Reviewed by K.C. Finn for Readers' Favorite

Born to Fight is an action-packed vision of a dystopian future penned by author Jay J. Falconer. Written for mature audiences due to the warlike themes of violence and explicit language, this intense adventure tale takes us to the end of the world and beyond, where mega weapons and powerful cyber-attacks mean that no-one will stand a chance of survival. Former Combat Engineer Jack Bunker would rather stay out of the battle, but when the first inklings of terror attacks begin to rear their heads in Colorado, he is forced to take up arms. In training the local militia volunteers to join him, Jack is also forced to confront his own past and exorcise some demons of his own.

Separated into five novella-style books which form the overall story, this collection takes Jack Bunker from a former soldier with a dark past to an all-out action hero taking on the apocalypse with spectacular flair. Author Jay J. Falconer has a talent for the dramatic, pacing scenes well and ending each chapter with a notion that makes you want to carry straight on. Add to this the vivid depiction of epic battles, powerful weapons, and tense, near-death experiences, and you have an action novel fan’s dream series, all collected into one 'un-put-downable' volume. The character development for our central hero also plays out convincingly, making Jack Bunker an everyday hero with extraordinary progression and depth. Overall, Born To Fight is a fantastic work of fiction sure to please fans looking for their next dystopian adventure.

Reviewed by Neil A White for Readers' Favorite

The Great War by Dawn Knox is an ambitious undertaking that recounts 100 stories, each told in exactly 100 words, on the 100th anniversary of WWI. At precisely 10,000 words, the book is a quick read, but the scenes that Ms. Knox’s sparse, yet vividly compelling prose evokes will resonate and remain with the reader for far longer. Aiding this imagery is the spacing of the stories; one brief story per page, giving the reader time to reflect before continuing. In fact, The Great War reads more like a book of poetry; if one would ever deign to call trench warfare poetic.

The stories themselves run the gamut of emotions; thoughts of home, thoughts of family members missing loved ones, comradeship on the front lines, the living hell of the trenches, to thoughts on God and the utter futility of their undertaking. And all recounted from the perspective of the English, French and German combatants, whom we learn have much in common.

One short passage sticks with me that perfectly encapsulated the war’s senselessness. Summing up a collective mindset of the combatants at the outset: A way to see the world, a lark, and a war that would soon be over. Only to quickly realize the utter desperation and hopelessness of their situation - if they lived.

“One man arrives in the trenches. He is young, strong and eager to engage in battle. He is warned to keep his head down but it is easy to forget this order when you’re young, strong and eager to engage in battle. Within minutes, the young soldier is dead. Another man arrives, keen to make his mark.”

Ms. Knox has produced a powerful piece of work to starkly remind us that our history should never be forgotten.

Reviewed by Kris Moger for Readers' Favorite

Witch Heart: Gray Girl Book 3 by Susan I. Spieth is a mix of the author’s real life events and a suspense-filled mystery. The main character, Jan, is entering her training at the Army Airborne School at Fort Benning. With few other options to get an education without sinking into debt, she is determined to do her best and graduate from West Point. Despite the issues of the previous year, she faces the challenges and her rivals with stubborn grit. Though she has her friends by her side, someone is stalking her and others are trying to get her dishonorably discharged. Are they one and the same? Or is she a witch who attracts trouble wherever she goes?

Though Witch Heart is not the first book in Susan I. Spieth’s Gray Girl series, it did not take me long to mostly catch up with the story. There were a few things I would like to clarify, so I would recommend reading the previous books first, but the writing is so good that it is easy enough to enjoy Witch Heart on its own. The journey that Spieth describes for Jan is filled with realism and frustration as she weaves in misogyny, bigotry, and betrayal. I can’t say that I always liked Jan and her friends, especially certain comments they make about one of the other soldiers, but I don’t know the exact nature of their history with her, as they happen in the previous books. Despite not always liking the characters, the writing kept me wanting to know more and follow them to the end, proving that not all main characters have to be likeable for readers to enjoy a story.

Reviewed by Jack Magnus for Readers' Favorite

Two Hearts Unbroken: Two Hearts Wounded Warrior Romance, Book 6 is a military romance novel written by Tamara Ferguson. Sarah Benton was leaving her family home once again and setting off for the next chapter in her life. When she had come home a year before, she was a fraction of her normal weight and still tormented by nightmares about her service in Iraq. It was to have been her last tour there, and then she would have taken that job offer as a civilian pilot, and she and her high school sweetheart would be married. Then everything changed: first when her twin brother was killed in action and then when she was abducted and nearly killed by insurgents. They had had to amputate her left foot after she had been rescued by Captain Brand Reardon, and her physical rehabilitation had been a long and intense process, but she still had nightmares about an ordeal her mind wouldn’t let her remember and her government wouldn’t let her talk about. And her fiance had never even called as she recovered in the hospital from her injuries.

Two Hearts Unbroken is a sweet and inspiring tale about Sarah Benton’s new life in Crystal Rock, Wisconsin and her reunion with Brand Reardon, a superior she had always had unresolved feelings about. Ferguson’s story is geared around the Wounded Warriors Facility in Crystal Rock, and anyone who’s read other books in this series will be pleased to find themselves in the company of the veterans and the other characters who make this series come to life so well. And while Two Hearts Unbroken works fine as a standalone novel, I would quite strongly recommend reading each of the books in this series. Ferguson addresses issues that should be relevant to every American -- how rehabilitation efforts affect the future of Wounded Warriors and what needs to be done to help them either remain in service or have access to full and meaningful lives after they retire. She also weaves into her story the extra issues and stressors women in the military face. As with each of those books of hers which I’ve reviewed, I thoroughly enjoyed reading this well-written story and loved once again getting to experience the world of Dragonfly Point and Crystal Rock, and the people who make these special places work. Two Hearts Unbroken: Two Hearts Wounded Warrior Romance, Book 6 is most highly recommended.

Reviewed by Jack Magnus for Readers' Favorite

How Can You Mend This Purple Heart: A Novel is an historical fiction novel written by T.L. Gould. Jeremy Shoff was all set to make use of his college deferment to study art until his father happened to come upon the notice from the Selective Service Board. Even though his two elder brothers were already serving, his dad insisted that Jeremy would be serving his country as well. The two fought that night, and Jeremy, bruised and battered, left home the following day. In his anger at his dad, he visited the Marines recruitment center and made a verbal commitment, which, after some reflection, and at the urging of his girlfriend, he did not follow through on. That visit to the Marines had resulted in a forfeiture of his deferment, however, so Jeremy joined the Navy. He trained in electronics and made his first close friend, a fellow Navy man named, William Otis Johnson. The two were thrilled when they were assigned spots on an eight-month-long goodwill tour that would travel around the world. But Jeremy never did get to go on that tour, as the graduation celebrations, which Johnson wisely passed up on, ended in the car Jeremy was in hitting a bridge. His war would be spent in the US Naval Hospital in Philadelphia, and he would be in the company of Marines the entire time.

T.L. Gould's historical fiction novel, How Can You Mend This Purple Heart, is raw, authentic and wrenching. It's also one of those novels a reader can get totally wrapped up in. As I read of Jeremy's time in hospital with the grievously wounded Marines who would adopt him as one of their own, I was reminded of the young engineer Hans Castorp's stay in the TB sanitarium when he was visiting his ill cousin and eventually contracted the illness himself. While the war is infinitely more distant in Thomas Mann's classic novel, The Magic Mountain, it is still ever-present throughout the work, and Castorp, like Jeremy, is ever conscious of his not really belonging.

Gould's characters are marvelous and unforgettable, especially Ski, the incredibly stoic Russian Jew, Bobby Mac, the half-blood Cherokee who makes light of his injuries, Earl Ray, the Marine who at one point almost kills Jeremy, and Doc Miller, the medic who is the healing angel of Ward 2B. In that ward, I got to experience for a few hours the physical pain and emotional turmoil of young men barely out of high school and now faced with a future coping with missing limbs and horrific memories. How Can You Mend This Purple Heart is a big and powerful work that doesn't address the rights and wrongs of why we were in Vietnam; rather it shines a light on those who fought in that war and the price they paid. It's most highly recommended.

Reviewed by Susan Sewell for Readers' Favorite

A wounded veteran, blinded while on an overseas mission, comes back to the home he left in disgrace to find himself being nursed by the girl he secretly loved so many years before in the thrilling romance novel, Two Hearts Find Christmas (Two Hearts Wounded Warrior Romance Book 5) by Tamara Ferguson. When Josh rescues young Nina from two men who have assaulted her, they share a magical moment at the mystical, legendary Dragonfly Pointe. The next day, Josh helps the authorities capture his father in criminal activities and goes into witness protection, leaving Crystal Cove and never expecting to return. Nina's mother dies soon after, leaving Nina to fend for herself. Over a decade later, Nina is a nurse at the Wounded Warriors facility at Crystal Cove, tending those who dedicated their lives to their country and need to recover from injuries or help to reenter society. Right before the Christmas holidays, Nina is surprised to discover her long ago crush, Josh, is her new patient being transferred from Washington, D.C. Will he remember her?

The exciting and heart-warming romantic novel Two Hearts Find Christmas by Tamara Ferguson has an unexpected military aspect that is enlightening as well as entrancing. As the story unfolds, some of the dilemmas the soldiers have to face when they return is brought to the surface and lightly addressed. It is a touching and unforgettable tale of a damaged body and soul learning to thrive and love. The romantic facet of the plot is delicately woven into a web of suspense tinged with a sense of danger, giving the reader a feeling of excitement and mystery. Love and suspense are combined with the menace of an unknown threat, making this novel a gripping and spectacular read for those who are romance fans. Because of the somewhat explicit sensual scenes, this is more suitable for mature readers.

Reviewed by Christian Sia for Readers' Favorite

A gripping military book, Forgotten by Marc Liebman is an unforgettable story featuring six men – two Naval Aviators (Randy Pulaski and Jeff Richey) and two Air Force pilots (Karl Kramer and Greg Christiansen who were shot down and known to be captured and two Green Berets - Captain Ashley Smith and First Lieutenant Hank Cho – are thought to have disappeared. All are slaving under one of the top colonels from the People’s Army of Vietnam, transforming opium to morphine while waiting for the time when their captor would exchange them for a huge ransom. Meanwhile, a woman, whose husband is among the six American soldiers who never returned home, still hopes against all hope that her husband is alive. When news finally gets out, years later, that these men are alive, Janet Pulaski gets worried about her husband, Navy Lieutenant Randy Pulaski, who may be targeted by two men who don’t want them alive. One is in the CIA who is afraid that his past misdeeds ay be uncovered. The other is a former POW whose traitorous collaboration was witnessed by Pulaksi who wants him court martialed. If found guilty, he will get sent to the hangman.

Marc Liebman has a great gift for both plot and character development. The story begins in the midst of action and the reader can feel the adrenaline. But it’s just the beginning and the whole story is punctuated with intense action and powerful scenes. The setting reflects historical and physical places that soldiers, especially those who have served in Vietnam, will be familiar with. Well-written, this is a book from a new author that features such elegant prose and detailed, absorbing descriptions of scenes and characters. Janet Pulaski is a character who won my heart from the start and it was interesting to see how she developed throughout the story. Forgotten is a masterpiece, a well-written story with great characters and a not-so-easy-to-put-down kind of plot.

Reviewed by Divine Zape for Readers' Favorite

Political intrigue, espionage, and sabotage are aspects of the deadly game that brings together the US intelligence community, a New Orleans Mafia don, exceptional code breakers, and MI6 in a deadly conflict and race in Nazi Saboteurs on the Bayou by Steven Burgauer. The Nazis have conceived a deadly plot to sabotage the production of the Eureka steel-ramped landing crafts built by Higgins Industries. They have discovered a notebook with maps and codes, and they are determined to accomplish their task, taking down anyone who stands in the way. Who will succeed in outwitting or stopping them?

Nazi Saboteurs on the Bayou is a captivating novel that combines history with fiction to offer a delightful reading experience to readers who love well-crafted historical novels. The story features well-imagined and excellently developed characters, a great historical setting with powerful references to World War II. The cast of characters with their specific interests is thorough and it creates the kind of conflict and tension that propel the story forward.

Steven Burgauer seems to have studied the climate of the Second World War intensely because of the verifiable facts that come across in the compelling narrative and, although this is a work of fiction, the reader feels transported into the atmosphere of the war and gets to experience some of its horrors. The writing is perfect and the cultural elements are captured in conversations featuring different languages, something that adds credibility and strength to the narrative and to the dialogues. This is an enjoyable read for fans of historical novels with compelling characters.

Reviewed by Ruffina Oserio for Readers' Favorite

Lucifer's Star by C.T. Phipps and Michael Suttkus is a compelling sci-fi with interesting characters. This story centers on Cassius Mass, the best star pilot of the Crius Archduchy, a highly skilled and accomplished fighter. But he is a man who wakes up to find out that all he had fought for is lost to the Interstellar Commonwealth, including his family and nation. Now working for a freight hauler as a navigator, he does everything to hide his identity, but it is not long before his real identity is unveiled. As things spiral downhill for him, he must hold on to what really matters and learn to fight for those he really loves. Will he find meaning by choosing to fight for his heart?

Lucifer's Star is a stunning opening in a series that seems very promising for fans of sci-fi. I was pulled in from the very beginning by the strong writing, fraught with moving and vivid descriptions and great conversations. The characters are beyond compare and readers will love the way Cassius is constructed and the journey he makes back to himself. I loved the fact that after losing everything, he grows to discover what truly matters to him, and this is a reality that plays out quite often in real life. There are people who chase dreams and lust after success, but when they hit rock bottom, they wake up and start reconsidering their values. The plot is fast-paced and exciting, featuring a compelling cast of characters with eclectic traits and powerful roles. C.T. Phipps and Michael Suttkus are master entertainers.

Reviewed by Jack Magnus for Readers' Favorite

How Can You Mend This Purple Heart: A Novel is an historical fiction novel written by T.L. Gould. Jeremy Shoff was all set to make use of his college deferment to study art until his father happened to come upon the notice from the Selective Service Board. Even though his two elder brothers were already serving, his dad insisted that Jeremy would be serving his country as well. The two fought that night, and Jeremy, bruised and battered, left home the following day. In his anger at his dad, he visited the Marines recruitment center and made a verbal commitment, which, after some reflection, and at the urging of his girlfriend, he did not follow through on. That visit to the Marines had resulted in a forfeiture of his deferment, however, so Jeremy joined the Navy. He trained in electronics and made his first close friend, a fellow Navy man named, William Otis Johnson. The two were thrilled when they were assigned spots on an eight-month-long goodwill tour that would travel around the world. But Jeremy never did get to go on that tour, as the graduation celebrations, which Johnson wisely passed up on, ended in the car Jeremy was in hitting a bridge. His war would be spent in the US Naval Hospital in Philadelphia, and he would be in the company of Marines the entire time.

T.L. Gould's historical fiction novel, How Can You Mend This Purple Heart, is raw, authentic and wrenching. It's also one of those novels a reader can get totally wrapped up in. As I read of Jeremy's time in hospital with the grievously wounded Marines who would adopt him as one of their own, I was reminded of the young engineer Hans Castorp's stay in the TB sanitarium when he was visiting his ill cousin and eventually contracted the illness himself. While the war is infinitely more distant in Thomas Mann's classic novel, The Magic Mountain, it is still ever-present throughout the work, and Castorp, like Jeremy, is ever conscious of his not really belonging.

Gould's characters are marvelous and unforgettable, especially Ski, the incredibly stoic Russian Jew, Bobby Mac, the half-blood Cherokee who makes light of his injuries, Earl Ray, the Marine who at one point almost kills Jeremy, and Doc Miller, the medic who is the healing angel of Ward 2B. In that ward, I got to experience for a few hours the physical pain and emotional turmoil of young men barely out of high school and now faced with a future coping with missing limbs and horrific memories. How Can You Mend This Purple Heart is a big and powerful work that doesn't address the rights and wrongs of why we were in Vietnam; rather it shines a light on those who fought in that war and the price they paid. It's most highly recommended.