Hatfield 1677 by Laura C. Rader

Click on cover image to purchase a copy

MWSA Review Pending

 

Author's Synopsis

Inspired by a true story of love, courage, and survival in seventeenth-century New England.

Benjamin Waite, devoted husband and father, is the volunteer military scout for the colonial Massachusetts town of Hatfield during King Philip’s War. He protests a planned attack against a Native American camp but reluctantly guides the army on their ill-advised mission.

The Algonquian sachem Ashpelon and his tribe retaliate, laying waste to Hatfield and taking seventeen colonists captive, including Benjamin’s wife Martha and their three young daughters. Then, Ashpelon heads north to Canada with his hostages in a desperate bid for freedom.

While Martha courageously strives to endure captivity and protect her children, Ben and his friend Stephen Jennings defy bureaucracy and brave the wilderness to find and rescue their loved ones.

Based on the lives of the author’s ninth great-grandparents, this riveting novel of love and war in colonial America, told through three different perspectives, is one you will not forget.

Format(s) for review: Paper or Kindle
Review genre: Fiction—Historical Fiction
Pages/Word count: 396 / 99,000

Fugitive Son by Aramis Calderon

Click on cover image to purchase a copy

MWSA Review Pending

 

Author's Synopsis

Aramís Calderón was eleven in 1992 when federal marshals conducted a nighttime raid at the Baton Rouge apartment where he lived with his mother and four siblings. They were searching for Aramís’s father, who had escaped from a nearby federal prison. Once satisfied with the answers from Aramís’s mother, the marshals departed. At daybreak, so did Aramís’s family—and drove toward a rendezvous with his father, who had fled to South Florida. Thus began an eight-month ordeal of constant moves, family aliases, and drug deals.

As Calderón shares, Fugitive Son is not a love letter to his father, whom he sees even after his death as an unethical, toxic, and incredibly complex man. Rather, Calderón’s memoir explores how his father’s undeniable love for his family despite drug addiction, lawlessness, and toxic masculinity informed Aramís’s rebellious decision to join the Marines, and how all this shaped his determination to become the father he wished his own had been.

Format(s) for review: Paper or Kindle
Review genre: Nonfiction—Memoir/Biography
Pages/Word count: 214 / 64,000

The Big Bad by Brad Huestis

Click on cover image to purchase a copy

MWSA Review Pending

 

Author's Synopsis

When Jessica Gilbert, a US Army JAG Corps major, deploys to Iraq in early 2006, she is excited to help rebuild the rule of law. But soon the disturbing allegation that an infamous Army colonel cut the ears from dead Iraqi fighters as bloody war trophies captures her focus. Her investigation quickly morphs into a murder inquiry when she uncovers gruesome photographs revealing that the fighters were brutally executed on the battlefield. In her quest to uncover the truth of what happened and why, she wrestles with the disparity in treatment of decision-makers versus trigger-pullers. Besides figuring out who committed this atrocity and their motives, she must fight to make sure everyone involved-from the top down-is held responsible.

Format(s) for review: Paper or Kindle
Review genre: Fiction—Mystery/Thriller/Crime
Pages/Word count: 240 / 66,679

The Long Game by Mark Fleisher

Click on cover image to purchase a copy

MWSA Review Pending

 

Author's Synopsis

In The Long Game Mark Fleisher serves up a quartet of stories involving murder, mayhem, courtroom drama, and old-fashioned detective work. His locations are diverse: Kentucky, New York City, Boston, and western Massachusetts. All are places he describes with pinpoint accuracy and replete with local flavor and local characters. His moments of serious dialogue crackle and sizzle. Yet Fleisher writes tenderly of relationships and sprinkles humor throughout the stories. The final paragraphs of each tale will keep the reader guessing where the main characters will next journey.

Format(s) for review: Paper Only
Review genre: Fiction—Mystery/Thriller/Crime
Pages/Word count: 175 / 46,000

Helm & Horizon: Daily Leadership Principles for the Motivated Sailor by Steven-Paul Lapid, USN (Ret.)

Click on cover image to purchase a copy

MWSA Review Pending

 

Author's Synopsis

Lead with purpose... even when time is short.

Every day is an opportunity to lead. Helm & Horizon: Daily Leadership Principles for the Motivated Sailor is a 365-day leadership guide built for busy leaders who still take growth seriously, delivering practical wisdom drawn from classic leadership works, naval history, and real-world experience. Each concise, focused entry is crafted for leaders whose time is limited but whose commitment to growth is not.

Helm & Horizon integrates leadership wisdom from best-selling authors like Jocko Willink (Extreme Ownership), Stephen Covey (The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People), Ryan Holiday (The Obstacle Is the Way), L. David Marquet (Turn the Ship Around!), and Sun Tzu (The Art of War), alongside real-world naval case studies from iconic figures like Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, Admiral Hyman G. Rickover, and Medal of Honor recipients like Chief Boatswain's Mate James E. Williams. From Viktor Frankl's exploration of finding meaning in suffering (Man’s Search for Meaning) to Angela Duckworth’s emphasis on grit (Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance), the book connects deeply personal growth lessons to universal leadership challenges.

Each of the 365 daily entries is designed to teach a leadership principle in a clear, concise manner, offering practical insights that can be immediately applied to everyday life. Read one page a day. Reflect on the principle. Take one concrete action. Over time, you’ll build the habits, character, and perspective of a leader people trust when it matters most. Helm & Horizon is a guide for anyone who wants to lead with purpose, vision, and discipline.

The leadership journey starts with you.

Lead with Purpose. Take the Helm. Keep Your Eyes on the Horizon.

Format(s) for review: Paper Only
Review genre: Nonfiction—How to/Business
Pages/Word count: 403 / 111,453

The Scout by Michael C. Dixon

Click on cover image to purchase a copy

MWSA Review Pending

 

Author's Synopsis

Staff Sergeant Elijah Kane has spent his career operating in the shadows of modern warfare, where missions are classified, failures are buried, and the truth is often the first casualty. When a covert operation in Eastern Europe goes catastrophically wrong, one of his men disappears—officially listed as killed in action, unofficially erased.

Years later, fragments of that mission begin to surface. Conflicting intelligence, altered records, and quiet warnings suggest that the truth surrounding the operation was deliberately obscured. As Kane is drawn back into the orbit of black-budget programs and deniable task forces, he is forced to confront the possibility that loyalty and obedience may have been weaponized against him.

The Scout follows Kane as he navigates a world where accountability no longer exists, alliances are provisional, and survival often depends on knowing when not to ask questions. The novel explores the psychological toll of command, the cost of moral compromise, and the enduring bonds between soldiers long after the fighting ends.

Grounded in realism and restraint, The Scout is a military thriller focused less on spectacle and more on consequence—examining what happens when duty collides with conscience, and when the truth refuses to stay buried.

Format(s) for review: Paper or Kindle
Review genre: Fiction—Mystery/Thriller/Crime
Pages/Word count: 319 / 55,387

Bulls Amongst Men by C.S. Quinn

Click on cover image to purchase a copy

MWSA Review Pending

 

Author's Synopsis

Bulls Amongst Men is a literary novel that explores the quiet battles fought after war, following Michael, a former U.S. Army soldier struggling to adapt to civilian life after leaving the military. Though he survived combat, Michael finds himself overwhelmed by survivor’s guilt, fractured family relationships, and the persistent weight of memories he cannot escape.

When Michael learns that a fellow soldier from his unit has taken his own life, he reunites with his former brothers at the funeral. Bound by shared loss and unspoken pain, the men make a reckless decision to honor their fallen friend by traveling to Pamplona, Spain, to participate in the running of the bulls—an event as dangerous as it is symbolic. What begins as a tribute soon reveals itself as something more complex: a test of courage, masculinity, and the limits of endurance.

As Michael prepares for the journey, tensions with his father resurface, exposing generational misunderstandings about service, duty, and emotional restraint. In Pamplona, immersed in the chaos of the festival and the excess that surrounds it, Michael grapples with the moral implications of the event and his own motivations for running. A brief but meaningful connection with a woman forces him to confront the parts of himself he has numbed since the war.

The run itself becomes a crucible. As the bulls thunder through the narrow streets, Michael is pushed to confront whether his pursuit of danger is an act of remembrance, self-destruction, or a desperate attempt to feel alive again. His experience mirrors the life cycle of the Spanish fighting bull—revered, tested, and ultimately sacrificed—forcing him to reckon with what it truly means to survive.

Grounded in the realities of military service and veteran reintegration, Bulls Amongst Men examines grief, brotherhood, and the psychological cost of war long after the uniform is removed. It is a story about men who have learned how to endure violence but must relearn how to live with its aftermath.

Format(s) for review: Paper or Kindle
Review genre: Fiction—Literary Fiction
Pages/Word count: 135 / 45,000

Images of America Grand County by Penny Rafferty Hamilton, Ph.D.

Click on cover image to purchase a copy

MWSA Review Pending

 

Author's Synopsis

For thousands of years, Indigenous, nomadic tribes enjoyed natural hot springs and summer hunting. Spanish explorers, French fur trappers, and Mountain Men followed. In 1858, the gold rush brought rugged prospectors, creating towns named Coulter, Gaskill, Lulu City, and Teller.
Established in 1874, before Colorado became a state, Grand County is nestled in the north-central Rocky Mountains. Named for the Grand River (renamed the Colorado River), today Grand County encompasses 1,868 square miles, larger than Rhode Island. Homesteaders, loggers, merchants, and the Moffat Railroad built Arrow, Hideaway Park, Winter Park, Fraser, Tabernash, Granby, Grand Lake, Hot Sulphur Springs, Parshall, Kremmling, and Radium. Today, tourists flock to Rocky Mountain National Park, Arapaho National Forest, and award-winning dude ranches and resorts, to enjoy some of the world's most beautiful lakes, mountain ranges, and abundant wildlife. Written in an easy-to-read pictorial format with over 200 curated photographs, for readers interested in true stories of Western grit and courage.

Format(s) for review: Paper Only
Review genre: Nonfiction—History
Pages/Word count: 128 / 10,000

Welcome To The Jungle - A Sailor's Memoir of Service Aboard the USS Fresno (LST-1182) by H.J. Peterson II

Click on cover image to purchase a copy

MWSA Review Pending

 

Author's Synopsis

A 17-year-old kid from Wyoming joins the Navy to earn money for college and ends up gaining an education he didn’t expect. Welcome To The Jungle is a no-holds-barred coming-of-age tale of how a boy became a man in the U.S. Navy. Follow the author from his decision to join the Navy through boot camp and out to the fleet aboard the USS Fresno (LST-1182) and his adventures in the Western Pacific, and finally into the Navy Reserves. Read the real-life stories of what the Navy was like for an enlisted kid in the late 80's and early 90's. This collection of stories, memories, and journal entries documents a boy's transition into manhood and beyond. If you've ever wondered what being in the Navy was REALLY like, this book holds the answers.

Format(s) for review: Paper or Kindle
Review genre: Nonfiction—Memoir/Biography
Pages/Word count: 600 / 284,230

Fatal Second Helen: A Modern Veteran's Iliad by Josh Cannon

Click on cover image to purchase a copy

MWSA Review Pending

 

Author's Synopsis

In the tradition of Jonathan Shay’s 'Achilles in Vietnam' (1994), Josh Cannon’s 'Fatal Second Helen: A Modern Veteran’s Iliad' brings to the audience a discussion of Homer’s Iliad that allows the ancient text to teach us about modern war. Cannon’s work differentiates itself from Shay’s by discussing the Iliad holistically. His book seeks to demystify the Iliad through connecting it to his military service via a presentation of his personal stories.

By sharing his story, Cannon’s book shares a new angle on an old tale. He makes the Iliad accessible to any audience and helps unearth a lesson that, despite being millennia old, still has much to teach us.

Format(s) for review: Paper or Kindle
Review genre: Nonfiction—Memoir/Biography
Pages/Word count: 178 / 50,000

Knowing My Father: The Collision of the OB Jennings and War Knight by Col. Joseph R. Tedeschi, US Army (Ret)

Click on cover image to purchase a copy

MWSA Review Pending

 

Author's Synopsis

Knowing My Father: The Collision of the O. B. Jennings and War Knight relates Joe's methodical search to know more about his long-lost father. In that search, Joe discovers the tragic story of the fiery collision of the US tanker O. B. Jennings and the British merchant ship War Knight during World War I as their convoy evaded German U-boats in the English Channel. A US Navy armed guard defending the O. B. Jennings, gunner's mate Michael Tedeschi was heroically rescued by the British Royal Navy escorts from the burning sea. Joe satisfies his search to know his father better and, at the same time, reveals and exposes one of the unfortunate naval disasters that occur in times of war. Knowing My Father serves as a companion to Joe Tedeschi's memoir, A Rock in the Clouds.

Format(s) for review: Paper or Kindle
Review genre: Nonfiction—Memoir/Biography
Pages/Word count: 128 / 28,160

Another Death at Antietam by Peter Adams Young

Click on cover image to purchase a copy

MWSA Review Pending

 

Author's Synopsis

SEPTEMBER 1998

Compelling echoes of the Civil War resonate to the present day.

Five days before the 136th anniversary of the bloodiest day in American history, the body of a young man is found at the center of the Antietam National Cemetery. He is wearing the uniform of a Union Army private. Annie and Mike Davis are drawn into the leisurely official investigation into the mystery of the young man’s death, eventually encountering intertwined evidence of human trafficking, illegal arms smuggling, and a self-styled constitutional militia unit.

This is the second of the series of modern-day murder mysteries by award-winning author Peter Adams Young. The first of these, "Another Death at Gettysburg", is set in and around that historic battlefield.

Format(s) for review: Paper or Kindle
Review genre: Fiction—Mystery/Thriller/Crime
Pages/Word count: 434 / 119,158

Lost in History by FE Taylor

Click on cover image to purchase a copy

MWSA Review Pending

 

Author's Synopsis

In the grand sweep of history, this memoir may seem as small and insignificant as an atom in a vast universe. Yet, for the combat infantryman whose story it tells, these experiences form a monumental part of his life. Unwittingly shaped into a warrior through the trials of childhood and adolescence, he is unexpectedly drafted into the Vietnam War, an event that changes his world forever.

Format(s) for review: Paper or Kindle
Review genre: Nonfiction—Memoir/Biography
Pages/Word count: 277 / 64,794

Soulless by Joseph Badal

Click on cover image to purchase a copy

MWSA Review Pending

 

Author's Synopsis

Soulless features Eddie Parnall and Tatiana Borodvic who were introduced in Joseph Badal's novel Justice, the third book in the Curtis Chronicles series. Parnall, a retired CIA agent, and Borodvic, a former Bulgarian Special Operator, join a high-octane cast of characters who starred in previous books in the Curtis Chronicles series. Joseph Badal introduces diabolical villains whom the reader will love to hate, while cheering on the good guys as they work to bring down evildoers. At a time when human trafficking has become a $150 billion-dollar annual business and a global catastrophe, SOULLESS offers a picture of the extent of this crime against humanity and puts the reader on a roller coaster ride of tension and suspense. The story is presented via well-drawn characters and dynamic dialogue that will entertain the most demanding thriller and mystery fans. Fans of Robert Ludlum, Robert Dugoni, and Brad Thor will love this story. Badal is a master at mystifying, misleading, surprising, and entertaining the reader.

Format(s) for review: Paper or Kindle
Review genre: Fiction—Mystery/Thriller/Crime
Pages/Word count: 414 / 100,293

Beneath Texas Skies by Liz Beth Rose

Click on cover image to purchase a copy

MWSA Review Pending

 

Author's Synopsis

In a town filled with memories, can love heal the wounds of the past and offer a second chance at forever?

Haunted by the scars of childhood betrayal, KC Gates had learned one painful truth—crying for help meant nothing if no one cared enough to listen. When she once sought refuge in a teacher’s kindness, her plea was ignored, shattering her heart all over again. Determined to be the voice she never had, she became a teacher herself, vowing to stand as a fierce protector for victims of abuse.

Returning to her hometown in rural West Texas, KC embraced life as a traveling substitute teacher, moving from one classroom to another. But when two locals—both suspected child abusers—were murdered, the town turned its gaze on her. As evidence mounted, every step she took felt like a tightrope walk between justice and condemnation. Even the one man who had broken through her walls—the only man she dared to trust—began to doubt her.

But as the case against her began to unravel, the town’s Deputy Sheriff found himself at a crossroads: follow the case or follow his heart. Working to unmask the real killer, he saw past her defenses, past her pain, to the woman beneath the suspicion. And when the truth pointed to a long-buried secret, KC faced the hardest choice of all—let the past keep her heart closed or risk everything for love.

Format(s) for review: Paper or Kindle
Review genre: Fiction—Romance
Pages/Word count: 206 / 58,210

Recycled Hearts by Liz Beth Rose

Click on cover image to purchase a copy

MWSA Review Pending

 

Author's Synopsis

Recycled Hearts will tug at your heartstrings and leave you breathless.

Experience the resounding power of love, destiny, and redemption as Ellie emerges from the shadows of a haunting accident, embracing an intoxicating second chance at romance. But as sparks fly and love blossoms, an enigmatic mystery killer lurks, threatening to unravel everything she holds dear.

Buckle up for an unforgettable adventure packed with riveting twists, everlasting hope, and unwavering determination. Recycled Hearts will ignite your spirit, reignite your passions, and remind you that in the face of tragedy, true strength and courage emerge. Prepare yourself for an emotional rollercoaster like no other as you join Ellie on her exhilarating and suspenseful journey.

Discover the transformative power of love, the irresistible allure of fate, and the enigmatic nature of second chances. Dive into the pages of Recycled Hearts and immerse yourself in the extraordinary life-altering odyssey of Ellie. Let her story inspire you, thrill you, and awaken you.

Format(s) for review: Paper or Kindle
Review genre: Fiction—Romance
Pages/Word count: 202 / 53,466

A Gamble on Liberty by Robert W Smith

Click on cover image to purchase a copy

MWSA Review Pending

 

Author's Synopsis

Inspired by a true story, A Gamble on Liberty shadows the struggles of one East Tennessee couple, Captain Robert and Permelia Gamble, during the American Civil War as they grapple with two horrific conflicts simultaneously. Compelled by loyalty and circumstance, Robert enlists in the Union Army, forcing Permelia to lead the family and its two slaves in a defense of their property and lives from bushwhackers, deserters, and hostile neighbors during his frequent absences.

Desperate to help their families, Robert and his comrades shuffle tirelessly between battlefield and home to smite their common enemies, protect their people and deliver justice to their oppressors.

Fueled by a deep love for one another and a mutual sense of patriotism, Robert and Permelia endure tragedy, imprisonment, estrangement, and loss in their struggle against the forces of darkness, all while forced to struggle with the age-old question of human bondage. But theirs is also a story of their beloved Tennessee Valley, a place at war against itself. Although simple farmers, the Gambles and their two slaves rise to extraordinary heights in their resolve and capacity to persevere despite unspeakable suffering and loss. Now, bound by faith in Abraham Lincoln and driven by love of country, they risk all in a desperate gamble on liberty.

Format(s) for review: Paper or Kindle
Review genre: Fiction—Historical Fiction
Pages/Word count: 285 / 80,386

Born in Blood by Megan Michelle

Click on cover image to purchase a copy

MWSA Review Pending

 

Author's Synopsis

Desk duty was not what Rachel Ryker had in mind when she became the first female Navy SEAL, but if finding love with her former teammate, Christopher Williams, was the trade off, then fine. Adjusting to life in D.C. after being pulled from combat was difficult enough, but when Khalid Khan, a notorious Al-Qaeda leader, kidnaps the son of Rachel’s intelligence asset, she learns just how much harder it is to rescue a kid from a desk. She’ll need to get creative and learn to trust others to get the job done. Caught between duty and her thirst for revenge, Rachel must navigate a treacherous path to rescue the boy and uncover a dangerous conspiracy involving her old enemies. Can she save the child and bring justice to those who wronged her, or will her past catch up with her?

Christopher is adjusting to retirement, trying to find a new purpose since he chose Rachel over his career as a SEAL. The rules of engagement have changed. Rachel’s keeping secrets and chasing terrorists without him, keeping him in the dark. Respecting that boundary proves more than difficult for them both. When Rachel goes on a path Christopher can no longer follow, will their relationship be strong enough to survive, or did he give up everything for nothing?

Format(s) for review: Paper or Kindle
Review genre: Fiction—Literary Fiction
Pages/Word count: 447 / 135,635

Task Force Thunderbolt by Galen D. Peterson

Click on cover image to purchase a copy

MWSA Review Pending

 

Author's Synopsis

After six months stagnation on the Ukrainian battlefield, NATO’s counteroffensive looms. Captain Logan Trondfjell and the armored warriors of Lightning Troop will guard the right flank. On the eve of battle, Logan moves up to squadron staff, pulling him farther from his old battle buddy, Sergeant First Class Running Bear. Opposite no-mans-land, Russian divisions mass to crush the counteroffensive. Behind the Russian divisions, a top-secret prisoner of war camp contains Americans the Russians would rather kill than return. Only a daring raid by Captain Sam Gentry’s U.S. Rangers can rescue their fate. As Russian President Voroshilov’s war climaxes, a blizzard isolates all and stirs the swirling chaos.

Format(s) for review: Paper or Kindle
Review genre: Fiction—Mystery/Thriller/Crime
Pages/Word count: 312 / 92,000

Both Sides of the Pond, My Family's War: 1933-1946 by Barbara Kent Lawrence

Click on cover image to purchase a copy

MWSA Review Pending

 

Author's Synopsis

In January of 1939 when Barbara Greene, a beautiful and successful young British actress, who was serving as a Voluntary Aide Detachment nurse, met Joe Kennedy Jr., son of the American Ambassador, she could not have expected that their relationship would lead to her emigrating to America sponsored by Ambassador and Mrs. Kennedy. Nor could her brother, Kent, have foreseen his bitter retreat from Dunkirk when he left England in January 1940 to fight in France, or his subsequent service in Cornwall, North Africa, Sicily, and Burma. Their stories portray the war on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean, and on the home and battle fronts.

Evan Thomas, author of two best-selling books notes "Barbara Lawrence has given us an intimate, harrowing, and vivid portrait of two young people engulfed by a world war... For anyone who wants to know what it is really like to have your world turned upside down, read this book and be shocked, thrilled and moved." Based on a true story, "Both Sides of the Pond, My Family's War -1933-1943" is deeply researched and powerful.

Format(s) for review: Paper Only
Review genre: Fiction—Historical Fiction
Pages/Word count: 393 / 122,776