Hi everyone,

I’m thrilled to be here and especially thrilled about the reason I’m here: Bengt and Alex are back with The Other Side of Winter. Some of you wanted to know a bit more about what happens between the two books, so I’m taking the opportunity to give you some glimpses into that year the guys spent apart from each other in a series of intermezzos over the course of this booktour.

SPOILER ALERT! A warning for those of you who’ve NOT yet read Santuario: since these scenes are set after the first book, there will, of course, be spoilers.

Thank you for having me,

G

Read on at your own discretion.

 

1. Sunne leaves

 

Bengt had just shrugged out of his coat at the bureau and was filling the kettle in the break room kitchen, when Sunne stuck her head in the door. “Bengt, can I talk to you for a minute?”

It was early, the rest of the team hadn’t arrived yet. Still, when he walked into her office, she said. “You might want to close the door. Take a seat.”

Closed doors usually meant bad news. He warily folded himself into the chair in front of her desk. “What’s up?”

“You know I’ll be leaving at the end of the month.”

He nodded. If he hadn’t, the half-packed moving boxes on the filing cabinet were a little hard to overlook. Didn’t mean he liked to think about it. She’d be good for the Þing, but she was really good for the bureau, too. Unfortunately she couldn’t run for Þingrep as long as she still held office with ICE.

“I’ve been asked to provide suggestions for my successor.”

He shrugged. He didn’t really know anyone he wanted to see in her chair. But he trusted her. If she had someone in mind it would be fine.

“I was thinking of you.”

What? Fuck trusting her. “You’re joking.”

“I was afraid you’d react like that, but I’m quite serious. You’d be good for the team. They already treat you like a primus inter pares.” She laughed when he cringed at that. “What? You thought I hadn’t noticed?”

“It’s a joke.” He couldn’t do her job. It wasn’t just the team; there were all those fucking politics, too. And he’d just about had it with those these past months. And, who was he kidding? That was way more responsibility than he could handle. Things didn’t tend to go so well when he—

“I don’t think it’s a joke. You’ve already covered for me a few times, and I didn’t hear any complaints. Anyway, sleep on it.” That seemed to be all she was going to say for now.

There hadn’t been any complaints, because people knew they only had to put up with him bungling his way through things until she was back.

He slowly got up. He had none of her diplomatic panache. All he had was his unfortunate temper. And flailing uncertainty. How did that make good leadership?

His hand already on the doorknob, he turned back to her. “I don’t need to sleep on it. I appreciate the thought, but my answer is still going to be No tomorrow. You should look for someone who’d actually be good at this.” He was sure it was the right decision. Then why did it feel like a defeat?

She threw him a speculative glance, but didn’t try to hold him back when he marched out.

About The Other Side of Winter

Not all wounds are visible.

Skanian investigator Bengt fell in love with fellow policeman Alex Rukow in a week. But that was a year ago, and they’ve been apart ever since. Then Alex escapes the corrupt and destitute island nation of Santuario and comes to live with Bengt. Happy ever after . . .?

Alex’s lifelong dream of leaving Santuario has come true at last. But he finds himself adrift in a society he doesn’t understand. Worse, past nightmares come back to haunt him, and after so many years of suspicion and self-reliance, it’s harder than he imagined to trust someone else.

Bengt just wants Alex to share his comfortable life. But the more he tries to give, the more Alex pulls away. Their physical connection couldn’t be better, but Bengt can’t seem to get through to his difficult, taciturn lover outside the bedroom. Meanwhile, he has his own demons to confront—not to mention a serial killer on the loose.

Bengt and Alex must dig deep for the courage to face their pasts, but it may be too late to save their relationship or their lives.

 

 

G.B.Gordon worked as a packer, landscaper, waiter, and coach before going back to school to major in linguistics and, at 35, switch to less backbreaking monetary pursuits like translating, editing, and writing.

Having lived in various parts of the world, Gordon is now happily ensconced in suburban Ontario with the best of all husbands. Santuario is G.B. Gordon’s first published work, but many more stories are just waiting to hit the keyboard.

 

Connect with Gordon:

• Website and blog: gordon.kontext.ca
• Twitter: @gb_gordon
• Goodreads: goodreads.com/gbgordon

Every comment on this blog tour enters you in a draw for a $1527. Contest is NOT restricted to U.S. entries. Don’t forget to add your email so we can contact you if you win! Riptide gift card. Entries close at midnight, Eastern time, on March 27. Contest is NOT restricted to U.S. entries. Don’t forget to add your email so we can contact you.