Lynda Frazier’s Arkansas Home and History

Arkansas is where I have called home for eleven years now. When I was told I was being transferred out of Texas the first thing I asked was where was Arkansas? I did some research and found stories of the backwoods history and colorful hillbilly culture though Arkansas has more to offer.

The Mountains and outdoor activities have truly made it the most wonderful place to live.  I grew up in Pennsylvania and missed the hills and four seasons when I moved to Texas. Arkansas gave me a little piece of what I grew up with, without the eight months on snow. We have a cold winter here, but the snow melts pretty fast. 

Here’s a small history lesson on Arkansas:

 Arkansas, part of the land acquired in the Louisiana Purchase, became a separate territory in 1819 and achieved statehood in 1836. A slave state, Arkansas became the ninth state to secede from the union and join the Confederate States of America. The name Arkansas was used by early French explorers to refer to the Quapaw people, a prominent indigenous group in the area, and the river along which they settled. The term was likely a corruption of akansea, the word applied to the Quapaw by another local indigenous community, the Illinois. Little Rock, the state capital, is located in the central part of the state. In 1957, Little Rock Central High School became the focus of national attention when federal troops were deployed to the campus to enforce integration.

 Following the Supreme Court ruling in Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, which outlawed segregation in public education, Little Rock’s Central High School became a battleground in the fight for civil rights when the Arkansas National Guard denied nine African-American students entry in 1957. Weeks later, on September 25th, the students attended their first full day of school under federal troop escort ordered by President Dwight Eisenhower. 

Established by President Theodore Roosevelt, Ouachita National Forest reigns as the oldest national forest in the South. The Ouachita Mountains are unusual in that their ridges run east to west as opposed to north to south. 

There are some amazing things to see in this state.  The Petit Jean Mountain and Mount Magazine are two famous ones to climb with amazing waterfalls to view.  

Arkansas is home to a wide array of natural resources including petroleum, natural gas, bromine and silica stone. Throughout the 20th century, the state was responsible for providing roughly 90 percent of all domestic Bauxite, from which aluminum is made. 

Arkansas is the nation’s leading producer of rice and poultry and grows nearly every crop produced in the United States with the exception of citrus fruits.

A place that my family goes to in the summer is the Crater of Diamonds State park. This is the only place where you can mine for diamonds and keep whatever gems you find that day.  It has a camping site and activities for the children, a lot of fun for the whole family.

But as you can see from the chart, the New Madrid fault line has shown a large increase in activity over the years. Don’t let that deter you from visiting this amazing state. It is where I discovered my writing ability and where my first novel came to be.

 

Rescued from the Dark, published through Black Opal Books was released February 2013.  It doesn’t take place in the state of Arkansas but the descriptions and rugged terrain ideas rose from my walks through the hills of this fine state.

FBI agent, Jason Michaels goes undercover with the Irish Mob to get information on their gun smuggling ring. While on assignment he realizes they have joined forces with a known terrorist group manufacturing drugs. He searches for information to tie the two together when he finds they have kidnapped a fellow agent and the only girl he has ever loved. Jason soon realizes their using Mercy to perfect their dosage and that his cover has been blown. He knows he has to save her so takes off a  journey that will take him up against his enemies, peers and the Agency that he loves, but willing to give up to bring Mercy back to him.  

Here’s a short blurb of Rescued from the Dark:

She has no memory of their love...

Kidnapped by terrorists and sent into a drug-induced coma, FBI intern Mercedes Kingsley awakes with no memory of her ordeal—or the intimate interlude that left her pregnant. Convinced her child was fathered by her ex-fiancé, she walks away from the only man she has ever loved, determined to make things work with her ex, a man the FBI suspects is implicated in her abduction.

He knows the truth, but no one will listen...

FBI undercover agent Jason Michaels remembers what Mercy can’t and those memories are breaking his heart. Forced to keep his distance from his lover and their unborn child, Jason risks his life to protect Mercy from a cell of international terrorists who have vowed to get the secrets locked in her memory, no matter the cost. Can Jason convince Mercy to trust him until she remembers their past, or will he lose her to a man who will trap her in a nightmare world of darkness from which there is no escape?

Purchase here plus many other online sites:

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00BFYANMK  B&N:  http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/rescued-from-the-dark-lynda-kaye-frazier

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Lynda Kaye Frazier is an avid reader of romantic suspense and started her writing career with a dream. A cliche, but it's true. She works full time at a Cardiology clinic, while writing her own novels at night. She grew up in Pennsylvania, but now lives in Arkansas where she enjoys the four seasons without a long, cold winter. She has five children and three grandchildren that she adores. Other than spending time with her family, her favorite things to do are writing, reading and listening to music, but her most favorite is going to the beach. Surf, sand and a good book, her stress relief.
For More information, visit her website, www.lyndakayefrazier.com
and take time to check out her interesting blog, http://lyndafrazier.blogspot.com

(pictures provided by author)