Book One of the Frozen Freight Series
Frozen Freight:
Iron Reach
Thirty years behind the wheel. One classified mission. A convoy that was never supposed to make it back.
"A deftly crafted novel by veteran truck driver J. R. Elrod, Frozen Freight: Iron Reach is a riveting and detailed story of the endurance, the loyalty, the skill, and the grit it takes to keep the wheels turning when everything freezes over. Frozen Freight: Iron Reach is the first title in a planned Frozen Freight series and an unreservedly recommended pick for both personal reading lists and community library contemporary action/adventure fiction collections."Midwest Book Review · May 2026
Two words. Jason Statham. You need to put this in IMAX.— Retta S., Early Reader · After finishing the book
A note from JR
To everyone who has been waiting
Some loads take longer than the paperwork says they will. This book was one of them.
I am a truck driver. I am a business owner. I am not a novelist. This book took nine months out of my life and there were plenty of nights I wondered if I had any business writing it at all. But I kept going because I wanted to get it right.
Not just right for the guys who have been behind the wheel for thirty years and will know immediately if I got the gear shift wrong or put the wrong trailer under the wrong load. But right for the person who has never once sat in a cab and only knows a truck as that big thing passing them on the interstate.
The book is what I wanted it to be and I am proud of it.
Thank you for sticking with me. It means more than I know how to say.
— JR Elrod
Driver. Business owner. First time novelist.
About the book
A veteran hauler. A frozen convoy.
A mission no one was supposed to survive.
When a team of civilian truckers is tapped to haul classified cargo from Florida to a secret military base in Newfoundland, the miles ahead turn into a gauntlet of storms, sabotage, and sacrifice. Frozen Freight: Iron Reach follows Pops Mercer and his crew as they fight ice, breakdowns, and a threat that is hunting them mile after mile.
This is trucking the hard way. No Hollywood shortcuts. Just real trucking, real weather, and the kind of choices that stay with a driver long after the road ends.
This book is for you if:
- You like stories where blue collar crews get the job done with grit and common sense.
- You want trucking details that feel right because they come from a driver who has done it.
- You enjoy high stakes without losing the heart, humor, and faith that keep people going.
Mercer House Publishing · Mount Pleasant, TX
Sneak peek
Prologue: Steel and Silence
There is a sound a truck makes when the world is still asleep.
Not the engine yet — just the slow tick of cooling metal and the whisper of a night that never really ends. In a yard full of rigs, each one towers quiet in the dark before dawn, and for a moment it's church. The air's thick with diesel settled into the dirt, and the cold cuts through your jacket no matter how many mornings you've done this.
A man learns to breathe different out here, slow, like engine oil before the first turn of the key. Dew beads on the fender. Chrome catches the first hint of light and throws it back lazy, like it's too early to shine.
Folks who've never driven one think big trucks roar to life. They don't. They wake up.
When I bump the starter, she answers with a deep-voiced rumble that climbs through my boots and settles in my ribs. That's not noise — that's heartbeat.
Every man's got a place of worship. Mine's twelve feet tall, painted in road dust, and powered by diesel.
— From Frozen Freight: Iron Reach, Prologue
Where to Buy
Get a signed copy straight from JR, or grab it on Amazon and other retailers worldwide. Released April 27, 2026.
Get a Signed Copy — $30
This is the way I like folks to order. Every copy personally signed and shipped from Mount Pleasant, TX, with free shipping. You get a signed book, and more of the dollar goes straight into the next one.
✍️ GET A SIGNED COPYOr grab it yourself on Amazon or Kobo:
- Buy the Paperback — $18.99 (Amazon)
- 📱 Buy the eBook — $5.99 (Amazon & Kobo)
- Also available in 12+ countries including Australia, Canada, Netherlands, Mexico & Switzerland. The link above sends you to the right store for your country.
Order a signed copy direct from JR. Every copy personally signed and shipped from Mount Pleasant, TX. $30.00 with free shipping included.
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Send $30.00 to @Butch-Elrod and include your full mailing address AND email address in the Venmo note. Shipping is included.
Open Venmo — @Butch-ElrodPlease include your mailing address AND email address with your order so I can confirm your order and let you know when your book ships. Venmo and PayPal: please use the friends and family setting, or add $1.00 to your order to cover processing fees. All copies signed by JR and shipped from Mount Pleasant, TX.
Real trucks. Real weather. Real stakes.
Written by a working trucker and President of BAR Transportation — this story grew out of years behind the wheel, late night load checks, and quiet miles with nothing but the dash lights and the Lord for company.
The Frozen Freight Series continues
Frozen Freight:
The Fifth Dot
"Some loads you don't talk about. Some roads you don't take twice."
Book Two picks up where Iron Reach left off. The crew is back. The cargo is different. The stakes are higher. And some of the loads they are about to haul are not supposed to exist on any manifest.
Signed copies of The Fifth Dot are open for presale on the Fifth Dot page. Get yours reserved and signed straight from JR.
Reader Reviews
What readers are saying
4.8 stars on Amazon across 29 reviews, and a 4.94 average on Goodreads. Real readers, real reactions, and more rolling in every week.
"Two words. Jason Statham. You need to put this in IMAX. I held my breath, I cried, and prayed right along with them. My favorite line in this book, 'Some roads don't end. They wait for you to get back on them with the right people beside you.' JR this IS very special. I can't wait to read the next one."— Retta S., Early Reader
"I am a truckdriver and this book really hit its mark. The scenes hit me just right. All the turmoil he shows is accurate to what we go through day in and day out. It is never the same every day."— Archie S., Truck Driver
"The book was amazing. Don't pass up the first couple of chapters because they're the foundation of the story. A lot of twists and turns throughout the book. You won't want to put it down. A great read. JR did a wonderful job painting me into the picture of the whole journey. I can't wait for book 2 in the series."— Kim H., First Signed Copy Reader
Already read it? Leave a review.
Your review on Amazon is the single biggest thing that helps other readers find this book. It takes two minutes and it means the world. Truckers, drivers, and folks who love a real story, they trust reviews. Yours could be the one that puts the book in someone else's hands.
Thanks for keeping me rolling.
— JR
Latest Updates
What's happening
Official launch day. Frozen Freight: Iron Reach goes live worldwide on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and direct from the printer in 12+ countries.
Midwest Book Review names Frozen Freight: Iron Reach an "unreservedly recommended" pick in their May 2026 issue. Editor James Cox highlights the novel's "endurance, loyalty, skill, and grit." Full review archived on midwestbookreview.com.
Atmosphere Press publishes an interview with JR Elrod covering the book, the trucking life, and the road that led to writing Frozen Freight: Iron Reach. Read the full interview on atmospherepress.com.
Selected by the Texas Library Association for the Indie Texas Catalog, curating indie Texas authors for library systems across the state.
Amazon reviews at 4.8 stars across 29 reviews and climbing. Goodreads holding a 4.94 average. Signed copies still shipping weekly from Mount Pleasant.
Book 2: The Fifth Dot — manuscript in final edit. Signed copies open for presale now. Estimated release Aug–Sep 2026. Watch this page for updates.
Audiobook edition of Frozen Freight: Iron Reach releases on Audible, Amazon, and iTunes. Narrated and produced through ACX. The whole first book, read start to finish for the drivers who would rather listen than read.
Book 2 audiobook, The Fifth Dot, targeted to follow the Iron Reach audiobook. Same production path through ACX. Dates firm up once the Book 2 manuscript is locked.
The man behind the book
Life on the road and beyond
Thirty years of trucking. A private pilot license. A Harley in the garage. A wife who edits every page and still gets in the plane. This is the life that built the story.
Private Pilot · License 2019
After thirty years navigating highways, JR took to the skies. He flies his Beechcraft Bonanza for business trips and family adventures across the country. The same discipline that makes a great driver makes a great pilot.
Real DoD Work
BAR Transportation holds a DoD Performance Bond and is SDDC registered. When Pops Mercer hauls classified cargo in the book, the author has done the real version of that job.
🎖️ Army Veteran · HUBZone · WOSB · WBENC
JR & Rebecca
34 years married. Two companies built together. One book edited page by page. She is the reason it is readable. He is the reason it is real.
BAR Transportation LLC
OS/OW · Step Deck Specialist · 48-State Heavy Haul · DoD Performance Bond · SDDC Registered · HUBZone Certified · WOSB · WBENC · DBE Certified
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