I was prepared to like this book when I first spotted the Bob Dylan lyric on the flyleaf. I’ve always found the images in Dylan’s “Along the Watchtower” to be evocative and was curious to see where David Litwack took that inspiration.

I was captivated, and not just because “Along the Watchtower” deals with themes similar to the ones King Bewilliam struggles with in the high fantasy series that I’ve been writing. Litwack’s Lieutenant Freddie Williams made a believable hero, pitiable but not pitiful. I rooted for him as he battled his demons. He made real the horrors of war as well as those faced by the ones who survive it.

The lieutenant’s daily challenges to recover from his wounds interwoven with the fantasy world of his dreams and the video games he enjoys kept the story moving. I found it quite un-put-downable. The writing was economical and effective. The settings, both of Lt. William’s “real” world and those of his fantasies, were vividly described, his emotional, mental and physical struggles engaging and moving.

I thought this to be an entertaining and enjoyable read that was also touching, even politicizing, leaving me to wonder why we keep sending people off to war. Maybe this vivid and heartfelt story will serve as the last reminder we’ll ever need of war’s terrible cost. ( )

See full post @ The Indigo Quill: http://theindigoquill.blogspot.com/2013/07/review-huge-giveaway-along-watchtower...

Along the Watchtower is a gripping story of a man who comes face-to-face with death in Iraq, which causes him to travel in and out of parallel worlds through his consciousness. In our world, he is Lieutenant Frederick Williams. In a world that he escapes to during his recovery from an IED explosion, he is Prince Frederick of Stormwind. I say these are parallel because the happenings within each world coincide with the other, and we are taken through a journey of Frederick's recovery of different kinds.

Frederick is a man of many tragic circumstances. Through life and the war, he has lost his parents, brother, and comrades. Throughout Along the Watchtower, we go alongside him as he attends to the grueling task of overcoming (and realizing) his past and current guilt, shame, and mourning. This is a fantastic painting of a soldier's lament, the heart wrenching ability to overcome many trials not by any means of a weapon, but by means of discovering what lies within himself. We watch him grow and heal throughout the story as he realizes what he is truly responsible for, and what belongs simply to fate.

In the parallel world, Prince Frederick also has tasks to overcome. When we first discover Stormwind, we received word that the King had died. This made Prince Frederick next in line to the throne, however, he must pass several tasks first.

Frederick has to overcome several trials in both worlds, whether physically or emotionally, before moving on with his life. In the real world especially, he has to heal before processing and accepting the loss off his fellow soldiers.

I thought this book was very well done. It grabs the reader by the heart on the first page and doesn't release it until well after you've finished the last one. Frederick may be fictional in this story, but there are many realities hidden within him. I'm sure many of us know them personally through ourselves or our loved ones. Litwack did a beautiful job painting a story for us of life, loss, and mostly, hope. ( )

Along the Watchtower by David Litwack was a book that I didn't think I would get into but I read it in a few hours of starting it. I am not sure what to even write in this review because this book is so far from what I usually read that I am still trying to process it and figure out it all. This book combines the gaming world with the "real" world. I think part of the reason I loved this book was the fact that my brother plays World of Warcraft and I have played it before as well so I understood the gaming parts of the book. If you love sci-fi books you will love this book and if you are a player of WOW you will eat this book up!

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. ( )

An IED explosion in Iraq ends the war for Lieutenant Freddie Williams, leaving his mind and body shattered. Once a skilled gamer and expert in virtual and real warfare, he emerges from a medically induced coma to discover he’s inhabiting two separate realities. The first is his waking world of pain, family trials, and remorse for living when his friends are dead. The second is a dark fantasy realm of quests, demons, and magic that Freddie enters when he sleeps. In his dreams, he is Frederick, Prince of Stormwind, who (after his father’s death) must survive horrific visions in order to save his embattled kingdom from the monstrous Horde. While in the conscious world, the severely wounded vet faces a strangely similar and equally perilous mission—a journey along a dark road haunted by demons of guilt and family ghosts that must be put to rest.

This is a trial by ordeal that readers will appreciate on several levels. The outer physical journey to recovery and the inner spiritual road to victory play out with the two worlds merging perfectly. Items from Freddie’s reality become hauntingly evocative icons in his dream world. Author David Litwack has an almost poetic approach to the fantasy level that contrasts sharply with the gritty, real world Freddie struggles (and almost gives up) within. I like this interesting contrast and in a way, the two levels are part of the great game of life that Freddie must win. But will he win, one wonders? His mind is haunted by demons; his body is struggling from the extent of his injuries. In his reality, he undergoes slow rehabilitation with Becky, his physical therapist. In the dream kingdom, he finds comfort in the royal gardens, where the gentle words of the beautiful gardener, Rebecca, calm the storms in his soul. Can he retrieve his original purpose in life? Will the demons of both worlds win?
The title is part of a poem by Bob Dylan and captures the essence of the story. This is a great read and the author’s skill in building both worlds with gifted imagery becomes apparent as the story draws the reader in. I really enjoyed it. Highly recommended. ( )