Tag: hunting

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#BookReview: Florida Palms by Joe Pan

Update The Outsiders To 2009 ish Florida And You Have This Book. Seriously, this is one case where the publisher got the first line of the description (at least as it exists on publication day) 100% spot on. While there is perhaps more here than many will be comfortable with allowing even in high schools, much less younger ages, this is also absolutely a book that should be at least on the recommended lists for college level ENGL courses.

Speaking of things that are perhaps a touch rough for younger readers – and that many adults prefer not to read themselves, let’s dispense with a bit of a listing here: the entire damn book centers around a drug gang and the relationships within it and on its boundaries. There is a fair amount of sex – not erotica level, and really more “fade to black” than anything, but still, more than most will be comfortable with particularly younger readers being exposed to. The violence is at least as intense as The Outsiders, but with a more gun focus rather than the 50s era knives and fists. There are also some rather graphic and disturbing scenes of hunting, including hunting endangered animals that have only recently been brought back from the brink of full extinction through much human effort.

Aside from the above though, this really is quite a strong book. Yes, at least as strong as Hinton’s famous masterpiece – though one presumes Pan would prefer to have a follow up that gets as much acclaim as the first. Based on what we have here, this reader in particular would love to see what Pan can do when he *doesn’t* have a lifetime building up to this day – the day I write this review being release day of the book, despite having had it for several months. It happens to be my 98th completed read this year, and I’ve read 134 books since picking this one up from NetGalley on November 30, 2024.

At nearly 500 pages, this book doesn’t *quite* qualify as a “tome”, yet is also nearly 50% longer than most books even I read, and certainly one of the longer non-scifi/ fantasy books I’ve read. Looking back in my records, I’ve only read 8 books longer than this one that were neither nonfiction nor scifi/ fantasy since my spreadsheet began at the beginning of 2019. But perhaps you’re a reader that prefers such longer books. In which case, you’re going to love this one. If you’re a reader that generally prefers shorter-than-this books… well, I still thought this one worked well even with its length, and I urge you to give it a try. Either way, if you do read it, make sure you leave your own review and let us all know what you thought of the length here. 🙂

Again, for me this was absolutely a strong debut, truly a modernized Outsiders – which is high praise, as I, like so many Americans, truly cherish that story – and is thus…

Very Much Recommended.

This review of Florida Palms by Joe Pan was originally written on July 22, 2025.

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#BookReview: Homestead Survival by Marty Raney

Solid Guide To Things To Consider Before Committing To Homesteading. If you’ve seen so much as a single episode of Homestead Rescue, the Discovery Channel show where Marty Raney travels the US with his younger daughter Misty and his younger son Matt assisting homesteaders with critical issues on their properties, you largely know what to expect from this book – both in terms of content and style. Listening to the Audible in particular, which Raney narrates himself, you absolutely hear the exact same speech cadences and tones Raney is known for on the show in the Audible. The overall book content is basically a summation of a lot of the same points he makes throughout the show regarding the various elements of homesteading, though in the case of the book here you also get a few specific places to look for information that aren’t always discussed on the show, as well as some specific product recommendations. Raney is also clear, however, that he does in fact make mistakes – including among the final chapters when his own mistakes in a COVID-based mental fog cost him the house he had built and lived in for decades as a fire began specifically because of a wood burning stove he both knew he had to replace… and already had the replacement stove in the house, waiting to be hooked up!

Overall a seemingly comprehensive guide to the various issues to consider before attempting to create a homestead yourself, if mostly general and a touch prevaricating (in that he is quite honest that specifics you need in your situation will always come down to the details of your own property and what you may have access to on/ near it), this is absolutely a book to read if you’re remotely considering the possibility of living this particular lifestyle at all. Even if you’re not, this is still a great general guide on how to prepare for a wide variety of scenarios that one may face even in suburban or even urban situations, though his recommendations for handling those scenarios are more explicitly designed for a more rural lifestyle. (As a general example, his suggestions for say livestock in particular won’t work in an urban setting where even chickens tend to be banned, but at least some of his suggestions for gardening could work in even window planter sized gardens.)

Truly a fascinating book, though one that I do suspect will have more market share among those already fans of the show and/ or already active in the homesteading community than necessarily a wide public appeal – but hey, maybe I’m wrong there.

Very much recommended.

This review of Homestead Survival by Marty Raney was originally written on January 11, 2024.

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#BlogTour: Their Resting Place by B.R. Spangler

For this blog tour we’re looking at another solid entry in a lengthening police procedural series… that happens to have one of the most explosive final few pages of any book in its series to date. For this blog tour we’re looking at Their Resting Place by B.R. Spangler.

Here’s what I had to say on Goodreads:

Another Solid Entry In Series. This is one of those police procedural, deep in series, books where you don’t *have* to read earlier books first – enough of the backstory is explained to be able to follow here – but if you’re a “NO SPOILERS EVER!!!!” type… read the series from Book 1. Seriously, there are references and explanations all the way back that far in this one. For the rest of us, this is a great entry into the series, yet again another with a particularly grisly murder mechanism and with equally solid relationship based drama. Spangler does well to keep every book in the series well grounded on both sides of the formula, and it continues to work well for him. This one in particular is another where there is a surprise reveal at the end such that you’re going to want the next book *immediately* – I know I already do. Very much recommended.

After the jump, the “publisher details”, including book description, author bio, and social media and buy links.
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#BookReview: A Prairie Creek Christmas by Elizabeth Bromke

Short Sweet Romance. Yet again Bromke nails another Hallmarkie (and self aware of this 😉 ) romance. This one is one of the more fun/ hilarious ones with a touch of heat (but nothing more than barely kissing shown, for the clean/ sweet romance crowd) with less real drama. And given its brevity (under 150 pages), a great quick read for when you need to escape the Christmas drama in your real life and dive into a better fictional world. And besides, who other than Cruella de Ville doesn’t like puppies? Yes, there are puppies here – the tale largely revolves around a fundraiser for the local animal shelter! So come on in for a quick bite, relax, and have some fun. Heck, about the only remotely negative thing here is that “Christmas” just doesn’t jump off the page the way it does in other books, even other Christmas books from Bromke herself. Very much recommended.

This review of A Prairie Creek Christmas by Elizabeth Bromke was originally written on December 8, 2022.

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Featured New Release of the Week: Cat Tale by Craig Pittman

This week, we’re looking at a wild and maddening tale of the fight to save the Florida Panther. This week, we’re looking at Cat Tale by Craig Pittman.

This was a tragic story of how humans actively brought a particular sub-species to the brink of extinction, how human involvement and greed kept the sub-species at that point until it was too late to come back without dramatic human intervention, and how even that intervention nearly didn’t work due to human politics. It is yet another tale that will turn a person into an anarchist, as it shows just how inept and even corrupt government is at all levels. The narrative mostly focuses on the last 50 years or so, and indeed includes data up through 2018.

But the style of the narrative is forthright and even funny, with puns and other humor rampant, including one pun that apparently the author’s wife thought of. Overall simply a well told, compelling tale, and it is thus very much recommended.

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