Elizabeth Goddard is the PW, ECPA, and USA Today bestselling and award-winning author of over sixty novels, including the Missing in Alaska and Rocky Mountain Courage series. Her books have sold more than 1.5 million copies. She is a Christy Award, Carol Award and Reader’s Choice Award winner and a Daphne du Maurier Award and HOLT Medallion finalist. When she’s not writing, she loves spending time with her family, traveling to find inspiration for her next book, and serving with her husband in ministry.
Q: What inspired the story behind this book, particularly Jo’s character and the aerospace whistleblower element?
Elizabeth: I knew I was writing Jo’s story from the series’ first book, Storm Warning, where she was a supporting character. I wanted her to find her father and to include aerospace with whistle blowers.
Q: Why did you choose to make Jo a forensic artist, and how does that profession contribute to the story?
Elizabeth: Forensics artists, Jo’s profession, can give context and perspective to the investigators. I read a story about a mother/daughter forensic artist team. In my story, I put in that idea where it helped law enforcement to find the criminals. They drew faces, the eyes to tell a story.
Q: How would you describe Jo as a character?
Elizabeth: She is untrusting, paranoid at times, and a take charge kind of person with a sense of humor. She is strong and determined, yet vulnerable and lives in fear after her mother was killed. I read a story about a real forensic artist who said because she hears about the horrors of the crime and must draw the antagonist she looks over her shoulder, which is a characteristic of Jo.
Q: Can you share more about Cole’s background and personality?
Elizabeth: He is a retired Green Beret. Cole is levelheaded, a good listener, and does not like oceans, lakes, and rivers. I spoke with an army person to figure out this character. Cole is a quiet professional that can blend in/out, more like a ghost. In the first book his helicopter crashed and then he was almost killed by the waves crashing, having bad experiences around water.
Q: How would you describe the dynamic between Jo and Cole in this book?
Elizabeth: Jo saved him from death, and they seemed to fall in love. They were dating and then he ghosted her. This played into her trust issues. At first, in this book, she wants to stay professional, but realizes she is still smitten with him, but because he hurt her, she is trying to control her emotions. He wants nothing more than to protect her. They both have a tug of war with their feelings.
Q: What can readers expect from the next book in the series?
Elizabeth: Book three in the series is titled Deadly Currents and will be published in February. The detective from this book will be featured. Readers will find out the story of the ghost ship that was in book one and try to find out who is Evelyn Monroe.
Perilous Tides by Elizabeth Goddard brings back the characters Jo Cattrel and Cole Mercer, who were front and center as supporting characters in the series’ first book, Storm Warning.
This story has everyone Jo loves leave without a word. Three years ago, her mother was killed, but before she died, she told Jo to watch her back. She was able to reconnect with her biological father, living in the small town of Hidden Bay. Both have come to love and respect each other. But he also disappears, leaving a note that says he does not want to bring danger to her. Then Cole Mercer left and ghosted her, after they were seriously dating.
Fed up with not being able to take her life in her own hands, she decides to search for her dad. But everywhere she turns danger ensues. Someone tried to kill her by forcing her car into the ocean. She is rescued by former Green Beret Cole Mercer who is now a private investigator and looking into her mother’s murder. Because he feels that his number one responsibility is to protect her, they decide to reconnect under dire circumstances and find out the truth about her parents.
This plot had a lot of twists and turns where the reader thinks the plot is going in one direction but then it goes in another. This is a fast-paced mystery.
