Southern Albertan writes teen novel

Growing up in small-town Alberta, Morgan is suddenly facing an out-of-the-world experience. She’s part of a small group of teens selected to travel by avatar to a technologically advanced society far away.

Her new friends in Lucid World live in a secure dome beneath an icecap, where a rich culture — and cats — help promote harmonious life, far different from the world she left.

That’s the starting point for “Lucid World,” a young adults novel written by a southern Albertan now living in far-from-harmonious metro Vancouver.

For Denise Lammi, a seasoned Chartered Professional Accountant who has become a business education writer, lecturer and seminar presenter, it’s her first published work of fiction.

Raised in a community closely resembling her story’s “Coyote Flats,” Lammi has taken her interests in history, science fiction and new-age thought and blended them with her own life experiences. Yes, she has a cat.

In the story, Morgan finds herself living in two worlds at once. But her family and friends back in Alberta don’t realize that.

Soon, combining the new understandings she’s gaining in Lucid World with what’s she’s learning at high school and home, she finds ways to solve issues in her town as well as her everyday life.

Inevitably, the secret of her dual life is discovered. And then . . .

Lammi’s novel was released this week. It’s described as an enjoyable read for adults as well, offering understanding, compassion and good will.

It’s available through Amazon.ca.