Support Our Troops + Falcon by Ronie Kendig GIVEAWAY

As part of the blog tour for Falcon by Ronie Kendig, I'm excited to dig a little deeper into ways that YOU can help support our troops. In Falcon, we see a strong team fighting to protect against terrorists just as real life military services members fight every day to protect our freedoms. That fight shouldn't go unnoticed! I think it's exceptionally fitting that this post falls on Memorial Day. So, take a few minutes out of your day to take a look at these amazing organizations that you can partner with to help support our troops!

Adopt A Platoon

I've been a participating member in Adopt A Platoon for many years now. It's a great organization that connects you (or a group) with a platoon or an individual. You can send care packages to a platoon or write weekly emails to deployed soldiers. It's a great way to team up with friends to adopt a platoon or use your writing skills to send weekly letters to a soldier who may not get much mail otherwise.

Welcome Them Home

This is a little more limited in the fact that it is for photographers, but I love Welcome Them Home and the whole idea behind it. As a participating member, I have had the chance to get connected with some amazing couples to photograph their military home comings!

The site pairs up couples who are preparing for a homecoming with participating photographers who agree to do the session for free and include a complimentary 8x10 for the couple. Talk about emotion - it's such a fun opportunity and a great way to give back if you're a photographer.

Green Beans Coffee

I don't know about you, but I love me some coffee. I have to assume some of our troops do as well! Green Beans Coffee is an organization that takes donations toward supplying deployed troops with free coffee. Their website says, "...The freshly brewed cups of coffee are served at Green Beans Coffee cafes on the bases where they're deployed." You even have the chance to send a note along with your cup of coffee and often times the soldier will respond with a thank you!

Wounded Warrior Project

This is another popular way to give back and you have likely seen their logo at Under Armour, Amazon, or on shirts. They are an accredited charity that helps support current service members and veterans who have suffered from mental or physical injury. Their website has a lot of information and there are many ways that you can get involved!


For more great ways to support the troops, check out the website: SupportOurTroops.org

Lastly, I'm excited to offer a copy of Falcon by Ronie Kendig as this weeks giveaway. I'm so excited for this because I really loved this book and I'm happy to offer it to one of my lucky readers! So, use the Rafflecopter to enter (below) and make sure you check out some of these ways to support our troops! If you missed it (or want a window to my thoughts on Falcon, check out my review here).




a Rafflecopter giveaway

No Greater Love: An Afghan Memoir by Tim Moynihan | RE:View

It's no secret that I enjoy reading military fiction. I have a huge heart for those who serve our country and, in my own writing as well as in what I read, I enjoy a positive view of the military. It's a personal preference thing.

I was given the chance to review No Greater Love: An Afghan Memoir and really enjoyed it! It's a novella, so it is a quick read, but the story is well worth you time.

Following Special Forces soldier and now author Colonel Mike Sanchez, we get a look into the mind and heart of a warrior. As told to a slightly hostile audience at a church, the majority of the tale takes place in the mind of Colonel Sanchez, following the story of two brothers in Afghanistan.

I resonated with the story and it's no-nonsense, direct nature as was fitting to the type of story it was. There aren't a lot of frills (which I didn't expect) but the story is solid and heart-catching. Not only are you drawn into the story the Colonel tells, but you are draw into his own part of the story.

I would recommend this to those who enjoy military themes in writing and who are looking for a quick, inspirational read. I found that reading this made me feel as if I was sitting down to coffee with Colonel Sanchez and he was sharing this very personal story. And yes, I did cry at the end, but it's a story of hope as much as it is of loss.

Rating: 3.8*
Purchase:  No Greater Love: An Afghan Memoir

Book Description
(from Tim's website)

Special Forces soldier turned author, Colonel Mike Sanchez, survived the battlefields of Iraq and Afghanistan and converted his military experiences into a new career as an "inspirational" motivational speaker. But his heroic demeanor and outward confidence mask a burden he carries on the inside, the agonizing memory of two brothers with whom he served in the war. Caught off-guard at a public speaking event, Sanchez is compelled to expose the ghosts of his past and his searing memories of a bloody battle on a blasted Afghanistan hilltop where love conquered fear forever.

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I received a free copy of this book for review purposes, but was under no obligation to read the book or post a review. I do so under my own motivation and the opinions I have expressed in this review are honest and entirely my own.

Freedom

E.A. Creative Photography

Happy 4th of July!

I have been working diligently (mostly) on my latest novel and have been having a blast doing research into Navy SEALs and many branches of the armed forces.

Honestly, it blows me away to think of the sacrifices that are made on our countries behalf! There are diligent and honorable men and women laying down their lives, sacrificing time with their families, and going without convenience so that we may remain in freedom here in America.

I just wanted to say -- though it's not much, and I wish it could be more --THANK YOU! Thank you to all who have served and are serving our country! My grandfather was one of those men, and I am honored to know I am part of his legacy.

May we truly be thankful and appreciative for life here in America.

RE:View | Talon: Combat Tracking Team by Ronie Kendig

Talon: Combat Tracking Team

I have found a new author-crush! Ronie Kendig has completely rocked my world with her latest novel, Talon: Combat Tracking Team from her A Breed Apart series. Honestly, there aren't enough good things I could say about this novel. Exhilarating action from page one. Characters that you can relate to. A plot you couldn't hope to anticipate. And a loveable dog--what more could you ask for?

Aspen Courtland want's to find her brother. They have pronounced him dead after 8 months MIA but she just knows he's still alive.

Dane Markoski, haunted by his past and a set of rules he's placed on himself, will not work with women. Aspen is out of the question.

Talon, wrought with trauma and PTSD is their only hope at finding Aspen's brother--if indeed he is alive.

Join these amazing characters as well as others from the previous novel, Trinity: Military War Dog, on an action-packed adventure into eastern Africa. You will feel the heat, smell the dirt, and wait in anticipation to discover what is going to happen!

I give this book 5 BIG stars and recommend to anyone who enjoys reading. Especially amazing suspense and heart-racing action with beautiful, believable romance. Ronie's writing is fantastic, descriptive, and so accurate that you will escape easily into this military thriller. The romance is sweet. The punches hard. The story satisfying.

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I received a free copy of this book for review purposes, but was under no obligation to read the book or post a review. I do so under my own motivation and the opinions I have expressed in this review are honest and entirely my own.