Blog Archives
13 Months
In 1968, most people will remember that year as the year Martin Luther King and Robert F. Kennedy were assassinated. Or the year Nixon got into the white house. Or Apollo 8 orbiting the moon. However you remember that year, there is always someone else who remembers it differently, how they were impacted by the significant events that transpired. Bruce A. Bastien recalls that year as a year of the war. A war-torn Vietnam where soldiers had to fight in the most brutal conditions; sickly, hot humidity during the day and fighting the cold in the rain at night. All-the-while trying to stay alive. Bastien takes us through the Vietnam War stories through his eyes and that of his friends from Kilo Company 3/5.
13 Months: In the Bush, in Vietnam, in 1968 is incredibly well-written. This introspective book is written in a clear voice and, structurally, built up to the significant events that transpired during Bastien’s time in the war, making it highly educational but also very sad to read. The author includes many pictures and descriptions to go along with the reading allowing readers to put a face to the names they see on the pages, deepening the experience. I believe if the pictures were incorporated into the chapters to coincide with the story, it would’ve been more engaging for the reader, as well as giving them a better understanding of who was who rather than providing them all at the end.
Bastien describes in great detail the functions of American military lingo, rank/command, and weaponry where necessary. For example, on page 21, Bastien gives “a bit of fluff explaining what a 6mm mortar can do.” As a civilian, I would have no clue what this weapon is or what it can do, so I appreciated the details. But, on the other hand, it may seem like a lot of unnecessary description for someone who understands all this. In addition, I feel that the book could have done better with the transition of time in between chapters. In some chapters, there are times when Bastien will jump from day to day or month to month, leaving readers to figure out how much time has passed.
13 Months: In the Bush, in Vietnam, in 1968 is an intriguing and engaging memoir. For readers who enjoy non-fiction, historical biographies, war history, and stories of the USMC, this account will be impactful and enlightening.
Page: 220 | ASIN : B08GJX19LP
The Universality of Man
Tribes is the beginning of a riveting space adventure story that tells and deep and vivid story of two empires at war. What was the inspiration for the setup to your story?
We are not alone in the universe. There are other human tribes, many others, and they all have their own stories.
What were some driving ideals behind your character’s development?
In order to best contribute to the common good, be creative in one’s own self-interest.
What were some themes that were important for you to explore in this book?
The Universality of Man. The similarities in the development of societies and cultures far outweigh their diversities.
What is the next book that you are working on and when will it be available?
The collection of stories drawn from the stellar web production, ‘The Praetor and the Second Alliance War’, the historical drama depicting the interstellar war that took place 350-400 years ago. Three of the eight titles are currently available on Sol-Earth in print and e-book version.
Available now are:
‘Shatrujeet! – Vanquisher of Enemies‘, introduces the Valerian Monarchy through a young cavalry officer assigned to hunt down and destroy a band of ruthless trans-stellar slave raiders.
‘Conquest! – Empire Builders‘, introduces the Sacorsti Alliance, the series antagonist, yet this story is told from their unabashed point of view.
‘Redemption – A Tale of Trans-Stellar Liberation‘, the story of most controversial battle of the 2nd Alliance War is told in detail to Sol-Earthers and, for the first time, to Commoners as well.
The work-in-progress is ‘Divided Worlds’. In the modern-day Commoners’ popular culture, the global civil war on the world called ‘Bajhan’ was a root cause of the 2nd Alliance War 10 years later. However, new facts emerging from the Sacorsti histories show this was not the case. The Sacorsti aquistion of the Bajhan stellar group was in fact part of their overall strategy to prepare multiple invasion routes into the Nursery Crescent.
Follow-on titles include but are not limited to: Task Force Liberty; Allies; Macksey’s Gambit, Puto’s Gate, Commoners of Draken.
Author Links: Facebook | GoodReads | Amazon
100 Days in Vietnam
![100 Days in Vietnam: A Memoir of Love, War, and Survival by [Lt. Col. Joseph F. Tallon, Matthew A. Tallon, Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/413EtUnT9PL.jpg)
It’s 1972, and Joe Tallon has just been drafted to fight the war in Vietnam. He’s young, ambitious, newly married, and has no idea what awaits him on the other side of the globe. Near the end of the ground war, he gets shot down by an enemy missile but luckily survives. His technical observer Daniel Richards does not. He heals and gets to go back home, but the sacrifice that Richards gave never leaves his mind. 40 years later, he sets out on a journey to bring Richards the recognition he deserves as well as a Purple Heart for his family.
For a book about war, reading 100 Days in Vietnam feels like a quiet and serene meditation. Even in scenes that depict violence and chaos, Tallon’s writing remains stoic. Not that he ever needed any evidence to prove this, but this writing style assures the reader that this is not some exploitative pulp filled to the brim with torn-up limbs and grenade explosions. This is the real deal. Just like the subject matter, the history of the book’s writing adds a whole world of depth as well. It becomes all the more meaningful when you find out that his co-writer, Matthew Tallon, is a fellow veteran and the son he almost did not get to see grow up.
I enjoyed this authentic and compelling memoir and felt that the writing eschews action oriented writing in favor of straightforward storytelling that makes the book easy to follow but sometimes monotonous. The grounded retelling of events is broken up with news clippings that help establish the reader in the time period of the book.
100 Days in Vietnam is a stirring memoir that will stick with you for days. I would recommend this book to readers looking for an authentic and emotionally-resonant military biography that dictates facts and leaves nothing out. This is an intriguing historical novel with an end result that is nothing short of rewarding.
Pages: 330 | ASIN: B091ZM4YVG
To Tell Their Incredible Story
Enough to make the Angels Weep follows a private detective on a murder case that leads him to a 150-year-old conspiracy. What was the inspiration for the setup to your story?
I was inspired to write the story after seeing the movie One Man’s Hero, set in Mexico during the Mexican-American War. It was about the San Patricios, the St. Patrick’s Battalion, composed of U.S Army soldiers of Irish descent who switched sides at the beginning of the War. I had never heard of this story and wondered why it had been omitted in history books that I’d read about the Mexican-American War. In doing research, I found only a handful of books about the St. Patrick’s Battalion. Most were written within the past twenty to twenty five years. As a writer, I knew that I had to write a novel, to tell their incredible story which has made them heroes in Mexico and Ireland.
Your characters are intriguing and well developed. What were some driving ideals behind your character’s development?
First of all, I brought back P.I. Joe Coopersmith, a former FBI investigative assistant, who first appeared in a previous novel, Web of Secrets. Other characters, including the young woman who hired Coopersmith to investigate the murder of her grandmother, were ordinary people whose patience and ideals were tested again and again throughout the novel.
What were some themes that were important for you to explore in this book?
There were two themes, really. The first was the Mexican-American War and the second was the Irish Famine which forced thousands of Irishmen to come to America in search of a better life. Signs on store windows that said WORKERS NEEDED. IRISH NEED NOT APPLY, made it increasingly difficult to find employment, and so many joined the U.S. Army. Of course the new recruits new little about America or its politics with regard to Mexico.
What is the next book that you are working on and when will it be available?
I just completed a new novel, A Cry for Vengeance. It begins with a deathbed confession of a former Nazi who admits to the killing of thousands of Jews and undesirables at Treblinka Concentration Camp during WWII. He and other Nazis had been recruited by American Intelligence shortly after the war. The book will be released within one to two years.
Author Links: GoodReads | Website
That SOB Deserved That!
The Light Reapers follows an elite team on a mission to rescue a scientist while battling hordes of zombies. What was the inspiration for the setup to your story?
I initially wrote the story during COVID and I was thinking about how the zombies were created. As I thought through different options, the media kept saying CORONA Virus and that stuck with me. For my first book, I wanted to write something that I was familiar with but also wanted to have fun with it. I have always loved zombies since I first saw Dawn of the Dead (the original). Zombies and the military seemed like a good combination. I mean, plenty of people had done it before successfully, so why not me? There are actually quite a few events in the book that were based on real life. The fighting, the tactics used, the interactions between some of the characters all had a significant influence on what I wrote. There are a few of the characters who are based on real people I served with. I obviously removed the enemies and put in the infected, changed the names and locations due to counterintelligence reasons, but most were still based on truth.
This seemed like a fun book to write. What scene in the story did you have the most fun writing?
Chapter 19, the scene with Randy. I didn’t like writing the situation so much, but the end result I had quite a bit of pleasure writing. Something in most books that aggrivates me is the vilan causes all this pain and suffering only to be shot dead to fall off a building. I wanted there to be some moments in the book where people said, “Yeah!”, that SOB deserved that!
What were some themes that were important for you to explore in this book?
Brotherhood of the soldiers. Acceptance of the others whowere not originally part of the team. Retribution on those who chose to do evil, even though the apocalypse was on them. Just shows some people’s true character. I wanted to show that even though there lies no obligation to people, they stucktogetherand made a life as best they could.
What is the next book that you are working on and when will it be available?
I am working on the sequel to The Light Reapers, this one is “The Light Reapers: Fight for a New Beginning”. The book is about 80% complete as far as writing. Then comes the editing. I could have done much better on the editing of the first book, so I am hiring a professional to edit the second book.
Author Links: GoodReads | Twitter | Facebook | Website
Under a shroud of darkness and maliciousness, a viral weapon was being produced by an alliance of terrorists bent on the destruction of their respective enemies. When double-crossed by an ISIS faction, the viral weapon is stolen and prematurely unleashed on the planet.
Now facing a worldwide epidemic, The Light Reapers are deployed to rescue a scientist who may be able to develop an antidote. If that wasn’t difficult enough, they also must track down the ISIS faction and eliminate them. All while battling hordes of the infected.
Silent Freedom: A Memoir of Service with the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) in Iraq – Book Trailer
During war, anything can happen. Newly married, Aurea Franklin moved to Hawaii and joined the U.S. Army, following the call of her silent freedom. After moving all around the U.S., she witnessed the attack on the Twin Towers. Soon after, she deployed to Iraq. In this memoir, Aurea details her time spent with the 101st Airborne Division Air Assault in Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom. She discusses life as a soldier—abroad and at home—and the triumphs and difficulties that come with it. Silent Freedom is a story about love and loss, purpose and faith. It will take you to the darkest corners of the war zone in Iraq while demonstrating how faith and hope for a better future can make a difference.
The Road Remembered
The Road Remembered is a riveting historical fiction novel by author Kaye D. Schmitz which recounts the final months of World War II through the eyes of two main characters. On one side, there’s American soldier Sam Ryan, fresh out of training in the 89th Infantry Division, and on the other Gerda Ziegler, a German woman responsible for saving the lives of countless Jewish children.
The author has done impeccable research and interviewed several veterans to bring this story to life, including her own father, the real-life figure who served as inspiration for Sam Ryan. Gerda is also based on a real hero, Irene Sendler, the woman responsible for saving over 2,000 children during the war.
Together, these two viewpoints create a vivid picture of war that condemns the Nazi ideology, but also shows there were good people on both sides of the conflict. The writing is the strong point of the book. The accounts are so detailed that it is very easy to get absorbed by the narrative and feel like you are living that reality with the characters.
Both main characters are well developed and their thoughts and motivations are well explained. The narratives and settings from these two perspectives differ wildly from one another. However, the horrors created by war are ever-present in the protagonists’ minds.
As events unfold, we are curious to know the outcomes of the characters, since we know the one from the war. There is also some excitement about which circumstances the protagonists will meet and what will come out of that.
The book keeps a steady pace right up until the end of the war where we are then treated to something of an epilogue in the last few pages. However, in the end, there’s a beautiful payoff that wraps it all up beautifully.
The Road Remembered is a compelling account of events from World War II with enough liberties taken to make it a fantastic piece of historical fiction. With realistic characters and an enveloping narrative this is a book I highly recommend.
Pages: 334 | ASIN: B0975VVDH6
Phantoms of the Shah
![Phantoms of the Shah by [Dana Duthie]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/413j0fvLOeL.jpg)
After writing masterpiece war thrillers like Dark Rain and Tremble, Colonel Dana Duthie brings us yet another riveting adventure in the life of pilot Brad Mitchell. This time, much of the action takes place in the Iranian airspace at the time when the Shah is in exile and seeking asylum in America for a medical condition. A U.S. Air Force squadron of F-4 Phantoms is deployed to Shiraz Air Base in Iran to train the Iranian Air Force (IAF) to fly the jets that they have purchased from the U.S.
However, things get hot after an American spy is captured by the Ayatollahs, who have grown in power. He is mysteriously extracted from the prison, and all hell starts to break loose. It is time for the U.S.A.F. to leave Iran. But things get complicated and difficult decisions need to be made, much to the enjoyment of the reader.
One of the jets is left behind and needs engine replacement. In the meantime, 14 Americans are held hostage by the opposition forces. This has eerie parallels to real life where we see the Taliban taking over Afghanistan and taking over old military equipment as the U.S. leaves the country. Our hero Brad Mitchell accompanies the Tango Team in the rescue mission. But once again, the operation is compromised as the Secretary of State Bob Taggart is seduced by a young Washington Post reporter. This complex web of relationships, that stretch across the globe, is something that author Dana Duthie excels at. This story does a great job of balancing human drama with tactical military action.
The story has tons of fighter pilot jargon, which firmly places readers within the unique world, but sometimes blunts momentum where we have to take in explanations of what it all means. But I’m sure readers who love to immerse themselves in the details of military procedures will have plenty of depth to dig through in this story.
Phantoms of the Shah gives longtime fans of author Dana Duthie more of the same military fiction they’ve come to enjoy. I would have liked a bit more action throughout the story, but otherwise I think this is a thrilling military adventure story that feels real, pays attention to details, and keeps the tension and intrigue high.
Pages: 239 | ASIN: B08QDSDK5K
LITERARY TITAN 