Thanks to Felicia Minerva of Midpoint Trade Books/Beaufort Books, I am giving away 5 print copies of ‘North of the Tension Line’ by JF Riordan.
Book Description:
Fiona Campbell is a newcomer to tiny Ephraim, Wisconsin. Populated with artists and summer tourists, Ephraim has just enough going on to satisfy her city tastes. But she is fascinated and repelled by the furthest tip of Door County peninsula, Washington Island, utterly removed from the hubbub of modern life.
Fiona’s visits there leave her refreshed in spirit, but convinced that only lunatics and hermits could survive a winter in its frigid isolation. In a moment of weakness, Fiona is goaded into accepting a dare that she cannot survive the winter on the island in a decrepit, old house. Armed with some very fine single malt scotch and a copy of Meditations by Marcus Aurelius, Fiona sets out to win the dare, and discovers that small town life is not nearly as dull as she had foreseen.
Abandoning the things she has always thought important, she encounters the vicious politics of small town life, a ruthless neighbor, persistent animals, a haunted ferry captain, and the peculiar spiritual renewal of life north of the tension line.
About JF Riordan:
J.F. Riordan was born in New Jersey and first moved to Michigan, then Wisconsin as a child. At the age of 14 she decided to become an opera singer, and was fortunate in the aftermath to have been able to sing. At 16, after two years of high school, she went to the University of New Mexico to study voice, continued her music studies in Chicago and Milwaukee, and ultimately became a professional singer.
Homesick after years of travel, she came home to the Midwest, finished her college degree, and became certified to teach high school. She taught for three years in the inner city before taking a position as a program officer for a foundation. She lives in exile from Washington Island with her husband and two dogs. North of the Tension Line is her first novel.
This giveaway is open to the U.S. only and ends on December 21, 2014. Please use Rafflecopter to enter.
A captivating and intriguing story which interests me greatly.
Sounds like a wonderful story. The isolation of the north can be such a powerful thing and this sounds like a very worthy treatment. Thanks for the chance to win a copy.
First thing is that I live in Wisconsin and I love Door County. I want to read how she survives small town living in the Winter. Thanks for the giveaway.
I found this interesting & wonder why she thinks – only lunatics and hermits could survive a winter in its frigid isolation.
I lived in a small town with frigid winters for 50 years ! ! Interesting story line…
I didn’t enter this contest but may reconsider.
It sounds like a wonderful story. I like the idea of Fiona living in a small area just to win a dare. Thanks for having the giveaway.
Surviving the winter in Door County sounds fascinating. Thanks for the giveaway.