DANGEROUS STRAITS, the third Matt Lanier thriller, is a suspenseful page-turner that will keep you reading all night long. Once a world-class musician, Matt Lanier now survives by playing guitar for spare change in the streets and skyways of Minneapolis. He’s also homeless, broke, and a fugitive accused of murdering a cop. His downward spiral started after he uncovered a multi-billion-dollar conspiracy orchestrated by Leland Smythe, a corrupt, ruthless real-estate magnate. To clear his name and reclaim his normal lifestyle, Matt must convince the authorities that the conspiracy is real. Because Matt threatens Smythe’s success, Smythe wants him dead. David had better odds against Goliath. Physically and emotionally scarred after surviving multiple murder attempts, Matt decides to end his year-long losing battle against Smythe and start fresh with a fake identity. He’ll do anything to obtain it, even commit a crime. But when an unlikely ally arrives at a pivotal moment, Matt is forced to make a fateful decision. Either live a lie for the rest of his life or go up against Smythe one final time.

LITTLE MOUNTAIN, BIG TROUBLE is an inspirational story about a young boy with a big dream and the courage to chase that dream no matter the obstacles. Twelve-year-old EJ is a short, unpopular, shy, self-described loser. He lives with his mother and younger brother on the wrong side of town and spends every other weekend with his hard-to-please, deadbeat father. Because surviving school and his home life are challenging enough, EJ’s the last kid you’d expect to dream of someday climbing Mount Everest … … until he’s matched with a volunteer Big Brother. Russ is the opposite of EJ in almost every way. Despite their differences, they bond over helping EJ achieve his mountain-climbing dream. Their first goal is to hike to Minnesota’s highest point, Eagle Mountain. But when a ferocious thunderstorm strikes in the middle of their trek, EJ and Russ are plunged into a life-or-death crisis. Fighting his loser self-image with every step toward safety, EJ learns that standing tall has nothing to do with height and everything to do with determination, heart, and courage.

WINNER! B.R.A.G. Medallion (Book Readers Appreciation Group) for overall excellence among independently published titles HONORABLE MENTION! Writer's Digest's Self-Published Book Awards -Genre Category Finalist--Adult Fiction--MN Writes, MN Reads Self-Published Author Contest. Author Chris Norbury donates a portion of all book sales to Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southern Minnesota (BBBS). Fugitive Matt Lanier, unjustly accused of a violent crime, has been hiding in the northeastern Minnesota wilderness for nine months. The law wants him in jail. His enemies want him dead. He simply wants to survive the most brutal winter in decades. After rescuing an injured trapper, Matt is forced to leave his primitive encampment. He undertakes a Herculean trek through a blizzard to Castle Danger, a small town on the rugged North Shore of Lake Superior. There he’s saved from near death by Allyson Clifford, a shrewd and beautiful restaurant owner with secrets of her own. Despite wanting to move on in order to evade his pursuers, Matt helps Allyson weather a business crisis as repayment for her benevolence. Then Allyson’s estranged husband, Donnie Vossler, shows up intent on reclaiming their 8-year-old son, Josh. Caught in the middle of the custody battle, Matt learns about Allyson and Vossler’s criminal past life together and is torn between self-preservation and his growing feelings for Allyson and Josh. Matt's recent past has left him with little hope for the future, so when Vossler resorts to sabotage, kidnapping, and attempted murder to capture his son, Matt's integrity, honor, and survival instincts are put to the ultimate test just as a hit man hired by his enemies closes in for the kill.

STRAIGHT RIVER, the prequel to the award-winning thriller CASTLE DANGER, is a mystery-thriller set during the emotional and financial aftermath of the Great Recession. After his estranged father dies in a farming accident, professional musician Matt Lanier returns to his hometown of Straight River, Minnesota. While he’s settling his father’s estate, an old family friend and neighbor asks Matt for help. Her husband's recent death was ruled a suicide. She insists it wasn’t. If she can’t disprove that ruling, she’ll lose her farm. The local authorities are uncooperative, so Matt turns to his ex-wife and a young computer prodigy for assistance. As he gets closer to the truth, Matt suspects both deaths are connected to a violent conspiracy with national implications. When the conspirators intensify their efforts to silence him, Matt must decide if it’s worth risking more lives—including his—to protect his friend and hundreds of other farmers from financial catastrophe.

In the Pacific, as USS Walker is repaired and updated after a previous battle and Matt Reddy is healing from his wounds, planning begins for a bold raid on the very heart of the Grik Empire. But time is running out for the Alliance army in Indiaa, and the Allied forces in the west must gather in an unprecedented land, air, and sea campaign to destroy the mighty Grik battle fleet and break through to their relief. All other plans go on hold when the attempt proves more difficult—and more heartbreakingly costly—than anyone imagined. Meanwhile, the struggle continues on other fronts near and far: in the jungles of Borno in distant southern Africa and in the Americas, where the Allies are finally learning the terrible truth about the twisted Dominion. The Alliance is on the offensive everywhere, but their enemies have a few surprises, including new weaponry and new tactics...and a stunning geographic advantage that Reddy never suspected. Until now.

BURNING WATERS Designated Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces, Matt Reddy must now contend with a new threat; the Dominion—humans whose lust for power matches the Grik. But even though the Grand Alliance recognizes the danger of the Dominion, it must deal with the land-based Grik first, leaving the Imperial navy—and USS Walker—with little assistance. As war rages, more Japanese ships come through the time-space maelstrom that the Americans call The Squall. One is a “Hell Ship,” carrying prisoners of an Imperial Japan that is growing ever more ruthless in the face of looming defeat. Escorting it is a new, state-of-the-art destroyer, whose officers recognize no rules of war. Fighting on two fronts, Reddy is plunged into a firestorm of loyalty, betrayal, and sacrifice. But nothing can prepare him for a devastating new Grik weapon—a weapon that could wipe out all who oppose them…

A supplemental textbook for middle and high school students, Hoosiers and the American Story provides intimate views of individuals and places in Indiana set within themes from American history. During the frontier days when Americans battled with and exiled native peoples from the East, Indiana was on the leading edge of America’s westward expansion. As waves of immigrants swept across the Appalachians and eastern waterways, Indiana became established as both a crossroads and as a vital part of Middle America. Indiana’s stories illuminate the history of American agriculture, wars, industrialization, ethnic conflicts, technological improvements, political battles, transportation networks, economic shifts, social welfare initiatives, and more. In so doing, they elucidate large national issues so that students can relate personally to the ideas and events that comprise American history. At the same time, the stories shed light on what it means to be a Hoosier, today and in the past.