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A Tribute and Legacy
Rainbow of Promise follows the budding romance between a confident and vivacious young woman and a soft-spoken Southern gentleman in the middle of WWII. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?
My parents, Sadina and W.E., had wonderful chemistry. I wrote the story as a tribute to them as well as a legacy for my family. It’s more of a memoir than historical fiction; it’s as true and factual as I could write it.
There is so much to be said about love in this book. What do you hope your readers take away from your story?
These two had a lot in common and a lot that wasn’t. They became a great team out of loyalty, dedication, romance, desire, and understood unconditional love. I consider them my greatest role models in all that they portrayed.
What was your favorite scene in this story?
W.E. was such a romantic; Sadina was exuberantly fun as well as practical and frugal. When W.E. surprised her with yellow roses and gifts of all sorts, her life lit up like a child at Christmas. My favorite surprise was when he gave her the beautiful soft silky pink robe. Chapter 14. I still have her robe hanging in my closet.
What is the next book that you are working on, and when will it be available?
I’m writing the story of my Volga German grandparents who emigrated from Kutter, Russia, in 1913. My grandmother faced many tragedies, including WWI and II, each sadness garnering strength. I plan to publish the book in 2026 during March–The Month of Strong Women.
Author Links: GoodReads | X | Facebook | Website
Rainbow of Promise: A World War II Romance
Rainbow of Promise is a heartfelt, old-fashioned love story set in the midst of World War II, following the budding romance between Sadina “Sadie” Wagner, a confident and vivacious young woman, and W.E. “Bill” Walraven, a soft-spoken Southern gentleman stationed in Enid, Oklahoma. The story unfolds slowly but sweetly, capturing all the nervous first encounters, jitterbug dances, longing glances, and yes, plenty of sizzling chemistry. It’s nostalgic in all the best ways—like slipping into a vintage movie where the world is complicated, but love is pure.
What stood out to me first was the writing style. It’s simple but rich with period detail and genuine emotion. The dialogue pops without trying too hard, and there’s this easy rhythm to the prose that makes the whole book feel like you’re listening to someone tell a story.
Now, Sadie. She’s a force. Flirty but grounded, fun but not flaky. She’s bold enough to joke about being picked up on a street corner and sweet enough to bring a man to his knees with just a smile. Her scenes with W.E. practically crackle with energy, especially their first dance. I appreciated that the author gave her complexity—she’s not just waiting around for a man; she’s got her own hobbies and she’s protective of her independence. There’s a particularly lovely scene where Sadie turns down an impromptu dinner date with W.E. because of a club meeting—and you can just feel the tension. Her wanting to say yes. His quiet heartbreak. That push-pull dynamic is so well done.
And then there’s W.E.—Bill. This man is a walking romance novel. Polite, a little shy, smells like Old Spice, and dances like a dream. But he’s not just charming. The author gives us these lovely inner monologues where he questions whether he’s “good enough” for Sadie, whether it’s right to fall in love with war looming overhead. That kind of vulnerability made him real for me. And when he takes her to dinner at the Skirvin Hotel and orders champagne and lobster I swooned a little. But my favorite part was the way he watched her dance. That kind of longing—that ache—you can’t fake that in writing.
This book is for readers who love slow-burn, tender romance with real emotional stakes. It’s for anyone who’s ever believed in fate or had their heart flip over a well-timed glance. It might be a little idealistic at times but that’s kind of the point. Life is hard. War is brutal. But falling in love—falling madly in love—makes all of it worth it. I’d recommend Rainbow of Promise to fans of historical romance, lovers of the 1940s vibe, or anyone just needing a little hope and heart right now.
Pages: 369 | ASIN : B08BRBZMKY
Steel Soldier: Guadalcanal Odyssey
Steel Soldier is a deeply personal memoir of James J. Messina, a young Marine from a steel town in Pennsylvania, who found himself swept into one of the fiercest battles of World War II: Guadalcanal. Told in vivid vignettes and brought to life with images and hand-drawn illustrations, Messina’s account captures not just the brutality of war, but the camaraderie, innocence, and gritty determination that defined the “Greatest Generation.” Coauthored by his son Chuck, the book is both a labor of love and a preservation of living history.
What struck me right away was the honesty in the writing. Messina’s voice doesn’t dress things up, he tells it like it was. That first chapter, where he recounts his decision to join the Marines instead of going back to the wire mill, felt raw and real. His disappointment at being turned away by the Navy and then stumbling into the Marine Corps recruiting office by chance shows how much of life, even in wartime, is decided by the smallest twists of fate. And when he writes about his father’s reluctant blessing, I felt a tug in my chest. The emotion’s all there, simple and direct.
The battle scenes are gripping, not because they’re loaded with military jargon or dramatic flair, but because of how plainly they’re told. In Chapter 8, “Battle of Little Tokyo,” there’s a moment when he describes a fellow Marine getting shell-shocked. It’s just a few sentences, no fanfare, but it hit me like a punch to the gut. You can feel the fear, the exhaustion, the surreal nature of it all. And yet, even in those moments, Messina manages to hold on to humanity. There’s a scene in “The Banana Caper” (Chapter 12) where he and a few others sneak some bananas during a brief lull in fighting. It’s almost funny—boys being boys—but it’s also a sharp contrast to the chaos around them. Those little pockets of normalcy are what make this story unforgettable.
I also enjoyed the illustrations. They’re full of heart. And Chuck’s dedication to preserving his father’s story, especially after the heartbreaking loss of the second volume to water damage, adds another layer of emotion. His note about finding his father’s book collection in the attic made me tear up. You get the sense that this wasn’t just a project, it was a promise.
Steel Soldier isn’t just for military history buffs or fans of war memoirs. It’s for anyone who values truth, grit, and the strength of everyday people. This isn’t a sweeping epic or a tactical breakdown of battles, it’s one man’s truth, told without pretense. I’d recommend it to readers who want to understand what war really feels like, not from a general’s view, but from the boots on the ground.
Pages: 372 | ASIN : B0C96LP71N
LITERARY TITAN 