Guest Post, Spotlight, & GIVEAWAY! Kathryne Arnold, The Resurrection of Hannah

The Resurrection of Hannah

A Novel Inspired By True Events

by Kathryne Arnold

About The Author:

Kathryne J. Arnold holds a master’s degree in counseling psychology and is a licensed mental health therapist and certified clinical hypnotherapist. Her extensive knowledge of the human experience, garnered from more than two decades in the mental health and social services fields, is reflected in The Resurrection of Hannah, her first novel.

Ms. Arnold has completed a second novel in the Samantha Clark Mystery Series, which was recently published. Her series features the same protagonist as she moves through unexpected life adventures. Ms. Arnold lives on the water in sunny Clearwater, Florida, with Zoe, her toy poodle muse.

For detailed author/book/event information, please visit Kathryne’s website at www.kathrynearnold.com.

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Book Description:

Genre: Mystery/Suspense/Thriller

Publisher: AuthorHouse

Release Date: March 15, 2011

Buy: Amazon

Samantha Clark meets with a monthly group to delve into subjects of interest. They dabble in meditation, dream work, and hypnosis — just friends having fun. But lately Sammi is feeling off-kilter and plagued with poor sleep. Searching for a natural solution, she discovers a bitter herb known to induce slumber, whips up a concoction to sweeten the herb, and imbibes. Unbeknownst to her, these areas of experimentation are whirling together to form the perfect storm, one that will blow open an entrance in Sammi’s mind that leads to another world, a door that can never again be closed.

She becomes enmeshed with two friends in a tug of war between life and death: Melissa is dealing with a complicated pregnancy and Julie is wrestling with cancer. Adding to this turmoil is Sammi’s disconnect with her career as a psychotherapist; her life doesn’t seem to fit any longer. Into the drama walks Todd, a handsome, laid-back guy who lightens up her days. Trouble is, Sammi is having a hard time getting close, and a nagging sense of doubt and fear. Like so many times in the past …

But the topper to all this is the dreams. They begin innocuously…but quickly morph into mind-blowing spiritual adventures. The crazy nocturnal activity appears to be related to a soulful character trying to make himself known. In a quest to uncover the truth, Sammi researches clues discovered during her nighttime romps. What she finds is another facet of herself…all wrapped up in post-colonial 18^th-century clothes. Sammi flies off to New England, and with the aid of the Reverend Clark, her skeptical father, she embarks on an adventure, revealing a tragic, centuries-old mystery. One only Sammi can solve. 

10 Things You Didn't Know About The Resurrection of Hannah: 

1) Every main aspect of The Resurrection of Hannah was inspired by true events, using creative license with certain parts and aspects to spin it into a novel, to develop the mystery. Many of the characters are based on important individuals in my life. Like they say, write what you know about! 

2) The novel does not fit neatly into any particular genre. I would characterize it mainly as a metaphysical or paranormal mystery, with some humor, suspense, spiritual themes, historical elements and romance thrown in for good measure. 

3) The Resurrection of Hannah is based in Florida and Massachusetts, both in present day and two hundred and twenty-five years ago. I lived in both states for many years, and so it was fitting to incorporate my favorite states/towns into my story. 

4) One of the central characters is the Reverend Clark, who is based heavily on my father, his personality traits, my relationship with him, and his role as a minister. The spiritual content in my first novel pulls much from my personal experience growing up as a “preacher’s kid”, and my own existential questions about the meaning and purpose of life and death. 

5) One of the main underpinnings is the theme of reincarnation and the possibility of other levels of experience and existence. I have been fascinated with these topics since I was a young teenager. Much of this curiosity can also be attributed to working for seven years with terminal/dying patients and their families at a local hospice. 

6) One of the central characters, Jonathan, came to me through a series of dreams. Altogether, the dreams happened over a few years, and these experiences were so intense and profound that I devoted a book to this seemingly spiritual type of connection. The first two “dream” experiences documented in my novel are as accurate as possible to what occurred in my real life. Most readers have a lot of questions about these events, as they altered the course of my life, and that of Samantha’s. Sounds crazy, but it really happened, and I will always be eternally grateful that it did. 

7) The protagonist, the psychotherapist Samantha Clark, is really me at a younger age. Before I wrote this novel, I had a private practice when I lived in Houston, so I drew on this experience when writing about Samantha being frustrated and bored counseling to a well-heeled population, the “worried well.” 

8) I started a metaphysical group that met monthly with about eight friends to delve into subjects we found interesting. Again, most of this is reflected in my novel. I found out a lot about myself researching these areas of interest, and applying them to everyday life. 

9) An important character in the trilogy is Samantha’s boyfriend, Todd, who Samantha falls in love with in The Resurrection of Hannah. Todd is based on a young man that I had a “crush” on but never actually had a relationship with as we were both involved with other people, so I figured he would make a great boyfriend for Samantha. That’s what I love about fiction … you can create your own reality! 

10) The Resurrection of Hannah is the first in a trilogy of mystery novels called The Samantha Clark Mystery Series. The sequel is The Fear of Things to Come, which was published a few months ago. I am presently writing the last book, which should be published within the next year.

Thanks for sharing these interesting tidbits with us, Kathryne!

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