HELP WANTED

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In Search of True North has been a long time coming and I’d love your help as it nears its July 6 release. That may seem far off, but I’d love to select my team by April 1^st, send the Advance Reader Copy by May 1^st, and be ready to share the news by the beginning of June—one month before Release Day. I hope to form a team representing a wide span of geographic areas. How many states can we include?

Team members must commit to:

Reading In Search of True North before its release.

Writing an honest review to post on Goodreads, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Book Bub. I’ll provide links to make that easy. You’ll need only follow the link and copy your review.

Share word of In Search of True North on your social media sites. This can be you starting a conversation or reposting one that I share with you.

In return, team members will receive:

A free advance digital copy of In Search of True North.

An invitation to a Zoom Meet and Greet to connect with all team members. We will discuss the book using the Discussion Questions.

An opportunity to win giveaways during the final month before the release. Giveaways will include Amazon gift cards, autographed copies of any of my other titles, and other surprise goodies.

Launch team opportunities will be limited. Contact me if you are interested.

Here’s a sneak peek.

A few hours later, darkness covered the area. They walked the path that led to a deserted beach. Mallory smoothed out the sand where she would spread the blanket, her lantern illuminating the spot.

Pointing to the light, Samuel questioned her. “I thought we didn’t want light?”

“Ha. Once I came without a lantern and couldn’t find my way off the beach. I was terrified. You don’t make that mistake twice. We’ll turn it off when we’re ready.”

Brady sat on the blanket with his knees bent in front of him. “I’m psyched. I’ve never done this. What am I looking for?”

“We should be able to see the Perseids, a meteor shower that occurs every August. I checked the dates and we’re within the range of possibility. I can usually focus in to view the Milky Way. It will look like an arch of lights. Then we can try to locate some of the planets. And of course, we’ll see constellations.”

They settled on the blanket and Mallory turned off the lantern, throwing them into an inky black expanse. The only sound came from the lapping waves as they peaked and hit the shore. Mallory focused the telescope and slowly spanned the universe. “There it is.” Handing it off to Samuel, she directed his gaze. “You should be able to see the meteor shower. It looks like a mass of fireballs that form like ribbons in the sky.”

“Wow. There’s a million of them.”

Mallory laughed, wishing she could see his expression. “Actually, there should be between 50 and 100.”

Brady stared in the same direction. “I can see them with a naked eye.”

“Yes, but you can catch far more detail with the scope. Samuel, pass it to your uncle.”

He handed it over. Brady peered through the eyepiece and gasped. “I can actually see pieces of rock. It almost looks like the rock is on fire.”

They passed the telescope back to Mallory. Once again, she spanned the vastness.

“Here’s a double-double star.”

“What’s that?” Samuel asked it as he reached for the telescope. Mallory turned his head slightly so he could view the sight.

“This one’s called Epsilon Lyrae. A double star is when there are two stars together. It looks kind of like one that has split in half. But a double-double is four stars where it looks like two that have each split. They’re called star systems. Alpha Centauri is a well-known triple. Three stars in one cluster.”

“Cool.” Samuel again passed the device to Brady.

He searched but couldn’t find the split star. Mallory crawled around Samuel to help Brady locate Epsilon Lyrae. She reached for the scope and her hand met his in the darkness. She was about to pull back when his hand covered hers, moving it to the focus tube. “You lead. I’ll follow.” His hand rested ever so slightly on hers, sending shivers that had nothing to do with the coolness of evening. Had anyone been on this deserted beach, they appeared to be a family of three. What would that be like? Would she ever know that level of belonging?

She willed her mind to stay on task. After a few turns of the focus tube, the double-double appeared.

They spent the next hour looking at planets and constellations. Excitement bubbled up in Mallory. Up until now, Liam had been the only one who had shown interest. Samuel and Brady were awed by the wonders of the sky, just as Mallory had always been.

The heavens declare the glory of God. The verse sprang to her mind. She hadn’t thought of it in years. The wide expanse of the universe had always made her feel small and alone. But tonight, she felt like the double star, like she somehow belonged.