John Isaac Jones
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A fictionalized retelling of Florida's infamous Chillingworth murders.
Bobby Lincoln, a young African American, seems to always be broke. He works a day job at a sugar mill and weekends on a charter boat, but he gambles it away, then borrows money to live on.
After his common-law wife says she's going to leave him if he doesn't start making more money, he agrees to take part in a murder which goes horribly wrong.
Once he and his accomplice have...
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Set in Alabama over a period of fifty years beginning in the late 1940s, this exquisite collection of fifteen short stories provides snapshots into the lives of different characters. The link between the stories is Billy, AKA William Vernon Johnson. Though they can be read as stand-alone stories, the collection chronicles the life of young Billy from a young boy to a man enjoying his role as a grandfather. Billy/William narrates several stories, but...
3) Pauline
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Jen and Shirley Ann had been best friends in Palm Springs, CA. for more than 31 years. Even after Shirley Ann married and divorced Jen's older brother, they remained friends. Although both owned homes in Palm Springs, Jen later purchased a home in Colorado so she could be near her ailing mother Pauline. Once Jen moved, Shirley Ann made frequent weekend trips to the new home to visit and go hiking. During one of those weekends, Pauline suddenly died...
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"Follow love and it will flee; flee love and it will follow thee." - Anonymous.When Alma Dawson, a middle-aged, hard-working single mother, sets out to get the tuition money for her daughter's last year of college, she never dreamed her entire world would be turned upside down. A poignant, inspiring story, this novella is a testimony to a devoted mother's love! "This short story is a good read. Business is business and love is love. This short story...
5) Annie
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"Southern Gothic is alive and well!" - Amazon reviewerCousins Billy and Roy were just two mischievous boys--probably meaner than most--but still just bored, country kids looking for some adventure and excitement.During the nights they spent with their grandmother, their favorite pastime was spying on the tenants of their grandmother's rental houses.Over the years, the two had spied on all of their grandmother's renters at one time or another, but...
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“Thanks, PG! Memoirs of a Tabloid Reporter” recounts the life and adventures of reporter Billy Don Johnson during his 20 years (1975-1995) working for the fictional tabloid The National Insider.
After his dreams of becoming a crusading journalist with daily newspapers are dashed, Billy throws himself into the wild world of diets, household tips, ghosts, UFOs, weird history, and celebrity scandal, all of which is designed to please Padrone Gallione...
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"Be not forgetful to entertain strangers for some have entertained angels unaware." - Hebrews 13:2
When his father died, Billy Johnson felt he would never lose the vicious, gnawing grief that had formed in the innermost recesses of his soul. His father had been his mentor, his adviser, his fishing buddy, his protector, and most of all, his dearest and closest friend all of his life. It was grief he felt he could never be totally free of. Then, out...
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For years, "Big Walter" Huffman had dreamed of becoming Georgia's Director of Public Safety.Now his big opportunity was at hand. The governor's chief aide said all he had to do was find the body of the governor's college-age son who had been swept into the raging waters of the Tallulah River in North Georgia.After three days, however, "Big Walter," armed with all of the body-finding technology the twentieth century had to offer, came up with absolutely...
9) The Old Men
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For years, the old men had been hanging around the country grocery store whiling away their days playing checkers and dominoes and talking about politics, women, drinking and life experiences.All that time, the store owner readily approved their presence in the store and went on about his business as if they were not there. Then, one fateful morning in the fall of 1956, a new owner bought the business who was not quite as tolerant. The narrator of...
10) Tembo Makaburi
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"Tembo Makaburi is a novella about a big game hunter and his indentured servant in the Africa of the 1960's, long before governments placed any restrictions on the killing of endangered species. It is difficult to review this novella without giving away the plot, so I will just say that this story pits Walter Cravens, a white man from England caring only about the fame and fortune he hopes to acquire by killing African animals, and the wise elephant...
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Although they had always dreamed of having a family, tall, horse-faced Frances and stubby, one-eyed Jack had reconciled themselves to a lifetime of abject loneliness. Then one day, out of nowhere, an infant is dropped into their midst. A fairy tale for adults!
12) Grandfathers
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"I like talking to you, Granddaddy," the child said.
"I like talking to you, too, little boy," the grandfather said.
Suddenly, the child burst into tears and ran to his grandparent.
"Oh, Granddaddy," the child sobbed, leaping into his grandfather's arms. "I love you! I love you! I love you!"
For a full ten seconds, the child clung to the grandfather's neck with all his might, shedding huge tears.
As the grandfather and grandson held one another...
13) Boone
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"Everything he did, he did for Miss Mary" - Amazon reviewer A snapshot view of an old Alabama farmer, seen through the eyes of a young boy, Billy, whose mother had been employed at the farm to nurse the terminally-ill wife that the gentle farmer had loved his whole life. Well-written, this short novella conjures up the expanse of the farm, the solitude of Boone, despite the numerous farm workers, and above all, Boone's love for his invalid wife Mary....
14) The Last Cowboy
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Don't miss this wild and crazy cross-country romance between a cowboy and a Latina! Easy-going J.L. and by-the-book Karina combine forces to overcome all the obstacles in their path across the USA to Miami. Lots of laughs, wacky incidents and some loving along the way make this an excellent, light afternoon read.
"The fun is in the bumpy ride! I just discovered this book recently, although it has been out for several years. It's the story of...
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Did you ever have a friend who would make you do things you would never do on your own? A friend that made you act so different from your regular self that you didn't recognize yourself when you were with them?
John Chance has such a lifelong friend, Jesse Trubble, who has an unyielding zest for life that is infectious-captivating and influencing John's actions and relationships for over fifty years of their lives.
In 2021, John is in a retirement...
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This yarn recounts a day in the life of one Robert James Worthington, a young man who "had the world on a string." "Don't let your ego get out of hand!""A story that ended as I predicted! Use good judgement and don't let pride and ego dictate and overrule good sense! 5 stars." - Amazon reviewer
17) Thirteen Stories
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"Stories that hit your heart, your sense of whimsy and your memories of different times - writing about the south of the fifties in a nostalgic and loving way - with the touch of darkness."
In the first tale, Going Home, a small-time hoodlum, being led to the electric chair, remembers he has a few things he wants to do before he leaves this earth.
In Boone, an eight-year-old tells the poignant story of an aging, crippled farmer who has a psychotic...
18) A Quiet Madness
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Edgar Allan Poe lives once, again within the pages of John Isaac Jones' new work of historical fiction.
His time, 1810-40s America; Lewis and Clark have returned; the Monroe doctrine takes effect, the War of 1812; Andrew Jackson's tempestuous presidency; the train, the steamship and the graphite pencil were still being, improved, the Mexican-American War, the trail of tears, the California gold rush.
His loves, His frail, devoted stepmother who...
19) The Surrogate
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When Becky Stokes learned that she couldn't have children, she was devastated. Doctors said corrective surgery could endanger her life and, after thumbing down several other options, she and her husband decided to use a surrogate to produce a child. After the papers were signed, however, nobody, including Becky, could have dreamed what happened next!!! A story of infidelity and just desserts!! "A Quick, engaging read""A short, but sweet story about...
20) The Angel Years
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After the Johnson family learns the youngest daughter is pregnant and unwed, they devise an elaborate plan to keep it a secret from the outside world.
Part of that plan includes a lavish lie which is designed to make the scheme seem more believable.
Once the child was born, however, this lie would not only come true, but change the lives of every member of the family.
A story about an unwed mother, sibling rivalry, dark family secrets and a visit...