FEATURED BOOK AND INTERVIEW:HAZARDOUS HOMECOMING BY DANA MENTINK

Little girl lost 

Ruby Hudson finds new evidence that could shed light on her childhood friend's disappearance. But she'll have to fight for her life to keep it out of the wrong person's hands. Cooper Stokes' brother is still the prime suspect, and as the cold case heats up, so do Ruby's forgotten feelings for Cooper. Ruby wants justice for her friend. Cooper wants to prove his brother's innocence. Despite being on opposite sides, they find themselves drawn to one another. But the deeper they dig into decades-old secrets, the closer they come to having to make a choice between family and love.  

Wings of Danger: The path to love is treacherous

Interview:

Today we're welcoming Ruby Hudson, the heroine of Hazardous Homecoming, written by Dana Mentink, a November release by Love Inspired Suspense. 

Wow, you've just had quite an adventure.  

1.       Tell us a little about yourself and how you came to be in the midst of such suspense. My life was changed forever when I was five years old and my playmate was abducted while we were playing in woods on my family's wild bird sanctuary in Oregon. It changed my life, and ever since I've been trying to understand what happened. Recently, I uncovered a clue and angered a criminal and nearly cost me my life.

2.  So, during the book you met Cooper Stokes.  Tell us a bit about him/her.  What was your first impression?  When did you know it was love? Cooper is a botanist, as passionate about his field as I am about birds. I was immediately attracted to that passion. His brother was the main suspect in the kidnapping all those years ago and his dream is to prove his brother innocent. When I saw how much he cared for his brother, as much as I care for mine, I couldn't help but fall in love with him.

3.  What strengths/skills do you have?  What is your greatest weakness? Is being stubborn a skill? If it is, I'm abundantly talented. I'm also familiar with every square inch of the Hudson Sanctuary property, and every bird that finds a home here.            

4.  What scares you?  That I will never know what happened to Heather, my friend, all those years ago.

5. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be? I would be much better at taking direction.

6.  Where are you in your faith at the start of your story? I feel abandoned by God.

7.  Where are you in your faith at the end of the story?  I am overwhelmed by His goodness, simply overwhelmed at the second chance I've been given.

8. You've got a scripture at the beginning of the story.  Tell us why this scripture is significant.    Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside of your Father's care.  Matthew 10:29. This whole ordeal has shown me that even the most fragile, insignificant life is significant to The Lord.

9. If you could be a dessert what would you be and why? Bread pudding. Warm, sweet, comforting, but with substance.

Carol Award Finalist: Dana Mentink

Today at the Craftie Ladies we continue our salute to our authors who rise to the top and prove that Christian fiction rocks! 

Please join me in welcoming Dana Mentink.

Her book, 

JUNGLE FIRE. 

is a finalist for the American Christian Fiction Writers' Carol Award.

What inspired you to write your finaling book?

My mother lived in Guatemala for a short time and I remember writing a paper about the national bird when I was in fifth grade. My agent approached me about writing a suspense novel about a missionary caught in a deadly situation and the setting popped into my mind.

How does your faith play into your stories?

God is the author of the universe. I just strive to encourage people to give their struggles to God. He’s the only one that can give us the happy endings we yearn for!

What is your favorite part of writing?

That moment, that precious instant, when I have a brainstorm at some random time that makes me say, “Yes! THAT’S the perfect plot twist!”

What are you working on now?

I’m writing a book for Harlequin’s Hearwarming, which is a wholesome romance, and kicking off a four book suspense series for Love Inspired Suspense. I also teach third grade, so I’ve got many young writers to coach!

Tell us about your Carol Award finaling book.

I’d love to, here’s the blurb.

Nina Truman is a missionary nurse, serving in a tiny Guatemalan town not far from the Mexican border.  It’s a fulfilling life, tending to the village poor, a way to serve in the country from which she was adopted. The day she leaves on furlough, is the day her life falls apart. Her bus is ambushed and she must flee from forces who inexplicably wish her dead. Trapped between a ruthless drug lord and his assassins, a corrupt police chief, and colleagues with ulterior motives, her friends may prove just as deadly as her enemies as she uncovers a plot tangled deep in the roots of her own past.

Nina’s only hope of survival lies in the hands of Shaw Wilder, a man who despises missionaries and the God they serve.  His skill is in handling a land mine detection dog, not helping a woman he blames for the death of his sister. When the lethal drug kingpin El Escorpion seeks to capture Nina, and the local police are no help, Shaw has to choose: flee into the Guatemalan jungle with a naive woman who has vowed never to take a life or follow his own spiritual demons and walk away. His choice may leave them both imprisoned in a jungle from which neither will escape.

Ooo...sounds exciting.

Thanks for joining us today, Dana. We'll be cheering you on at the Carols.