In this War memoir, Eigen gives voice to his fellow veteran’s experiences of the Vietnam War that culminated in September of 1967 in the brutal battle (Siege) of Con Thien. This defining engagement marked the beginning of the TET offensive and battle of Khe Sanh. He fought with the famous Marine Infantry Battalions 3/26 and 2/9 of the Third Division. Through letters written home, blended with published, attributed media and real war experiences A Hellish Place of Angels provides an in-depth and riveting insight into war and documents a spiritual Journey that took a 13+ month tour of combat experience and more than a half century of living to begin to understand.
In this War memoir, Eigen gives voice to his fellow veteran's experiences of the Vietnam War that culminated in September of 1967 in the brutal battle (Siege) of Con Thien. This defining engagement marked the beginning of the TET offensive and battle of Khe Sanh. He fought with the famous Marine Infantry Battalions 3/26 and 2/9 of the Third Division. Through letters written home, blended with published, attributed media and real war experiences A Hellish Place of Angels provides an in-depth and riveting insight into war and documents a spiritual Journey that took a 13+ month tour of combat experience and more than a half century of living to begin to understand.
Con Thien is a memoir/history of a much-beleaguered Marine outpost of the DMZ Throughout much of 1967, a remote United States Marine firebase only two miles from the demilitarized zone (DMZ) captured the attention of the world’s media. That artillery-scarred outpost was the linchpin of the so-called McNamara Line intended to deter incursions into South Vietnam by the North Vietnamese Army. As such, the fighting along this territory was particularly intense and bloody, and the body count rose daily. Con Thien combines James P. Coan’s personal experiences with information taken from archives, interviews with battle participants, and official documents to construct a powerful story of the daily life and combat on the red clay bulls-eye known as "The Hill of Angels." As a tank platoon leader in Alpha Company, 3d Tank Battalion, 3d Marine Division, Coan was stationed at Con Thien for eight months during his 1967-68 service in Vietnam and witnessed much of the carnage. Con Thien was heavily bombarded by enemy artillery with impunity because it was located in politically sensitive territory and the U.S. government would not permit direct armed response from Marine tanks. Coan, like many other soldiers, began to feel as though the government was as much the enemy as the NVA, yet he continued to fight for his country with all that he had. In his riveting memoir, Coan depicts the hardships of life in the DMZ and the ineffectiveness of much of the U.S. military effort in Vietnam.
An edgy, gripping report from the front lines by a young veteran and cast member of The Real World: Brooklyn Ryan Conklin enlisted in the Army at age seventeen, following 9/11, and joined Angel Company. As a turret gunner with the famed 101st Airborne "Screaming Eagles," and a member of the famed "Rakkasans" regiment-the most decorated regiment in the U.S. Army-he endured hellish conditions in the war-torn city of Tikrit, Iraq. When he returned to the States, he became a cast member on The Real World: Brooklyn in 2008. That came to an end when he received his notice recalling him to duty. An Angel from Hell is a gritty, blunt, and laughout-loud funny war memoir from the grunt's perspective. Conklin reveals what the Iraq war is really like, day to day-the misery, the boredom, the absurdity, the horror, and even the moments of grace. With stunning candor and wisdom beyond his years, Ryan Conklin has documented a complex and unavoidably life-changing experience for his generation.
Finding themselves stranded, partners Dacitrynn and Leviathan struggle to make their way back home after what inexplicably happened to them back in the eleven village. However, as time progresses, what starts off as a seemingly sporadic event of misfortune quickly proves to be something far deeper and more intricate than either of them could have ever imagined. Growing mystery shrouds the recent turn of events, and as many more inexplicable things begin to arise, the uncertainty spreads, and so does the threat that lies before them all.
Faced with the ceaseless stream of news about war, crime, and terrorism, one could easily think this is the most violent age ever seen. Yet as bestselling author Pinker shows in this startling and engaging new work, just the opposite is true.
A Marine’s highly personal memoir reliving the hellish days of a pivotal conflict of the Vietnam War Con Thien, located only two miles from the demilitarized zone dividing North and South Vietnam, was a United States Marine Corps firebase that was the scene of fierce combat for months on end during 1967. Staving off attacks and ambushes while suffering from ineffectual leadership from Washington as well as media onslaughts, courageous American Marines protected this crucial piece of land at all costs. They would hold Con Thien, but many paid the ultimate price. By the end of the war, more than 1,400 Marines had died and more than 9,000 sustained injuries defending the “Hill of Angels.” For eight months, James P. Coan’s five-tank platoon was assigned to Con Thien while attached to various Marine infantry battalions. A novice second lieutenant at the time, the author kept a diary recording the thoughts, fears, and frustrations that accompanied his life on “The Hill.” Time in the Barrel: A Marine’s Account of the Battle for Con Thien offers an authentic firsthand account of the daily nightmare that was Con Thien. An enticing and fascinating read featuring authentic depictions of combat, it allows readers to fully grasp the enormity of the fierce struggle for Con Thien. The defenders of Con Thien were bombarded with hundreds of rounds of incoming rockets, mortars, and artillery that pounded the beleaguered outpost daily. Monsoon downpours turned the red laterite clay soil into a morass of oozing mud, flooded bunkers and trenches, and made Con Thien a living hell. .Being at Con Thien came to be ruefully referred to by the Marines stationed there as "time in the barrel” because they were targets as easy as fish in a barrel. More than a retelling of military movements, Coan’s engrossing narratives focus on the sheer sacrifice and misery of one Marine’s experience in Vietnam. Through his eyes, we experience the abysmal conditions the Marines endured, from monsoon rainstorms to the constant threat of impending attack. Climatic moments in history are captured through the rare, personal perspective of one particularly astute and observant participant.
Bobby Dollar has a problem or four of epic proportions. Problem one: his best friend Sam has given him an angel's feather that also happens to be evidence of an unholy pact between Bobby's employers and those who dwell in the infernal depths. Problem two: Eligor, Grand Duke of Hell, wants to get his claws on the feather at all costs, but particularly at all cost to Bobby . Problem three: Bobby has fallen in love with Casimira, Countess of Cold Hands, who just happens to be Eligor's girlfriend. Problem four: Eligor, aware of Problem three, has whisked Casimira off to the Bottomless Pit itself, telling Bobby he will never see her again unless he hands over the feather. But Bobby, long-time veteran of the endless war between above and below, is not the type of guy who finds Hell intimidating. All he has to do is toss on a demon's body, sneak through the infernal gates, solve the mystery of the angel's feather, and rescue the girl. Saving the day should just be a matter of an eon or two of anguish, mutilation and horror. If only it were that easy.
