Publisher: Booklocker.com, Inc.  (Mar 31, 2012)
Category: Literary Fiction, Military Fiction, Adventure, Realistic Fiction
Available in Print, ebook, & Audiobook 280 pages

Synopsis

From award-winning author. In 2006, with wars in Iraq and Afghanistan raging, Rod Strong enlists in the Army to achieve the goal his father sought before he tragically died in the Gulf War. His objective: The Old Guard regiment, the elite Soldiers who stand as Sentinels at the Tomb of the Unknown in Arlington National Cemetery. Rod overcomes the obstacles that litter his path until an unexpected firefight in Afghanistan changes his life forever.

Praise

“Sarah Bates professes not to know much about the military yet she tells an inspiring story that captures the true essence of what the military is all about — love of country — unit esprit de corps — family values — personal courage. Every high school student, every parent and all of the politicians in this country should read this book.”- Lloyd N. Cosby, retired Tomb Guard (Alexandria, VA, US)

“I…read the book and I cried A LOT–it was very heartwarming and extremely interesting. When you described the part about him fighting and saving his brother–I felt I was there–a sure movie deal I hope.”- Detra Hoffman (Los Angeles, CA)

Guest Review

Laura reviewed this book for StoreyBook Review.  Thank you Laura, I enjoyed reading your review and was happy to see a 5 “paw” review!

Review by Laura R.

This book blew me away!  I know I am dating myself but if you have read the book “Gardens of Stone” or saw the movie, it is a similar story yet different.  I liked this book even more!

It is about an 18 year old, Rod Strong, who enlists in the army on his birthday.  He has been waiting for this day for many years.  His father died while serving in the Gulf war and Rod’s plan is to fulfil his father’s dream of serving in the Old Guard.  This is a very lofty goal but he is determined.

We follow Rod through all the different training hurdles and the new friends he makes along the way.  I cheered and cried for Rod through it all.  He also has a high school sweetheart he promised to marry once he achieved his dream.  Does he achieve his dream and marry the girl?  My lips are sealed.

It is very apparent that Sarah Bates did a lot of research before writing this book.  She does talk about it in the preface as well as the acknowledgments, so be sure to read those.  I know most people skip those but don’t, I promise they are short and exciting.  If you enjoy a good book with some action, a great plot, and well written characters, this is a must read.  If you enjoy military fiction, stop whatever you are reading now and read ‘Twenty-One Steps Of Courage’.  I think it will blow you away as well.  I give it 5 stars!

Excerpt

Twenty-four hours later Rod drove to the small one-story bungalow on Ocean Boulevard Beth shared with her parents. He could see her through the living room window, sitting on the sofa reading. Her cat lay curled up beside her. It was a scene he’d thought about often during Basic Training and Ranger school. At his knock on the door, she raised her head, grinned and ran to the door.

“I missed you!” she said, throwing her arms around his neck.

Her lips were soft as their kiss lingered a few moments too long. The warmth and scent of Beth’s body stirred feelings in Rod he’d steeled himself to ignore. He wanted to feel her bare skin next to his, but they’d taken that vow to wait. Gently, he disengaged her embrace and forced his mind to think of something else.

“Look!” Beth pointed to a glossy magazine on the sofa, “I’ve been looking at wedding dresses.”

Ever since he proposed, her e-mails and IMs were full of questions about wedding plans. Her bright smile made him wonder if the timing was right for this conversation.

“Nice, Beth…I didn’t know there were magazines for that sort of thing.”

He paused, then pulled her back down onto the sofa and sat down beside her.

“I want to talk to you about something,” he said, desperately trying to formulate the words in his head.

“What? You’re scaring me”, she said, looking at him carefully.

“When I had dinner after Ranger school graduation with Major General Shafter he made me an interesting proposition. I need to talk it over with you.”

“What? He wants to send you to Iraq? He didn’t want you to go into The Old Guard? What?” Beth leaned forward, an expression of anxiety crumpling her brow.

“No, it’s nothing like that, in fact, he had a suggestion for a career change I hadn’t thought about…but I’d like to consider it. I mean we should consider it.” Rod reached out and took her hands.

“Well, what then?”

“He wants me to go to West Point,” Rod said, trying to keep the emotion from his voice.

“West Point? But what about the Sentinel Platoon? What about your plans to guard like your dad?” she asked.

“I can do all of it, Beth, and with West Point, I could become an officer and our future with the Army would be  better, even more than I ever expected.”

As the words tumbled out, Rod’s palms began to sweat.

“Sounds like you’re considering it.”

“Sort of, I guess. His offer is flattering, don’t you think? An officer at The Old Guard?”

He wiped his hands on his pants as he started to warm to the idea, growing enthusiastic with each word. His eyes glowed.

Beth jumped up.

“How can you be so determined to do one thing one minute, then change your mind? Do you know how immature that is?”

“I…a…guess it does sound like that, huh?”

“Yeaaah…” Beth threw the magazine on the floor.

“Why’d you do that?” Rod asked, alarmed.

“I thought I knew you, but since you’ve been in, you’re different. I’m not sure I like it…or you.”

She strode across the room and then turned to glare at him, her arms crossed against her chest.

“What? You can’t mean that,” Rod said, starting to feel off balance.

The excitement of five minutes before had withered into an ugly scene.

“Beth…please!” Rod said.

“Forget it. I love you, but you don’t know what you want”, Beth said.

“You don’t understand,” Rod pleaded. “We can still get married, just not right away.”

“Why?” Beth asked.

He didn’t like the look in her eyes.

“Cadets at West Point can’t be married. It’s against the rules,” he said weakly, watching her face.

“So, how long does it take?”

She pulled out a chair across the room and plopped down with her hands clasped tightly on her lap.

Rod slumped back onto the sofa.

“Four years. It would mean we’d be engaged for four years. Plus I still have to serve some of my enlistment before I go. And, there’s the paperwork and even though Major General Shafter says he can get me in, I have no idea how long it will take.” He rattled on wanting to get it all out for her.

“Four years?” The pitch of Beth’s voice rose to a screech.

Rod watched her expression change as she thought about the circumstances, the enormity of the situation. The sound of the kitchen clock ticking grew louder and someone started up a lawnmower outside breaking the quiet.

“No, that’s too much,” she said finally. “You left here with a plan, and I respected that. Now you come back with a different plan. What’s next?” Beth rose to face him, her expression sober.

“Beth…I love you,” Rod said, standing up to reach out to her, but something had gone off kilter.

She touched the side of his face, then leaned forward and kissed him.

Rod felt like his heart would explode with such warmth he could barely stand it and tried to gather her into his arms.

“Go home,” she said, pushing him away. “When you figure out what you want, let me know. Just don’t wait too long,” she shot at him, her voice trembling with anger.

Bewildered and worried, Rod stumbled down the walk. Back in the car, the ringing cell phone in his pocket jolted his thoughts. Maybe Beth had reconsidered.

“Hello?” he asked tentatively.

“Hey man, wanna go up to Julian?” Rascal’s voice boomed. “I’ll loan you my old Harley.”

Rod had planned to spend the last of his leave with Beth. But, now? A ride with his long time buddy from high school on the winding road to the mountain town sounded reckless–just what he needed.

“Sure…why not?” he said feeling a sense of wild abandon take hold.

“Get your leathers and meet me at my house.”

“Give me fifteen minutes.”

______

An hour later the two men sped full throttle up the curving highway toward the little mountain town of Julian past the sign to Palomar Mountain.

Spring rains drew lush wildflowers through the soil alongside the road, bringing with them swarms of insects that splattered on Rod’s helmet.

Riding abreast of Rascal, he grinned then gunned the bike to surge ahead just as an enormous grasshopper struck his visor in a yellow smear across his eyes.

He lifted his hand to wipe away the sticky mess, and felt the Harley swerve, then tilt as he hit a patch of loose gravel. The next moment the ground looked upside down as Rod catapulted into the air.

______

“Well, crap, you ruined my bike, man,” Rascal said.

Rod looked up at his friend, then around the brightly lit green Tri-City Hospital room that smelled of alcohol and disinfectant.

“Awwww, I hurt.” A pain shot through Rod’s shoulder as he tried to move.

“You more than hurt, you broke your fuckin’ leg!”

“What’d I break? I don’t feel it,” Rod said, trying to raise his head to look.

His bandaged right leg looked like a bedroll.

“That’s cause the doctor shot it full of painkiller. You broke the tibia bone. A clean break, but they can’t put a cast on till the swelling goes down.”

“I gotta report in ten days, what the fuck am I gonna do now?” After everything he’d been through, this was far worse than the snake. “You call anyone? Mom? Beth?”

“I called your house. Your mom’s on her way. I don’t have Beth’s number.”

Rascal loomed beside the bed, still dressed in his black leathers, a worried look on his face.

“Beth and I had a fight. Don’t call her,” Rod replied wincing as he moved his shoulder again.

The back of his hands were bandaged and felt hot and sore.

“Oh, my God,” he muttered. “Give me my cell phone, I gotta call my NCO.”

About the Author

Award-winning author, Sarah Bates’ fiction has appeared in the Greenwich Village Literary Review, the San Diego North County Times (now the Union-Tribune) and the literary magazine Bravura.

She is the author of ‘The Lost Diaries of Elizabeth Cady Stanton’, published in 2016, and co-author of the 2005 short story collection, ‘Out of Our Minds, Wild Stories’ by Wild Women. Bates was an English Department writing tutor at Palomar College in California for ten years. She privately tutors academic and creative writing students and is writing a new novel.

She is a Military Category Finalist for ‘Twenty-One Steps of Courage’, Next Generation Indie Book Awards, (2013) and 2nd Place Finalist, for ‘The Lost Diaries of Elizabeth Cady Stanton’, Unpublished Novel-Category, San Diego Book Awards (2015). It has since been published.

Sarah Bates lives in Fallbrook, California.

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