The Kidnapping of Kenzie Thorn

I'm so excited to give a shout out to Liz Johnson, my publicist at Multnomah, who is now not only an amazing publicist, but she's also a talented author.

Here's a bit about The Kidnapping of Kenzie Thorn and about Liz, then a fun interview and how you can get a copy of this great new book...

The Kidnapping of Kenzie Thorn

Myles Parsons is just another inmate in Kenzie Thorn’s GED course until he kidnaps her, offering only a feeble explanation–that he’s actually FBI Special Agent Myles Borden. Terrified, Kenzie doesn’t want to believe his story of being undercover to protect her. Moreover, she can’t believe that someone might really want her dead.

But just when Myles thinks he has her out of harm’s way, his plans start to fall apart. He attempts to take Kenzie to a safe house—but the stubborn woman won’t go! So together they must uncover the clues that will reveal a most shocking perpetrator. All the while Myles tries to keep his distance from Kenzie … but finds himself falling in love.

About Liz Johnson:

After graduating from Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff with a degree in public relations, Liz Johnson set out to work in the Christian publishing industry, which was her lifelong dream. In 2006 she got her wish when she accepted a publicity position at a major trade book publisher. While working as a publicist in the industry, she decided to pursue her other dream-being an author. Along the way to having her novel published, she wrote articles for several magazines and worked as a freelance editorial consultant.

Liz lives in Colorado Springs, Colorado, where she enjoys theater, ice skating, volunteering in her church’s bookstore and making frequent trips to Arizona to dote on her nephew and three nieces. She loves stories of true love with happy endings. The Kidnapping of Kenzie Thorn is her first novel. Keep up with Liz's adventures in writing at http://www.lizjohnsonbooks.com/

An Interview with Liz

I love writing and reading about the FBI and enjoyed your FBI guy a lot! What resources did you use to research your suspense novel?

Wow, that’s a great question. I spent a lot of time reading other novels about FBI agents, Navy SEALS, and other elite military men. It helped me get a feel for how Myles, my FBI guy and hero, should feel on the page. I did a lot of research and reading on the official FBI website to learn more about the organizational structure, titles, and things like that. I also did a lot of research online about the Oregon State Prison system. While the Evergreen campus is fictional, it was important to me to find the right titles and phrases in the system. But I have a terrible habit of reading up on these things and then throwing them out the window as I write. After all, it’s fiction, and I love taking a bit of liberty with my writing.

What sparked the idea for The Kidnapping of Kenzie Thorn?

It’s hard for me to pin down one specific spark for this book. There are a lot of little ones. I think that a big part of developing Kenzie’s story was where I was at in my own life. I had just made two major moves in the span of six months, and I was 1100 miles from my family. I felt like the only one I could lean on was God, so reliance on Him became one of the key themes of Kenzie’s story. I also had a friend from high school who made some really poor choices and ended up in prison for five years. His sister asked me to write to him, and I did. For five years we wrote back and forth, and his letters made me wonder if there was anything that would cause someone to willingly go to prison. It all just developed from there.

How did you decide on the names in your book: Kenzie Thorn and Myles Borden?

Well, with Kenzie, her name was just always there. Before I even started the book, I knew I wanted to title it The Kidnapping of … someone. I’m a big fan of alliteration, so I was looking for a K name. I just tried a bunch of combinations, and when I landed on Kenzie Thorn is was just so perfect. It fit perfectly as I needed her to share her grandfather’s name. Mackenzie was easy to split up so he is called Mac. As for Myles, I’ve just always thought that was a tough-guy’s name. It seems strong, and now I can’t imagine him with another name. Right before I started writing the book, I had seen The Prestige, which has a character named Alfred Borden. It was stuck in my head, and while Myles is nothing like Borden in the movie, I just couldn’t get it out of my mind.

What is the spiritual emphasis for this story that you pray touches readers' hearts?

I really pray that readers will be reminded that the eyes of the Lord are on those that fear Him. I pray that they’ll recognize that God can be relied on in every situation, no matter what.

Share a little about your background and how you started down the writing path.

I’ve always loved reading and writing, so I knew from a young age that I wanted to work in the Christian publishing industry. After college, finding a job—especially one in publishing—was harder than I thought it would be, so I signed up for the Christian Writers Guild apprentice course. I learned a lot about writing over the 2-year correspondence course, and I continued playing around with stories (terribly written stories) until I was hired into the industry in 2006. And then it was a my good friend and fellow publicist Kelly Blewett who told me she couldn’t wait to read the book I had told her I wanted to write. Her accountability got me from the dreaming stage to the sitting down and really working out The Kidnapping of Kenzie Thorn.

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