GHOST HEART - Lisa Harris and Lynne Gentry - One Free Book

Dear Readers, I have been eagerly awaiting this day. Both Lisa and Lynne have been dear friends of mine for years. I’ve been privileged by God to help each of them along their writing journey, and both of them have an amazing writing voice. Together, they’re more powerful. I’ve known about this book for a long time, and I knew it would have to be published someday. That day is here.

Welcome, Lisa and Lynne. How did this book come about?      

LYNNE: Just over a decade ago, a newspaper article featured a picture of a terrified albino. The fear in his pale eyes caught my attention. As I read about the horrors these fragile people faced in Africa, I couldn’t believe such evil existed in the world. I contacted Lisa, who lives in Mozambique, and asked her to investigate.

LISA: Until Lynne wrote to me about the article, I’d never heard of these barbaric crimes. But after doing some further research, I discovered that the atrocities against albinos had been going on for years. Once we learned that the witch doctors targeted the pale skin and hair of this minority to make good luck charms and potions, we knew we had to tell their story.

Tell us about the book’s cover and what makes it unique.

We were looking for something that conveyed both the medical aspects of the story and its African setting. The heartbeat and the baobab tree ended up being the perfect combination as well as setting the tone we were looking for. And when you read the book, they will become even more significant.

Please explain and differentiate between what’s fact and fiction in the book.

While the actual story line is complete fiction, the things that happen in this story could happen. Albinos really are hunted for the “magic” in their skin. There really is a black market for organ parts. People really do go to third world countries for transplants when they are out of options. We took these facts, then weaved them into a medical thriller.

How much research did you have to do for this book?

There was a long list of topics we had to delve into and study: Albinism. The transplant tourism trade. Heart conditions. Pharmaceutical testing. Piloting small planes. Organ transplants/rejections. American Embassy procedures in an African country.

Neither of us were experts on any of this so we spent hours tracking down people who were. It helped tremendously that Lisa lives in Africa. Her experiences in a third-world country lend a tremendous amount of authenticity to the project.

What are some of the most interesting things you found about this subject that you weren’t able to use in the story?

While we didn’t shy away from our depiction of the gruesome treatment of albinos, we spared our readers tons of the terrible details we read on the subject. The power of superstition is strong. Only the power of truth is stronger. 

What inspired and surprised you while you were writing the book?

We believe that beneath the color of our skin we are all alike, but this belief was tested when we had to write from the POV of a terrified mother of a cursed child. What surprised us was how much she was willing to do to save her child. This realization really drove home the platitude we spouted so easily and opened our eyes to the fact that you really can’t know how another person is thinking or feeling if you’re not willing to wear their skin, so to speak.

What do you hope the reader takes away from the story?

Because while we live in a fallen world, we believe it is possible to bring light into the darkness. The journey of these characters challenged us, comforted us, and pushed us to live life more courageously. But most of all, writing this story opened our hearts to wanting to do our part to create a world that loves no matter what the color of our skin, education, financial status, or nationality. And reminded us that God's light truly does shine, even in the darkest places. We pray this story will do the same for each person who reads it.

What is the next project you’re working on?

LYNNE: I’m finishing up the last book in my Mt. Hope Southern Adventures series. This romantic comedy (Baby Shoes) wraps up (for now) the quirky life of Leona Harper. After that, I’m doing edits on a Young Adult sci-fi I can’t wait to release.

LISA: I’m currently working on two novels. A Love Inspired Suspense set in Rio and the Amazon, and a new stand-alone suspense novel for Revell. Both will be released next year.

What do you do when you have to get away from the story for a while?

LYNNE: I have several diversions – four grands under the age of four that I love spending time with. I’ve also trained a medical therapy dog that I love to take to visit the cancer wards at a major medical center.

LISA: I love hanging out with my family, cooking different ethnic dishes, photography, and heading into the African bush on safari.

That sounds like fun. Please give us the first page of the book.

Makuru, Tanzania

According to legend, their kind could never die. When they grew old, they simply vanished from this world, like smoke from the cooking fire that snakes above the spindly baobab trees and slithers away.

But not all legends are true.

Or so Jeme prayed.

Squinting through the shimmering rays of the grueling African sun, Jeme balanced the bowl of dried beans on her head and pressed through the crowded marketplace. A maze of narrow paths twisted around her, each lined with dozens of sellers who sat in cramped wooden shops displaying wares on rickety tables.

The smell of curried meat roasting on the grills mingled with the pungent odor of dried fish baking in the late afternoon heat. Jeme’s empty stomach roiled as she hurried past piles of tomatoes, peppers, oranges, and colorful bags of spices. If only she could escape the whispers competing with the buzz of the buyers and sellers. Whispers that spoke of the magical powers of albino blood spilled across the brown earth, and of potions that could bring untold wealth.

I’m very eager to read the rest of the book. I’ve only heard the half that Lynne wrote. How can readers find you on the Internet?

LYNNE: I love hearing from readers.

Website:   https://www.lynnegentry.com/

Blog:   https://www.lynnegentry.com/blog-1/

Facebook AUTHOR   https://www.facebook.com/Author-Lynne-Gentry-215337565176144/

FACEBOOK Personal https://www.facebook.com/lynne.gentry.7

Twitter   https://twitter.com/Lynne_Gentry

Pinterest   https://www.pinterest.com/lynnegentry7/?etslf=4411&eq=lynne

Instagram   https://www.instagram.com/lynnegentry.author/?hl=en

LISA:

Website: www.lisaharriswrites.com

Blog: http://myblogintheheartofafrica.blogspot.com          

Facebook Author: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorLisaHarris

Twitter; https://twitter.com/heartofafrica  

Pinterest: https://za.pinterest.com/lharriswrites/

Thank you so much for letting us stop by!!

Oh, girls. I’m so blessed knowing both of you, and it’s a privilege to promote your books. I know my readers will be as eager as I am to read the book.

Readers, here are links to the book. By using one when you order, you help support this blog.

Ghost Heart: A Medical Thriller Ghost Heart: A Medical Thriller

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