Award Winning Novel - Third Place - The BookFest Awards Spring 2023 - War and MilitaryWAR – What becomes of the soldiers who fight them?Do they go home and ride off into the sunset? Do they return to their families and have a normal life? Or are they left to fight another battle alone in an unseen, internal conflict—grappling with the horrible memories of a war no one wanted?Wars leave scars on the body and deep within the soul. So do words. Labeled with epithets like "baby killer" and "murderer," too many veterans are abandoned or mistreated by the very system they swore to protect—sometimes at the cost of their lives.Lt. Colonel Jackson MacKenzie is one of those men. Having served with unwavering devotion in Korea and Vietnam, he sacrificed everything to honor his oath and the men with whom he served. Yet, he was betrayed by those above him, the ones who know the truth but refuse to come forward.For Jackson, the principles of Honor, Duty, Country, and Loyalty are not mere words. They are his life, the very essence of his being. Yet, he is confronted with a dilemma: does he follow his heart and stand by his duty or disappear into his mind and let his demons take over? His other choice is to live the rest of his life as a simple cowboy on a Montana cattle ranch, hiding from the pain of his past.This decision isn't straightforward. It is both brutally hard and deceptively simple. One choice will determine Jackson's path toward personal redemption or self-destruction. Whether he reclaims his humanity—or loses everything.
Award Winning Novel - Third Place - The BookFest Awards Spring 2023 - War and MilitaryWAR – What becomes of the soldiers who fight them?Do they go home and ride off into the sunset? Do they return to their families and have a normal life? Or are they left to fight another battle alone in an unseen, internal conflict—grappling with the horrible memories of a war no one wanted?Wars leave scars on the body and deep within the soul. So do words. Labeled with epithets like "baby killer" and "murderer," too many veterans are abandoned or mistreated by the very system they swore to protect—sometimes at the cost of their lives.Lt. Colonel Jackson MacKenzie is one of those men. Having served with unwavering devotion in Korea and Vietnam, he sacrificed everything to honor his oath and the men with whom he served. Yet, he was betrayed by those above him, the ones who know the truth but refuse to come forward.For Jackson, the principles of Honor, Duty, Country, and Loyalty are not mere words. They are his life, the very essence of his being. Yet, he is confronted with a dilemma: does he follow his heart and stand by his duty or disappear into his mind and let his demons take over? His other choice is to live the rest of his life as a simple cowboy on a Montana cattle ranch, hiding from the pain of his past.This decision isn't straightforward. It is both brutally hard and deceptively simple. One choice will determine Jackson's path toward personal redemption or self-destruction. Whether he reclaims his humanity—or loses everything.
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