by Susan Katz Keating “The Taliban are behind my door.” The whispered words came through the phone in the pitch of night, hours after Kabul fell on August 15, 2021. My friend “Hakim,” a man I had been trying from afar to help leave Afghanistan, called me from inside his …
Read More »A Serial Killer Roams the ‘Fractured Streets’ of This Intense Novel by Author West Havoc
Book Review by Heath Hansen Ever wonder what it’s like to be a street cop? The politics? The bureaucracy? The intensity? Or what it feels like to face a crazed maniac? The adrenaline high? The danger? The uncertainty? Fractured Streets has it all. I was recently perusing noir crime books on Amazon …
Read More »Wounded at War, This Soldier Created a Program to Help Veterans – Through Puppies
by Sgt. 1st Class Ashleigh Martinez Editor’s note: I first met Chuck Ziegenfuss when I wrote an article about him for PEOPLE magazine, when he was donating voice-activated laptops to wounded warriors at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. Before long, I was part of another group that cooked for …
Read More »‘Damn the Valley’: A Gritty, Riveting Story of Paratroopers at War in Afghanistan
by Heath Hansen When William Yeske asked if I’d be interested in reviewing his book, Damn The Valley, I was eager to see what he had put on paper. As I found out later, he’d served as an 82nd Airborne Paratrooper, in the 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment (PIR). Considering I …
Read More »Life in the Shadows: Ric Prado Appears on ‘Tall Tales With Taco Bell’ Podcast
Two of our great friends sat down for a chat in their respective studios – and here’s the result. Our esteemed board member Ric Prado appeared on Tall Tales With Taco Bell, hosted by the one and only – you guessed it! – Taco Bell. They chat about Ric’s adventures …
Read More »To Those Who Jump Out of Perfectly Good Airplanes: Raise a Glass on National Airborne Day
by Heath Hansen Happy National Airborne Day to all you servicemen and servicewomen who volunteered to serve your country at a “higher” level! Created in 2002, by then President George W. Bush, National Airborne Day honors all the Nation’s airborne armed forces. READ MORE from Heath Hansen in Soldier of …
Read More »‘Cuba Libre!’ How We Defeated Castro at the Bay of Pigs: An Alternate History
by Joshua Garay Publisher’s note: Here at Soldier of Fortune, we’ve been paying attention to the emerging field of ‘FICINT’ (Fictional Intelligence) as a serious analytic tool. Most FICINT scenarios are set in the future. But what if FICINT also could show alternate history, and underscore what has been at …
Read More »How I Saved My Unit From Death-by-Trackers
On this particular day, I was feeling quite fed up with all the fucking trackers. I went on a rant. And then… by Cliff Wade Back in Garrison, 2015 The Army is big on trackers. They track unit’s training requirements, numerous administrative actions, leave dates, fire extinguisher expiration dates, duty exemptions, …
Read More »Wounded at War, Scotty Hasting Sings With a Deeper Purpose: Rising Country Star Talks to Soldier of Fortune
by Heath Hansen This dude was shot 10 times, and lived to sing about it… Recently I was asked if I’d like to sit down and talk with a rising star in the country music industry; a singer who also happens to be a former infantryman in the US Army. …
Read More »John M Del Vecchio’s New Novel, ‘August 2024’: An Excerpt
Publisher’s note: We are deeply honored to present this excerpt from August 2024, a new novel by John M. Del Vecchio, a must-read author in the genre of modern war literature. One Vietnam War combat veteran said this about Del Vecchio’s The 13th Valley: it was like “hearing from my …
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