| Author, Author Shine Out Loud! Feature Writer and Award Winning Author |
| Time: 10/04/2014 11:15 AM EDT Kathleen's first novel portrays a family man and seasoned fighter pilot. Tuck Westerfield's life could literally crash down around him. In this business of flying fighter jets, the odds of staying alive are stacked against him. Haunted by the memories of dead friends killed in air mishaps, this Vietnam vet and father of three must deal with a devious commander, an animal-crazed neighbor whose husband hates pilots, a beautiful, but suspicious wife and a rebellious teenage daughter. The last thing he needs is another war. A great read: "The Final Salute" Military Writers Society of America awarded it the Silver Medal. In 2010, USA-Today, The Associated Press, and Military Times ran stories about the author's sixteen-year journey to bring the novel to life. Kathleen Rodgers' work has appeared in Family Circle Magazine, Air Force, Army & Navy Times, Family: The Magazine for Military Families, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Albuquerque Journal, Clovis News Journal, For more information, go to www.kathleenmrodgers.com. |
The Final Salute, a story of honor, integrity, dedication and survival by Kathleen M. Rodgers
At a small air base in
Louisiana, family man and seasoned fighter pilot, Tuck Westerfield's life could
literally crash down around him. In this business of flying fighter jets, the
odds of staying alive are stacked against him.
Haunted by the memories of dead
friends killed in air mishaps, this Vietnam vet and father of three must deal
with a devious commander, an animal-crazed neighbor whose husband hates pilots,
a beautiful, but suspicious wife and a rebellious teenage daughter. The last
thing he needs is another war.
But when Iraq invades Kuwait in
the middle of a muggy Louisiana summer, duty calls. Tuck and the other pilots
in his squadron head to the Middle East.
Back in Louisiana, Gina
Westerfield and other military wives learn that war is hell on the home front,
too.
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When tragedy strikes, everyone
at Beauregard Air Force Base must pull together and live on or forever be
consumed with grief.
Although fiction, this story
has just as much to do with fact. Kathleen’s husband, Tom Rodgers, flew fighter
jets for the United States Air Force for twenty years and then for American
Airlines for twenty-two years until his recent retirement. Their real life
experiences, both personal and professional, shine through in this military
tale; close friends were lost in war as well as training exercises. This book,
before and now, is dedicated to her husband/best friend and those who have
flown west.
Kathleen Rodgers’ work has
appeared in Family Circle Magazine, Air Force, Army & Navy Times,
Family: The Magazine for Military Families, Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
Albuquerque Journal, Clovis News Journal, and in the following
anthologies: Because I Fly, McGraw-Hill,
Lessons From Our Children,
Health Communications, Inc., Stories Of Faith And Courage On The Home
Front, AMG Publishers, Inc., and Home of the Brave: Somewhere in
the Sand Press 53. Her essay, “Remembering Forgotten Fliers, Their
Survivors” was published in Red, White and True, a new anthology
from University of Nebraska Press (Potomac Books). This essay is the seed that
grew up to become The Final Salute.
http://www.potomacbooksinc.com/Books/AuthorDetail.aspx?ID=27489
The Final Salute, previously published by Leatherneck Publishing in
2008, sold out the first thousand book print run. In that short time, it was
selected in 2009 by Army Wife Network as their July book club pick and Military
Writers Society of America awarded it the Silver Medal. In 2010, USA-Today,
The Associated Press, and Military Times ran stories about the
author’s sixteen-year journey to bring the novel to life. The novel soared to
#2 on Amazon’s Bestselling Military Aviation paperback list. In 2011, Navigator
Books released the Kindle edition and the novel hit #1 on Amazon's Top Rated
War Fiction the following year. So far it has garnered over a hundred reviews
and sold over 6000 ebook copies.
ENDORSEMENTS AND REVIEWS
“‘A Captivating Tribute to Our
Heroes in the Sky’ — There are not enough positive adjectives in the English
language to describe what an incredibly fulfilling and beautiful story Kathleen
Rodgers has placed within the pages of this unbelievable book. Having just
completed it, I can only describe the dichotomy of emotions I feel right now as
those of both pride and loss – pride for the years of military service I
contributed to our great nation, and loss as I bid farewell to the enigmatic
characters Rodgers has given us in Tuck, Gina, and the many others who bring
this tale to life and make it dance on the page right before your eyes. Many
have “told” readers countless stories of our brave men and women in uniform and
the numerous sacrifices they make for us as they struggle to balance duty to
country with duty to family; but Rodgers is one of the elite few who is able to
make you “feel” their plight, their emotional battles, their physical pain, as
well as their joy.”
— Amanda Matti, author of A
Foreign Affair
“It's the details that change
your life — Kathleen M. Rodgers' The Final Salute is a moving,
compelling story of military life, yes, but of so much more. Rodgers writes
with insight and knowledge of military life and just enough solid, factual
detail to enthrall me, to make me feel as if I am experiencing that
walking-the-perilous-edge along with the main characters. But it's the
heart-tugging emotions that she weaves through the story that alert me to what
a spellbinding storyteller she is. Ultimately, her tale is a realistic yet
heartwarming and reaffirming assessment of life and love and dedication by the
very people who guard our own lives.”
— Parris Afton Bonds, New York
Times bestselling author of Deep Purple & cofounder of
Romance Writers of America and Southwest Writers Workshop
“Gripping Insider's Story of A
Fighter Pilot's Life Out of the Cockpit —Kathy Rodgers' award-winning novel,
The Final Salute, tells the story of Lt. Colonel Tucker “Tuck” Westerfield, an
A- 10 pilot, career Air Force officer on the cusp of promotion and senior
command, loving husband, and devoted father of three who, while struggling to
deal with the news of his best friend's death in an aircraft accident, finds himself
in the wrong place, at the wrong time, with the wrong person when he stumbles
upon his commanding officer in the middle of an affair with his female
executive
officer. What happens next is a series of escalating and emotionally wrenching
actions and decisions that not only threaten Tuck's career, but also his
marriage. Rodgers' characters are all well-rounded and complex and the story
pulls you in from the very beginning. The novel's climax and its aftermath are
one of the most moving and satisfying I have ever read.”
— Dwight J. Zimmerman, New York
Times #1 Bestseller writer of Lincoln's Last Days, President of
Military Writers Society of America
USA Today ~ Air Force wife's novel set at fictional England AFB.
Military Times ~ The Final Salute: Giving voice to these ghosts.
Mobile, Alabama
Press-Register ~ Rodgers has created
richly layered characters that compel readers to keep flipping the pages.
Midwest Book Review ~ I recommend this novel as a good description of the
military life and the inner works of the way things are done, including the
cover-up process.
Fort Worth, Texas Magazine ~ Until the very end, readers are intrigued by her
colorful cast of characters that bring everything from love to betrayal amid
the added struggle of military life.
Winner of the Silver Medal for
fiction from Military Writers Society of America
Amazon’s #1 Top Rated War
Fiction
Rodgers’
novel, Johnnie Come Lately, published by Camel Press, has a
release date of February 2015. Rodgers is currently working on the sequel to Johnnie
Come Lately, Seven Wings to Glory. She is also an active
member of Military Writers Society of America. www.kathleenmrodgers.com
ISBN-10: 1625969740
ISBN-13: 978-1625969743
Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
Shipping Weight: 15.5 ounces
Published by Deer Hawk Publications www.deerhawkpublications.com
For book orders, contact Aurelia Sands, Publisher, PO Box 7454, Pensacola, FL 32534 (850) 375-9161 aureliasands@hotmail.com
Represented by Loiacono Literary Agency www.loiaconoliteraryagency.com
(c) Joanne Quinn-Smith 2014
This blog post can be reproduced in its entirety with the following information:
© Joanne Quinn-Smith, Techno Granny Show™ 2013,
Dreamweaver Marketing Associates, Pittsburgh, Pa. 15230, 412-444-5197
© Joanne Quinn-Smith, Techno Granny Show™ 2013,
Dreamweaver Marketing Associates, Pittsburgh, Pa. 15230, 412-444-5197
Host and interviewer is Joanne Quinn-Smith, 2009 National Small Business Administration Journalist of the Year and Author of FOLLY OF MARKETING PLAN IN YOUR HEAD, 101 COMPELLING REASONS TO WRITE ONE.
Additional blog posts at: http://authorauthorshineout,blogspot.com
host and interviewer, Joanne Quinn-Smith is the Creative Energy Officer of Dreamweaver Marketing Associates in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and an expert on Web 2.0 Branding.2009 National SBA Small Business Journalist of the Year, Author FOLLY OF MARKETING PLAN IN YOUR HEAD, 101 COMPELLING REASONS TO WRITE ONE. Reasons to Write One." Available at:http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00DHKVJOG
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