Yesterday afternoon we hiked the Rauher Kulm trail in the Upper Palatinate with our youth group from church.

A beautiful day, warm and clear with just enough breeze to stir the leaves on the trees into a gentle whisper and set the wildflowers on the trail to nodding. The drive up to the mountain took us through so many quaint little villages, amazing me with their old world fairy tale charm.

Living here in Bavaria is sometimes like living in a story book, and of course yesterday’s drive and the hike that followed caught my imagination, spinning it into story mode. I spent the whole morning working on my new book, which is set in the Superstition Mountains of southern Arizona. Hot, barren desert. So my afternoon spent on the forest trail was a refreshing switch, and it was wonderful to share the adventure with a great group of energetic young people.

There was an incredible array of wildflowers all along the hiking trail, and I thought I’d take a moment to share them with you. I’m no expert on the subject, so I can’t tell you much about them. The tall sprays of purple-blue bells are Mountain Lupine, and I recognized the thistle plants. Other than that, I’m at a loss but I very much enjoyed the beauty they added to the gorgeous landscape.

More about the storybook setting

This territory is very close to the setting for my book, The Tower. If you like nail-biting, heart-wrenching romantic suspense, I hope you’ll check it out. The story, in its fairy tale setting, is inspired by the tale of Rapunzel, so it fits right into the German atmosphere.

June is Audiobook Month, and Barnes & Noble is featuring the audio version of The Tower in their celebration promotion. You can pick it up for just 99 cents!

Here’s a sample from the audiobook.

How about you? Are you a fan of wildflowers? Would you like to spend some time in the beautiful Bavarian landscape with a suspense-packed love story? Share your thoughts in the comments.