Cover Reveal!
Here is the cover for my new book, Double-Edged Sword. I’m so excited that I wanted to share! This book is the fourth one in the Renegade Series. I will post the purchasing link in a couple of days. Please let me know what you think!
J.D.R. Hawkins
One bullet can make a man a hero… or a casualty.
Archive for the tag “historic”
A Rebel Among Us Wins B.R.A.G. Medallion
My novel, A Rebel Among Us, has recently received the B.R.A.G. Medallion. This book is the third one in the Renegade Series. Now all three books in the series are recipients of the B.R.A.G. Medallion. According to the IndieBRAG website:
“BRAGMedallion.com is owned and operated by indieBRAG, LLC, a privately held organization that has brought together a large group of readers, both individuals and members of book clubs, located throughout the United States and in ten other countries around the globe. The word “indie” refers to self-published books, while B.R.A.G. is an acronym for Book Readers Appreciation Group. The name “indieBRAG” and the B.R.A.G. logos are trademarks of indieBRAG, LLC. The B.R.A.G. Medallion is a certification trademark owned and controlled by indieBRAG, LLC.”
My book is featured on the homepage of their website, https://www.bragmedallion.com/. It is also on its own page: https://www.bragmedallion.com/award-winning-books/historical-fiction/a-rebel-among-us/
The first two books in the Renegade Series, A Beautiful Glittering Lie and A Beckoning Hellfire, have also received the honor. Thank you, indieBRAG, for this distinguished recognition!
B.R.A.G. Medallion Report Card for A Beckoning Hellfire
B.R.A.G. Medallion Report Card
Book Title: A Beckoning Hellfire
Author: J.D.R. Hawkins
Genre: Historical Fiction
Our decision regarding your book was based on the following assessment. For more details about this process please read the ABOUT US/HOW WE DO IT section of our website.
Ratings
The book was rated on the following criteria using this scale:
(If nonfiction, criteria in parentheses)
5 = Excellent, 4 = Very Good, 3 = Good, 2 = Poor, 1 = Very Poor, 0 = Not Rated
Title
4
Intriguing, forceful, appropriate to the story
Cover
5
Striking, professional looking, appropriate to the story
Plot (Subject Matter)
4
Original, compelling, engaging, coherent
Characters (Relevant Anecdotes)
5
Interesting, appealing, believable
Dialogue (Clarity of Content)
5
Authentic, quotable, advances the story
Writing Style
5
Distinctive voice, pleasing rhythm, evocative
Chapters
5
Logical flow, advance the story, build momentum
Copy Editing
5
Grammar, punctuation, spelling, word choice
Content (Developmental) Editing
4
Structure, coherence, continuity, accuracy
Formatting
5
Front matter, layout, font
Additional Comments
I really liked this book. I am not much of an expert on the Civil War so am not a great judge of accuracy. However, I do love stories about the War and was not disappointed! I found the story to be concise and well-told, the construct of the story strong, the storytelling fantastic. My only observation was how David just took off and was gone for extended periods before riding back in. I would have thought he would have been considered a deserter or, at the very least, been interrogated as to what he had been up to. Also, not to be overly “gross”, why wouldn’t a starving army eat the horse instead of just burning it? Just a thought. In all, I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and hope to read the next one in this series. This is a very talented author!
I have to award any book that was fun to read and challenged my understanding of military history enough to make me look up the battles to find they are all accurately depicted from a private’s viewpoint. I am so used to reading battles from an omniscient officer’s viewpoint or “god’s eye view” that it is refreshing to experience the confusion of a private down in the muck point of view. I have to admit that I doubt a couple of privates got as much freedom to choose as Jake and David did in this book nor as much freedom as David took going AWOL and returning with minimal disciplinary action. I’m a little disappointed that David’s trick riding skills didn’t get used in battle. It is also disappointing that his privileged position as a messenger was not used to give the view from the top to give a better overview of the various actions he was near or in and could have ridden through as a courier. Kudos for not giving in to the temptation to do either of these that I probably would have panned you for as pushing the realism envelope a little too far as it was a little stretchy here and there as it is, such as Renegade’s final run in this story to set up the next book. That is enough for now as I can’t wait any longer to read the third book.
*
This an excellent book. The principal character, David Summers, is believable and engaging. The story flows smoothly, albeit a bit slowly at first, and the cavalry battle scenes are stark, terrifying and appropriately brutal. I highly recommend this book for a Medallion.
In addition to the numerical ratings, we ask our readers to leave a few brief comments or suggestions to help an author enhance their writing skills, especially if the reader is unable to rate a book on one or more of the above criteria. Please note, however, that not all readers choose to leave a comment.
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A Beckoning Hellfire Receives B.R.A.G. Medallion
As mentioned in an earlier post, my novel, A Beckoning Hellfire, recently received the prestigious B.R.A.G. Medallion, which is only awarded to Indie books. According to their website:
“BRAGMedallion.com is owned and operated by indieBRAG, LLC, a privately held organization that has brought together a large group of readers, both individuals and members of book clubs, located throughout the United States and in ten other countries around the globe. The word “indie” refers to self-published books, while B.R.A.G. is an acronym for Book Readers Appreciation Group. The name “indieBRAG” and the B.R.A.G. logos are trademarks of indieBRAG, LLC. The B.R.A.G. Medallion is a certification trademark owned and controlled by indieBRAG, LLC.”
My book is featured on the homepage of their website, https://www.bragmedallion.com/. It is also on its own page: https://www.bragmedallion.com/award-winning-books/historical-fiction/a-beckoning-hellfire/.
A Beckoning Hellfire is the second book in the Renegade Series to receive this award. The first book in the series, A Beautiful Glittering Lie, has also received the honor. Thank you, indieBRAG, for this distinguished recognition!
New Review for A Beautiful Glittering Lie
I just received this awesome review for my novel, A Beautiful Glittering Lie, from Diabolic Shrimp. Thank you for the great review!
A Beautiful Glittering Lie
JDR Hawkins
JDR Hawkins brings the Civil War to life through the eyes of a family in A Beautiful Glittering Lie! The Confederacy has just broken away from the Union and Southern farmer Hiram Summers decides to enlist in the army, soon getting whisked away to war. Meanwhile, his wife Caroline and son David discover the realities of war on the homefront. I loved Hawkins’ focus on this one family as it gave the avenue to see the war from three different perspectives: that of the soldier, the youth, and the mother trying to make ends meet on the farm! This is a novel with great feeling and intrigue, and I loved the characters and getting to experience their moral struggle. If you’re interested in the Civil War and want a good emotional novel, come enlist with A Beautiful Glittering Lie!
Book Teaser #4 for New Novel
As promised, I’d like to share one book teaser each week over a four-week time span. Last week, I posted the third teaser for my new novel, Double-Edged Sword, which will be available in a few weeks. This book is the fourth one in the Renegade Series. Please let me know what you think! Does it spark your interest?
Double-Edged Sword describes the perilous desecration of the South following the Civil War, and how one newlywed couple navigates through the turmoil left behind, both in the South and in the North. Sure to be a bestseller, Double-Edged Sword discusses many controversial topics. It is edgy, profound, and alarming enough to pique anyone’s curiosity. Soon available at Amazon and from Westwood Books Publishing, LLC.
Book Teaser #2 for New Novel
As promised, I’d like to share one book teaser each week over a four-week time span. Last week, I posted the first teaser for my new novel, Double-Edged Sword, which will be available in a few weeks. This book is the fourth one in the Renegade Series. Please let me know what you think! Does it spark your interest?
Double-Edged Sword describes the perilous desecration of the South following the Civil War, and how one newlywed couple navigates through the turmoil left behind, both in the South and in the North. Sure to be a bestseller, Double-Edged Sword discusses many controversial topics. It is edgy, profound, and alarming enough to pique anyone’s curiosity. Soon available on Amazon and all online booksellers.
A Beckoning Hellfire Receives Award
I was recently notified that my novel, A Beckoning Hellfire has received the B.R.A.G. Medallion. The book, is the second in the Renegade Series. The first book in the series, A Beautiful Glittering Lie, also received this award several years ago. I am so honored to receive this award! The book is chosen for this award by readers who vote for it, and is only given to books that have been self-published. According to their website:
“BRAGMedallion.com is owned and operated by indieBRAG, LLC, a privately held organization that has brought together a large group of readers, both individuals and members of book clubs, located throughout the United States and in ten other countries around the globe. The word “indie” refers to self-published books, while B.R.A.G. is an acronym for Book Readers Appreciation Group. The name “indieBRAG” and the B.R.A.G. logos are trademarks of indieBRAG, LLC. The B.R.A.G. Medallion is a certification trademark owned and controlled by indieBRAG, LLC.”
I will post more information about this as it becomes available. Thank you, indieBRAG, for this distinguished recognition.
New Book to Be Released Soon
I have a new novel coming out next month, which will be the fourth installment in the Renegade Series. This book has been in the making for quite some time, but it is finally ready for publication. If you are familiar with the other books in the series, it takes up where A Rebel Among Us leaves off. I will have a cover reveal in a few weeks. In the meantime, I’d like to share one book teaser each week for the next four weeks. Let me know what you think! Does it spark your interest?
Double-Edged Sword describes the perilous desecration of the South following the Civil War, and how one newlywed couple navigates through the turmoil left behind, both in the South and in the North. Sure to be a bestseller, Double-Edged Sword discusses many controversial topics. It is edgy, profound, and alarming enough to pique anyone’s curiosity. Soon available on Amazon and all online booksellers.
