Marianne Dora Rose – författare

Marianne Dora Rose (aka Paula Freda) presents "e;Heart's Conquest (Jacklyn's Story), a non-graphic and wholesome inspirational romance, that begins where the author's "e;The Persistent Heart"e; ends with the story of Jacklyn, Debbie's infamous rival. She marries Jeffrey, a young, handsome, goodnatured, God-fearing, bank executive. Married eight years, she has never doubted his love, his patience and his kindness. But in the past few months, something has changed, and Jacklyn is terrified that she is losing his love. Excerpt: ..."e;Jeffrey, why do you hate me?"e; She was sure he heard her the first time. He didn't answer, didn't look at her, kept his gaze fixed on the road ahead. But she saw his shoulders flinch despite his silence. Her next question would have been, Is there another woman? But she had no need to ask. The private investigator she had hired a few months ago assured her there was no other woman, or man. "e;Are you planning to leave me?"e; she asked instead.At last a reaction. A wearisome sigh followed by "e;I'm tired, Jacklyn. And I need to concentrate on the road. If the silence bothers you, turn on the radio."e;Best he wasn't looking at her, she thought. He'd see the sadness on her face blaze into outrage. She was tempted to turn on the radio to its highest volume on a station blasting wild music with incomprehensible lyrics. That would get his attention, for the instant, then his cold glare, before he lowered the volume or turned the radio off. She'd have accomplished nothing except risking their having an accident. Suddenly, she felt ugly and unwanted, and sank against the passenger door, tired and weary. She pulled the ermine cape closer about her and closed her eyes. "e;I think I'll take a nap. I guess I am tired, after all."e; She didn't see Jeffrey finally turn his head to look at her, or see the despair filling his eyes.

The Adventures of Grace Quinlan and Lord William Hayden. All five adventures. The Adventures of Grace Quinlan and Lord William Hayden. All five adventures. A time-travel romantic paranormal adventure across the globe and beyond.  A love story, a mystery, an impossible dream, and a woman's daring plan to capture one man's heart. (Formerly Titled: In Another Life (From the Journals of Grace Quinlan and Lord William Hayden).EXCERPT: "e;Seek the opal in the Valley of the Queens,"e; Elizabeth said, turning and lifting her gaze to Lord Hayden. "e;Behold its light. Behold my soul, Eros, my beloved."e;"e;Grace!"e; Lord Hayden cried, as she slumped into his arms. It was this room bewitching her, he reasoned. Lifting her into his arms, he carried her out of the chamber, and as far away from it as the strength in his arms would allow. When he finally set her down gently on the ground, he cradled her in his arms, calling her name several times before she opened her eyes and he was able to breathe a sigh of relief. "e;Welcome back, Miss Grace Quinlan."e;Elizabeth, under the guise of Grace Quinlan, regarded him speculatively, then her eyes widened as full memory returned and she sat upright. "e;What happened?"e; The last thing she remembered was studying the mural of the queen levitating the magic opal."e;I'm not sure,"e; Lord Hayden admitted. "e;You entered a trance and spoke with someone else's voice."e; ...

Clean, contemporary,  Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Western Sweet Romance. The girl in blue velvet who fell from the stars to earth, in my backyard, among the mimosas, with a blue rose for an anklet and a smile and a wink, my heart to link, for love and for life.Excerpt 1 ...The loud thump, closer to a crash, shook his bed and rattled the dozen spaceship models on the upper shelf of his bookcase opposite his bed.  His body jerked awake. His gasp slurred through lips dry from a night's sleep. "e;What the—"e; ... Silence. Ben groaned. He must have been dreaming.  He peered drowsily at his wrist watch.  It was 5 a.m.  He yawned drowsily, pulled the covers tighter about him and went back to sleep, missing the bright colors seeping from behind the perimeter of the drawn curtains....Excerpt 2: ...It wasn't the figure itself that made him pause, turn and look, but the feeling that the figure was watching him. At this distance, he couldn't tell if it was male or female. He honestly was too tired to bother finding out. About to turn back toward his apartment, he noticed the figure beginning to move towards him. A paranoid thought ran through his mind. Was he about to be mugged? But that thought gave way to curiosity as the figure drew closer and he saw that it was a young woman in a gray t-shirt and jeans.By the time she stood at arms length, he couldn't take his eyes off her face. Her eyes were dark blue and her long hair tied in a pony tail was honey ash blonde. She greeted him with the quaintest smile and a suave "e;hello."e;The words escaped his mouth before he could reflect. "e;You wouldn't perchance have done modeling?"e; Ben asked. Oh my God, he thought grimacing. That sounded like a pick-up line, or worse, a predator's pick up line."e;The girl raised her chin and met his gaze head on. "e;Yeah, I might have,"e; she replied lazily, a playful tease in her voice.Ben thought suspiciously. Maybe she was the predator."e;Do I know you?"e; he asked."e;No, not likely."e;Ben asked, "e;What's your name?"e;The girl tilted her head, her expression saying, let me think. "e;Oh, of course. My name is Jessica — Jessica Simmons. At least that's as near a translation as I can give you."e;Ben peered closer at her. Her features and her accent were American, though not Montanan, more northeast coast. New York. He had attended college in upstate New York on a scholarship."e;Where are you from?"e; he asked."e;Oh, it's pretty far up. You wouldn't know the place."e;"e;Northeast?"e; he pressed.Again she thought before answering. She glanced upward. "e;Yeah, Northeast. Definitely Northeast."e;She wasn't very forthcoming, Ben thought. But why should she be, he reasoned. It was clear to him now that they had never met before.He had to ask, "e;Was there something you wanted from me?"e; After all, she had approached him."e;No,"e; she replied. "e;You asked me — if I'd done modeling."e;"e;Yes, but..."e; Ben ran a nervous hand through his hair.She remarked, "e;It's brown, dark, rich, like the soil here."e;"e;Yeah,"e; he laughed. He'd never heard his hair described that way."e;Listen,"e; he said. "e;I'm sincere about the modeling. I have my card here."e; He dug into the inside pocket of his blazer. "e;I work for a top notch fashion magazine. The name is on the card. Certainly if I was in your place, I wouldn't trust a stranger. Take the time to investigate. The magazine has been around for years, and is well known in fashion circles."e;The girl examined the card, front and back. She sniffed it. "e;Paper, nice, shiny."e;Ben swallowed. He hoped she was not an escapee from a mental institution. Or perhaps, he allowed, she was simple-minded. In either case, he must be crazy to be having this conversation with her. But the girl fit his sketch, even without makeup. And after viewing hundreds of photos of beautiful women, none of them had come anywhere close to fitting his sketch like this girl....

Marianne Dora Rose writing as Paula Freda presentes "e;Beautiful Dreamer"e; a Clean Inspirational Christian Christmas Romance for hearts of all ages). Description:  Julie, shy, plain, suffered the worst taunts and nicknames, during her HS years. Evan, with his quiet, calm expression, was one of the few who didn't ridicule her.She often wondered if he hadn't moved away, whether he'd have asked her out. Will her dearest dream come true when as a young woman living on her own, she spots Evan in the crowd on her way to work? Years ago, Julie had unscrewed the casing to her old music box and donated its insides to a church charity, but kept the genuine hardwood exterior. Now, twenty-five, living comfortably, if frugally, in her midtown apartment, she valued the box for its sentimental value and its rare, expensive mahogany wood. What better place to keep her memories. Along with family photos was a 5 x7 she particularly valued, taken during high school. An old girl friend was as in the photo, shouldering her. In the background was the schoolyard where, shy, plain, and totally behind the times, she had suffered the worst taunts and nicknames. In one corner of the photo, on a weathered bench, sat a boy, handsome even at his gangly age. He watched her, a quiet, calm expression on his face. Evan was one of the few boys who didn't whistle sarcastically or wink duplicitously on those few occasions that she forgot to keep her head bent to avoid unwelcome stares. She often wondered that if he hadn't moved away with his family from their small Massachusetts's town, to New York, whether he might eventually have asked her out on a date. The smile he sometimes favored her with, was sincere. It had never proved otherwise. Still on the shy and plain side, Julie regarded herself in the mirror above her dresser. A dab of powder and eyebrow pencil added a bit of sophistication to complement her denim blue jeans and loose soft blue cotton top, and she was ready to join her friend, Abby, for a Labor Day outing -- Evan would have approved. Julie grimaced. She must not allow such thoughts, and forget that she ever believed she'd glimpsed him among the Broadway crowd as she rode the bus to work. All a trick of her imagination. It might be a good idea when she returned this evening to tear up that high school photo so it would never again bring back silly school girl memories. A knock at the door. It was Abby."e;Are you ready?"e; One last look in the mirror. Casual and comfortable. Good enough, she shrugged.It wasn't as though she were leaving to meet the love of her life....

Ever wonder what happened to Abby from Paula Freda's "e;Beautiful Dreamer"e;? Find out in the romance novella, "e;The Lark and Robin Red"e; (Abby's Story), a Clean, Christian Inspirational Romance for hearts of all ages). EXCERPT: "e;What's wrong? Is it something I said?"e; although she hadn't said much. Perhaps the way she was dressed. Yet she had taken pains to dress simply. Tan slacks, a soft mint green top, and windbreaker and tan sneakers. She wasn't dressed much unlike him. "e;Not-nothing's wrong, sweetest. I guess most guys in my position would feel nervous."e; Oh God, he's going to break off with me, Abby thought, steeling herself for the worse. She didn't blame him, of course. Unbelievable, his dating her had lasted this long. Johnny swallowed hard. "e;All right, Abby,"e; he said. "e;Just ignore everyone who will soon be staring at us, or aiming their smartphone cameras at us. Keep your attention on me."e; He released her shoulders and drew a small velvet box from his pants pocket. Kneeling on one knee, he snapped it open. "e;Abigail, I know it's probably too soon to make my declaration. But I won't wait to ask you. There's too much sadness in your eyes. You think so little of yourself because of someone in your past who was blind to the real you, the sweet and generous and selfless you. I'm not making that mistake. Abby, if you think you could bear with my faults, and just see the love in my heart, and the desire to spend the rest of my life with you. If-if you can see yourself growing old with me, patiently ... Abby will you marry me?"e; No, she thought, this wasn't real. She was in bed, dreaming. Any moment the alarm on her radio-clock would go off and her favorite country singer wake her gently with a guitar-strung melodious song."e; He took her surprise for hesitation. "e;Abby, I know this is sudden. But if there's the slightest inclination on your part to consider my proposal, take the ring, wear it, until the day you feel absolutely certain you have no feelings for me, then you can give it back to me. No questions asked, no recriminations. I'll exit your life as suddenly as I entered it."e; Oh, No, Abby thought, tears welling up. Thoughts raced through her mind, silly thoughts. How could such a gorgeous hunk of a man fall for the likes of her? How could anyone feel such love for her after so short a time? And yet, I don't care what his reasons are. My head is not going to ruin my one chance, if there is the slimmest possibility; he's actually fallen in love with me, for myself. Vocal chords trembling. and forgetting her self-promises to be tactful and reserved, she blurted, "e;Johnny, Yes, I will wear the ring, because I know I couldn't love anyone the way I love you."e; She took the box, removed the small Marquee diamond ring from its velvet bed of white, and slipped it over the fourth finger of her left hand. He'd probably ask her for the ring back one day soon, but she didn't care. She'd take whatever happiness was allowed her, for whatever short time, before he said goodbye to her. The happiness on his face was hard to discount. His smile so earnest, she dare believe its sincerity. He stood up and took her into his arms, and kissed her tenderly, oblivious to the crowd that had formed around them and their clapping and ooohs and aaahs, or the phone cameras trained on them. One man, though, wasn't clapping or smiling. He was a thin, sallow-faced young man in a wheelchair. He stared at the couple, not with rancor or jealousy, but with a heart-wrenching sadness. The young nurse guiding his wheelchair watched him stoically. She extended one hand and clasped his shoulder He turned partly in the wheelchair and lifted his head to meet her compassionate gaze, and missed Abby's shocked expression, as absently looking over Johnny's shoulder while he held her in his embrace, she saw the man in the wheelchair, Jason, the man, healthy, strong, athletic, selfish, she had once loved with all her heart, the heart he had broken in two.