seek answers softly in her ear. She responded longingly, "Oh, Waite. You'll never know how I wish you were real and with me and able to tell me all the things I want to hear. It will never happen for us. Never. I deserve to suffer... But to make you suffer, too. If what Nora says is true and you really love me, I can never forgive myself for causing you pain. I pray you find someone to fill your mind and bed. Don't waste your life pining for me, my love. If only that kiss I dreamed of on your ship had been real. If I could feel your lips touch mine, I could tolerate whatever comes. I ..."

     She dreamed he was behind her. He was grasping her shoulder, turning her quickly, pulling her against his unyielding body. She dreamed his arms were around her, holding her fast to him. Then his mouth was on hers, hard. His breath rasped from his lungs. She breathed him into her and tasted his soul. His essence was all male. Every thought she'd ever had of how superb his kiss would be was surpassed in this illusion. Thank God for her dreams. They belonged solely to her. The fear of hell would never take them from her. 

     "Bree, Bree," he said against her lips.     

    And she felt strong hands on her wrists. They pried her arms from around his neck, similarly opening her eyes to reality. It was no dream. Waite's glorious face was before her in the night and his eyes danced. Here in the dim moonlight, she could only stare at him. She placed her hands on his mildly whiskered cheeks, ran her slender finger the length of his scar and kissed it. He kissed her in return, taking her lips between his. He held her again and this time she rubbed against him, making him moan from somewhere deep within. 

     Glass shattered as a disagreement broke out in the bar. She didn't care. She didn't care about anything, but kissing him. Still, the insistent tinkling of the crystal continued to interrupt her pleasure. It was taking him from her. "Don't let me go. Please, don't ever let me go," she whimpered as he pushed her away and held her off.

     "Breelan. Breelan." He had again taken advantage of her. He knew it and for that too short moment, he didn't care. He was thinking only of himself. He would pay later. He tasted her on his lips, and she was finer than he'd remembered in all the nights he'd lain awake and all the times he'd walked the deck of the Comfort. He wanted her so badly. He wasn't sure his willpower would win a contest with his loosened desire ...  

     He shook her from her splendid stupor. "Bree, you've got to hear me. With all the craving a man can endure, I want you. Do you hear? Do you understand me? I want you. Finding that you feel the same brings me such joy, I can hardly ..." Waite was unable to finish his sentence. "Knowing the truth at last was worth all the hours of agony, all the uncertainty of guessing if you cared for me. I love you and realize you love me. You do love me, don't you? It isn't merely a physical attraction between us, is it? Tell me it's more." 

     "Waite Taylor, you've got to feel my love. It's so alive in me, I think I can reach in, grab hold of it, and show you. Believe me, believe I love you. And only you." She answered breathlessly, leaning into him, trying to make him hold her again.

     "Then, when I die, I'll be smiling."

*****
All novels in Jane Marie Malcolm's trilogy, The Goodbye Lie, Amelia Island's Velvet Undertow and Amelia Island's Mark of a Man are available as ebook and paperback at book sources everywhere.  Find online or just ask at your local bookstore.

Jollification of Fort Clinch & Goodbye Lie Excerpt

welcome to Fort Clinch

Fort Clinch, here on Amelia Island, invited the public to their annual Jollification.  What is this you ask?  It is just as it sounds.  A joyous celebration of Christmas inside the fort. My husband, Bruce, and I were lucky enough to help serve hot chocolate and cookies to all the visitors. There seemed to be more guests this year.  Perhaps the full moon, mild weather and clear skies enticed so many to come out.

 

Some years ago, we attended a reenactors' Christmas ball as spectators. The Fort Clinch ball was the background for a scene in my historical novel, The Goodbye Lie.  Here is an excerpt from that scene.  As you look at the photos, you might better imagine the story.



And so The Goodbye Lie goes like this:   
  
      Pulling onto the long path to the fort, they followed the lamps from preceding conveyances through the dark. Nearing their destination, they found the traffic had slowed to creeping as ladies and gentlemen alighted from their transports. 
     Single candles in each brick framed window glittered star-like against the thick, wavy glass. A huge bonfire sent sparks up into the night, swirling wild from the bitter wind off the ocean, until they burned themselves out. Even the shelter of the fortifications did little to alleviate the piercing cold.

 a tin whistle is played & Christmas carols sung as a bonfire warms

     Music was heard, softly, then loudly again at each opening of the door to the second floor common room where the dance was being held. Once inside, Breelan took it all in. The entire length of the banister of the straight wooden staircase was swagged with a pine needle garland and the garland was draped with a red and green paper chain that had been her particular contribution. The smells of gingerbread and apple cider wafted down as they climbed up into the excitement. Add the fires burning in the fireplaces at both ends of the room, their logs strewn with cinnamon sticks and dried orange peel, and Breelan was carried back to earlier, happier Christmases.

note the full moon

     Eager eyes were fixed on the entrance to see who arrived with whom and in what fashionable garb. As Trip removed her black velvet cape with burgundy satin lining, Breelan's friends found her. Tonight, she wore the prettiest dress she'd ever possessed. Her mother and grandmother had created an entire gown of horizontally sewn rows of ivory lace. The drop shoulders were edged with four-inch white fringe, which allowed her upper arms to peek out. Pink and gold silk rosebuds intertwined in a vine of ivy leaves to diagonally cross the bodice. More rosebuds sat atop pale bows scattered over the drape covering an underskirt of ecru satin. An oval coral brooch outlined with tiny seed pearls and pinned to her mother's string of pearls, was positioned at the base of her throat, her earbobs matching. White gloves only long enough to cover her forearms, an amethyst ring on her right hand overtop the glove, and a tussie mussie of small pink poinsettias in a lace cone completed the picture of loveliness that she was. The women touched her gown, admiring its grandeur and the beauty of the woman who wore it.

     Trip enjoyed the envy in every man's eyes as he proclaimed Breelan his possession by staying nearby and playing with her sleeve trim or touching the back of her neck. She wanted to swat him away like some bothersome fly.

     ... The glowing fireplaces kept most of the cold at bay. They blazed high, casting a golden haze on everyone and everything. Passing the door in dance, Breelan felt a rush of raw wind enter the room, along with a late arriving couple. The cape the man wore was not military. She saw the woman next. The blonde hair, piled a little too high on the head, left no doubt that it was Leona Visper, a figure not seen since New York City and more importantly, not missed. Looking again at the silhouette of shoulders, Breelan realized the identity of the singer's escort. It was then that eyes met, expressions hardened and polite nods were exchanged. 

decorated mantle

decorated table

 





                                              

                                         good evening



Bruce, Mr. and Mrs. Father Christmas and Jane Marie

PS - I have to mention how very dim it was inside the candlelit rooms of the fort.  My flash on my camera phone changed the look to bright and cheery. Yes, everything has a golden cast because of the fireplaces and lanterns and candles, but it was very hard to see to read or do any needlework as several ladies in period costume were.  One woman said she had to quit sewing because her eyes were giving out. I never realized before I'd done my research how dark a home would be once the sun went down.  I guess that's why they have candlelight tours of places.  We find it fetching and cozy and intriguing, but only for a special occasion.  Once we've lived with bright electric lights, I expect there would be many a whine heard if we returned to that dark part of times past.  We are spoiled.

Oh, and one more thing.  Candle light changes colors.  Last year I commented upon the pretty purple pattern in the dress worn by a reenactor.  She told me it was green in the light of day!

 

Goodbye Lie's Breelan- That's My Name, Too

Hello-

  

My name is Shannon and my daughter has the same spelling

Breelan Dunnigan

as the main character in your series. Breelan.  Being that the name is not one you see all the time, I have to ask how you came up with it?  I think it is wonderful because you have no idea how hard it is to find those little license plates for bikes with Breelan on it. LOL. I think it is great that as my daughter grows old, she will be able to purchase these books and see her name being utilized in them.  I am just tickled really.

  

Thanks from a Newly Found Fan,

 

Shannon

 

********

Dear Shannon,

 

Good to hear from you and I am so pleased you discovered my Breelan, heroine in The Goodbye Lie.  As to the origin of her name for me -  It was long ago and I can't give you a definitive answer.  I wanted a soft, romantic, dreamy name and Breelan just came to me. Perhaps I had heard it somewhere but have no recollection. I also wanted something unusual yet pronounceable. I don't like to read a book when I'm uncertain how to say a name.  I like to think that everyone reading about a character in my novels is saying that name the same way. Miss Breelan fills my need and serves our stories well.  She and I are great friends, you know.  We're glad to have you and your daughter enter our world where love and lace reign.

                                                        Jane Marie
   

A Gift - B for Breelan

    Mary Jo W. from Sacramento, California,  surprised me with this handmade and very, very pretty letter B representing Breelan Dunnigan, the heroine in The Goodbye Lie! 

    "Your Breelan touched the deepest part of my heart with her self-sacrifice and devotion," writes Mary. "I wanted to do something to honor her.  Nothing fancy, nothing that Leona Visper, her rival, would appreciate, just something simple and sweet. It is a craft they might have made back in 1882, as well.  Clover could have cut out the letter and then Breelan or Carolena or Nora would crinkle the pretty paper and glue it on.  Thank you, Jane Marie, for bringing Breelan Dunnigan to life for me and all those others in the world who have come to love her, too.  And it is always great fun to read about her and the Dunnigan family, including Aunt Noreen and Peeper, in your Goodbye Lie Diaries."

 

 

Dear Mary,

   When I hear from a reader who "gets" our Goodbye Lie world, it makes me smile. The fact that you took time from your life to make this for me, well, I will treat it like the treasure it is.  I think I will hang it in my Story Central office.  Each time my eyes fall upon it, I will be reminded of my new friend, Mary Jo, who clearly has a gentle and generous spirit, just like Breelan.  I thank you for your kindness.

                                                                Jane Marie

Goodbye Lie Diaries- Breelan's 5:01 Club

Fernandina on Amelia Island, Florida
1880s

Breelan Dunnigan

Breelan Dunnigan writes:  Miss Becky's mother broke three toes on her left foot when she dropped a full jar of canned tomatoes on it. Grandmother Peeper has a swelling in her thumb joints.  Mrs. Branson is having severe headaches which Doctor Tackett is unable to remedy and Miss Juniata's sister lost her baby early. Because there has been such illness and sadness in our Aqua Verdi Passenger Line office, I thought it might be a good idea that some of us gather to say prayers, asking God for help. Others must have been feeling the need, too, because anywhere from three to seven of us now meet regularly at one minute after five o'clock, five being the hour when the office is officially closed.  We go into Miss Ella's office and  pull the shades, hold hands and offer up our thanks and praises.  The prayer session lasts only a few minutes, but we all leave to go home and feed our families with smiles on our lips and comfort in our hearts. We have been doing this now for several months and it seems it will become a tradition. Peeper and Aunt Noreen join us, as well.  It is a fine day when the two of them bow their heads side by side.  It pleases me and I hope what we now call our 5:01 Club pleases the Lord.

*******
Fernandina Beach on Amelia Island, Florida
Present Day

Jane Marie writes:  What a wonderful idea.  I know several people who may be interested in something like that.  After a hard day of work, be it in an office or outside in the field, saying prayers for needs of family and friends would certainly sooth the people saying them and anyone overhearing. Where there are two or more gathered in His name... Thank you, Bree.

Breelan Dunnigan is the featured player in Amelia Island's Goodbye Lie, a Victorian romantic drama, part of Amelia Island's Trilogy by Jane Marie Malcolm.

Goodbye Lie Diaries- Miss Ella and Spring

Fernandina on Amelia Island, Florida

Late 1800s

 

Miss Ella

Miss Ella writes:  I so love spring.  The windows are open and the curtains are dancing.  The birds are happy, too, and singing so loudly outside my office, they are distracting me from my ciphering.  The proof of that is I’m writing in my diary.  I think Aqua Verdi Passenger Line will survive while I  take I few minutes to myself.  I can see the daffodils out by the Talkin’ Tree.  I love bulbs.  One day there is nothing and the next time you look, there they are, their pretty flower faces seemingly looking right at you.  I don’t know if my girls will find as much pleasure as I do gardening.   When they were children, we planted pansies together on either side of the front steps. As they are getting older, they are so busy, Breelan with her writing, Carolina with her designs and Marie—I don’t know what Marie is busy with, now that I think on it.  She is very often with Sophie Belle and I’m afraid the two of them might get into trouble the way Breelan and Nora did. Well, more Breelan, really.  Nora always seems to land on her feet. In spite of her mother, she is such a lovely young lady.   Sorry Lord, it is not for me to judge, but You have Your hands full with Aunt Noreen alone!  Bless her heart.   

 

 

Here is a photograph of my daffodil, Miss Ella. 

 I suspect it looks very much like yours! 

Jane Marie, 2014

 

__________________________________________________________________________________

The Goodbye Lie Diaries are communications between the fictional Dunnigan characters from historic suspense Goodbye Lie series set in the 1880s and present day.  We share the same Amelia Island, Florida, same town of Fernandina, same Atlantic Ocean, same Amelia River, same weather, same growing conditions, same buildings on downtown Centre Street, well over 100 years apart ... jmm

 

Goodbye Lie Pinterest

I love Pinterest! 

 

 

Please visit my Amelia Island's Goodbye Lie Trilogy board at: http://www.pinterest.com/1janemarie/amelia-islands-goodbye-lie-trilogy-by-jane-marie-m/.  Find the fashion Breelan wears, the fan Carolena carries, the furnishings Peeper polishes and so many other items circa the 1880s and there about, when the novels take place.  If you look closely, you may just see those Dunnigan girls and even Aunt Noreen walking between the images...

Enjoy my other ever-changing boards, too, which include:
Rich Romance
For the Manor
Created by Hand
People/Places/Prizes
Just for Me
Martha Bear and Captain Fancy Patch
For the Tum-Tum
Word, Words,
Faith

See them all my boards at http://www.pinterest.com/1janemarie/ 

Goodbye Lie Romance - An Excerpt

Honor, Treachery, Epic Romance

 are just part of
 Amelia Island's GOODBYE LIE Trilogy where

 Little House on the Prairie meets Gone With The Wind ...

  Men will die for Breelan Dunnigan

      in 





   

Treat yourself and get your copy here: http://www.greenlightwrite.com/homegraciousjanemarie.htm  

 



Goodbye Lie Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_oAsQkLUoJY



 

Review: A rollercoaster of emotions … [which] include … loving the characters. … The unexpected ending makes a jaw dropping jolt to the senses. --ReaderViews.com

Find romance every day and every night between the covers of Amelia Island's Goodbye Lie.  Set in 1882 Florida, here is a snippet of the spirit of my kind of romance! -jmm

Excerpt:
    "Trip it shall be. Please, call me Breelan." And he held her secure, leading her in wild spins around and around. She threw her head back as she laughed softly, her hair covering his uniformed forearm.

     Waite was completely aware of Breelan's movements. He wanted to kiss the ivory of her flawless bare shoulders. But when he saw the lieutenant's arm tighten around Breelan's waist, Waite's desire turned violent as he imagined ripping the soldier's arm off at the elbow. He resented the man, any man, holding her, let alone holding her as close as this gent was. Trip's body pressed intimately against Breelan’s green dress, separating her skin from his by only a few thin layers of silk and cotton. His officer's white-gloved fingers entwined themselves in the ends of her satiny brown hair. At least, his actual flesh wasn't in contact with hers, Waite consoled himself. He was glad a gentleman always wore gloves when dancing so as not to soil a woman's gown with perspiration. He'd considered many customs foolish and a waste of time. Not this one. For this social edict, he thanked the stars. 

     "Waite, darling," Miss Visper spoke a second time. "You're not listening to me, are you?"

     Caught. He was having difficulty tearing his eyes from Breelan. He asked, his tone mocking, "Leona, do you think I'd dance with a woman and she not be the center of all my attention?"

     "I think one thing. You're most engaging and you know it. Any woman who allows herself to love you is demented. You'll only break her heart."

     "You flatter me. But I think the excursion to that point would be an escapade not to be missed," he suggested, stroking her mind, using her. He excused his selfishness because he knew she wanted him. He needed a woman tonight and she was an alluring, if somewhat obvious creature...

 

***

Year of Living Graciously - September / Goodbye Lie Diaries - Breelan

Write a paragraph or two about an every day event in newspaper style including who, what, when, where, why and how.  Once identified, be sure and refer to all persons in the story by their last names, adding a quotation if possible. 

***
Fernandina, Florida
1898


Breelan

*Breelan Dunnigan: "Writing articles for our Florida Mirror  is something I used to do quite often when I was a cub reporter.  I believe, in your time,  you now call our local paper The News-Leader. I'm currently working advertising for our family business, Aqua Verdi Passenger Line, but still submit a story to the Mirror when I can.  The last article they printed was about my brother, Pat Dunnigan, and the other boys in our family who have gone off to fight for our country in the Spanish American War.  We pray for them every day.  Jane Marie will tell you all about their trials in her next book, Mark of a Man.  Until that time, know we keep a candle in our window at Dunnigan Manor in hopes Pat, Warren Lowell and Mickey will be safe and home soon." 


* Breelan Dunnigan is featured in The Goodbye Lie, the title novel in Amelia Island's Goodbye Lie Trilogy set in Fernandina on Amelia Island, Florida in 1882.  Mark of a Man  follows Amelia Island's Velvet Undertow in he series.