As U.S. combat strength dwindles after the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq, the government finds it necessary to hire civilian defense contracting companies to fill in the thin lines. Hercules International is one such company.

Headquartered in Roswell, New Mexico, Hercules has one mission: to eliminate terrorism. Led by General John Ellis, a distinguished and decorated Army veteran, this defense contracting company recruits a select group of engineers, scientists and military personnel to complete their covert operations through the use of unconventional warfare.

Terrorists are quickly unsettled by the success of the methods employed by this unique company. A politically sensitive mission, "Operation Talon," is set in motion, bringing Hercules to Al Qaeda's very front door and a conclusion to an interminable manhunt.

In the blink of an eye, al Qaeda cells unleash a series of brutal and horrific strikes within the United States. Targeting the defenseless and weak, they murder women and children across the nation by the hundreds. Elliott Cahill is an everyday guy who's in the wrong place at the right time, spoiling one of these vicious attacks. Now enraged, the radical Islamic Mullahs who are directing the attacks call for a holy jihad against Cahill's family in retribution. What they don't understand is that Cahill is neither defenseless nor weak. Now, he's a pissed off dad, who's forced to fight back after the terrorists target his daughter's high school with the intention of executing every last child. After reading the incredible climax, you'll have to ask yourself one question. Would I be really willing to die for my family and my country? Well, are you?

"America Falling" is a horrifying look into the very possible future of life, and death within the United States. It is not for those who are politically correct or faint of heart.

When Johnathan Traver joined the Union Army in October of 1861, he imagined a glorious and noble death awash in crimson. Eight months later, a survivor of Shiloh, Johnathan is still alive, serving as a master sergeant. To the dismay of his superiors, he makes it his mission to update battle training techniques, even if it means becoming an outlaw. He believes modern weapons should dictate modern battle strategies, but the army still trains men as if they had muskets.

Johnathan-the disowned son of a wealthy Vermont Squire who endured an abusive childhood-meets Esher, an illiterate orphan from the prairie, and they become warrior companions. Adventure is Johnathan's word for their union; love is Esher's. What's more, the vast difference in their backgrounds forms an obstacle for them. Esher belabors this difference; Johnathan doesn't.

Sharing a tale of the Union soldiers in the midst of the Civil War, "Sweetgrass: Book II" remembers them for their bravery and communicates a triumph of the spirit.

Conquering The Power Of Death details the journey of one Marine radioman through 1970-71 Vietnam in the face of ubiquitous death. Whether using radio skills to call in air strikes and artillery or to help Marines contact their loved ones through the Military Affiliate Radio System (MARS), the young Marine's encounter with death as a seemingly unstoppable force provides a glimpse into the horrors of war. Ambushes, daring rescues, poignant relationships, and civilian deaths compete with survival, maturity, and rites of passage to reveal life and death in a combat zone and afterwards.

The intricacies of a Tactical Recovery of Aircraft Personnel (TRAP) unit's day to day efforts to rescue downed pilots and the sometimes mundane routine of MARS personnel plying their skills to keep Marines in touch with the "world" only highlight death's ever present threat to mind, body, and soul. Death's presence on the battlefield, in the "rear," and in the ongoing lives of the Marines long after the war, however, begins to identity death's "Achilles' Heel"; unwavering faith, love, and humility prove potent antidotes to death's destructive prowess.

Enmeshed within the obvious need for the warrior Marine's physical survival lies the need of the Marine war veteran to cope with a life scarred by trauma and loss; a timeless quest for any veteran and one examined in depth by Conquering The Power Of Death. Death, mythological death, romantic death, and death defined by the artist's keen insight into the human condition provide the yardstick for the author's measurement of death's power while faith, scripture, discipline and love afford the author invaluable insights into the human ability to deal with a preordained force.

A highly personal plumbing of the depths where death resides and reigns in war provides a unique context for Conquering The Power of Death as well as an opportunity to unpack the emotions which travel with every combat warrior. It also provides a glimpse into Death stripped of its mystique, its presumed power, and its claimed finality.

Synopsis

The Liberty Ship Murder on Hull # 13, it will not be remembered for the murder which was of no importance except to the participants.

What will be remembered are the antics of the shipyard stud by many of the young women on their lonely nights?

My job was as an agent sent to the ship yard to investigate the demise of a woman worker. My interest was soon diverted to this brawny and horny young rigger named Kelley.

Kelley worked hard at getting the ships ready for war. He also was very interested in helping as many girls and young women as possible from going man hungry. His dedication to the Liberty Ships and the ladies make interesting reading.

Dead, she is dead. The man shook Ernest to reality. The slow learner had stood guard on the topside of the liberty ship. A man had gone down and forward to visit a woman worker reputed to be selling favors through the back door opening of her drawers.

The man covered his badge nu-mber on his shirt with the bib of his overalls from Ernest and hurried away quickly. He went toward the huge gangway exit. This was to fool the retard. Ernest saw the man turn aft to his job aboard the ship but did not know the worker. His overall figure looked no different to describe than of a hundred other workers on the liberty ship.

Ernest went on with his business as usual. When he was walking around below he saw the body of a dead woman. Ernest was confused, but finally came up and reported finding the dead woman.

The shipyard officials called the police and they sent me to find out how the woman had been killed and who had done it.

The End

Ordinary Americans in the armed services and at home face the poignancy and the raw emotions of wartime. In this, the third volume of The Soldiers Trilogy, members of the Henderson and Martin families put on military uniforms to defend their country after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, We follow them through training and watch some of the family at war in the Pacific. The major characters, however, serve in Europe. There through the eyes of a foot soldier, an airman, a paratrooper, a ranking officer at Supreme Headquarters, and a spy behind enemy lines we see preparations and training for the assault on Hitler''s Fortress Europe, the carrying out of the assault on D-Day, and its aftermath.

A gripping historical novel, "The Winds of Change" encompasses the last fourteen months of the American Civil War. Beginning in March of 1864, President Abraham Lincoln meets Ulysses S. Grant, who explains to Lincoln his strategy of attacking the South at all points simultaneously, thereby preventing the South from reinforcing threatened points by shifting troops.

Grant's plan of "total war"-thousands of families driven from their homes in despair-is designed not only to defeat the armies of the Confederacy, but also to take the will to fight from the Southern population. He works in conjunction with William Sherman and George Thomas in the West, Philip Sheridan in the Shenandoah Valley, and George Meade in the East.

In "The Winds of Change," you can experience the conflicts and intrigue encountered by President Lincoln and his trusted generals as lives are lost in battle and strategies are revised to ensure victory.

John Frazer has always known his destiny is to be a Royal Air Force pilot. As a young man, he zealously studies vast amounts of technical information on ships and aircraft and their operation. By the time he is trained to fly in Rhodesia, it is July 1951, and John is ready for anything-or so he thinks.

As John trains over the vast grasslands of Africa, he feels far removed from Europe, where storm clouds are gathering and a Cold War is brewing. After John graduates at the top of his flying class and wins an aerobatic prize, he moves on to serve in his first tour of duty as a fighter pilot in Germany. But John has no idea he has been noticed by his instructors for his innate flying abilities and is being unknowingly groomed to eventually carry out clandestine duties. Suddenly, John finds himself thrust into the midst of international tension as a dangerous war is fought in the shadows.

"A Deniable Asset" shares fascinating insight into the dramatic years of the Cold War, the advanced technology of that time, and the life of a Royal Air Force Pilot immersed in a great struggle for supremacy.

Retired Navy SEAL Jake Boucher returns to stop a terrorist plot against New York City. Al Qaeda and the South American terrorist organization FARC have aligned their interests and are operating together. Israel is on the verge of attacking Iran's weapon development facilities. Europe is crashing, Russia is surging, and confusion reigns as to the make-up of this new terror-alliance and its apparent intent. Tossed into this boiling cauldron, tasked with killing the master puppeteer, Boucher must alone determine whom, if anyone, he can trust. Some of his enemies may lie on his side of the firing line.

The New Cadet is a coming of age story about eighteen year old Alicia Randall, who enters The College of Armed Forces, CAF, as the second class of women. During her first year, she is faced with the rigorous challenges of the Tick Line and attempts to juggle her life within the college while staying connected to her old life. When her life outside the school shatters, Alicia begins walking the plank between falling apart and surviving.

What ends up saving Alicia is a new found relationship with a woman, Cathleen, who introduces a variety of books, which expands Alicia's awareness and puts her on a new path of self discovery and spiritual awareness.

The trials and tribulations from the school extend beyond the Tick Line when Alicia is accused of participating in behavior that is "unbecoming of an officer," and it takes every last ounce of strength to survive the school she had promised her brother she would never leave.

In using the new concepts Cathleen taught her, it is those ideas that consequently give Alicia the tools for fighting a system and keeping her at a school she conflictingly loves.