I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy from Great Escapes Book Tours. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Off The Rails
by Susan Count
Series: Texas Boys Adventure #1
Series Rating:
Published by Hastings Creations Group on August 17, 2026
Setting: Montana
Genres: Middle Grade Action and Adventure
Pages: 146
Format: Kindle, Paperback
Source: Great Escapes Book Tours
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Get Your Copy at: Amazon
After planning a fun experience for a year, two Texas cousins make their first trip to Montana. When their train stalls, the boys leap from it into the white wilderness, beginning a perilous run for their lives.
As a blizzard hits, the boys spend a miserable night trying not to freeze. They struggle along the tracks to find shelter, but a disaster leaves them exposed to the elements and every famished wild creature.
Frustrated by their too-real situation, Davy and Anderson struggle to endure. Instead of vacationers at a wolf sanctuary, they become players in an unplanned survival experience.
Just because your cousin jumps from a train in the wilderness doesn’t mean you should too.
Off the Rails by Susan Count follows two middle school aged boys through the snowy landscape of Montana.
Will the boys get to safety before they freeze?
Their adventure starts with a train ride from Spokane, Washington, into Montana, where they will meet their grandparents. Well, the train stalls, and the boys decide to get off the train, thinking they can make it back onto it. I have to say, after living in Montana, I don’t think I would do what the boys ended up doing just because of some of the stories that you hear about those types of things going wrong so fast. Especially with experienced hikers. I think I do know where the boys were headed with their grandfather, and I think that Davy would have loved it as I did when I visited the place.
Davy and Anderson
Davy is the older cousin, with Anderson only a year younger. He is smart and knows how to survive in the wilderness when he has the right gear. I like Davy and how he tries to handle the situation that they are in to get them both out alive.
Anderson definitely doesn’t use his head on certain things. He, I believe, just likes to play things by ear and goes headfirst into situations. I think Anderson probably has learned his lesson after this adventure. Anderson is a good character, and he has a good heart.
Four Stars
My rating for Off the Rails by Susan Count is four stars. I recommend this book because I think it’s a great read. Another thing I like is that the story gives families an opening to discuss certain things the cousins discover along the path in this book. Ms. Count is a great author.
Texas Boys Adventure
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Thank you for dropping by! I hope you enjoyed this review of Off the Rails by Susan Count.
Until the next time,
Happy Reading!
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About Susan Count
How many twists and turns can one person take before they figure out what they were born to do? Susan Count’s degree is in Applied Science–nothing in that prepared her to write novels for children. But one day, she began to write with no preconceived ideas. No one could have been more astounded than she was when it turned into a middle-grade equine series. As a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, American Christian Fiction Writers, and Texas Association of Authors, she takes the craft of writing seriously and considers revision to be her super-power.
She writes at an antique secretary desk that occupies a glass room with a forest view. Fittingly, it once belonged to the same wise grandmother who introduced Susan to the love of reading via Walter Farley’s horse books. That desk has secret compartments which hold memories, mysteries and story ideas.
Susan is a lifelong equestrian and is owned by a Rocky Mountain Horse. She is convinced that the only thing more delightful than riding the forest trails might be writing horse adventure stories. She invites you to saddle up and ride along.
Reading this book contributed to these challenges:
- 2026 Goodreads RC
- 2026 Middle Grade Reading Challenge
- 2026 Traveling the World
Thank you so much for reading and reviewing. I’m delighted you like the boys.
PS> your link to GR doesn’t connect.
It is correct now.