Happy 4th of July! Hope everyone has a safe and joyful weekend!
Did you now the national anthem began life as a poem? “The Star Spangled Banner” was written by Francis Scott Key during the war of 1812, when he witnessed the British bombardment of For McHenry in Baltimore on 14 September 1814, and saw the American flag still flying the next morning.
“The Star Spangled Banner” became the national anthem in 1931. Compliments of https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Star-Spangled_Banner.
Our thoughts and prayers go out to those in Texas who have lost loved ones and property as a result of the devastating floods.
The Detroit Tigers won four games and lost two this week, bringing their record to 56-34. They extended their lead over second place Minnesota to 12.5 games. Way to go Tigers!
Chanticleer Reviews posted an article on their website this week, highlighting the 2024 Chanticleer Internal Book Awards Global Thrillers grand prize winner and the first place winners, which includes my novel, Frozen Conquest. Click here to check out the article. Who know–you might find your next favorite author!
New Release
I’m please to announce the release of my ninth novel, Mission: Yemen, Xavier Sear Thriller Book 2. It’s now available across the Amazon network in e-book and paperback versions. Here’s what a couple of beta readers had to say about the novel:
Another thrilling outing for Xavier Sear as he is sent to the lawless and war torn streets of Yemen to help try to rescue the kidnapped daughter of a local man. Krzak skillfully paints a picture of the sights, sounds culture and food of the country as Sears and his team battle the local Houthis in their search attempts. – John J. Delaney Author of the Jurassic Jemma Trilogy.
Jump into a world of intrigue where chaos and order struggle for supremacy over a young Yemeni family. And experience the culture, pain, and excitement of the war-torn nation of Yemen. Venture into this well researched and crafted world where Xavier Sear works with local allies to save a family from destruction. – G. Clapsaddle, Author.
So who was born on this date in history? Let’s find out who in the writing world was born on July 6th, the twenty-seventh Sunday of 2025 and the first one in July. (Compliments of https://www.onthisday.com/birthdays/).
Verner von Heidenstam, Swedish poet and novelist (Charles Men, Nobel 1916); Eino Leino, Finnish poet; osef Winckler, German dentist and writer (Quadriga, Pumpernickel); Frederica Sagor Maas, American playwright and screenwriter; Heinrich Harrer, Austrian mountaineer and author (Seven Years in Tibet); Unica Zürn, German writer and artist; Bert Voeten, Dutch journalist and poet (Crossing); Françoise Mallet-Joris, Belgian writer (Signs & Wonders); Hans-Jürgen Heise, German writer; Emily Nasrallah, Lebanese writer and women’s rights activist (Birds of September, A Cat’s Diary); Bessie Head, Botswana writer (When Rain Clouds Gather, Maru, A Question of Power); Wadih Sa’adeh, Lebanese-Australian poet (Laysa Lil Massa’ Ikhwah); ohn Byrne, American author and artist of superhero comic books (X-Men); Hilary Mantel, English novelist (Wolf Hall); and William Wall, Irish writer (This is the Country).
Any names familiar to you? There weren’t any for me this week. Whether you recognize anyone on the list or not, if today’s your special day I hope you have a great one!
My Work In Progress
This week, I continued editing chapters in the manuscript of Harding’s Challenge: The Great Rebellion based on reader feedback. All chapters are now posted to the two online subscription sites I use. There were another three new chapter reviews this week, bringing the total to 251. As always, plenty of feedback to improve the story.
Here’s another snippet:
Latimer knocked on President Davis’s door and waited for a summons, which wasn’t long in coming.
“Enter.”
Latimer opened the door and stared at the Confederate president.
Davis shook a newspaper, his eyes dark with anger. “What in tarnation is that Lincoln thinks he’s doing? His Emancipation Proclamation from January 1, 1863, states all slaves still in areas of rebellion are now considered free. Damn, his abolitionist—”
“Take it easy, Jefferson. You’ll waste away with grief reading that hogwash. There is no way he can say all slaves are free. Well, he can, but that does not make it so. It did not work in 1861 or 1862 when Congress passed acts stating all slaves employed against the Union were to be considered free, nor slaves of men who supported the Confederacy were to be considered free. That is why we are at war with the cotton-picking Yankees.”
Davis chuckled. “You do have a way with words, Barnabas. Thank you for your perspective.” Davis motioned to a chair. “Have a seat. I want to discuss a proposal with you.”
Latimer sat. “What do you have in mind?”
“I met with General Lee the other day. He was very impressed with a young scout by the name of John S. Mosby under Jeb Stuart’s command. Lee thinks Mosby’s efforts with Stuart to disrupt Yankee communications and supplies between Washington, D.C. and Fredericksburg while acquiring provision for their forces should be expanded upon.”
Latimer nodded. “Sounds like a golden opportunity to strike at the Yankees.”
“Indeed. Stuart, with Lee’s concurrence, authorized Mosby to form a new command of partisan rangers to harass the Yankees.” Davis chuckled. “The unit goes by the name of Mosby’s Rangers. I want you to join Mosby and support him as you have for Lee and other officers.”
Latimer nodded. “This would be a good place for me to commence using some new machines.”
“What do you have in mind?”
“I have been working on my mice and trying to enlarge them. Being with Mosby would allow me to field-test my new designs.”
“Excellent idea. You need to be aware I have issued special rules for the partisans. They will share in the spoils of war but not have any camp duties. Furthermore, they will reside among the civilian population rather than a specific location and only be called upon when Mosby has another raid planned.”
“Makes sense to me. Where do I find Mosby?”
“Check with General Lee as he should know. The last I heard, Mosby was still at Oakham Farm near Middleburg. I understand he will wait until after the spring thaws before recommencing his raids.”
“In that case, I shall head to Middleburg and find him. If you have no objections, Lester and Amos will accompany me.”
“I assumed that to be the case. If you require any additional assistance, please let me know.”
More next time.
This brings us to an end for another week. I hope you found something of interest. If you have any suggestions for a topic you’d like to read about, please let me know. Until the next time, thank you for reading and hope you drop in again.
© Copyright 2025 Randall Krzak. All rights reserved