James Rada, Jr

Publisher info

James Rada, Jr. is the author of seven novels, a non-fiction book and a non-fiction collection. These include the historical novels Canawlers, October Mourning, Between Rail and River and The Rain Man. His other novels are Logan’s Fire, Beast and My Little Angel. His non-fiction books are Battlefield Angels: The Daughters of Charity Work as Civil War Nurses and Looking Back: True Stories of Mountain Maryland.

He lives in Gettysburg, Pa., where he works as a freelance writer. Jim has received numerous awards from the Maryland-Delaware-DC Press Association, Associated Press, Maryland State Teachers Association and Community Newspapers Holdings, Inc. for his newspaper writing.

If you would like to be kept up to date on new books being published by James or ask him questions, he can be reached by e-mail at jimrada@yahoo.com.

To see James’ other books, go to jamesrada.com.

Smashwords Interview

Who are your favorite authors?
I enjoy reading lots of different authors in different genres. Some of my favorites are Brandon Sanderson, Orson Scott Card, David McCullough, Erik Larson, Harlan Coben, Craig Johnson, James Rollins and Dean Koontz.
What inspires you to get out of bed each day?
If I don't get out of bed, my son certainly won't get up on his own to go to school. Besides, I've always been a morning person. It's not too difficult for me to get up each morning.
Read more of this interview.

Where to find James Rada, Jr online

Where to buy in print

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A Byte-Sized Friend (Hackers #1)
Price: $4.99 USD. Words: 53,700. Language: English. Published: December 8, 2016 by James Rada, Jr. Categories: Fiction » Children’s books » Computers, Fiction » Young adult or teen » Science Fiction
Chris Alten's world is limited to the wheelchair that an accident has confined him to. He is lucky, though. The same accident killed his father. Chris also has a mysterious new friend whom he meets online and shows him a brand-new world where he can once again walk. This new world comes with its own dangers when it is discovered that Chris's new friend is an artificial intelligence program.
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Books

Secrets of the Gettysburg Battlefield: Little-Known Stories & Hidden History From the Civil War Battlefield
Price: $7.99 USD. Words: 36,890. Language: English. Published: March 13, 2019 . Categories: Nonfiction » History » American, Nonfiction » Travel » National Parks
The Battle of Gettysburg saw the greatest number of casualties during the Civil War. Beyond the fighting, the battlefield is the site of many other true stories of war, legends, reconciliation, and fantasy. Secrets of the Gettysburg Battlefield: Little-Known Stories & Hidden History From the Civil War Battlefield tells stories of dinosaurs, warriors, interesting people, and unusual incidents.
Smoldering Betrayal
Price: $2.99 USD. Words: 86,060. Language: English. Published: September 11, 2018 . Categories: Fiction » Historical » USA, Fiction » Adventure » Men’s adventure
Matt Ansaro returns to his hometown of Eckhart Mines in 1922, and he swore that he would never return. He is a Pinkerton detective who has been sent to spy out union activity in the area, but Matt has his own plans. He walks a tightrope between spying on friends and trying to protect his family from being blacklisted during a turbulent time in coal mining history.
Secrets of the C&O Canal: Little-Known Stories & Hidden History Along the Potomac River
Price: $7.99 USD. Words: 38,110. Language: English. Published: April 3, 2018 . Categories: Nonfiction » History » American, Nonfiction » Transportation » Ships & Shipbuilding / History
The C&O Canal runs along the north side of the Potomac River from Cumberland, Md., to Georgetown in the District of Columbia. It is a 184.5-mile-long engineering marvel that has 11 aqueducts, 74 lift locks, 160 culverts, 12 river feeder locks and guard locks, and one tunnel through a mountain. Its history spans the 19th century and is filled with mishaps, crimes, secrets, and drama.
Secrets of Garrett County: Little-Known Stories & Hidden History of Maryland's Westernmost County
Price: $7.99 USD. Words: 37,740. Language: English. Published: March 5, 2018 . Categories: Nonfiction » History » North America » USA, Nonfiction » History » North America » USA
Garrett County, MD, is known for its natural beauty, but hidden in the valleys, beneath the ground in coal mines, and in the attics of homes are true stories of crimes, cover-ups, legends, and life in Garrett County. Secrets of Garrett County tells stories of coal mining and railroads, crime and war, interesting people and unusual incidents. These are stories that you won't read in history texts.
Secrets of Catoctin Mountain: Little-Known Stories & Hidden History of Frederick & Loudoun Counties
Price: $7.99 USD. Words: 39,170. Language: English. Published: January 26, 2018 . Categories: Nonfiction » History » North America » USA, Nonfiction » History » American
Catoctin Mountain runs from northern Frederick County, Md., to northern Loudoun County, Va., crossing the Potomac River as it does. Its natural history dates back to prehistoric times. Its history during the era of man is more recent and more fascinating filled with crimes, secrets, monsters, and drama. Secrets of Catoctin Mountain tells stories of railroads, canals, war, saints, and sinners.
Saving Shallmar: Christmas Spirit in a Coal Town
Price: $7.99 USD. Words: 62,890. Language: English. Published: January 8, 2017 . Categories: Nonfiction » Social Science » Poverty & Homelessness, Nonfiction » History » North America » USA
In fall turned to winter in 1949, the residents of Shallmar, Maryland, were starving. The town's only business, the Wolf Den Coal Corp. had closed down, unemployment benefits had ended and few coal miners had cars to drive to other jobs. When children started fainting in school, Principal J. Paul Andrick realized the dire situation the town was in and set out to help.
Looking Back: True Stories of Mountain Maryland
Price: $5.99 USD. Words: 37,450. Language: English. Published: December 9, 2016 . Categories: Nonfiction » History » North America » USA, Nonfiction » History » North America » USA
From the unsolved to the unusual. From the historical to the hysterical. From the famous to the friendly. This is life in the Maryland mountains. Here are the stories of people who tamed the mountains, established cities, raised families and lived their lives. This collection of 40 stories spans 220 years of life in Western Maryland.
Looking Back II: More True Stories of Mountain Maryland
Price: $5.99 USD. Words: 35,390. Language: English. Published: October 19, 2016 . Categories: Nonfiction » History » North America » USA, Nonfiction » History » American
Enjoy more true stories of Mountain Maryland in this follow-up to James Rada, Jr.'s popular Looking Back collection. Looking Back II collects 47 history articles gathered from Rada's award-winning Looking Back columns, Allegany Magazine and other publications. Some of them have been updated with new information that Rada uncovered since their initial publication.
Echoes of War Drums: The Civil War in Mountain Maryland
Price: $7.99 USD. Words: 36,210. Language: English. Published: August 23, 2016 . Categories: Nonfiction » History » War, Nonfiction » History » American
Though the mountains of Western Maryland were not the site of any major battles during the Civil War, the area did have its share of activity and minor skirmishes. Contains more than three dozen attention-getting stories and 50 pictures from spies to generals and battles to healing.
Clay Soldiers: One Marine's Story of War, Art, & Atomic Energy
Price: $7.99 USD. Words: 67,870. Language: English. Published: June 6, 2016 . Categories: Nonfiction » Biography » Military biography, Nonfiction » Biography » Artists, architects, & photographers
Chuck Caldwell is a WWII vet and Purple Heart winner who has met Civil War soldiers, fought at Guadalcanal and Tarawa, and studied atomic bomb explosions in Nevada. Through it all, he painted and sculpted miniature figures that have become sought after by collectors around the country. Clay Soldiers is the story of a man who became part of the history of America and chronicled it through his art.
October Mourning: A Novel of the 1918 Spanish Flu Pandemic
Price: $4.99 USD. Words: 62,370. Language: English. Published: September 28, 2015 . Categories: Fiction » Thriller & suspense » General, Fiction » Historical » USA
In October 1918, Spanish Flu left behind 40 million dead. In Cumberland, Md., Dr. Alan Keener wants to take steps to prevent its spread, but he is met with resistance from old-school doctors who believe that the flu’s deadliness is overblown and easily treated. His work is complicated as a street preacher named Kolas aids the flu’s spread.
The Rain Man
Price: $4.99 USD. Words: 57,590. Language: English. Published: September 28, 2015 . Categories: Fiction » Historical » USA, Fiction » Mystery & detective » Historical
Raymond Twigg hates the rain because it gives the Rain Man power. It is a power to bring Raymond to his knees or drive him to deadly action. As the March 1936 rains bring the St. Patrick’s Day Flood, the worst flood ever seen in Cumberland, Maryland, it also unleashes the power of the Rain Man on the citizens of the city.
Lock Ready: A Canawlers Novel
Series: Canawlers, Book 3. Price: $4.99 USD. Words: 87,760. Language: English. Published: October 9, 2014 . Categories: Fiction » Historical » USA
(4.00 from 1 review)
Even as the Civil War winds down, there is still danger on the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal for those who work upon the waterway. The Fitzgerald family faces their greatest threat as a group of Confederate saboteurs plots to destroy the canal. In the past, the Fitzgerald family could have faced the dangers, but they are separated and dealing with their personal problems.
Battlefield Angels: The Daughters of Charity Work as Civil War Nurses
Price: $7.99 USD. Words: 65,700. Language: English. Published: September 23, 2014 . Categories: Nonfiction » Religion & Spirituality » Catholicism, Nonfiction » History » American
This is the story of the largely unknown work that the Daughters of Charity performed as nurses during the Civil War. They were the only trained nurses in the country at the start of the war and as such, their services were sought after by both the Union and Confederate governments.
Beyond the Battlefield: Stories from Gettysburg's Rich History
Price: $7.99 USD. Words: 53,140. Language: English. Published: March 31, 2014 . Categories: Nonfiction » History » North America » USA, Nonfiction » History » American
Beyond the Battlefield is a collection of 47 true stories and 56 photos that tell the history of Gettysburg and vicinity beyond the famous Civil War battle.
Canawlers
Series: Canawlers, Book 1. Price: $4.99 USD. Words: 107,760. Language: English. Published: July 7, 2012 . Categories: Fiction » Historical » USA
(5.00 from 1 review)
During the Civil War, the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal was the de facto border between the Union and Confederate states. Canawlers is the story of the Fitzgerald family as they try and make their living on the C&O Canal amid the fighting between the North and South.
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James Rada, Jr's tag cloud

20th century    allegany county    american history    antietam    artificial intelligence    artist    atom bomb    baltimore and ohio railroad    biography    c and o canal    canal    canals    catholic sisters    catoctin mountain    chesapeake    chesapeake and ohio canal    civil war    co canal    coal    coal industry    coal mine    coal mining    computers    computers middle school technology fantasy young adult alternative universe    computers technology    cumberland    daughters of charity    deep creek lake    disabled but able    disabled characters    disabled hero    eisenhower    family saga    flood    frederick county    frostburg    garrett county    georgetown    gettysburg    gettysburg college    grantsville    historical fiction    historical thriller    history    labor unions    local history    loudoun county    marine    maryland    maryland history    maryland stories    mcneills rangers    medical thriller    middle school    monsters    mountain maryland    mystery    national park    nursing    nursing history    oak ridge    oakland    pennsylvania    physically challenged    potomac river    poverty    railroad 19th century    river transportation    romance    serial killer    sharpsburg    sisters of charity    spanish flu    spy    spy adventure    spy drama    thriller    transportation    underground railroad    unemployment    virginia history    washington d c    western maryland    world war i    wwi    wwii   

Smashwords book reviews by James Rada, Jr

  • Showdown in Blue Cane on July 23, 2012

    Unless historical figures leave behind detailed journals and letters, it's often hard to know what was going through their minds when they became memorable. "Showdown in Blue Cane" by David Galster works around that hurdle with a historical novel built around an actual 1903 gunfight in Rector, Arkansas between Mart Vowell and Bill Lovejoy. Bill Lovejoy was the foreman of the Leonard Plantation, the largest in that region of Arkansas, but he wanted more. He was ruthless in his pursuit of money and power. He was used to getting what he wanted, but Vowell was just as determined to keep what little he had. The gunfight left Lovejoy dead and though there was a trial in which Vowell was convicted and later hung, understanding what brought the two men to the point of gunplay can still be murky. Galster has recreated the stories of the Lovejoy and Vowell families to try and understand them better. He goes back decades to and tells the stories of the families building on their troubles to the point of the showdown. He creates a multitude of characters and family members that can be sometimes confusing. However, as the story continues, the characters become more familiar and easier to follow. When you finish "Showdown in Blue Cane," you will not only know about the this Arkansas gunfight, but you will have a great picture in your head of life in turn-of-the-century Arkansas. My major complaint with the story is that I had trouble orienting myself to the year when various chapters took place. It would have been nice to have the year in the chapter title or mentioned somehow in the first few paragraphs of the chapter. Otherwise, I came away from the book having learned one more story that makes American history so fascinating to me.