Introducing Madelle Morgan and her release Diamond Lust

I am so happy to share my excitement at being a newly published author with Hannah and all readers of her blog. My debut romantic suspense, Diamond Lust, was released February 18 by Cerridwen Press.

This book had its genesis back in the 80s when I was a 20-something engineer based in Yellowknife, the capital of Canada’s Northwest Territories. During five years of flying over vast empty landscapes and short stays in various tiny communities, I developed a deep love and respect for the Arctic and its people. That respect includes an awareness of the strength and resilience northerners require to survive in what can be a dangerous and unforgiving environment where in winter temperatures drop to -40, daylight is nil for weeks, and help can be hours away. The men are real men. The women are so strong!

Gems and crystals fascinate me; I almost chose to study geological engineering instead of civil engineering. When diamond deposits were discovered in Canada’s far north in the 90s, I’d found the hook for the story I wanted to set in the north. The premise for Diamond Lust was born. After all, what woman does not lust after a diamond or two?

Petra Paris is a professional diamond-hunter, a beautiful field geologist on a mission to collect drill core samples indicating high grade rough diamonds. If she does not return from a remote diamond mine site in the Arctic within five days, her dad’s career will be ruined. The CEO of Excelsior Mining and Exploration had her father charged for fraudulently salting the mine’s preliminary drilling results. She suspects the CEO is trying to divert attention from his own criminal activities, but has no proof. What’s crystal clear is that someone is trying to stop her.

Seth Cooper is a police detective assigned to the Diamond Protection Unit. When a mine employee with a gut full of priceless pebbles dies trying to smuggle them out of the open pit mine site accessible only by air, Seth goes undercover as a charter company pilot to investigate.

Needing an excuse to infiltrate the mining camp and search for the smugglers at the source, he convinces Petra to allow him to pose as her boyfriend so he can overnight in the mine dormitory. No fool, she agrees; she needs all the protection she can get.

But Seth didn’t anticipate that Petra’s arrival at the mine would spook the smugglers, triggering events that lead to murder. When Petra refuses to leave the mine site without the drill cores necessary to absolve her father, Seth must identify the killers before she becomes the next victim.

To read more, see Chapter 1 on the Cerridwen Press web site.

If diamonds and/or Canada’s north fascinate you too, visit my blog at www.madellemorgan.com .

Guest Madelle Morgan is a member of the Ottawa Romance Writers chapter of RWA, and works for the federal government in Canada’s capital. Diamond Lust is her fourth completed manuscript.