Hello, blog friends.
Today we celebrate writer Jacquie Biggar's new release. Most of you know Jacquie, but if not, she is an award-winning author of romance who has been listed on USA Today's bestseller list. Jacquie describes her books as centered around tough, alpha male characters who fall for strong and independent contemporary women. Sounds intriguing, right?
Jacquie has just released Book 2 of the Defiant Sisters series. I read the first book, Letting Go and couldn't put it down. I'm very much looking forward to Finding Me.
Let's hear from Jacquie!
Today we celebrate writer Jacquie Biggar's new release. Most of you know Jacquie, but if not, she is an award-winning author of romance who has been listed on USA Today's bestseller list. Jacquie describes her books as centered around tough, alpha male characters who fall for strong and independent contemporary women. Sounds intriguing, right?
Jacquie has just released Book 2 of the Defiant Sisters series. I read the first book, Letting Go and couldn't put it down. I'm very much looking forward to Finding Me.
Let's hear from Jacquie!
Thank you for sharing my new release on your blog today, Gwen. It’s deeply appreciated!
A few years ago, a regular customer of my restaurant lost her husband to suicide. It shocked our small community and devastated her family. They seemed like a happy, loving couple, so what happened?
The same occurred to a famous, well-loved dancer called tWitch. He and his wife had three children, the youngest only two years old. And yet, he, too, is gone.
This led me to wonder (and worry) about the children left behind. How do they handle the loss of their father? Do they blame themselves? Each other?
The Defiant Sisters Duet is an exploration of two sisters, Renée and Izzy, affected differently
by the loss and how it eats at the family’s dynamics.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
FINDING ME
Izzy:
My life is not like I dreamed it would be. I had the foolish fantasy of finishing high school,
going to college, making something of myself - maybe even becoming famous.
Instead, I'm the infamous kid of the father who killed himself in the family's backyard.
How's that for a legacy?
Renée:
I came home for my mother's funeral, but I'm staying to mend bridges with my sister. We have another chance, and whatever it takes, we need to come together as a family or live the rest of our lives knowing we let our brother down.
They say pride goes before a fall, but it doesn't tell us how to avoid the scrapes along the way.
A few years ago, a regular customer of my restaurant lost her husband to suicide. It shocked our small community and devastated her family. They seemed like a happy, loving couple, so what happened?
The same occurred to a famous, well-loved dancer called tWitch. He and his wife had three children, the youngest only two years old. And yet, he, too, is gone.
This led me to wonder (and worry) about the children left behind. How do they handle the loss of their father? Do they blame themselves? Each other?
The Defiant Sisters Duet is an exploration of two sisters, Renée and Izzy, affected differently
by the loss and how it eats at the family’s dynamics.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
FINDING ME
Izzy:
My life is not like I dreamed it would be. I had the foolish fantasy of finishing high school,
going to college, making something of myself - maybe even becoming famous.
Instead, I'm the infamous kid of the father who killed himself in the family's backyard.
How's that for a legacy?
Renée:
I came home for my mother's funeral, but I'm staying to mend bridges with my sister. We have another chance, and whatever it takes, we need to come together as a family or live the rest of our lives knowing we let our brother down.
They say pride goes before a fall, but it doesn't tell us how to avoid the scrapes along the way.
EXCERPT
Izzy
My stomach is rolling as I walk out on Jay. I can’t believe I quit my job. What was I thinking? Me and my damn redheaded temper. It’s been the bane of my existence ever since I can remember. Dad used to call me his little Scotch Bonnet. It wasn’t until I started school that I
learned he was referring to the pepper in conjunction with my not-so-sweet disposition.
Dad. It still hurts to think of him, but at least now I can see past the pain to the good times
we shared as a family--Before.
We had our issues; I wasn’t so young I couldn’t tell Mom and Dad fought more than they
got along, but I figured it was the same in every household across America. Renée would turn up the music in her bedroom during those times; it hurt her to listen to the yelling and cursing. I sat on the bottom tread and gazed up the stairs, waiting for the moment Mom needed me. “Set the table, Elizabeth,” was code for “Get up here and settle your father down.” It didn’t happen often, and it wasn’t his fault. Dad worked hard, and sometimes he needed to let off steam, that’s all. He would drag me onto his knee, his thick arm holding me a little too tight, and tell stories about what he was going to do when his money came in—from where I never figured out—stories of travel and new cars, hotels, and Vegas. He always wanted to go to Las Vegas. Mom would say, “Don’t be silly. We can barely pay the bills,” and it would set him off again, his boozy breath hot on the side of my face. If only I knew then what would happen five years later, I would have… I don’t know, but I would have stopped it somehow. And that’s on me. Instead of being there when my parents needed me most, I was at a stupid party kissing a boy I barely liked on my sweet sixteenth. The night our lives changed forever.
Izzy
My stomach is rolling as I walk out on Jay. I can’t believe I quit my job. What was I thinking? Me and my damn redheaded temper. It’s been the bane of my existence ever since I can remember. Dad used to call me his little Scotch Bonnet. It wasn’t until I started school that I
learned he was referring to the pepper in conjunction with my not-so-sweet disposition.
Dad. It still hurts to think of him, but at least now I can see past the pain to the good times
we shared as a family--Before.
We had our issues; I wasn’t so young I couldn’t tell Mom and Dad fought more than they
got along, but I figured it was the same in every household across America. Renée would turn up the music in her bedroom during those times; it hurt her to listen to the yelling and cursing. I sat on the bottom tread and gazed up the stairs, waiting for the moment Mom needed me. “Set the table, Elizabeth,” was code for “Get up here and settle your father down.” It didn’t happen often, and it wasn’t his fault. Dad worked hard, and sometimes he needed to let off steam, that’s all. He would drag me onto his knee, his thick arm holding me a little too tight, and tell stories about what he was going to do when his money came in—from where I never figured out—stories of travel and new cars, hotels, and Vegas. He always wanted to go to Las Vegas. Mom would say, “Don’t be silly. We can barely pay the bills,” and it would set him off again, his boozy breath hot on the side of my face. If only I knew then what would happen five years later, I would have… I don’t know, but I would have stopped it somehow. And that’s on me. Instead of being there when my parents needed me most, I was at a stupid party kissing a boy I barely liked on my sweet sixteenth. The night our lives changed forever.
In her own words: My name is Jacquie Biggar. When I'm not being a klutz, I'm a wife, a
mother of one, a grandmother, and a butler to my calico cat. Watching reality TV shows such as
The Voice and Amazing Race is one of my guilty pleasures. Every Monday night, you can find
me laughing at the judge's shenanigans as I'm plastered to my armchair. I love hanging out with
my husband at the beach, taking pictures, and reading romance novels (what else?). I have a
slight obsession with Tim Hortons, enjoy gardening, everything pink, and talking to my friends.
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