On Tour with Prism Book Tours
Northern Deception(Heroes of the Tundra #1)
By Laurie Wood
Inspirational Romantic Suspense
ebook, 170 Pages
December 4th 2018 by Anaiah Press
Reunions can be deadly.
After a savage attack in university, Kira Summers fled to the safety of northern Canada and her work as a polar bear scientist. But when her whistleblower brother dies in a mysterious car crash, she must return home to bury him and pack his belongings. Unaware she’s carrying explosive evidence someone’s willing to kill for, she has no choice but to rely on the one person she never thought she’d see again.
Lukas Tanner, a widowed single father of a special needs toddler, moved to Churchill five years ago. As the proud owner of Guiding Star Enterprises, a wilderness tour company, he and his daughter lead a simple life. But when Kira comes crashing back into his world, he realizes God has other plans. Now, Lukas and Kira must confront a merciless killer as their past and present collide in a deadly race—a race they must win if they have any hope of a future together.
The Story Behind The Story
To be honest, 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 played around 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 had a vision of 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 dug into the heroine’s background and came up with the “WHY” of her painful story, and then 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.
Before you say, “Well, HE doesn’t sound like much of a Hero!” 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 dangerous and dark turn.
About the Author
Laurie Wood has followed her RCAF serving husband across Canada, raising their two special needs children to adulthood, and "keeping the home fires burning" while she began her writing career. She's a member of Romance Writers of America, where she's finalled in several prestigious contests, as well as American Christian Fiction Writers. She writes romantic suspense and historical novels.
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Tour Schedule
December 3rd:
December 4th:
December 5th:
December 6th:
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December 8th:
Tour Giveaway
1 winner will receive a 100 page hardcover Journal + matching pen, magnetic bookmarks, wooden Christmas ornament, and Abalone and Silver Polar Bear necklace, ebook of NORTHERN DECEIPTION. (NOTE: wooden box holding up bookmarks and ornament pictured is NOT included.)
Open to US and Canada
Ends December 12, 2018
