#adventure – Rosepoint Publishing

The Road To Roatan by Michael Reisig #BookReview #TuesdayBookBlog

The Road to Key West Book 14

Book Blurb:

Once again, we find our intrepid adventurers, Kansas Stamps and Will Bell, in the midst of a wild Caribbean adventure on an exotic island, and in a whirlwind of extraordinary circumstance – a lost pirate treasure, a godfather villain with horrible pets, vengeful monastery monks, beautiful women who rarely take no for an answer, and an impending hurricane with absolutely no appreciation for timing. Then, when you add the regular wild bunch of Travis Christian, Cody Joe, and Crazy Eddie, you’ve got a serious package of adventure…
Did I mention the crocodiles? Or the drunken bombmaker, or the Lorenzos?

Oh well, you’ll just have to read it to find out….

My Review:

“Remember, you’re not dead until someone can touch your eyeballs and they don’t flinch. Until then, you got a fighting chance. – Crazy Eddie”

Yes, I’m well overdue to review the latest book by one of my favorite authors, this owing to a personal tragedy in his life that shut down any writing until many of his good buddies encouraged him to get started with life again. Fortunately, he managed to find yet another adventure he hadn’t previously given his spell-binding storytelling efforts.

This one has the Hole in The Coral Wall Gang looking to Roatan Island seeking yet another treasure. The gang is populated by our storied band of treasure seekers with equipment and many skills honed from some serious recent military service.

Our two main guys, Will and Kansas gather together Crazy Eddie, Travis, and Cody in a quest to Roatan Island to help a plantation owner with a troublesome neighbor. Of course, one thing leads to another and soon ole Will and Kansas are up to their necks in alligators.

Literally.

There has to be a good side to this crazy adventure and that’s the beautiful daughters from the plantation but the bad side is the neighbor with the caimans who develops a strong dislike for our two boys and decides they must not make it off the island alive. It’s an honor thing, you know.

Now, that’s not going to end well!

For the neighbor, that is,

and that sets up a progressively humorous distraction from romancing the girls and seeking the treasure. (Well, not so funny for him.)

Reisig is back with all the history (which I love reading about), the adventure, humorous twists, non-stop action, and the occasional Rufus proverbial phrases.

“…as Rufus would say, ‘Da Gods, dey get bored and so dey make…interesting coincidences…”’

“Sometimes de gods, dey jus’ lightly brushstroke de situations of humans, jus’ for entertainment. Coincidence be dere favorite color – Rufus”

“Da gods, dey love complication. It be like seasoning on da chicken of life.”

I love the characters of the gang, they are well-developed and offer so much spice to the plot. The antagonist is strongly formed in your mind—you can see his rage, smell the sweat. (But how many serious parts could Alteraz afford to lose?)

Slipped in without your notice with all the tumult is the moral that has you realizing later these guys are stand-up, generous, and incredibly lucky. It’s an impenetrable brotherhood borne of shared perilous history.

Welcome back, Michael!

I received a review copy of this book from the author that in no way influenced this review. These are my honest thoughts.

Rosepoint Rating: Four point Five Stars

Book Details:

Genre: American Humorous Fiction, Satire Fiction, General Humorous Fiction
Publisher: Clear Creek Press
ASIN: B0D7SH45YF
Print Length: 175 pages
Publication Date: June 21, 2024
Source: Author
Title Link(s): The Road to Roatan [Amazon]

The Author: Michael Reisig has been writing professionally for 20 years. He is a former Caribbean adventurer turned newspaper editor, award-winning columnist, and best-selling novelist.

After high school and college in Florida, he relocated to the Florida Keys. He established a commercial diving business, got his pilot’s license, and traveled extensively throughout the southern hemisphere, diving, treasure hunting, and adventuring.

Reisig claims he has been thrown out of more countries in the Caribbean Basin that most people ever visit, and he admits that a great many of the situations and the characters in his novels are authentic – but nothing makes a great read like experience…

He now lives in the mountains of Arkansas, where he hunts and fishes, and writes, but he still escapes to the Caribbean for an occasional adventure.

#TuesdayBookBlog

Ghosts of the Past: The Search for a Lost WWII Art Collection Worth Killing for by Mark Downer – A #BookReview – #crimeaction

Rosepoint Publishing: Five Stars

Book Blurb:

In the spring of 1945, on the eve of the Allied victory in war-torn Europe, an unmarked German transport plane crash lands deep in the rugged Swiss Alps, and with it is buried one of the greatest single collections of World War II stolen artwork never recovered. Lying undisturbed in its rocky tomb for over half a century, a family member’s deathbed disclosure and war memorabilia hold the key to the existence and dormant location of this incredible treasure. Subsequently, one man’s quest to locate the crash site is unwittingly exposed, and the race to recover the find of a lifetime becomes a fast-paced, action-packed adventure that weaves together an eclectic cast of characters in an international web of intrigue, murder, mystery, and surprise.

American advertising executive Matt Ferguson, determined to track down his great uncle’s mysterious legacy, enlists the help of a beautiful art expert, Courtney Lewis. They immediately become embroiled in a local murder investigation that draws them together to save not only a piece of history but ultimately their lives. Pursuing them is a cold-blooded killer and his henchmen, representing the past and present generations of the German Nazi party, and also gangsters dispatched by a multi-millionaire South American boss, whose passion is acquiring art by any means necessary. As Ferguson and Lewis struggle and maneuver to stay one step ahead of their pursuers, their relationship swells through ups and downs of trust, mistrust, mutual attraction, deception, and, finally, shared mission.

The dogged persistence of a city homicide detective determined to solve a triple murder, and his ability to knit together an international police effort as the scope of his investigation explodes, are the last component affecting the thrill of the chaotic chase and the excitement of the climax.

His Review:

As World War II comes to a close, two flyers from Germany are engaged to make a special flight to Switzerland by none other than Hermann Goering! This starts a saga of immense value and hair-raising discovery. Mark Downer creates a narrative with the efficiency of a master fly fisherman. Information from a dying uncle sets Matt Ferguson on the quest of a lifetime.

An immense treasure of purloined art is hidden away in the mountains of Switzerland. Not by design but by a fortuitous accident as the treasure is being flown to Switzerland by two young shanghaied German Luftwaffe pilots. The transportation of art objects is at the personal bequest of Reichsmarshall Hermann Goering himself. A chance meetup with a US fighter pilot results in a crash landing of the German plane prior to arriving at the airport in Switzerland. The plane and its’ crew remain in hiding sitting out the rest of the second world war.

The quest begins at the dying bed of Max Hignite, the German pilot in question. His nephew, Matt Ferguson, is given a map drawn on the back of the cargo manifest by Max. Two pieces of art are in Max’s safe and are authenticated by assistant curator Courtney Lewis and her contacts at the Speed Art Museum. The two small paintings are valued and insured at $4,000,000. Courtney and Matt set out to find the treasure and have it distributed to the rightful family owners. The problem is that the curators who helped verify the authenticity of the paintings are interested in the rest of the shipment and as Matt and Courtney begin the quest, they start an international conspiracy to obtain the balance of the valuable cargo.

Ghosts of the Past by Mark Downer — (See NB below)

Matt and Courtney are not well versed in clandestine operations. They are followed by some very rich and powerful individuals who want to control the artifacts. They are followed discretely by operatives whose sole purpose is to gain ultimate control of the entire cargo. Keeping the two of them alive is not really a concern to the criminal element wanting to own the cargo.

Mark Downer has put together a quick engaging read with a number of twists and turns that are very entertaining. The book took center stage in my daily activities until I finished it. You will find the story well-plotted and paced although at times predictable. I highly recommend it for a quick and satisfying read! 5 stars – CE Williams

FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary review copy of this book from publisher through NetGalley. These are my honest opinions.

Book Details:

Genre: Crime Action Fiction, Historical Mystery, Thriller & Suspense Fiction, Crime Action & Adventure
Publisher: Old Stone Press (2^nd edition)
Print Length: 287 pages
Publication Date: February 2, 2021
Source: Publisher and NetGalley
Title Link: Ghosts of the Past [Amazon] (Second Edition)
Also find the book at this location (See NB below):
Barnes and Noble (First Edition)

The Author: (Barnes & Noble) Mark Downer was born and raised in Louisville, Kentucky. After graduating from the University of Kentucky with a degree in Journalism, he has spent the last 30 years in executive level marketing, sales and management. He currently owns and operates a transportation and logistics company in Louisville, where he resides with his wife and three children. Ghosts of the Past is first novel.

NB: This novel was originally published in 2014 under the same name.