"Lethal Wilderness Trap"

Susan Furlong grew up in North Dakota where she spent long winters at her local library scouring the shelves for mysteries to read. Now, she lives in Illinois with her husband and children and writes mysteries of all types. She has over a dozen published novels and her work has earned a spot in the New York Times list of top crime fiction books of the year. When not writing, she volunteers at her church and spends time hiking and fishing.

Furlong applied the Page 69 Test to her new novel, Lethal Wilderness Trap, and reported the following:

I’d never heard of the Page 69 Test until Marshal Zeringue of Campaign for the American Reader first introduced me to the theory. Apparently, it’s the best way to decide if a book is right for you—open to page 69, and if you enjoy what you read, you’ll most likely like the rest of the book. I’ve been flipping to page 69 ever since.

So, when early copies of my new book Lethal Wilderness Trap arrived on my doorstep, I opened the box and immediately flipped to page 69. There, I found the main character, Ava Burke, and her five-year-old daughter, Rose, under attack:

She (Ava) swung the shotgun back to the door and slid her hand over the desktop, her fingers connecting with the phone. The dispatcher was still talking when she disconnected and silenced the ringer.

“Rose, listen to me,” she hissed. “I want you to crawl under the desk and stay there. Do you hear me? Do it now.”

Rose squirreled past her and burrowed herself under the heavy oak desk, its front panel hiding her little legs and feet. v The footsteps came closer, accompanied by a low, guttural sound, like a wounded animal.

Terror thundered down on Ava, twisting in her gut. Her hands turned icy and sweaty as she slid her finger closer to the trigger, her gaze locked on the door …

Lethal Wilderness Trap is part of Harlequin’s Love Inspired Suspense line—romantic suspense with danger at every turn. In this story, Ava Burke returned to Sculpin Bay, a small village on Lake Superior, to rebuild her life after the death of her husband. But when a recent homicide mirrors the M.O. of a decade-old cold case on nearby national park land, a federal agent begins investigating. Soon he links the original crime to Ava’s deceased husband. Ava is thrust into a twisty narrative, forced to defend her late husband’s reputation as evidence mounts against him. In the process, she becomes a target. Now, she’s not only trying to understand her husband’s past—she’s trying to survive it.

Danger lurks on every page of this story—especially page 69!

Visit Susan Furlong's website.

My Book, The Movie: Splintered Silence.

The Page 69 Test: Splintered Silence.

Writers Read: Susan Furlong (December 2018).

Q&A with Susan Furlong.

Writers Read: Susan Furlong (July 2023).

--Marshal Zeringue