THE LIBERATORS Winter 1943. WWII is full blown. USAAF B-17 Flying Fortress pilot, Capt. Andrew Walters who has an unstoppable drive and undeterred command of leadership, flies his crew through horrific missions over Germany and Austria to slow the surge of the Luftwaffe and liberate people from the devastation of Hitler's Third Reich. In this fast-paced debut novel, German Luftwaffe burst through clouds at 12 o'clock with blinding sun preceding them, unleashing their weapons on an out gunned-out maneuvered-overloaded B-17 on one of three treacherous missions to destroy ball bearing plants over Germany. Capt. Walters leads his crew through torturous flak, 8mm guns peppering the Flying Fortress, and 20mm cannons barreling through the plane while holding a steady course toward their initial point to release bombs on German targets. A web of bloody human debris splayed across the B-17's windshield-an eyeball stares back at them. During his thirty-month journey, Capt. Walters is determined to become the man his perfectionist father can be proud of-a man alone in his secret plight, his leadership would turn frightened, petrified, ashen boys into men. Along the way, the Captain falls in love with a spirited Red Cross nurse from his hometown. She rescues an orphaned toddler and becomes extremely attached creating multiple problems as a result. The pilot's family in Fayetteville, North Carolina, suffers tremendously when their son becomes Missing in Action. Rarely does a WWII novel deal with the fears of its airmen or take you back home where the families cope by serving their country in other ways while their men fight for freedom for all. The Liberators covers it all.
About the Author: Jerri Gibson McCloud spent the most part of her youth living outside of Washington, DC where history and politics flourished, and later she grew to love history and became an avid researcher. A genealogy investigation into her roots uncovered a history of great, great, great grandfathers who fought in historical wars and survived countless adventures. Historical research became an addiction that produced stories about the Revolutionary War and various others about early historical times published in numerous anthologies. A relative who lived many of the events in McCloud's debut novel, The Liberators, was her inspiration. McCloud served two years as President of the prestigious Charlotte Writers' Club and six years on the CWC Board bringing the Club into the digital world. She taught a multi-genre writing group for nine years along with a novel writing group for three years. Her love of stories started at a young age when 'make believe' was her world.