Author Interview with Holleigh Rae about "Eagle, Force Recon Series Book One"
- Apollo Imperium
- Nov 11, 2025
- 5 min read
We had the pleasure of interviewing Holleigh Rae, author of "Eagle", the "Force Recon Series" Book One. We asked her where she drew her inspiration from, what the book is about, and what some of the most important themes in her book were, and she told us about her faith as a christian, her pride in being a country girl, her own personal experience with having close ones in the army and how she did research on the types of missions that the Marine Force Recon do.
"Eagle" is set to release 11/27, but preorders are already open.
Q: Tell us a bit about yourself! Who are you, how did you get into writing, which work of yours are you most proud of?
A: I am a proud Christian, daughter, mother, wife, and grandmother. I live in southern Mississippi and am a proud country girl. I got into writing because I love to read and it helps me work through my emotions about hard to face issues in my life.
Q: What’s the book about? Tell us where the story takes us.
A: Eagle, Force Recon Series Book One. I wrote this book in the early 2000s when my brother was deployed after 9/11/01 to the Middle East with the Marine Corps. This book is mostly in its raw form because I wanted the feelings of when I wrote it to shine through.
Q: What are the most important themes you wanted to get out into the world with this book? Did you struggle to incorporate them into the writing?
A: I want people to realize that not only the soldiers suffer when they are deployed, yes I know that they suffer the most, but the people that are left behind suffer as well. They are constantly anxious about their loved ones.
Q: How long did it take you to write this book? Did you grow in your writing during this time?
A: It took me 8 years to finish this book but I didn’t publish it under Holleigh Rae until just recently. I finished this book in 2009. I released it back then with a crappy publisher and bought my rights back several years ago so that I could release it again.
Q: The usual question is, of course, why people should read your book. We’ll get to that later, but why would you read your book, if you hadn’t written it?
A: I love military romance and read everything that I get my hands on that is released when I can afford it. I love the Primary Genres: Military Romance, Christian Suspense, Small Town Romance, Second Chance Romance and Key Tropes: Protective Hero (Lifelong Protector), Childhood Sweethearts, Hurt/Comfort, Found Family (Deeply Intertwined Siblings), and Faith & War.
Q: So… Why should people read your book?
A: I poured my heart and soul into this book to help me through a very trying time in my life. My younger brother and I were very close. If people like the genres and tropes that I listed above then this book is definitely for them.
Q: Are there any characters that you wrote parts of yourself into? Or did you detach yourself from the story to write from an entirely different perspective?
A: I believe Kris and Mama Lee have some parts of me in them. My little brother was like a son to me and I know what it was like for her to have children deployed. I also know how Kris feels for Josh to be deployed.
Q: Are there any scenes or plot points you cut out because they just didn’t work?
A: Actually, yes. I took out the spicy parts while writing it because I wanted it to be more Christian romance to have an impact on more people.
Q: Where did you draw inspiration from, when you were looking for outside inspiration? Did you do a lot of research? Did you look for pictures with the right vibe?
A: Yes, I did a lot of research on the types of missions that the Marine Force Recon teams do. I didn’t find much, but I did find some and then let my imagination run with the rest. I also researched Washington,DC, Jacksonville, NC and Camp Lejuene. Even though I had been to both places I really wanted to get everything right.
Q: Rapid fire word association. One word (yes, you’re allowed more for titles) to describe your book for different topics. Here we go. 1: song, 2: different book, 3: color, 4: meal or food, 5: weather type, 6: environment (forest, cinema, kitchen, etc.), 7: mood.
A: Song: American Soldier.
Color: red.
Meal: chicken fried steak, mashed potatoes, and gravy.
Weather: sunny and hot.
Environment: beach/desert
Q: Is there anything else you’d like to tell us about you or your book?
A: I am a huge believer in supporting the military. I come from a military family. I had uncles, and cousins in every branch of the military.
Q: Lastly, where can people find you and your book?
A: Amazon
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