Wednesday, May 16, 2012

Guest Blog and Giveaway with Kristine Cayne





Did you know…? Some differences between the United States and Canada

Even though Canada, the setting for my latest book, Deadly Addiction, is often called “the Northern United States,” American readers may find surprising the many differences between the two countries. It’s not just all about the accent, eh? Here are some that I learned while researching this book.

Money

In Canada, the government stopped making one-dollar and two-dollar bills, and recently killed off the penny as well. Instead, Canadians use one-dollar coins, called “loonies,” which were named for the loons (a duck-like bird) on the front. Two-dollar coins, which have polar bears on them, are called “toonies.”

Law Enforcement

In Québec, there are three levels of policing: the municipal police, for example, the Montréal Police Service; the provincial police, the Sûreté du Québec (SQ), which is similar in concept to the US state patrol forces; and the federal police, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, aka the Mounties.

In Québec, a police officer can NOT carry a weapon, unless they are in uniform, or unless they have a permit to carry. This permit, which must be requested, is not automatically granted to police officers.

In Québec, a police officer can NOT carry mace or pepper spray, unless they are in uniform. There is one exception: anyone can carry bear repellent if they can prove that there is a viable reason, something hard to prove if you live in the city!

In Québec, reserves fall under the jurisdiction of the Sûreté du Québec. However, the tribe can have their own police service or request that the RCMP provide police services.


Alyssa, the heroine of Deadly Addiction, is a sergeant with the provincial police (Sûreté du Québec), and Rémi, the hero, has worked at the municipal level with the Montréal Police Services before leaving that job to work on the reserve.










Native Peoples

In Canada, the indigenous people are not called “Native Americans.” Instead they’re known as “First Nations people,” “natives,” or “aboriginals.” Likewise, instead of “reservations,” in Canada they’re known as “reserves.” The term that native people typically use for reserves is “First Nation”; therefore, in Deadly Addiction, the reserve is called the “Blackriver First Nation.” Additionally, instead of “tribe,” the commonly used term is “band.”

In Canada, the Indian Act (passed in 1876) governs who is officially a native and who is not. Whereas most native tribes are matrilineal, until recently, the Canadian government considered only whether the father is native in determining a person’s status. 

Therefore, two people who are fifty-percent or more native could have different statuses depending on their parentage. For example, if a native woman married a white man, her children would not be considered native, whereas the children of a native man who married a white woman would be considered native. 

Fortunately, with the introduction of amendments to the Indian Act (Bill C-31 in 1985 and Bill C-3 in 2011) many women (and their children) who’d lost their status through marriage to non-natives were able to regain their status. However, many more are still fighting for recognition of their status as native people.


Despite the Indian Act, a person’s membership in a particular band might be determined differently if the band has established its own membership rules. However, these rules can often be more restrictive, a problem that Rémi Whitedeer, the hero of Deadly Addiction, bumps up against. For example, of the bands who have rules, many of them specify that you must have at least two grandparents who are band members or full-status natives.



Deadly Obsession (Deadly Vices, Book 1) is available for just .99 at Amazon and  Smashwords

Deadly Addiction 
Deadly Vices Book Two 
By Kristine Cayne 


 A proud people. A nation divided. 


Rémi Whitedeer, police officer turned substance-abuse counselor, dreams of restoring order to his tribe. Violence and crime are rampant throughout the unpoliced Iroquois reserve, and a civil war is brewing between the Guardians, a militant traditionalist group, and other tribal factions. As the mixed-race cousin of the Guardians’ leader, Rémi is caught in a no-man’s land—several groups lay claim to him, but all want him to deny his white blood. 


 A maverick cop on an anti-drug crusade. 


When she infiltrated the Vipers to take down the leader of the outlaw biker gang responsible for her brother’s death, police sergeant Alyssa Morgan got her man. But her superiors think she went too far. Her disregard for protocol and her ends-justify-the-means ethics have branded her an unreliable maverick. To salvage her career, she accepts an assignment to set up a squad of native provincial officers on a reserve. 

 A radical sovereigntist bent on freeing a nation. 

Decades of government oppression threaten the existence of the Iroquois Nation. But one man, Chaz Whitedeer, is determined to save his people no matter what the price, even if it means delving into the shadowy world of organized crime. When Rémi and Alyssa uncover the Guardians’ drug-fueled scheme to fund their fight for true autonomy—a scheme involving the Vipers—Rémi must choose between loyalty to family and tribe or his growing love for Alyssa. Can Rémi and Alyssa leave everything behind—even their very identities—for a future together? 

About the Author: 

Kristine Cayne is fascinated by the mysteries of human psychology—twisted secrets, deep-seated beliefs, out-of-control desires. Add in high-stakes scenarios and real-world villains, and you have a story worth writing, and reading. 

The heroes and heroines of her Deadly Vices series, beginning with Deadly Obsession, are pitted against each other by their radically opposing life experiences. By overcoming their differences and finding common ground, they triumph over their enemies and find true happiness in each other’s arms

Today she lives in the Pacific Northwest, thriving on the mix of cultures, languages, religions and ideologies. When she’s not writing, she’s people-watching, imagining entire life stories, and inventing all sorts of danger for the unsuspecting heroes and heroines who cross her path. 



Twitter: @KristineCayne 





a Rafflecopter giveaway

16 comments:

Jennifer @ Bad Bird Reads said...

Thanks for the awesome giveaway.

Unknown said...

My pleasure, Jennifer!

Anonymous said...

Great post Kristine!! I'd love to go to Canada!!! And, I think I've said it before, your book looks really good!! As soon as I've got some free time I plan on reading it :)

Unknown said...

Fayth - Canada is a fabulous place and even though I grew up there, a lot of what I wrote in this post, I learned during my research! LOL I hope you get the chance to read Deadly Addiction because I'm excited to hear what you think of it. Thank you for commenting and good luck with the giveaway!

Cate Dean said...

Loved your post, Kristine! I spent a lot of time in Canada as a kid, and loved it there.

Unknown said...

I'm glad you enjoyed the post, Cate! Thank you so much for stopping by and commenting.

Jenn Nixon said...

Great blog. Canada has some good TV too, Flash Point, Lost Girl!

Unknown said...

Thank you, Jenn! One of my favorite shows was The Border. Too bad they cancelled it. Good luck with the giveaway :)

bn100 said...

Very interesting post. The book sounds intriguing.

Unknown said...

bn100 - thank you for stopping by and commenting. I hope you get a chance to read Deadly Addiction!

Lynn Worton said...

Thanks for the giveaway. Your book sounds interesting and even if I don't win, I'm putting it on my TBR list!

Unknown said...

Lynn - that is a great compliment! I hope you get the chance to read Deadly Obsession (on sale right now for $0.99) or Deadly Addiction. Good luck with the giveaway!

Martha Lawson said...

Loved the interview, very informative. Thanks for the great giveaway.

Unknown said...

Thank you, Martha! Good luck with the giveaway :)

silveryweb said...

Thanks for all the interesting tidbits about Canada. One of my favorite shows, Being Erica, was filmed there. Thanks for the giveaway.

Unknown said...

Twilightdew - discovering differences like these are what makes research interesting :D Thank you so much for stopping by and commenting. Good luck with the giveaways!

 
BLOG DESIGN FOR FANG-TASTIC BOOKS BY BARBARA.
RED CORSET © HALAQUINN ARCADIAS. GOTHIC NIGHT © ASHEN SHARROW.