Kindle Edition Amazon Ronald Yates Books, Ltd. Amazon Category:  Action/Thriller Publisher: Xlibris ISBN-10:  1514490129 Type: Fiction Pages: 406 Copyright: July 7, 2016 ISBN-13: 9781310179990 Price: $5.99 (eBook) As Book 2 of the Finding Billy Battles trilogy opens Billy is far from his Kansas roots—and his improbable journeys are just beginning. It is 1894 and he is aboard an ocean liner sailing to the Mysterious East (Hong Kong, French Indochina, and the Philippines), among other places. Along the way Billy meets a mysterious, dazzling, and possibly dangerous German Baroness and locks horns with malevolent agents of the German government. Later, he is inadvertently embroiled in the bloody anti-French insurgency in Indochina–which makes him the first American combatant in a country that eventually will become Vietnam.  Billy Battles is definitely not in Kansas anymore.   As Book 2 of the Finding Billy Battles trilogy opens, Billy is far from his Kansas roots—and his improbable journeys are just beginning. He is aboard an ocean liner sailing to the Mysterious East (Hong Kong, French Indochina, and the Philippines), among other places.    The year is 1894 and aboard the S S China Billy meets a mysterious, dazzling, and possibly dangerous German Baroness, locked horns with malevolent agents of the German government, and battled ferocious Chinese and Malay pirates in the South China Sea. Later, he is inadvertently embroiled in the bloody anti-French insurgency in Indochina–which quite possibly makes him the first American combatant in a country that eventually will become Vietnam.  Later, in the Philippines, he is thrust into the Spanish-American War and the anti-American insurgency that follows. But Billy’s troubles are just beginning. As the 19th century ends and the 20th century begins, he finds himself entangled with political opportunists, spies, revolutionaries and an assortment of malevolent and dubious characters of both sexes. How will Billy handle those people and the challenges they present?      () Excerpt We both stood at the ship’s railing in awkward silence for a few moments. I was waiting for Katharina to explain why she wanted to talk to me, but she seemed content to stare out at the glabrous black sea. I resolved not to disrupt whatever reverie had seized her and remained mute. The only sounds were the dull vibrating hum of the ship’s engines and the soft splash of water against the hull as the ship sliced through the ocean. It was about nine thirty, and a full moon irradiated the water with shimmering threadlike streaks of pale light. I found myself stealing quick but meticulous glances at Katharina’s profile silhouetted against the dim running lights of the ship. She stood about five feet ten inches tall, maybe four inches shorter than I was. Her beauty was breathtaking. She seemed perfect in almost every physical feature. Still, it was her personality, her caustic behavior that detracted from that stunning physical beauty. Until I met Katharina Schreiber, I was sure my late Mallie was the most beautiful woman I had ever seen. Of course, Mallie was also beautiful inside where it actually counted. I wasn’t so sure about the widow Schreiber. I was still debating that issue when Katharina at last broke the silence. “Mr. Battles, I need your help.” I was not expecting that. “My help?” “Yes,” she said, her voice quavering. Then she continued. Her words were barely above a whisper. “I don’t want to sound overly histrionic, but it really is a matter of life and death . . . and Deputy Captain Partington informed me that you are a deputy U.S. marshal.” “That’s a bit of a stretch . . . I haven’t worn any kind of badge for years, and even then, I am not sure how legitimate it was.” “But Mr. Partington said you showed him and Captain Kreitz your badge.” I began to explain why I had shown them my U.S. marshal’s badge, but Katharina interjected before I got very far. “Of course, if you aren’t willing to help me, then I shall bid you good evening.” I wondered if she was joking or being facetious about her problem being life or death. After all, I had experienced the widow Schreiber’s razor-sharp cleverness at the dinner table. When I turned to look at her, however, I was met with a face that was obviously distraught. Her lips and chin were trembling, her bright green eyes were damp and glistened brightly in the pale light, and her knuckles were clutching the railing so tightly that they were turning white. “I apologize . . . It’s simply that I didn’t think you meant it for real play.” “I am serious,” she rasped. “This is not a matter of any flippancy.” I didn’t know what to say. I cleared my throat, but my words came out gravelly and dissonant. “Mrs. Schreiber, I did not mean to make light of your, uh, situation.” “What situation?” she demanded, her voice rising sharply. “I haven’t even explained anything yet.” “I am sorry . . . I—” Before I could finish, she held up her hand and shook her head. “No, no, please forgive me. I am sure I sound a bit vague and mysterious.” With that, she placed her hand softly on my arm. It was the first time she had touched me, and I felt an electric tremor as adrenaline surged through my body. My posture went suddenly rigid with legs and arms firmly tensed. I shuddered noticeably. “Are you all right?” she asked, quickly removing her hand from my arm. I covered my mouth with my hand and coughed quietly. “I think I may be coming down with something,” I lied. “Perhaps we should leave this to another time.” “No, it is okay . . . please continue.” We stood there for another five minutes or so, and she related one of the most extraordinary stories I had ever heard. It seems the widow Schreiber had been a bit judicious with the facts at the captain’s table that first night aboard ship. Her German husband had indeed passed on, she was a widow, she had indeed grown up in Chicago of German parentage, and she was on her way to the Philippines to join her brother. That much was true. However, the rest of her story was almost unbelievable. “I am a widow because I killed my husband,” Katharina suddenly declared. Her eyes were focused keenly on me as if looking to see what my reaction to that astounding bit of news might be. I am sure I flinched a bit as her words sunk in. “You, uh, killed your husband . . . ?” Katharina quickly interrupted before I could say more. “Yes . . . but you will note that I told you I killed my husband, not that I murdered him.” “That seems like a rather subtle distinction,” I responded. Katharina was facing me squarely now, her face barely a foot from mine. This time when she spoke, it was in a voice just above a whisper. “You must let me explain now that I have released the genie from the bottle. However, I don’t relish providing details here in the open. May we go to my cabin?”

Great historical fiction of late 1900s
Billy Battles is on his way to Asia looking for answers in his life and the chance to reconnect with friends he made in the previous years. His journey takes him away from his family for a few years, but it puts him deep into espionage, guerrilla warfare, and the turmoil of European colonization of Asia in the late 1800s. It also reflects on the opinions the United States during that time period. There was talk about the American feelings about colonization when it occurred in their own country just over 100 years before. The characters are well developed and the historical fiction is written in a way that you feel it is truly someone's memoir. Either Billy was lucky or unlucky to be in the heart of many conflicts in the few years he journeyed that side of the world. He is a well-rounded character who is approachable to a variety of lifestyles and cultures, but also strong enough to lead and defend his group at a moment's notice. This book may be simple enough for those who are not as well versed in the history or for those who are fascinated with this time period both home and abroad.

Excellent storytelling set against a highly detailed historical background
“The Improbable Journeys of Billy Battles” is the gripping follow-up to Ronald E. Yates’ “Finding Billy Battles.” Through his detailed descriptions and well-paced storytelling, Yates takes his reader to the far-reaching regions of the globe. Beginning in Kansas and journeying to the exotic Philippines and French Indochina, the three-part series chronicles the century-long life of Billy in a factual / fictional way using real events of the period as a setting in a brilliant way.

Told through Billy’s journals, this installment opens with Billy struggling with despair and having left his mother, the parents of his now-deceased wife, and small daughter. Now working as a journalist on a ship heading for the Orient where he meets the beautiful but mysterious widow, the Baroness Katharina von Schreiber. But this is only one little piece of Billy’s story. Billy’s story also includes battles with pirates and Pinkerton men, as well as his daughter’s kidnapping by some Germans, and intriguing friendships with names you might run across in a history book—if history books were only that interesting. This is highly recommended to anyone who loves historical fiction that will immerse you in the era with its attention to detail and historical accuracy. Very nicely done. I was hooked and you will be, too!

An Adventure At Its Finest
I love the use of historical facts within this series but, more than that, I just found the book fun and fascinating overall. It is a great tale of adventure and far off places, and the author does an amazing job of bringing these to life. Additionally, the book works pretty well as a standalone as well. So, you could read it and enjoy it even if you haven’t read the first book in the series.