Join me in giving a warm
welcome to Chrys. Welcome, Chrys.
Tornadoes in Florida
While I was writing A Fighting Chance, I had to know the plausibility of a tornado in Central Florida and what strength would be believable. I knew an EF5 (what they called “the finger of God” on the movie Twister) would be too far out there, and writing a realistic story, even with characters who deal with disaster after disaster, is always a priority. I didn’t want my readers to be like, oh course it’s an EF5 tornado (after the hurricane in Hurricane Crimes was a category 5). I wanted to avoid some eye rolls at least. But I wasn’t sold on an EF4 tornado, either. I thought that would still be too strong, too much.
I took to Google and researched the strongest tornadoes in Florida history. I came across information about the February 22-23 1998 Kissimmee tornado outbreak, which produced the deadliest tornado event in Florida history and is known as The Night of the Tornadoes. In the Greater Orlando area, the tornadoes were F3, near F4 (this was before the Fujita Scale was upgraded to the Enhanced Fujita Scale).
Before the 1998 outbreak, the previous record was from 17 on March 31, 1962 when 12 tornadoes touched down. One tracked for a massive 30 miles.
From the 1998 outbreak, the deadliest tornado struck Kissimmee and St. Cloud, which produced near-F4 damage and killed 25 people. The last tornado that night hit Cape Canaveral in Brevard County, which is about 50 miles in west direction of Kissimmee (by car it’s about 60 miles). That tornado was an F1. In all, 42 people died and 260 people were injured.
So, it would be possible for an EF3 to touchdown and cause
devastation in Central Florida.
BLURB:
*A FIGHTING CHANCE is Book 6 in the Disaster Crimes series, but it’s a spin-off featuring a new couple, so it can be read as a standalone.*
Thorn has loved Amanda from afar, giving her whatever she needs as a survivor of abuse—space, protection, and stability. He yearns to give her more, though, to share his feelings, kiss her, love her, but he's worried the truth will frighten her away.
And Amanda is afraid. She’s scared of her attraction for Thorn. Most of all, she’s terrified of her ex-boyfriend, who is lurking nearby where no one can find him. When she grows closer to Thorn, Damon retaliates, jeopardizing their happy ending.
Up against an abusive ex and Mother Nature, do Thorn and
Amanda have a fighting chance?
Book Links: Amazon / Barnes & Noble / Kobo / iTunes
Amanda looked up from the current list of up-to-date payments for classes. A movement outside the glass storefront caught her eye. She tilted her head to see a man coming up the sidewalk from the side where the picnic bench sat. Through the vertical blinds, she glimpsed a square face—a short, rugged beard and long, dark hair pulled into a man bun. Her breath fled from her lungs. Her body went from icy cold to flaming hot in the span of a millisecond. She dropped to the floor and slid under the counter, beneath the ledge where they put their purses and cell phones.
“What—” Beth peeked at the windows. Then she snapped her fingers at April and pointed at the stools.
April jumped into action. She pushed the stools in so they blocked Amanda. The bell attached to the door jingled as April removed the jacket she wore and draped it across the stools, creating a curtain to shield Amanda.
From a crack, Amanda watched Beth move to stand in front of the twins, who were in their walkers playing peacefully. “I’m sorry, but we’re going to be closing.”
“I don’t give a shit. I’m here for Amanda.”
The sound of Damon’s voice had her heart beating even harder. That voice had haunted her nightmares, had come back to life in her memories.
Beth cocked her head to the side. “Who? There’s no one by that name here.”
“Don’t bullshit me. I know she works here.”
His voice was closer now.
***FREE FOR A LIMITED TIME***
THE DISASTER CURSE
Author’s Note: I wrote The Disaster Curse to answer a few lingering questions readers may have after reading A Fighting Chance, and to tie the whole series together with a neat, shiny, perfect little bow. Plus, there was one disaster that I hadn’t written about yet. *wink*
The Disaster Crimes Series:
*The Crime Before the Storm (prequel)
Hurricane Crimes (novella, #1)
Seismic Crimes (#2)
Lightning Crimes (free short, #2.5)
Tsunami Crimes (#3)
Flaming Crimes (#4)
Frozen Crimes (#5)
A Fighting Chance (spin-off, #6)
The Disaster Curse (short story, #7)
*Free exclusive story to newsletter subscribers.
***LAUNCHING A WEBSITE***
TheFightingChance.org is a website dedicated to domestic violence and sexual assault awareness. Inspired by the Disaster Crimes series.
***GIVEAWAY***
Prizes: Hurricane Crimes (Disaster Crimes 1) and Seismic Crimes (Disaster Crimes 2) eBooks (mobi or epub), Hurricane Crimes Playing Cards, Girl Boss Sign, and a Volcanic Blast Scented Candle
Link: https://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/23d974a92670/
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Meet the Author:
She runs the Insecure Writer’s Support Group Book Club on Goodreads and edits for Dancing Lemur Press. https://www.chrysfey.com
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Thanks so much for stopping by today. Do tornadoes both
scare and fascinate you the way they do me?
Hi Mason and Chrys ... you've certainly done your research ... tornadoes must be horrifying to be involved in - we have tiny ones here ... but nothing like yours. Then building a crime series around Amanda and Thorn's lives in the tornado season - all the best with the book - Hilary
ReplyDeleteHey, Hilary! I can't even imagine how terrifying a tornado is in real life. Or maybe I can, at least a little bit since I did write about one. But I sure don't want to experience one.
DeleteThanks for your comment!
Love seeing Chrys's work featured across the blogosphere. I hope it does really, really well.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much, Elephant's Child!
DeleteSure it is - there is always threat of tornadoes when a hurricane hits. Just not usually the super strong ones. Sad, that was a lot of people killed during one outbreak.
ReplyDeleteWell, aside from the tornadoes in the rain bands for hurricane, since there's no hurricane in this story. I did that in Hurricane Crimes. ;)
DeleteI always find it interesting to learn how other authors go about their research. That's really fascinating! It's an innovative concept for a series, too. Thanks for sharing, Mason.
ReplyDeleteI enjoy researching for my books. :) Thank you, Margot!
DeleteHey, Mason! Thank you so much for having me on your blog! I am honored to be here. :)
ReplyDeleteI hope I never experience a tornado close up but it's fascinating to read about them!
ReplyDelete