Review: Trail Creek by Daniel G. Block

 

Genre: Memoir

Description:

“In 1946, fresh from the battlefields of World War II, a 26-year-old Dan Block, fancying himself a knight in shining armor, sets off for the wilds of northwest Montana with his young bride, a truck full of mink cages, and a dream carved from the bones of wilderness.

What follows is a breathtaking and heartfelt chronicle of life on the last American frontier: a place where snow falls six feet deep, bears roam the woods, and where only the night sky is crowded. Through freezing temperatures, dangerous animal encounters, wild neighbors, and trout-filled streams, Dan and GeRayne carve a life from scratch outside the boundaries of Glacier National Park near Trail Creek - fifty miles from town and a thousand miles from comfort.

Told with wit, wisdom, and an unflinching eye for detail, Trail Creek is more than a survival memoir - it's a love story, a coming-of-age tale, and a tribute to the forgotten art of making do, holding fast, and finding joy in the hardest places.”

Author:

“A gifted writer, educator and natural storyteller, Dan later became a professor sharing his passion for biology, literature, wilderness conservation and self-reliance with generations of students. Trail Creek: A North Fork Saga is his vivid memoir of those early, hard, unforgettable years - a tribute to adventure, his marriage, a one-of-a-kind life and the last true frontier.”

Appraisal:

One of the things I like most about memoirs and biographical books is comparing the life of the person in the story to that of myself, my family, and my friends. Daniel Block, the author whose experiences moving from a midwestern city to a homestead in an extremely rural and rugged area of Montana well before I was even born is definitely not something I experienced, but I found myself comparing his life to my father’s, a rural western farm boy who eventually became a forester, as Dan Block eventually also does. While I’ve never lived in an area as rural as Block’s homestead, I’ve definitely spent time in and experienced to a small degree what those areas are like, even if a whole lot later in the world’s timeline, but I found I could both relate at times to his experience and enjoyed getting new perspectives and a glimpse of someone else’s experiences that were different from the people I know. Definitely an enjoyable and enlightening read. Adding to it are a few sections with pictures of the people who play the biggest part in the story from the same time frame being chronicled, making picturing them that much easier.

Buy now from:            Amazon US        Amazon UK

Format/Typo Issues:

Review is based on an advance reader copy, so I can’t gauge the final product in this area.

Rating: **** Four Stars

Reviewed by: BigAl

Approximate word count: 115-120,000 words

Review: Painting Over Cracks by Lee Bukowski

 

Genre: Crime Fiction/Suspense/Thriller/Women’s Fiction

Description:

“Beth Collins lives her life shadowed by a secret, one she believes she can outrun by building a perfect family of her own with her attorney husband, Danny. And for a while, it seems she has—until a freak car accident kills Danny and shatters her world in an instant.

Desperate for a fresh start, Beth quits her job as a mortgage broker and buys a café. As she settles into the rhythm of her new life, she finds unexpected friendships, a sense of purpose, and eventually, even the spark of a new romance.

But when mysterious details about the crash emerge, leading to shocking secrets about her husband, Beth sets off on a search for answers. Every revelation pulls her deeper into a world she could not have imagined and forces her to confront the unthinkable—she’s mourning a man who never existed. When the illusion she’s relied on collapses, Beth must decide what future she wants and who the woman is she’s ready to become.”

Author:

“Lee Bukowski lives in Reading, Pennsylvania. When she’s not writing, she loves reading, traveling, and trying cocktails with creative names. She’s also a self-proclaimed Billy Joel superfan with a live concert count of fifty shows. She is the award-winning fiction author of A Week of Warm Weather, her debut, and Painting Over Cracks.”

Appraisal:

I loved this book. Beth, the protagonist has had her life disrupted in extremely disturbing ways, starting with the car accident that kills her husband and fetus that she hadn’t even told her husband about yet. As she struggles to get her life back on a path that feels right to her, she keeps running into things she couldn’t have anticipated and has to figure out the situation and how to deal with it. You’ve got a few mysteries and a whole lot of suspense through all of these threads, but are pulling for Beth all the way as you wonder what life’s going to throw at her next.

Buy now from:            Amazon US        Amazon UK

FYI:

A small amount of adult language.

Format/Typo Issues:

Although the review is based on an advance reviewer version I spotted no issues.

Rating: ***** Five Stars

Reviewed by: BigAl

Approximate word count: 85-90,000 words

Reprise Review: Mr. Pish Goes to the Farm by K. S. Brooks (Author, Photographer), and Mr. Pish

 

Genre: Children’s Picture Book/Educational

Description:

“The adventurous traveling terrier, Mr. Pish, takes us on a personally guided tour to show us what goes on at a farm. From playing with a cute lamb to driving a big swathing machine, Mr. Pish explores it all in Mr. Pish Goes to the Farm. In this sixth book in the Mr. Pish Educational Series, full color photographs and engaging text provide us with entertaining insight to teach us where our food comes from! Best viewed on a full color device.”

Author:

K.S. Brooks has written numerous books in multiple genres including romantic suspense, satire, and educationally oriented children’s books. She is administrator of Indies Unlimited (a multi-author blog “celebrating independent authors”), where you can often catch her pontificating on matters of interest to both readers and authors. For more, visit Ms. Brooks’ website, as well as Mr. Pish’s website.

Appraisal:

Who would have thought a trip to the farm could be so entertaining and informative? Mr. Pish explains about the many different types of farms there are. He even included greenhouses growing different types of flowers and vegetables. His engaging dialogue will keep kids interested as Pish shows different animals and farming implements from various eras. Mr. Pish’s enthusiasm springs off the page and into children’s imagination.

This is a fun read to share with your little ones and older children. Mr. Pish Goes to the Farm would be an excellent addition to any home or school library.

Buy now from:            Amazon US        Amazon UK

FYI:

Mr. Pish Goes to the Farm is book 6 in the Mr. Pish Educational Series and is best read on a colored e-reader or tablet.

Format/Typo Issues:

No issues with proofing or formatting

Rating: ***** Five Stars

Reviewed by: ?wazithinkin

Approximate word count: 26 Pages

Review: Revenge on Ice by Linda LeBlanc

 Genre: Police Procedural/Mystery

Description:

“A frozen corpse. A mystery investigation explodes into an adventure thriller where Detectives Sara and Ryker must survive the most dangerous pursuit of their lives in a race against time.

They’re a razor-sharp duo--equal parts wit, grit, and heart—forced to confront how far they’ll go for justice, each other, and survival.

As they uncover a trail of revenge, every clue leads deeper into a web of lies tied to a tragic Everest expedition led by the victim. Each team member carries a secret and has a motive for murder: a beguiling woman with a jealous husband, a violin maker who lost three fingers, an offbeat sculptor with a temper, a man who fled within hours of the crime. A rival climber benefits from the victim’s death.

Every discovery exacts a price. And as the countdown tightens, so does the line between hunter and hunted.”

Author:

An avid world traveler, Linda LeBlanc had visited 74 countries as of 2025. Born in Denver, Colorado she explored the Rocky Mountains and later expanded her explorations to other parts of the world including the Himalayas. She’s written a few other books. This is the second one in the Sara/Ryker Mystery series.

Appraisal:

A frozen body discovered in the freezer at a meat packing plant isn’t quite the same old thing to kick off the day for Sara and Ryker, a team of detectives for the police department. Figuring out how this happened, who was responsible, and hopefully bringing them to justice takes this detective team (with the reader tagging along, of course) down some unexpected roads, both figurative and literal roads. Uncovering the why and who is difficult and takes some strange turns in their path to figuring things out. But it also involves some trips to places many of us (okay, most of us) have never been and I suspect most haven’t even read or otherwise been exposed to what things are like in such places as the area around Mt Everest. If you have no clue what is involved in getting acclimated to the increased elevation near the top of the world’s tallest mountains, you’ll find that kind of thing out along the way with Sara and Ryker.

The author’s unique travel and adventure experiences as detailed in her biography are put to good use, adding to the uniqueness of this story.

Buy now from:            Amazon US        Amazon UK

FYI:

While the second book in a series featuring Sara and Ryker, this book stands alone.

Format/Typo Issues:

A small number of proofing misses.

Rating: **** Four Stars

Reviewed by: BigAl

Approximate word count: 75-80,000 words

Review: Aurora Connect by Keith Dixon

 

Genre: Future fiction

Description:

The world is burning, the seas are rising faster than predicted. Refugees have nowhere to go. So, in the middle of France on the Massif Central, the NEU (New European Union) is building a vast circular city 140 kilometers in diameter that, when finished, will be able to house a billion people. (For comparison, New York currently has a population of 8.6 million: Chongqing, the biggest city in China, has some 32 million.) Already this new venture – Aurora – is attracting businesses (Old Oil and new technology among others), bureaucrats, influencers, altruists, scammers and the power hungry. Into this mix a new natural disaster plops.

Author:

Keith Dixon is a British author who has been writing since he was thirteen. He is a two-time winner of the Chanticleer Reviews CLUE First in Category award for Private Eye/Noir novel. He is well known for his fiction in a number of genres: thriller, espionage, science fiction, literary fiction – his Sam Dyke series now runs to 10 books, his Paul Storey series of thrillers is up to 3. A recent venture preceding this one is his serial killer Porthaven Trilogy. He has also produced a number of standalone fiction and non-fiction books. And he does his own covers! He lives in France.

Access his website here.

Appraisal:

This novel is bang on the current money. It concerns itself with charisma; influencers; AI enabling vastly increased productivity, and deep fakes; communication that is, apparently, everywhere but connects nobody with anything. It considers what happens when (as is happening right now) the old order begins to break down due to political, commodity, population, and climatic shifts. It looks at a world heading for hell in a handcart sooner and faster than even the pessimists predicted. In fact, it is an holistic take on the tidbits we get in our fragmented news bulletins with a kickass plot wrapped around them.

Dixon may just have written our future. I hope not – but if he has, he has done so in wise, crisp, witty prose which this reader just gobbled up.

I recommend this to you unreservedly.

Buy now from:            Amazon US        Amazon UK

Format/Typo Issues:

No significant issues.

Rating: ***** Five Stars

Reviewed by: Judi Moore

Approximate word count: 95-100,000 words

Review: Almost Almost Famous by Josh Crutchmer

 

Genre: Music Essay

Description:

“(Almost) Almost Famous is a collection of stories, essays and memories showcasing Red Dirt, Americana, roots rock and independent country music through the eyes and notes of journalist Josh Crutchmer. The author says: These are tales from my days in the wings, behind the scenes, and in the crowd. We’ll dodge an Oklahoma summer storm with Wyatt Flores and stumble upon the news of last year’s Cross Canadian Ragweed reunion in the most random way possible. I’ll tell you about how an act of professionalism with Turnpike Troubadours changed everything for me. We’ll assess the bandwagon of Kaitlin Butts and smoke weed with Margo Price. Vandoliers and Jenni Rose will tug at your heartstrings, and we’ll walk through a new record with Ryan Bingham. We’ll go catfish noodling with Koe Wetzel and into the studio with Whiskey Myers. We’ll ride Charley Crockett’s bus after the Houston Rodeo, and we’ll learn how to navigate independent music from American Aquarium. (We may have a word for those who don’t exactly enjoy our work, too). There will be exceptions: The book turns serious by including the final interview given by the late Todd Snider. It also features a catch-up with the iconic Robert Earl Keen at age 70.”

Author:

Josh Crutchmer is the print planning editor for The New York Times as well as writing for them along with Rolling Stone and write for several other newspapers in the past. He has a long history in music journalism, mostly focused on the Red Dirt music scene of his native Oklahoma. This is his fifth book, all of them focused on roots music, most on various aspects of the red dirt music scene.

For more, check out his website.

Appraisal:

Near the end of this book the author says “Whatever you call this, it was not a memoir.” Okay. Amazon lists it in a couple genres involving music history and music essays. Hmm. Well, if a memoir and a musical history had a baby … you’d get something like this. I’ve read all of Josh Crutchmer’s books, but this is my favorite one, at least so far. All of them talk about music acts from the music scenes Josh focuses on, and while a music journalist, Josh is also a fan. That comes through and as a fan of the kind of music he focuses on, both the stories of the artists and the experience from a fan’s point of view made the read that much better. That I was on my way halfway across the country to see a concert with multiple acts that get mentioned in this book as I was reading the last part of it just amped things up that much more. While that addition is unique to me, I guarantee that readers who are fans of the music from the Red Dirt and Texas music scenes will love the new insights this book will give them.

Buy now from:            Amazon US        Amazon UK

FYI:

Some adult language.

Format/Typo Issues:

No significant issues.

Rating: ***** Five Star

Reviewed by: BigAl

Approximate word count: 50-55,000 words