ST HELEN – The Richfield Township Public Library (RTPL) hosted Michigan Notable Book Author Karen Dionne who discussed her psychological suspense novel “The Marsh King’s Daughter. “Before Lynn Taylor, RTPL director, introduced Dionne to 18 guests, she explained the annual Michigan Notable Books program.
The Library of Michigan selects up to 20 titles that ‘speak to our state’s rich cultural, historical, and literary heritage and proves without a doubt that some of the greatest stories are found in the Great Lakes State.’ Dionne shared her writing process by saying ‘I woke up in the middle of the night with the first two sentences of the book in my head and I repeated them over and over so when I got up in the morning I could put them down on paper.’
After explaining how she wrote the book to getting it published, and becoming an international best seller, there was a lively discussion of the main characters of the book. At the end of the program she autographed individual copies. On her current tour she has copies of the book in Spanish, Polish, German, Norwegian and Portuguese. They are given away to anyone who reads the language.
In her biography Dionne is described as the co-founder of the online writer’ community Backspace and organizes the Salt Cay Writers Retreat held every other year on an island in the Bahamas. She is a member of the International Thriller Writers, where she served on the board of directors as Vice President. She enjoys nature photography and lives with her husband in Detroit’ northern suburbs.
A synopsis of The Marsh King’ Daughter says, ‘When the notorious child abductor, ‘The Marsh King,’ escapes from prison in Michigan’ Upper Peninsula, Helena Pelletier is sure she can use the skills she learned as a child to find him. No one is The Marsh King’ equal when it comes to navigating the marshland – except Helena herself, his daughter. As their cat and quarrygame unfolds, she must use all her wilderness skills to thwart his plan and survive it.’
The 2018 Michigan Notable Books program and tour are made possible thanks to the generous support of the Library of Michigan, the Library of Michigan Foundation, Michigan Department of Education, the Michigan Humanities Council, Meijer, and the Michigan Center for the Book. Media Sponsors are Mittenlit.com, City Pulse, Queue Advertising and Tom Gennara Photography.
