Book Reviews

Title: Brothers Lost
Author: David Michaelson
Genre: Mystery/Thriller
Reviewer: Barbara Peacock

ISBN (links go to the MWSA Amazon store): 0984842209

Twin Navajo brothers are separated at birth and sold illegally to finance their mother's desire to become a veterinarian. They are a product of a bad forced marriage-a man lacking in honor and integrity. "Bends Like The Willow" grieves for her horse when her drunken husband kills it during a race. Unable to save her horse, she vows to learn the skills needed to heal all animals. A shady underground organization specializing in the illegal purchase of children handles the transaction for a hefty price. The twins grow up in affluent but very different families. One becomes a decorated Navy SEAL. He is abducted and imprisoned by a rogue U.S. military-run drug cartel when his assignment to investigate the drug problem in the military uncovers the true kingpins. The other brother is an ordinary Certified Public Account who endures a nagging feeling that he has a brother in trouble. Edwin Collingsworth sets out to find his sibling, eventually locating him in a prison camp in Colombia. With the help of a former Navy Seal turned professional surfer, the two extract the brother lost. The two brothers plan their revenge on the rogue officers and break open the investigation begun by a Congressional Committee. They locate their long-lost birth mother and convince her to return to the Navajo Nation to clear her name, allowing her to become a legitimate Doctor of Veterinary Medicine. The brothers learn about honor, forgiveness, love of family and many of the old ways during their search for their mother and brothers lost.

Title: Trail Cook
Author: David Michaelson
Genre: Historical Fiction
Reviewer, Betsy Beard

ISBN (links go to the MWSA Amazon store): 0984842268

Young and penniless, Absalom Piddington journeys from England to America as a cook searching for adventure in the wild west of the 1870s.

Title: CORPS VET: A Memoir
Genre: Memoir
Author: Dick Hrebic
Reviewer: Hodge Wood

ISBN (links go to the MWSA Amazon store): 0981950582

"LOYALTY TO GOD, COUNTRY, AND CORPS" More than just a Marine's motto, Dick Hrebik takes these words to heart and lives the life he espouses. From the streets of Chicago to the jungles of Vietnam to law offices in Washington, D.C., Hrebik's moral compass and values guide him through the highs and lows of his life. Dick's courageous voice from the "Silent Generation," offers a unique insight into a Marine's mind, and how the lessons he was taught in the military carried forward into his life after his distinguished career in the U.S. Marine Corps.

Title: A Passel of Hate
Author: Joe Epley
Genre: Historical Fiction
Reviewer: Edward Cox

ISBN (links go to the MWSA Amazon store): 1461075939

Gripping, visceral, and full of intensity, A Passel of Hate is as historically fascinating as it is emotionally satisfying; capturing the heartache and triumphs of a war that brutally pits brother against brother, neighbor against neighbor in the western Carolina frontier in 1780. “The first link in a chain of evils…the loss of America” is how Sir Henry Clinton, Britain’s commander-in-chief in the Colonies, describes the decisive American victory at the battle of Kings Mountain. This fact-based novel brings the events leading to that battle into sharp focus through the highly personal experiences of families and individuals who shaped its outcome. Through the eyes of Jacob Godley, A Passel of Hate brings to life the hardships and challenges of frontier living where there is a constant threat from Indians, roving raiders and British invaders. Without government orders or formal training, mountain and piedmont patriots join together with their own weapons and horses to expel a British led Loyalist army that plunders the western Carolina countryside, delivering harsh retribution to those supporting rebellion. Jacob and his 15-year-old brother enter the savage fighting with the Liberty Men, but with a dread of having to face their three Loyalist brothers. The overwhelming victory at Kings Mountain is bittersweet for Jacob who suffers a crushing personal tragedy on the battlefield. In addition, his nemesis, the notorious Tory raider Rance Miller escapes, and Jacob, consumed by hatred, tracks the terrorist through the Carolina backcountry to seek the revenge he so desperately needs. A battle Thomas Jefferson called “the turn of the tide of success,” Kings Mountain has a devastating impact on the British Army’s goal of quashing the rebellion in the south. Brutal in its depiction of the harrowing nature of war and the price paid by our revolutionary ancestors, A Passel of Hate is a powder keg of highly charged personal feelings and military significance.

Title: Tying Up Water and Other Stories
Author: Ross H. MacKenzie
Genre: Short Story Collection
Reviewer: Rob Ballister

ISBN (links go to the MWSA Amazon store): B007K1VMYU

A helicopter crash leaves Stuart adrift with unreliable memories, foggy recollections, and bittersweet realizations. Through this catastrophic experience, Stuart must rely on his strength, his family, and his faith to try and persevere. Sensual passion, exhilarating rock climbs, and tender hope for a legacy combine to define this remarkable story as not only a harrowing adventure, but also a touching love story.

The collection delivers other stories equally captivating in arenas varying from Australian rock climbing to high-sea Navy adventures. Ross H. Mackenzie is an award-winning author best known for his Patriot Kids children’s book series that positively impacts military families every day.