MJ Harrington, Author
“Where the mountains keep secrets and the wrong people come looking"
They took her son.
Attorney Alexandra Pierce has one option left: the father she barely knows and the protection family hidden deep in the Tennessee mountains.
Jack O'Rourke goes to war for blood. And he puts his most dangerous operative on her.
Former Marine sniper Cole DiRossi has no interest in babysitting a woman who refuses to stand down. But the more time he spends protecting Alex, the more he sees what's beneath the control — and the fierce, terrified mother underneath.
She is everything he should avoid. He is exactly the kind of man she's spent her life refusing to trust.
Book 1 Playlist
Guarding Her Son: The Extras
Redemption Ridge Protectors · Book One
···
M. J. Harrington
From the Kitchen
Family Recipes
The kind of food that means someone's home.
Recipe One
Amish Poor Man's
Hamburger Steaks
Hamburger Steaks
With Mushroom Gravy
Ingredients
The Patties
Ground beef (80/20 or chuck/round mix)2 lb
Crushed saltine crackers1–1½ cups
Whole milk1 cup
Onion, finely choppedto taste
Garlic powderto taste
Italian seasoningto taste
Salt & pepperto taste
Flourfor dredging
Butter or oilfor frying
The Gravy
Cream of mushroom soup, condensed2 cans
Whole milk1–1½ cups
Method
01
Combine beef, crushed saltines, milk, finely chopped onion, garlic powder, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper. Mix until just combined — don't overwork it.
02
Shape into 6–8 thick patties. Dredge each one in flour, shaking off the excess.
03
Pan-fry in butter or oil until browned on both sides. They don't need to be cooked through. Transfer to a baking dish.
04
Whisk together 2 cans cream of mushroom soup with 1–1½ cups milk until smooth. Pour over the patties.
05
Bake at 350°F for 45–60 minutes until patties are tender and gravy is rich and bubbling.
06
Serve hot with mashed potatoes, egg noodles, or rice to soak up the sauce.
Recipe Two
Redneck Coleslaw
The real one
Ingredients
The Slaw
Cabbage, very finely chopped8 cups (~1 head)
Carrot, shredded¼ cup
Onion, minced2 tbsp
The Dressing
Mayonnaise½ cup
Sugar⅓ cup
Milk¼ cup
Buttermilk¼ cup
Lemon juice2½ tbsp
White vinegar1½ tbsp
Salt½ tsp
Pepper⅛ tsp
Method
01
Chop cabbage and carrots into very fine pieces — a little bigger than rice. This is the whole game.
02
Combine mayonnaise, sugar, milk, buttermilk, lemon juice, vinegar, salt, and pepper in a large bowl. Beat until smooth and the sugar is fully dissolved.
03
Add cabbage, carrots, and onion. Mix well to coat everything evenly.
04
Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours. Overnight is better — the flavor deepens and the cabbage softens into something entirely different.
Redemption Ridge Protectors · Book One
···
M. J. Harrington
The Official Cocktail
Velvet Backhand
Smooth on arrival. Then it hits you.
Coupe glass · Coffee beans · No other garnish
What goes in it
Baileys Irish Cream
1 oz
Chocolate vodka
1.5 oz
Kahlúa
1 oz
Cold espresso
1 shot
Heavy cream float
over spoon
Character
Creamy and dark up front.
The espresso finds you around the third sip.
The espresso finds you around the third sip.
Method
01
Place a single large ice cube in a coupe or rocks glass.
02
Pour Baileys, chocolate vodka, and Kahlúa over the ice in that order.
03
Add the cold espresso last — it sits just beneath the surface where it belongs.
04
Float heavy cream over the back of a spoon. Do not stir. Let it drift down on its own terms.
05
Garnish with three coffee beans. Everything else it doesn't need.
The Redemption Ridge Protectors are a family forged in fire, hidden in the Tennessee mountains, and built on one law: you protect your own. No matter what it costs.
Six books. Six protectors. Six women who survived the worst — and found something none of them were looking for.
I write the kind of love stories where the hero would burn the world down for her — and the heroine would hand him the match.
Who Is MJ Harrington?
I write dark romantic suspense about fierce women, dangerous men, and the kind of found family you build when the one you were born into left you in exile.
My heroines don't wait to be rescued. My heroes are protectors down to the bone — morally grey, dangerous, but unwavering when it comes to the people they love.
The Redemption Ridge Protectors series is set in the Tennessee mountains. Six horses, a tiny flock of laying hens, and a household of people and animals that chose each other. That's what found family means — on the page and off it.
Avid equestrian. Part-time gardener, full-time reader. Volunteered in Africa and Northern Ireland. Devoted to SPF. Attempting French (mixed results).
I've spent most of my life trying to understand why people do what they do — and now I put fictional ones through it instead.