Spirit of the Northwoods

By Auria Jourdain

An Ojibwa man found dead...the mysterious legend of the Paulding Lights...and a secret that will rock the small mining communities of the Upper Peninsula for years to come.

Struggling to settle into their new school after moving to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, junior Shannon Colfax finds herself entangled in a feud with popular football jock Brent Duray after he bullies her autistic twin brother, Shane. When an unlikely savior comes to her rescue—Brent’s friend, Cody Williams—the jock and his entourage devise an immediate retaliation plan: Duray will leave Shane alone if Shannon and Cody survive the infamous Paulding Light Challenge on Halloween night.
Desperate for vindication, Shannon and Cody take the dare. As they hike through the Ottawa National Forest in search of a "ghostly" American Indian chief that supposedly haunts the woods, they veer off the path, only to discover a dead Ojibwa man—and a sordid secret that spans across the communities across the U.P.
With Shane’s savant computer skills, Shannon and Cody gather as much proof as they can to share with Cody's father, the county sheriff. Their snooping sets off a whirlwind of panic, and they find themselves trapped in dangerous game of cat and mouse with the real “spirits” of the forest. Attempting to beat them at their own game, the three friends are kidnapped. Can the true spirits of the Northwoods help guide them safely home so they can finally reveal the truth?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Auria Jourdain
• Release date: Apr 29, 2016
• ISBN: 9781311969606

Auria Jourdain

History buff, Francophile, and hopeless romantic-- the perfect mixture for writing romance! I have fond childhood memories of reading on quiet afternoons. I loved the "happily ever after" sweet teen romances, but I quickly plunged into the world of historical romance--my get-away-from-real-life transporter. Add in a degree in Political Studies with six years of French--twenty years later, I found a new career. With three published works, I'm still trying to decide which sub-genre is my favorite. I started with historical romances, and two of the six, Pure of Heart and Pure Temptation, are now published. My first YA novel, Spirit of the Northwoods, was released in April of 2016 for my 17 year old autistic son during Autism Awareness month, hoping to spread familiarity about the daily struggles that an autistic person endures. Silence the Northwoods, the first book of my Romantic Suspense trilogy, will be released on January 21, 2017. A spin-off of Spirit of the Northwoods, it has many of the same secondary characters, but it’s strictly for adults. I have a New Adult novel I’m working on for NaNaWriMo 2016, and I’d love to try my hand at a sweet romance YA series in the future. I live in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan with my husband of 21 years and my four children. I spend the long winters plotting and scheming my next book, and in the mild summers, my family and I spend every waking moment we can hiking and kayaking the Northwoods. Living fifteen miles from the shores of Lake Superior, my muse is often piqued by the awe-inspiring beauty that surrounds me. I live where I play, and I can't imagine a more fitting place for me!