Susan Rae, Romantic Suspense Author

A Word About Setting and Its Influence on the Story — And a Chance to win a FREE e-copy of TRUE blue!

TRUE blue is the third installment of my mystery/suspense series based on a Chicago cop family, the DeLucas. So why, you might ask, is there a picture of a mountain lake and a waterfall on the cover?

Good question. Yes, two thirds of the story in TRUE blue does take place in the streets of Chicago. Chicago is a fascinating city compiled of seventy-seven different neighborhoods that house the poorest of the poor to the richest of the rich and every socioeconomic class in between. Diversity is Chicago’s middle name. The streets are bustling with commerce, culture, and unfortunately in many instances, crime. Given all that, what better place to set a mystery/suspense novel? From the often serene beauty of Lake Michigan and the famous Chicago skyline to the tired apartment complexes of the inner city, Chicago is ripe for stories of personal triumph and despair.

And, for a pair of married detectives, it is filled with cases that need to be solved. But life can be hectic in this bustling city when you are attempting to keep up with your current case load while trying to solve a twenty-four year old murder, deal with the return of a childhood sweetheart, keep a marriage together, and raise a very active three-year old all at the same time. Oh, and then there’s the extended family and all their issues to contend with.  (Read on and leave a comment to automatically be entered to win a free e-book copy of TRUE blue! Drawing for the winner will be on August 3.)

The action in TRUE blue is hard hitting and fast-paced, just like the city of Chicago, but it also has its quiet, endearing moments, like the lakefront on a brilliant summer morning. Still, for Andi and Joey DeLuca, getting out of town to help solve the murder is literally a breath of fresh air. When it becomes apparent in the novel that they must to travel to Montana to get answers, they practically jump at the chance to get away. After all, what can be more refreshing and invigorating than the mountain air of Glacier National Park?

Yes, the mountains are majestic. Their quiet magnitude and expansiveness is an almost magical calming force. But there is danger in the wilderness–not only of the wild kind, but of the human kind, too, as Andi and Joey soon find out.

So how does setting influence the story? It influences it by the mood and the pace. It sets the tone for the story. In TRUE blue, both the city of Chicago and Montana’s Glacier National Park become their own characters in the novel and influence the action.

What is your favorite story setting? Is it real, or fantasy? I’d love to hear about it. Please leave a comment below and tell me about it and you will be automatically entered to win a free e-book copy of TRUE blue!

Thanks for spending this time with me. Until next time,

Happy Reading,

Susan Rae