The Trail Through Hell

by J. Scott Payne

Narrowly surviving the opening battle for New Guinea, Master Sergeant Jim Mays is hospitalized in Australia to recover from jungle rot, malaria and shrapnel wounds. By accident he meets a war industry worker grieving the loss of her fiancé. Mays, Suzanne and Suzanne’s 9-year-old ward strike up a friendship, each helping the others cope with the sorrow of their wartime losses. Romance begins to flourish between the two adults, but must go on hold when an odd-ball hero recruits Jim and two comrades. Their mission is to train and lead volunteers in a secret reconnaissance unit operating behind Japanese lines. Their captain, a German by birth and a decorated U.S. Army hero, teaches them how to survive the jungle during long-term reconnaissance operations. They also learn to defeat Japanese tactics. They put their training to use first in the continuing New Guinea campaign, probing Japanese supply lines, ambushing outposts and disrupting enemy communications. They move on to employ those same tactics in the even more hostile environments of Leyte and Luzon in the Philippine Islands. Though the recon unit usually outmaneuvers the enemy, combat against superior numbers sometimes is unavoidable. Mays suffers the steady loss of buddies and eventually even his commander. The survivors carry on through the final – and most brutal and costly -- stages of the conflict which continues for weeks even after Japan officially surrenders.

Genres: Historical Fiction

311 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 6, 2018

About the author

I grew up in Kansas City and am a product of the William Allen White School of Journalism at the University of Kansas. After interning at the Kansas City Star, I did 1.3 hitch in the Army in Korea, Vietnam and -- worst of all -- Washington, D.C.

I returned to journalism but, tired of tropical weather, moved to Michigan where I've lived ever since, during that time doing graduate work at the University of Michigan.

Though retired now, I've been unable to stop writing. My first novel, A Corporal No More, will arrive on Kindle soon and I'm well underway on a second book.

Reviews

[Linda Watkins · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Trail Through Hell is the third novel in J. Scott Payne’s World War II Trilogy. This novel continues where the last one, The Green Hell, left off with Master Sergeant Jim Mays recuperating from his experiences in New Guinea. He’s a patient at a hospital in Australia and, as he heals from wounds both physical and psychological, he meets a young Aussie woman whom he begins to court. This sweet romance does more to sooth his spirit than any medicine could and he soon finds himself back in training – this time to go behind enemy lines as General MacArthur prepares to re-take the Philippines.

As in his previous novels, the author pulls no punches here. War is a dirty business and you’ll find no John Wayne romanticizing in Payne’s work. Jim and his buddies must battle not only the Japanese, who never surrender, but also the climate and terrain of the Philippine Islands. Payne’s description of the battle-weary soldiers is poignant as well as graphic as he leads us on a dangerous journey that continues even after the war is over.

This is another stellar read. Payne is meticulous. A former reporter, he pays attention to detail and strives always to be historically correct. The Trail Through Hell is a compelling novel and is a “must read” for WWII aficionados and those like me whose fathers and grandfathers lived through the final days of the war with the Japanese.

Highly recommended. Five big, bright, shiny stars.

[Carole Kuentz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Moving

Very informing. Being an avid reader and only being a child during this war it interest me. Today warfare is different,from the war of my generation, Vietnam to Desert Storm and on it seems the powers that be didn't learn anything. So easy to sit in Washington and sacrifice are young .

[nicholas m. lacetera · Rating 5 out of 5]

W must read!

I believe that this novel is a must read for all of the young American men and women who have never seen the brutality of war. We forget easily what a generation of young men and women went thru so that we can enjoy life and family. Thank you for your service!! Nick

[Kerri Carr-Luce · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another solid read

This is a great book, great character and really well done. I can’t imagine what these men and women endured to accomplish what they did and this writer makes it really come to life.

[Chaplain Stanley Chapin · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lot of head to head combat

This book truly described the he'll the most combat veterans went through, and it does not take PHD in psychiatry to understand what it does to a normal humanoids.

[Bill Barnes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very realistic.

Extremely informative and a enjoyable education. It seems the famous General was a class A ego maniac. Three more words

[Audrey Haugen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Japan surrenders.

It may have been fictional but author must have had a lot of first hand information to make it sound as if he was actually there.