A Soldier's Burden

Managing the Bucket List: The Journey Begins Volume I

By reading this book, one will embark on a literary journey of travel with the intent to learn more on bucket list locations and activities. Through this journey, one will also acquire knowledge of countries, cultures, and people. The journey is accomplished by walking in my figurative footsteps as I traveled and explored new countries, cities, cultures, and lifetime experiences. Volume I documents this journey accomplished within about a year’s timeframe, challenging my physical and mental stamina under aggressive travel conditions. I also capture travel difficulties experienced throughout the year. Using a country assessment index, I evaluate the stability of the nations that I have visited. Reading this book, one gains a better understanding of the world. This better understanding promotes a philosophy of respecting cultural differences while recognizing that we share many of the same core human elements: rights, desires, and challenges. One should embrace our similarities while celebrating our differences. The year encompassed travel to Portugal; Argentina and Chile’s Patagonia; Italy; Seattle, Washington, United States; Switzerland; France; Australia; Alaska, United States; Spain; Hungary; Slovenia; Austria; Germany; Czech Republic; and Costa Rica. This grouping of countries is just the first of a multi-year endeavor; the quest for learning and understanding is an iterative approach. This book is to inspire readers to travel to gain better understanding of the world, its land and people, through bucket list natural wonders and man-made accomplishments. For those challenged to travel for a number of reasons, my journey provides a literary approach to experience the world. The intent of this book is a literary journey traveling the globe to gain a better understanding of international relations and geopolitics and share my knowledge to entice others to be intellectual travelers too.📖 Available on Amazon: https://amzn.to/4e0QQOJ [https://amzn.to/4e0QQOJ]

Murder at the Aphrodisia

It's been 30 years since the charmed lives of the Goddesses of Parnassus Canyon University were thrown off course by an evening of chaos, resulting in the death of a popular student and the disappearance of another. It has been 10 years since the hidden truths and lies of that evening were revealed, finally exonerating a longtime suspect. And now, the Goddesses are together again, to celebrate the Grand Opening of Aphrodisia, a newly restored classic beach house with an elaborate Greco/Roman bacchanal. With caterers and entertainers lined up, and a very prestigious invite list, there is no doubt, the era of chaos is long behind them. Surely, chaos would think twice before crashing this event. Or maybe not. 📖 Available on Amazon: https://amzn.to/3PN20Pg [https://amzn.to/3PN20Pg]

Driven by Desire: Path to Unstoppable Success: How to Ignite Your Inner Fire and Achieve Unstoppable Success

Are you ready to ignite your inner fire and achieve unstoppable success? Driven by Desire: Path to Unstoppable Success is your ultimate guide to harnessing the power of passion in every area of life. JW Radford draws on hard-won wisdom to help you identify your authentic desires, set crystal-clear goals, and build the resilience to overcome every obstacle. Discover the science behind unwavering desire. Develop a growth mindset. Overcome procrastination. Build lasting daily habits that fuel long-term motivation. Through real-life stories and actionable strategies, you'll explore how passion transforms finances, wellness, spirituality, and legacy — and learn to lead with purpose whether you're building a business, leading a team, or seeking personal fulfillment. Your journey to unstoppable success begins here. Don't wait — ignite your desire and transform your life today! 📖 Available on Amazon: https://amzn.to/4ect4j8 [https://amzn.to/4ect4j8]

The Sweet Season

Have you ever wondered why some teams with considerable athletic talent fail and others with far less athletic talent succeed? The Sweet Season explores and ultimately reveals the answer to this question as well as the answers to many related questions that define who we are and who we want to be. A chance meeting between a crabby old man, rehabbing a dilapidated Victorian mansion in an impoverished midwestern town, and five disparate teen girls pessimistically seeking contributions to support the summer softball team they have, for various reasons, been “sentenced” to join, ultimately alters the course of all their lives. More than a sports story, more than a coming-of-age story, The Sweet Season is an inspirational exploration of the journey we all take from childhood to adulthood; as well as a thought-provoking exploration of the critical pathways we either choose or reject along the way.📖 Available on Amazon: https://amzn.to/4dZ6pGM [https://amzn.to/4dZ6pGM]

Played: A Jack Gilbert Slow Burner Thriller

A quiet neighborhood. A careless driver. One small confrontation that was never small at all. Caroline Morgan thought her worst problem was the looming deadline for her next book launch—until one reckless encounter with a rude moving-truck driver sets a dangerous chain of events in motion. When that same young man, Dwayne, loses his job shortly after their argument, anger festers in the shadows. But behind his fury lurks someone far more calculated… someone watching. Someone who already knows Caroline’s name. And her daughter’s. Across town, a new geocaching app begins circulating among teens and service workers. Sleek, addictive, and brilliantly coded, it promises adventure and mystery. What no one realizes is that the game isn’t just tracking players—it’s choosing them. Testing them. Separating leaders from followers. When Caroline’s daughter, Bailey, scans a simple black card with a QR code, she unknowingly enters the game… as do her friends. Each puzzle draws them deeper into the city’s forgotten corners—old mining sites, abandoned businesses, remote parks. And when two former classmates are found dead near one of the game’s “destinations,” the tension tightens like a snare. People are disappearing. Puzzles are turning sinister. Someone is orchestrating it all. In the dim glow of The Ember Room lounge, pianist Jack Gilbert begins to notice patterns too—QR cards shared among the college crowd, odd chatter from the waitstaff, and the sudden disappearance of a server he sees every week. The music never stops, but the rhythm of the city has changed. As the game escalates, Caroline, Bailey, and Jack find themselves pulled into a slow-burn nightmare where every clue might be a trap. Every player, a pawn. And every move… a test designed by a mind far more dangerous than they imagine. A chilling psychological thriller, PLAYED unravels the quiet moments where danger hides—in a family emergency, a missing girl, a scanned code, or a single decision made at the wrong time. Nothing is accidental. Not anymore. Fans of Lisa Jewell, Gillian Flynn, Riley Sager, and slow atmospheric dread will devour this intelligent, layered thriller that proves the smallest choices can turn deadly.📖 Available on Amazon: https://amzn.to/4vv6fhu [https://amzn.to/4vv6fhu]