The Story Behind The Story

Laurie Wood | @LaurieJeanWood

I decided to set my romantic suspense in a small sub-arctic Canadian town because polar bears are such a Canadian icon. And I had fun delving in to the research about Churchill, Manitoba, researching polar bears and the conservation efforts preserving their species.

But the other aspect of the “story behind the story” is how my two main characters changed and evolved as I experimented with the premise for the book. I was a police officer in the mid-1980’s and I read a lot of thrillers and police procedurals, so I started with a hero Royal Canadian Mounted Police Officer. I figured a “Mountie”, as we call them, (because it’s shorter), was also a Canadian icon and that might hook an editor or agent’s attention, so he would be a good bet for a hero. And I wrote a great character sketch–but I couldn’t “see” him. I like to search Pinterest for interesting faces for my heroes and heroines but I wasn’t getting a bead on this guy. He felt hollow, and for whatever reason, wasn’t coming “alive” for me.
As for my heroine, I saw her jumping up from a restaurant meal and walking out–running out–from the hero after her proposed to her. And I thought, what would make a woman do that? At that point, I didn’t have her as a polar bear scientist. She was beautiful, but that was all I knew about her. I found this photo on Pinterest, no credit given, and my imagination ran away with me. I dug into the heroine’s background and came up with the “WHY” of her painful story. Why would she run out on a marriage proposal from a man she was in love with?

Once I’d written her background story the “WHO” of the hero transformed.
He wasn’t a police officer anymore. He became a spoiled rich kid who’d had every advantage in life. A lifelong Christian who’d been raised with all the answers to life from the outside looking in but hadn’t tested those “answers” until real life hit him in the face. And his family wasn’t perfect either. He “fell” in to his profession, rather than being a career guy.
I searched Pinterest till I found actor Paul Walker who starred in the “Fast and the Furious” movie franchise before his untimely death at the age of 40. And suddenly, I had my “face” to go with Lukas Tanner. He became the first “boy next door” hero I’ve ever written.

Remember that heroes come in all shapes and sizes. They’re not all alpha males who carry guns and can fight off three bad guys at once. Real heroes are the guys who learn from their mistakes. Who fall down and get up again even if they fall more than once. Who lose more than their possessions and start over and over again. Real heroes can take care of a sick child in the night and still get up and go to work at 7 a.m.
So, why did my heroine not want to marry this guy in the first place? Well, you’ll have to read the story to find out. She has her reasons: fear, shame, a huge secret. Even in our society, we have a “class” system. She didn’t come from wealth. And when she ends up with something in her possession, that other people are willing to kill her for, things take a dark and dangerous turn.
I hope you’ll enjoy reading Northern Deception. I trust I’ve written a tight love story with enough suspense to keep you turning the pages and also give you a taste of Canada’s far north in the middle of polar bear season. It’s been my pleasure to share this Canadian romantic suspense with you.

Laurie Wood is a military wife who’s lived across Canada and visited six of its ten provinces. She and her husband have raised two wonderful children with Down Syndrome to adulthood, and their son and daughter are a wonderful blessing to their lives. Over the years, Laurie’s books have finaled in prestigious contests such as the Daphne du Maurier (twice), the TARA, the Jasmine, and the Genesis. Her family lives in central Canada with a menagerie of rescue dogs and cats. If the house were bigger, no doubt they’d have more.

Website: https://www.lauriewoodauthor.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lauriewoodreadersgroup
Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/LaurieJeanWood

Christine's Got a Brand New Baby

If a writer knows the subject and setting well, the story comes to life. With this new baby of mine, Sofi’s Bridge, I’d like to take you on a tour of my beautiful home close to the Cascade Mountains that bridge Washington State and British Columbia, Canada.

In my opinion I live in one of the prettiest places in the world, often compared

Wood carvings featured
in homestead of Sofi's Bridge.

to the Swiss Alps. Since I literally live only 3 miles as far as the crow flies from the US border, I used my own valley and created a fictional vale in Washington State. I did this only to give the book an American setting since those readers make up the majority of the market. But just between me and you, the story is really set in Canada. But shhhh, let’s keep that a secret.

Below are 3 scenes in which I used my province to create the fictional town of Orchard in the US.

~*~

The view from my dining room window.

Sunlight slanted from the west as they entered the valley. Farms created a velvet patchwork, and the tang of recently mown hay sweetened the air. The opposite side of the bridge met them at the entrance to town, where the hammers of steelworkers driving rivets into the trusses rang like a welcome home.

Neil stopped at the crossroads.

Sofi savored the outskirts of the town she’d spent most of her childhood summers. Already her spirits lifted. A high-wheeled freight wagon rolled toward Gronberg’s livery stable. Railway lines would make it so much easier to transports goods in and out of Orchard. But there were things she hoped would never change—the red and white awning of Helsing’s mercantile, the steeple of a white clapboard church that sought the sky. With a quiet nod, she motioned to Neil to take the road following this side of the gorge.

~*~

Sofi’s Bridge starts out though in Seattle, which I drive to a few times each year, so again I know the location well. Here’s another snipped created from my own memories driving out of Seattle and heading north.

~*~

Puget Sound

A rising sun melted the morning fog. Where the roads were good, the Cadillac ran smoothly at thirty-five miles per hour. Not so with the out-of-the-way paths

Sofi chose, taking them through cultivated farmlands that hugged the water.

Neil kept to a low speed to avoid jarring as the thin tires travelled the rutted byways. They’d come almost forty miles. Now a smattering of small islands floated on the intense blue of Puget Sound. To the northeast, rolling mountains furred with evergreens gradually molded higher and higher. Ireland wasn’t the only emerald land, but his halfhearted smile faltered when he glanced at Sofi.

~*~

A romantic scene from the book is set in one of my favorite places in all the world, taken directly from my visits to the Alpine Meadow in Manning Park BC,

just across the border from the same glorious Cascade Mountains in Washington State. In fact, each summer I look out on the US side from this location when I go to view the alpine flowers at their peak in mid-July.

~*~

At the summit they reined the Clydesdales under a shady tree. The wind, carrying a clean pine fragrance, blew unimpeded as though they’d reached the top of the world and grasses swayed in the breeze.

Neil walked with Sofi along a pathway strewn on either side with blue and purple lupine, pink phlox, yellow arnica, and red Indian paintbrush. In the distance, pale blue and turquoise ice from glaciers filled crevices between serrated granite heights. Quiet awe filled his face as he swept his gaze three hundred and sixty degrees and studied the glaciers that though they were miles away seemed close enough to touch. Above the tree line, gray peaks scraped the sky, some still capped with snow.

Sofi could only hope that up here for a while he could let go of whatever pain he was hiding from the world, and from her.

Read the first chapter of Sofi’s Bridge for free by clicking HERE.

SOFI’S BRIDGE by Christine Lindsay

Seattle Debutant Sofi Andersson will do everything in her power to protect her sister who is suffering from shock over their father’s death. Charles, the family busy-body, threatens to lock Trina in a sanatorium—a whitewashed term for an

insane asylum—so Sofi will rescue her little sister, even if it means running away to the Cascade Mountains with only the new gardener Neil Macpherson to protect them. But in a cabin high in the Cascades, Sofi begins to recognize that the handsome immigrant from Ireland harbors secrets of his own. Can she trust this man whose gentle manner brings such peace to her traumatized sister and such tumult to her own emotions? And can Neil, the gardener, continue to hide from Sofi that he is really Dr. Neil Galloway, a man wanted for murder by the British police? Only an act of faith and love will bridge the distance that separates lies from truth and safety.

PURCHASE LINKS for Sofi’s Bridge Paper & Ebooks

AMAZON.com 

Barnes and Noble

Pelican Book Group

About Christine:

Christine Lindsay is the author of multi-award-winning Christian fiction. Tales of her Irish ancestors who served in the British Cavalry in Colonial India inspired her multi-award-winning trilogy Twilight of the British Raj, Book 1 Shadowed in Silk, Book 2 Captured by Moonlight, and explosive finale Veiled at Midnight.

Christine’s Irish wit and use of setting as a character is evident in her contemporary romance Londonderry Dreaming and newest release Sofi’s Bridge. 

A busy writer and speaker, Christine and her husband live on the west coast of Canada. Coming August 2016 is the release of Christine’s non-fiction book Finding Sarah—Finding Me: A Birthmother’s Story.

Connect with Christine:

Please drop by Christine’s website www.ChristineLindsay.org or follow her on Amazon on Twitter. Subscribe to her quarterly newsletter, and be her friend on Pinterest , Facebook, and  Goodreads

Book Recommendation: Taken by Lisa Harris

Book Description:

MISSING CHILD

Kate Elliot's suburban life turns upside down when her sister is shot and her niece kidnapped. Unsure of whom to trust, she turns to FBI agent Marcus O'Brian. But Kate doesn't want to leave the case to the authorities. Against the handsome agent's orders, she tracks her niece to Paris, and the City of Light quickly becomes a city of danger. Marcus can't explain why he feels such a strong connection with the headstrong woman, but soon he's taking on the role of Kate's protector. Yet when the kidnappers demand a ransom Kate can't deliver, he's not sure how much longer he can keep her alive. Now Marcus has the next twenty-four hours to save a stolen child and the woman he's grown to love.

Narelle's thoughts:

I’m a fan of Lisa’s books and I loved reading Taken. I read it quickly, within twenty four hours, because I couldn’t put it down. The story starts in the middle of the action, when Kate’s niece is kidnapped from her mother’s home. Distraught and desperate to rescue her niece, Kate travels from Texas to Paris and soon realizes her own life is at stake. Forced to rely on Marcus, she sees a different side of the handsome FBI agent who is protecting her.

I really enjoyed the French story setting in Paris and the inclusion of many historic and famous landmarks. The characterisation was excellent and I loved the way the romance developed between Marcus and Kate. I wanted to see Marcus and Kate stay alive to achieve their own happily-ever-after ending. The suspense plot kept me guessing until the end, with exciting twists and turns along the way.

I highly recommend Taken to readers who are looking for a high octane and fast paced romantic suspense story set in beautiful Paris.

Learn more about Lisa and her books at her website.

Book Recommendation: Identity Withheld by Sandra Orchard

Book Description:

WITNESS IN HIDING

After exposing an illegal adoption ring, newly named "Kara Grant" is promised safety in Witness Protection. But someone has found her—and wants her dead. If only she could trust the handsome firefighter who catches her fleeing from a suspicious fire. Jake Steele seems to think she's guilty of burning her own home. But how can she tell him who she really is and what she's been through without bringing danger to the widowed single father's door? Yet with the criminals quickly closing in, taking such a risk might be her only chance at survival. Because the price she'll pay for her silence could be her life.

Narelle's thoughts:

I really enjoyed reading Identity Withheld. Kara is a strong and fascinating character. She's in Witness Protection because she has integrity and stood up for what was right. Kara is displaced from her family and can't afford to trust anyone with her secret. Jake is intrigued by Kara and she draws out his protective instincts. Their lives become entangled as the story unfolds and Kara is worried her presence in Jake's life is putting his family and adorable young son in danger.

The story is fast moving and the romance between Kara and Jake develops as the danger to her life escalates. I highly recommend Identity Withheld to those who enjoy high octane romantic suspense stories.

Learn more about Sandra and her books at her website. 

Introducing Deadly Devotion by Sandra Orchard

I am super-excited to share with you a little about the first book in my new mystery series, Port Aster Secrets, set in the fictional town of Port Aster in the Niagara Region of Ontario, Canada.  

 

I had so much fun doing research for this book, because the heroine is a herbal researcher and the hero is a former FBI agent turned detective. 

So...to understand my hero, Tom Parker, better, I attended the Writer's Police Academy, a fabulous, hands-on experience that not only allowed me to see, hear, taste, smell and handle a variety of police and emergency services equipment, it helped me to get into my hero's head. And through the firearms training simulator, I also experienced the emotions and visceral reactions of facing split section decisions of how to react to potentially life threatening situations. 

To understand my heroine, Kate Adams, better, I worked on a sensory panel at our local agricultural research station. I visited the Niagara Parks School of Horticulture and interviewed students. I read dozens of books on poisons and herbal remedies and trolled the internet for little-known facts that would be intriguing to slip into the story. 

What's the book about?

Kate knows her mentor didn’t kill herself by mistakenly drinking the wrong tea and she’s determined to prove it — with or without Detective Tom Parker’s help. Since Tom left the FBI under less than ideal circumstances, he's trying to keep a low profile in his new job, but with Kate investigating a case that his boss insists is closed, that may be wishful thinking. Kate's sleuthing uncovers a web of intrigue that convinces Tom he needs to find the truth before it gets Kate killed.

RT Book Reviews describes Deadly Devotion as: "suspenseful with plenty of action and a fascinating mystery that readers as well as tea lovers will enjoy." 

Publisher's Weekly agrees saying: "Fans looking for a quick read and a unique mystery will surely enjoy it."

The book releases in North America June 1st and internationally in July. But online stores already have it available for preorder at fabulous sale prices. Of particular interest to international readers is The Book Depository, which ships free to 110 countries. 

Check out these pre-release giveaways: 5 copies are available to be won by Canadian and American Goodreads members.  And on May 23rd and 24th, leave a comment at my upcoming interview at The Barn Door Book Loft for a chance to win a copy. (Open to wherever The Book Depository ships free...even if it says US only)

Sandra Orchard is an award-winning author of Christian romantic suspense. She writes for Harlequin’s Love Inspired Suspense line, and Revell Publishing. She lives in Niagara, Canada with her real-life-hero husband of more than twenty-five years, and writes full time…when not doting on their first grandchild. You can learn more about Sandra’s books and bonus features at www.SandraOrchard.com or connect at www.Facebook.com/SandraOrchard