J.A. Keating
Cover of Crossing Sabers: a gilt eagle above a striped shield with two crossed cavalry sabers, embossed on white.

Crossing Sabers

Thirteen-year-old Jimmy Keats begins plebe training at Iron Forge Military Academy in July 1985.

Series
Jimmy Keats, Book 2
Publishing

Crossing Sabers is a coming-of-age military school novel by J.A. Keating, the second novel in the Jimmy Keats series, and a prequel to The Benoit Winery Murders. In late July 1985, thirteen-year-old Jimmy Keats arrives at Iron Forge Military Academy in southeastern Pennsylvania, where the plebes are told to listen and not speak unless spoken to. The Amazon page has the ordering options.

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About the book

Jimmy Keats is thirteen years old, five feet tall, and 110 pounds when his family sends him to Iron Forge Military Academy in July 1985. He failed seventh grade English and Math, and he stands among high school boys and junior college students on his first day. The recruitment tape he watched until the tracking lines cut across the screen made the academy look orderly and easy. The buildings match the tape, but everything else is different.

On arrival day, Colonel James Cates, the Commandant of Cadets, tells the new plebes they will not be the same individuals in six weeks. Jimmy has spent thirteen years in a house where the shape of every evening changes without warning. At Iron Forge, the days run in fifteen-minute increments, reveille sounds at 0530 every day of the year, and for the first time he knows exactly what comes next.

Then an administrative mistake places Jimmy in a company designated for high school cadets. He notices within the first week and says nothing, because he cannot tell what reporting it will cost him. The senior who commands that company, Arthur Fambullah, lives across the hall and notices when Jimmy is struggling.

By October, Jimmy has stopped waiting for something bad to happen. In January, a knock comes at his classroom door, and Colonel Lordes walks him across the cold campus to the Commandant’s office without saying a word.

The novel is set in 1985 and 1986. J.A. Keating attended a military academy outside Philadelphia as a teenage boy and changed the names of the school, the buildings, and the people. The characters are fictional and based loosely on people he met in his youth.

Book details

  • The Benoit Winery Murders, J.A. Keating’s debut novel, was released on May 2nd, 2026.
  • Crossing Sabers is the second novel in the Jimmy Keats series and a prequel to The Benoit Winery Murders, the debut novel in the series.
  • A Forgotten Past, publishing in July 2027, is set in 1984 and is also a prequel to The Benoit Winery Murders.
  • The genres are coming-of-age fiction and historical fiction.
  • The setting is Iron Forge Military Academy in southeastern Pennsylvania, 1985 and 1986.
  • Crossing Sabers publishes on November 1, 2026.
  • The publisher is RBF Publishing, LLC, in Chester County, Pennsylvania.

Frequently asked questions

What is Crossing Sabers about?
Crossing Sabers follows thirteen-year-old Jimmy Keats as he begins plebe training at Iron Forge Military Academy in July 1985. He is the smallest plebe in a group of high school boys and junior college students, and his family has sent him there for structure and discipline.
When does Crossing Sabers come out?
Crossing Sabers publishes on November 1, 2026.
How does Crossing Sabers connect to The Benoit Winery Murders?
Crossing Sabers is a prequel to The Benoit Winery Murders, the debut novel in the Jimmy Keats series. Crossing Sabers is set in 1985 to 1986. A Forgotten Past, publishing in July 2027, is a second prequel set in 1984 to 1985.
What is The Benoit Winery Murders?
The Benoit Winery Murders is J.A. Keating’s debut novel and the first novel in the Jimmy Keats series. The Benoit Winery Murders is a historical crime fiction centered around a wrongful conviction that took place in 1912 in France. Primarily set in 1997 Philadelphia, The Benoit Winery Murders takes place in a dual timeline setting and with three fully developed locations: Philadelphia, Paris, and the penal colonies in French Guiana. It was published on May 2, 2026, and runs 495 pages.
Is Crossing Sabers a true story?
Crossing Sabers is a work of fiction. It is based on the author’s experiences while attending a military academy outside Philadelphia as a teenage boy in 1985 and 1986. He changed the names of the school, the buildings, and the people, and based the characters loosely on people he met in his youth.
Who is Jimmy Keats?
Jimmy Keats is the title character of the Jimmy Keats series by J.A. Keating. In Crossing Sabers, he is a thirteen-year-old plebe who befriends many other cadets who detail his journey to becoming a man.
Who is J.A. Keating?
J.A. Keating practiced law in Philadelphia for twenty-two years and holds a Bachelor of Science from Saint Joseph’s University and a Juris Doctor from Widener University School of Law. He lives in Chester County, Pennsylvania. He is the author of The Benoit Winery Murders and Crossing Sabers.