Author Edward Hoornaert: NEWBORN

Today, Spacefreighters Lounge welcomes author Ed Hoornaert with a fascinating guest post about the Kwakiutl inspiration behind his latest science fiction romance release, Newborn.

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Newborn
a near-future romance by Edward Hoornaert

“American Indians are arguably popular entertainment's least represented and statically portrayed racial group.”  

From an Amazon review of Alien Contact for Idiots, the first book in the series that includes Newborn

Fresh out of university, I taught at a one-room school on a wilderness island on the British Columbia coast. The only way in was a plane that landed on the chuck (local slang for the ocean). The kids came to school on a school boat, because the island had no streets or cars. No TV or radio, either.

One weekend, while following game trails (what else was there to do?), I stumbled upon a tiny white beach; the Kwakiutl aboriginal people ate a lot of clams, and old, pulverized clamshells turned beaches white. Realizing the beach was the site of an ancient village, I searched the dense underbrush at the beach’s edge.

Feather
Art

Sure enough, a rotting tree stump wasn’t a stump at all, but the barely recognizable remnant of a carved pole. Beaver, I think the totem was, though it was too rotted to be sure. It smelled fresh and earthy, like the rain forest after a rain. Vivid green moss grew over chunks of the grey, weathered cedar. Where the top of the pole had snapped off, a sapling grew in the rotted wood.

Like that sapling, my interest in the aboriginal people of the Northwest Coast grew from the old pole. Years later, my office wall is covered with their stunning art.

Forget any stereotypes you may have about North American aboriginals. The Kwakiutl had no buffalo -- salmon, instead. No teepees -- massive, multi-family wooden longhouses. No horses -- huge dugout canoes capable of trading as far south as California. No battles with the white man, either; the Kwakiutl tribe was never defeated and never left their homeland or entirely abandoned their culture. They were -- and are -- exquisite artists.



Kwakiutl Mask



Kwakiutl Art-Salmon Spirit

In short, they’re worthy heroes for novels. What if, in an alternate history, the Kwakiutl had continued to rule their lands well into the future? And what if they moved their entire island nation to our Earth – bringing unimaginably advanced technology with them?

The Alien Contact for Idiots series, set in the near future, features a science fiction twist and romances between men and women of contemporary Earth and the Kwakiutl of the future. And Newborn is the latest installment in the series.

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Newborn

She was born to kill

Jo Beaverpaw is born fully dressed, well-armed, and impatient to tackle her Destiny. Namely, killing her alien nation's most wanted fugitive. Her programmers want her to live a few hours, kill, then die.

But something goes wrong.

Darby Lapierre has the thankless task of protecting Jo’s target while the woman heals from gunshot wounds. It's a hard job, but not impossible for a skillful bodyguard like Darby.

Until, that is, Jo shows up at the private hospital after an accident. Beautiful, naive, young Jo knows nothing about life and love, and wants Darby to teach her. Just until she's well enough to attack her Destiny, of course.

And then Darby will be in her way . . . .

Find Newborn at:
• Amazon
• Barnes and Noble
• Apple iTunes
• Kobo Books
• Smashwords

Find more information about the Kwakiutl:
• The Amazing Kwakiutl Indian Tribe:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tD8TUjfSg9c
• The Kwakiutl People
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6eRAXhYSLlM

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About the Author

What kind of guy writes romance? A guy who married his high school sweetheart a week after graduation and still lives the HEA decades later. A guy who’s a certifiable Harlequin hero—he inspired Vicki Lewis Thompson’s Rita Award finalist Mr. Valentine, which is dedicated to him.

Ed got his start writing contemporary romances for Silhouette Books, but these days he concentrates on science fiction romance. He’s been a teacher, principal, technical writer, salesman, janitor, and symphonic oboist. He and wife Judi live in Tucson, Arizona. They have three sons, a daughter, a mutt, and the galaxy’s most adorable grandson. Visit him at http://eahoornaert.com