This was a powerful and difficult read. Sam lives in Elk Grove, Minnesota, it's the depression and his family has lost their farm. Sam joins the National Guard for the money but then the United States enters the war and he is sent to the Philippines. In the meantime, his high school sweetheart goes to college for mathematics and is recruited by the Navy and becomes a code breaker.

Sam was a hero but not the only one. His fellow prisoners include a priest, Father Tom, who is always there to help his men. Pete Chavez kept everyone's spirit up with his jokes and optimism and there were others.

For a woman to have a masters in mathematics was quite rare. I wish the story showed a bit more of her side and the relationships she had with the others she worked with but that is a tiny flaw. The writing never lagged and even with three authors the prose was seamless.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Lake Union for providing me with a digital copy.

Never disappoints. This stand alone was an excellent story is remarkably current. Always a pleasure to read a well written book, learning the history of my country.

Buy it, red it, listen to it, get from library or borrow from a friend. It is a great book to start your 2025 reading adventure.

A highly compelling and engaging WW2 story about young sweethearts Sam and Sarah, whose life plans are thrown into disarray by Sam’s deployment to the Far East and Sarah’s maths and language skills get her a top secret job in code breaking, specialising in Japanese code breaking. This fictional tale is based on true events which are powerfully told in Sam’s story and the people he comes across as he tries to escape from the Japanese. Not the usual fare from Robert Dugoni, and I am interested in the input of his co-writers as this is a well-structured and brilliant example of storytelling at its best - in other words it doesn’t come across as having been written by a committee!

Thanks to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book.

A gripping tale of perseverance, family loyalty, and the unyielding strength of the human spirit. Set against the backdrop of the Pacific Northwest, this deeply immersive novel intertwines historical and contemporary timelines to deliver a story that is both heart-wrenching and inspiring.

The narrative centers on Colin, a modern-day commercial fisherman struggling to keep his family’s business afloat, and his ancestor, Owen, a sailor in the 19th century who battles the harsh realities of life at sea. Dugoni masterfully weaves these parallel stories together, showing how the threads of legacy and determination transcend time. The vivid descriptions of the unforgiving ocean and the emotional depth of the characters pull the reader into a world where survival means resilience and sacrifice.

What sets Hold Strong apart is Dugoni’s ability to balance the historical elements with personal drama. The characters feel achingly real, their challenges relatable even in their distinct eras. The book is a celebration of grit, the bonds of family, and the power of hope, making it both an engaging read and a meaningful one.

For fans of stories that explore generational struggles and triumphs with emotional authenticity, Hold Strong is a must-read. Dugoni once again proves he’s a master storyteller who knows how to tug at the heartstrings while keeping readers on the edge of their seats.

Thank you Lake Union Publishing and NetGalley for this advance copy for my honest, voluntary review.

#HoldStrong #NetGalley

I rarely give 5 stars for any book, but I can’t find anything I didn’t like! I’ve read a bunch of Dugoni books in the past but this may be my favorite. I do understand he usually writes mystery. The story was very interesting as I find the Japanese portion of WWII is less told. I found all the authors did extensive research to get the facts right. I would highly recommend and thank Netgalley for an advanced copy. Well done! I hope he writes more Historical fiction in the future!!!

A Story Of American POWs Suffering And Code Breakers Working

This novel starts in 1944 in the Port of Manila. The Japanese are loading 1,800 POWs onto the Arisan Maru. While boarding, a POW, Sam, and a priest noticed that there was not a Red Cross on the ship, designating it as carrying non-military cargo. The ship's hold into which the POWs were being directed was a hell of muggy, stifling heat with the familiar, horrific stench of sweating bodies, excrement, soiled clothes, vomit, and diesel fumes from the ship’s engines. The POW choked back vomit and waved at swarms of flies. Beneath him, men moaned in agony, cried out for water, and pleaded for air.

This novel starts with one thread: Two high school sweethearts, Sam and Sarah, struggle to make choices in life and love nine years into a devastating depression. While they want to stay together, the pending war separates them. Sam was shipped to the Philippines in mid-1941 and stationed on the Bataan Peninsula. Soon after the Japanese invade the Philippines, he is captured and becomes a prisoner of war. He survives the Bataan Death March, the horrors of Camp O’Donnell, and finally, a voyage on a hell Maru heading back to more secure Japanese territory. The second thread follows Sarah as she volunteers for an unacknowledged effort to break the Japanese Naval Code. She succeeds spectacularly. She joins a group in Hawaii and focuses on decrypting and translating messages on the statuses of the Japanese Marus. U.S. submarines used this information to sink these cargo ships to strangle Japanese armed forces of needed supplies. While this is a work of historical fiction, the unimaginable horrors that the POWs endured are well documented. While reading, I researched the Arisan Maru to know what was in store. Even knowing this, I was riveted to continue to read. This is such a compelling story.

The actions of Sam and Sarah throughout the novel demonstrate their well-defined characters. Their personal sides are seen both when they are together and while they are separated. Sarah had to make hard choices that could affect Sam’s survival, and Sam’s choices always had a chance of immediate death. Sarah’s relationship with Captain Russell was quite poignant. It adds a touch of sadness that occurs in human life. There is also a C-storyline in the novel. The lives of two teenagers, tempered by the flames of war, became very mature, and they made mature decisions at the end of the novel. These aspects of the novel enhanced my reading enjoyment.

For the three aspects of a novel that can trouble some readers, there are some here. There are not any intimate scenes, only a few necking scenes. The primary issue is the very graphic depiction of the depravities that the POWs had to endure. This novel can be disturbing because while the work is fiction, what occurred is well documented. This novel ends at just under 80% of its length. The rest contains a selected bibliography and notes documenting various events, a treasure trove of information in and of itself.

My major issue with this novel occurred in the novel’s chapters involving the USS Shark. It really needed editing by someone familiar with submarine operations. I counted eleven inconsistencies that are impossible to occur on a submarine. I believe that these were to heighten the tension of the scene. It may not be noticeable if the reader is unfamiliar with submarine operations, especially WW II boats. I really liked the inclusion of a biography and notes. I also discovered that one of the POWs on the Arisan Maru was an actual POW on that ship and was one of seven survivors of the ship’s sinking. He and others escaped as the fictionalized Sam did. Another nice nitoid was the telling of discovery by a recognizance aircraft flying out of Clark Field discovering a line of buoys from Manila Bay that pointed to a Japanese-held island. This is a true event.

If you are interested in reading stories about World War II, I highly recommend this novel. Even with my issues, I rate it five stars.

I received this novel's free prepublication e-book version through NetGalley from Union Lake Publishing. My review is based solely on my own reading experience. Thank you, Union Lake Publishing, for the opportunity to read and review this novel early.

I received an arc from Brilliance Audio along with an ebook from Lake Union. The narrator was spectacular. He brought the emotions out in this story. Made you feel all of the characters laughs and tears. The pain. The sadness. And the love between the main two characters. It was narratorated to perfection.

This is my second book by Robert Dugoni. The first being Sam Hell. This book is another great one. But a very emotional story. It's fiction based on actual events. Events that I have never read before. I've read only a couple of books based on the Japanese during WWll but none like this one. None where you see what happened to POWs held by these very cruel and heartless people. The Japanese soldiers were some of the most cruel and horrible I've read and this one no different. Such horrors. I'll never understand how anyone can have so much hate in them. Or inflict such pain on helpless human beings.

This is a story of two young people who fell in love while still in high school. Both looking forward to spending the rest of their lives together. Both wanting to go to college and make a life. But the war had other plans. Sam joined the National Guard hoping to do something useful and be able to afford college. Sarah received a scholarship to college. During Sam's time in the National Guard he and fellow guardsmen had to serve their country full time. The world was at war. Pearl Harbor had been bombed. These young men were terrified but also ready to do their part.

When the unit that Sam served in was captured and they became POWs in the Philippines. Sarah decided she could not sit still and do nothing. Her and other women had been offered a place in Washington to break the codes the Japanese were sending. Sarah was very good at code breaking. She had no idea how much this would affect Sam and the other men held captive aboard a Japanese ship.

You get a very in depth feel for what the men in this POW camp endured. What happened while aboard the Arisan Maru will make you cry. Weep. Cringe. It was horrible and so hard to read about. What happened next was even harder. What the US did was awful in my opinion. Yes I understand that it was part of war and may have saved lives. May have brought about the end to this horrible war, but it was still awful and so sad.

Will Sam and Sarah be able to come together. Marry and be happy. Or will the things that happened be more than either can live with. As with most historical books this one made it so real. Made me shed so many tears. Made me angry. I rooted for the love story to find a happy ending. Whether it does or not you will have to find out for yourself.

There is a lot at the end of this book about the events that happened. The actual events. While it's fiction, it is strongly based on events that really happened. About a time in history that was beyond horrible.

Thank you #NetGalley, #LakeUnion, #BrillianceAudio, for this ARC.

Five big stars.

This is historical fiction at its finest. This book is reminiscent of some of the great historical nonfiction books by the author, Erik Larson, except that the main characters in this story are fictional. However, because the research for this book is so extensive, as evidenced by the bibliography, the blending together of fiction and nonfiction is seamless. It's also not apparent that there are actually three authors who wrote this book. The flow is so smooth.

The scenes of torture and cruelty that POWs suffered at the hands of the Japanese seemed so real. With the fight for survival at the core of each man's existence, the atrocities that they endured were laid bare on the pages. The outrageous treatment that the men experienced was inhumane and the telling was quite graphic and disturbing. Nevertheless, I don't know how the authors could have been true to the story without revealing what actually went on.

This is an amazing story of endurance, resilience, survival, and the power of faith, hope, and love. Fans of WWII fiction or nonfiction as well as fans of Robert Dugoni and/or Erik Larson are going to love this book. My sincere thanks to Lake Union Publishing and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read a DRC of this fabulous book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

To say thank you to Net Galley and Lake Union Publishing for this ARC of Hold Strong is simply inadequate to the valuable piece of work that Dugoni, Langholz and Crabtree have produced. However, thank you it is along with my review.

I have read many of Robert Dugoni's books, both his series and stand alones. Without sounding like a crazed fan or an virtual stalker, I must admit I await his new books with all the patience I can muster. Not much! This book, Hold Strong, kind of snuck up on me and my brother read it before I had the chance. His one sentence response was, "I liked it, but it's not my favorite." I think The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell holds that place in his heart. So Hold Strong languished on my TBR for longer than it might have otherwise. However, over the course of five days, I placed myself in the shoes of Sam and Sarah and read this book. Great is the most inadequate, over-used, lacking word I can find to describe the experience, but it was all that and "a bag of chips" as they used to say.

I have read a lot of historical fiction about WWII. In fact, I recently read another book about this same time and events, The Long March Home by Marcus Brotherton and Tosca Lee, which I felt was a superlative work on these horrific events. While both were clearly done with great attention to detail and a monumental amount of research, Hold Strong was the stronger (no pun intended) book, in my opinion. I have never seen a book so carefully and completely annotated as this one. It gives a level of authenticity and credibility lacking in some other pieces of historical fiction.

The pre-war story of Sam and Sarah, each of their war efforts, and contributions were depicted with heart and reality. Neither was spared attention when the spotlight turned to their POV. I enjoyed both perspectives. I also felt very connected to Sam's tank and POW buddies. They, too, got the attention they deserved and held their own in the book. All heroes!

I applaud all three of you, Mr. Dugoni, Mr. Langholz, and Mr. Crabtree for a job well done on what is clearly an underrepresented field of battle during WWII. Pat on the back, to Robert Dugoni, once again for a job well done. He keeps going to his well of talent and sharing the wealth with us.

This amazing retelling of what transpired in the Pacific Theater of World War Two made me angry, so angry but equally sad and beyond horrified at Man’s inhumanity. When I think of the atrocities of WWII my immediate thought turns to Hitler and his deranged henchmen, which is easily attributed to the plethora of books regarding the European front. Not having read nearly as much about the the engagement in the Pacific, I admit to being ignorant of “The Japanese Hell Ships”. Ignorant that the Japanese refused to embrace the tenets and conditions of the Geneva Convention. After finishing this book I was left in emotional shambles. I had nightmares. How were these brave soldiers left behind? How did any survive?

There is a basic down home attitude and a wartime love story that meanders throughout which helps to give the story meaning and gravitas. The role of women in the war effort is highlighted in many chapters and loud applause to the authors for shining the light. The conundrum of how to play the wargame, who to believe, who to save, who to sacrifice, was well told yet hard to accept. The character depiction, from the protagonist to his fellow soldiers, officers, capturers and torturers was so believable to incite real emotions, first disbelief, then abject sorrow, then rage and hatred. The inclusion and insertion of humor fitted each situation and gave necessary relief.

The collaboration by the three authors was perfection, as was the research and attention to the books listed in the bibliography. So many thanks to Lake Union Publishing via NetGalley for an advance copy.

To tell a story is one thing. To tell a story that captures the essence of Man's inhumanity to Man is quite another.

Raw, blistering and almost unbearable in its account, Hold Strong lifts the heavy curtain of time and reveals an unspeakable chapter in the war brutalities upon the innocent.

I am stunned. With hands to my face and eyes pressed shut, I cannot even fathom what I have just read. Robert Dugoni and fellow authors follow eye witness accounts and have sifted through tons of impeccable research. (I must admit that I went to a Veterans website for backstories on these accounts myself.) Dugoni doesn't fabricate here. The horror is real. Deadly real.

The calm before the storm takes place in little known Eagles Grove, Minnesota where we will meet Sam Carlson and his girlfriend, Sarah Haber. It's May of 1938 and America is still bogged down by the Great Depression that started in 1929. Families have lost their farms. Small businesses have gone under. People didn't have two dimes to rub together.

Newly graduated high school sweethearts seem to plan a future that will propel them in a vastly different direction in the coming years. Sam has joined the National Guard. It's then that Pearl Harbor has been hit by the Japanese. Sam is shipped to Manila Harbor in the Philippines. By March of 1942, General Douglas MacArthur abandons the Philippines and the men are ordered to surrender. Japan will have a heavy leg up on the forces of the Allies.

In the meantime, Sarah finishes her degree in advanced mathematics. She teaches high school for a semester, but her eyes turn to the war effort. She leaves for Washington, D.C. and joins the Waves. It is here that Sarah will become a cryptologist with privy information that will have a profound impact on what is happening in the South China Sea.......so much so that it will leave an ugly stain of deception on America for years to come.

Dugoni and his co-authors will shine a light on the Bataan Death March and the POW encampments held by the Japanese. Although a work of fiction, shockingly, there are real individuals threaded throughout this novel. We will meet Father Tom who ministered to these POW's with intense bravery and compassion. Accounts have been checked and double checked as experienced through pages and pages of historical facts at the end of this novel. That in itself is jaw-dropping.

Hold Strong will not be for everyone. But if you are a truth seeker, you can't help but pick this one up. You will walk alongside those POW's devastated by starvation and brutal treatment. It's an opportunity to learn something that boggles the mind and tears at the heart. Hold Strong publishes 1/28/25.

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley for an honest review. My thanks to Lake Union Publishing and to the talented Robert Dugoni, Jeff Langholz, and Chris Crabtree for the opportunity.

My thanks to Lake Union Publishing and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read ‘Hold Strong’ written by Robert Dugoni in collaboration with Jeff Langholz and Chris Crabtree, in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

Sam Carlson and Sarah Haber are high school sweethearts brought up in Eagle Grove, Minnesota. Sam joins The National Guard to fight the Japanese while Sarah, wanting to do more for her country than stay in Eagle Grove and teach, moves to Washington to take up a top-secret Government job. This is the story of events that happened in their lives during the years 1938 to 1946.

‘Hold Strong’ is a story recreated from unbelievably horrific true events that occurred during WWII and tells of the atrocities committed by the Japanese who refused to accept the Geneva Convention. It was heartbreaking to read of the horrendous treatment suffered at their hands by the 1,800 American POWs who were forced into the Arisan Maru prison ship where they were given limited rations and a spoonful of water a day with very few surviving. Although the events were true the characters were fictional but the descriptions were so exceptionally presented that they felt true to life, especially those of Sam, his friend Pete Chavez, Father Tom Scecina and Major Paul Jones. It’s a disturbing story of bravery, heroism and enduring love that had me gripped from page one and was impossible to put down. I’m so glad I was given the opportunity to read it.

READ THIS!

Robert Dugoni writes a heartbreaking historical fiction story, based on true events that occurred during WWII. His story follows 2 sweethearts, Sam who is sent over seas to fight the Japanese and Sarah, his girlfriend who is left behind to figure out how she can support the war efforts.

Dugoni does such a good job giving this story a fast pace. I liked the short chapters, and the duel pov's. Sam's story is inspiring and heartbreaking but when you mix Sarah's heroic story in there too - this book has it all. I audibly cheered and gasped throughout the story.

I did not know much about the history of the Arisa Maru and this story had me pausing and doing a little side research - I love that it does that for readers not familiar with this part of history.

Seriously, read this one!!!

Thank you to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for the ARC, all opinions are my own.

Wow! Robert Dugoni (with 2 others) has done it again! Having read most, if not all, of his books, I can state this is his best by far! This is a novel of historical fiction based on real events and a true story. The story begins in the depression days of the late 1930s with Sam and Sarah — teenage sweethearts — and takes us through World War II and their experiences. It is an emotional roller coaster with details that are hard to imagine including those atrocities committed by the Japanese throughout the islands in the Pacific. This reader could not put the book down despite the fact that there was a constant lump in my throat and tears streaming down my face. I cannot recommend this book highly enough and thank NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for the opportunity to read this novel in exchange for an honest review.

This book is an amazing work of fiction based on historical events just before, and years after, Pearl Harbor and the war. I have read other books by this author, and this story is a completely different direction for him, and one that I am in awe of.

It tells the story of Sam, a farmer’s son during the Depression. His family subsisted on very little, as did many of citizens at that time. Desperate to be good enough for his girlfriend Sarah, Sam joins the Army Reserve, only to find his unit conscripted to the war effort.

The book follows Sam and his fellow Army brothers through some of the very worst conditions a person could endure, and many couldn’t. I have no doubt that the treatment the US military personnel received at the hands of the Japanese is accurately described. It is heartbreaking, not for the faint of heart. This is one of those stories that will stay with you long after “the end”.

Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book, but my opinions are my own.

*4-4.5 stars

This is really quite some story about experiences during WWII, bringing to light especially Japanese hell ships on which POWs were loaded and kept under extremely inhumane conditions. The high death toll was just incredible!

The two main characters were very well written--so smart and brave, loyal and true. Sam Carlson and Sarah Haber were high school sweethearts in Eagle Grove, Minnesota in 1938, before the war effort swept them up and changed life as they knew it forever.

So many scenes of the novel are very hard to read, knowing that soldiers and civilians really went through these things and worse. Hard to imagine how the survivors could pick up the strings of their lives afterwards and carry on. I deducted maybe 1/2 a star for what I felt were way too many 'miracles,' stretching credulity. I kind of hoped for a more realistic ending.

Many thanks to the authors and publisher for providing me with an arc of this new novel. My review is voluntary and the opinions expressed are my own.

Hold Strong by Robert Dugoni, Jeff Langholz, and Chris Crabtree is a stark reminder of the atrocities the Japanese committed on the American prisoners of war and almost more importantly a reminder of the sorts of regimes that attract sociopaths. It is a beautiful, if gruesome, piece of historical fiction, the likes of which should be read regularly simply so we don’t forget. Sam Carson was a skinny kid from Eagle Grove, Minnesota, who enlisted in the National Guard at the beginning of World War II. He did it for the money, to be honest. His family had lost their farm and in the midst of the Depression there were no jobs. They were barely hanging on. He already worked several jobs, earning a pittance, but this one could be better. He had a girlfriend, Sarah Haber, who for a date night would come and sit with him the projection booth at the local movie theatre and share a Coke and popcorn. Neither of them anticipated what their futures would hold.

This story is factual, within the confines of historical fiction. Some of the numbers and locations are off, but the rest remains accurate and frightening. Sam made several good friends during his three years incarcerated and one serious enemy. Sarah made two good friends, and many acquaintances as she navigated the world of code breaking. The reader enjoyed the highs and suffered the lows with both of them, and there were many. For Sam, it was mostly lows. This is a well-written, well-documented book about a horrendous time in world history, showing just how low humans can sink and how much fortitude they can display.. It behooves us to hear the message and use it to avoid this from happening again. I enjoyed every minute of this book, as full of joy as it was of gravitas.

I was invited to read Hold Strong by Lake Union Publishing. All thoughts and opinions are mine. #Netgalley #LakeUnionPublishing #RobertDugoni #JeffLangholz #ChrisCrabtree #HoldStrong

I love when authors I like to read surprise me and this one did. It was well done in character development and bringing us back to history that is not well known. I have heard that the war with the Japanese was very brutal. Like all wars, it dehumanizes men, women and children. This story was well researched based on friendly fire on a Japanese boat with POW's. This story is told in two narrations. Sam Carlson and Sarah Haber are high school sweethearts. Both have dreams but it is the war that puts their dreams on hold. Sam Carlson was the jock of their small town in Minnesota. Not far from Brainerd Minnesota that I am very familiar with. Sarah is smart, beautiful and outspoken. She is on her way to College to get a masters in math. I enjoyed getting to know them before the war changed them.

Sam's story is difficult to read because of the abuse he suffered as a POW and not knowing if he would survive. Sarah I enjoyed reading because she was a go getter. She was recruited to serve in a top secret decoding program. As she moved up, she became part of bringing Sam home.

Their story brings to light the horrors of wars and the human spirit. It answers the question how we must have hope when all hope is lost. I highly recommend.

A special thank you to Lake Union Publishing and Netgalley for the ARC and the opportunity to post an honest review.

This is a compelling and unflinching portrayal of life during WWII - especially an aspect of which I have not read before: POWs aboard Japanese “hell ships.” The story has moments of incredible darkness and brutality, but is also buoyed by characters who bring hope and humor. Pete Chavez and Father Tom were my favorite characters, but so many figures in the novel displayed nuance and determination that made me really appreciate this book. Characters had to make many tough decisions, making this book not only engaging historical fiction but also good food for thought.

The balance between fact and creative license is excellent. Indeed, one of the best aspects of the book is the rich trove of historical information after the narrative ends.

Though the story wasn’t a perfect five-star read for me due to a few anachronistic phrases and some “telling” instead of “showing” in the writing, I’m rounding my 4.5 stars up to 5. Like the story of Louis Zamperini or Desmond Doss, the stories of Sarah, Sam, and his fellow POWs will stay with me for a long time.

Thank you to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for the free eARC. I post this review with my honest opinions.

Firstly I would like to thank the publishers and author for giving me the opportunity to read this brilliant book. It has to be the best books I have read in 2024, There is everything in this book, romance, suspense, sadness, surprises and mist of all reflection of what happened and the history that made us and the awful experiences that the POWs experienced.
I would highly recommend this book it will drag you in and not let go and even when you have finished it will stay with you