barbara dickson

Mountains for Maddi

Mountains for Maddi has been released!

You can purchase the book at: Multi-Media Publications Inc or through Amazon.

In the novel, Mountains for Maddi, Maddi Madigan longs for what every woman wants – to be loved and accepted for who she is. Diagnosed with MS three years ago, Maddi struggles to manage her increasing disability. She participates in a clinical trial for an experimental drug, Pro-Axon, and her MS improves considerably. She is devastated when the medical team overseeing the trial cancels the final phase that would have allowed Pro-Axon to be available to the hundreds of thousands of MS sufferers around the world. Without Pro-Axon, Maddi’s MS relapses.

Dr. Greg Connor is the principal investigator for Pro-Axon. He’s dedicated his life’s work in finding a cure to end MS. When his clinical trial data proving the safety and efficacy of his drug is stolen through well-timed, large-scale robberies across several labs, he is left with no option but to cancel Phase III of his clinical trial.

Utterly defeated, he contemplates giving up and going home.

Maddi’s exuberance and optimistic outlook on life, despite a sadness radiating from her eyes, compels Greg to dig deep to find answers, not only to who master-minded the robberies, but to what’s truly valuable in his life.

Mountains for Maddi is a sweet romance that makes its readers root, not only for Maddi in her courageous struggle with MS, but for all people who deal with disability. Readers will rally, not only for Greg as he works through his professional loss, but for MS researchers world-wide as they strive to END MS.

	As you may know, I was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 1992 and retired from my career as a software analyst in 1995 after the birth of my third daughter and the death of my mother. I started writing as a means to ground me, helping me through the difficult years that followed. After years writing non-fiction, my dream for a fiction novel, focusing on what I know best – life with MS – was born. The publication of Mountains for Maddi is the tangible evidence of that dream fulfilled.
	Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an unpredictable, often disabling disease of the brain and spinal cord, striking three times as many women than men, often during their child-bearing years. Symptoms vary widely, and include optic neuritis, bladder dysfunction, numbness, impaired mobility, debilitating fatigue, and paralysis. In its most common form, MS remits and relapses, with disability worsening after each exacerbation. There is no cure.
	Canada has one of the highest rates of MS in the world. The MS Society of Canada is determined to be the leader in finding a cure to end MS. Their “EndMS” campaign challenges ALL Canadians, asking what we, as a nation and as individuals, will do to help end MS. For my part, I will donate half my net proceeds of Mountains for Maddi to fund MS research in Canada.

Come visit my Mountains for Maddi page for more on Greg and Maddi’s story as well as more about multiple sclerosis and my personal journey with the disease.

Accolades for Mountains for Maddi

“I loved it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Having just spent 7 yrs in AB, Banff is very near and dear to my heart. Your descriptions of all the local scenery and the shops and everything were so vivid, it made me want to rush back there. You have an amazing gift to draw your reader into the lives of your characters…sure hope you are planning to do a sequel and give us the story of Beth & Jeff because I believe there is a pretty good story just waiting to emerge.” – Captain Shelley Kerr, Pastor, The Salvation Army
	“I CAN’T PUT IT DOWN!!!!! The writing is excellent, but more than that, the story is wonderful – I love the characters! I can’t wait to read the next one!!!” – Lori Mitchell, Executive Assistant to the President & CEO, WoodGreen Community Services “A wonderful love story … one I found myself caught up in. I can’t remember the last time I read a book so quickly.” – Alison Moore
“Maddi and Doctor Greg kept calling out to me. Not even my favorite actor, Carey Grant, managed to distract me from reading Mountains for Maddi. Wow! Your characters are so engaging, your dialogue snappy. Your story grabbed me from get go and won’t let me go.” “If you want warmth, inspiration, and hope when life throws you unexpected and painful curves, I recommend you read this book. If you want God’s blessings in the face of adversity, I recommend you read this book. If you want a heartwarming story with winsome characters and snappy dialogue, I recommend you read this book. If you want to travel and experience the beauty, the splendor, the majesty of Canada without ever leaving the comfort of your home, I recommend you read this book.” – Anna Dynowski, inspirational author of 5 romance novels, including Full House and Full-Time Wife. Meet Anna.
	“The characters work, the story works, everything works!” – Dawn Stewardson, author of over 35 romance novels “I loved this story from the opening paragraph. I was hooked right away. Wonderful characters – interesting and engaging, witty and humourous.” – Contest Judge “Maddi and Greg’s romance is warm and moving.” – Contest Judge
“I have just finished reading (Mountains for Maddi) and enjoyed the romance. The MS research added an interesting twist and the fact that the heroine had MS and fell in love with the Research Doctor…Wow!! Loved the bottom of page 54.” –Robere Keirstead, wife of renowned painter, James Keirstead
	“What a great concept for a book–MS,mystery and romance–and a neurologist as the romantic lead to boot!” – Greta M. Herron, Publications Associate, National MS Society

The War Below

Police Officer Eric Baylor is hiding out in abandoned World War II evacuation tunnels. A warrant’s been issued for his arrest with charges including contaminating a crime scene and aggravated assault. Eric’s goals are absolute: clear his name and hunt down the creep who killed his mother. Needing a steady food and water supply to keep him below ground, he seeks the help of Patti Whyte who owns a restaurant in one of the old buildings above. Eric draws Patti and her troubled son, Rod into danger and espionage spanning four generations.

Patti wants an uncomplicated life, a fresh start to reenergize her heart and spirit after the death of her husband two years ago. She hopes that resettling in her hometown will help Rod reconnect with family and God. He needs to find purpose beyond schoolyard scuffles and skipping class, and taking up skateboarding in the creepy war tunnels that sit under her new restaurant doesn’t count. When Patti and Rod discover a cop holed up in the tunnels, their lives become as convoluted as the maze of ancient tunnels buried under their feet.

Can Eric find his mother’s killer before the killer finds him? And can Patti protect her heart, knowing that the tormented man hiding in the labyrinth under the city could end up behind bars, or worse, wind up dead?

A Unique Historical Backdrop for The War Below

While the people and events in The War Below are fictional, its backdrop is real, set under the city of Scarborough, Ontario, Canada in a maze of abandoned World War II evacuation tunnels. Built during the 1940s under a top-secret munitions plant called GECO, the extensive tunnel system, over five kilometers long, was used to transport and store filled ammunition, as well as to house the electric and sewer systems for the plant, and to provide an escape/evacuation route for its over 5,000 employees in the event of explosion or enemy attack.

The world made its peace with Germany decades ago and the need for GECO has long since passed, but the tunnels of GECO live on, buried under the city, an invisible reminder of a world that went to war. GECO’s memory continues to live on, too, in the hearts and minds of those who worked, loved, and lost within the confines of GECO.

Want to Learn More About GECO? »