John Staughton, Senior Reviewer

About John Staughton, Senior Reviewer

Providing exceptional writing, editing and publishing services to hundreds of international clients, ranging from nutritional copywriting and long-form ghostwriting to substantive editing, assessment/analysis of academic texts and structural/content editing for bestselling novels.

Fighting for You by Alessa Kelly

Fighting for You by Alessa Kelly

A CEO with a blanked-out memory and a grieving cowboy with a soft spot for damsels in distress make for an explosive pair in Fighting for You by Alessa Kelly, the second book in her Fearless Lovers series. Despite the familiar amnesiac premise, the characters are vivid and endearing, though the narration is bluntly expositional and mechanical, at times, and not quite as rich as the first installment. Fortunately, the dynamic between Jesse and Camille offers a perfect odd-couple vibe – smart, uncertain, sharp-tongued, and dripping with rustic desire. The added complexity of this layered plot, namely a corporate power […]

2021-11-04T03:44:45+02:00November 4th, 2021|Categories: Editorial Reviews|

Burning for You by Alessa Kelly

Burning for You by Alessa Kelly

The inferno of shifting allegiance and smoldering gazes in Burning For You make for a hot first installment of Alessa Kelly’s Fearless Lovers series. With a plot model that is becoming a trend, a big-city CEO and a country boy at heart who loves to work with his hands fall into an unlikely connection in the wilds of Montana. The flashback jumps lend themselves to excellent character development, whereas the quality of writing itself is intricate for a work of romance, particularly in its descriptive clarity and creativity. Exploring relationships from every angle – as strangers and enemies, within families, […]

2021-11-04T03:33:29+02:00November 4th, 2021|Categories: Editorial Reviews|

Hunted (The Abarath Trilogy Book 1) by Damian Dawes

Hunted (The Abarath Trilogy Book 1) by Damian Dawes A deep-sea thriller with a paranormal twist, Hunted by Damian Dawes is the first throat-clenching book of The Abarath Trilogy.

Kat Robbins may not be afraid of anything, not even a great white looking for a scuba diver dinner, but that doesn’t make her isolated life on an Arctic icebreaker any less monotonous. The bleak endless ocean means plenty of time to ruminate on the shadows of her past, until a mysterious wreck draws the crew into dark and uncertain waters. Stranded in an icy expanse and stalked by an ancient, life-sucking evil, the crew of Soviet misfits, suspicious […]

2021-11-02T03:30:09+02:00November 1st, 2021|Categories: New Releases|Tags: , |

A Most Unusual Friday Knight by Alan Frost

A Most Unusual Friday Knight by Alan Frost

A heartwarming and time-traveling adventure to the medieval past, A Most Unusual Friday Knight is a charming new middle grade adventure from author Alan Frost. Curious orphans become unlikely heroes in a time far from home, but navigate the strangeness of an Old English world with the help of one clever inventor. Despite being somewhat predictable in its plot, and the language being overly simplistic at times, even for the age range, there are valuable lessons to be learned from these amusing characters, from the duality of independence and loyalty to overcoming insecurities and standing up to bullies. All in […]

2021-11-02T07:54:17+02:00November 1st, 2021|Categories: Editorial Reviews|

The Terminal Code by J.W. Galliger

The Terminal Code by J.W. Galliger A refreshing and raw splash of dystopic creativity, The Terminal Code by J.W. Galliger is a futuristic crime thriller that will leave you hungry for more, though not necessarily eager for the decades to come.

A murder inside an immersive virtual reality world called SCAPE leaves investigators terrified and mystified by the implications. Identifying a deadly flaw in an escapist platform that serves billions brings up an impossible question: what are the true boundaries of reality? If our mind believes something deeply enough, can it be manifested with deadly consequences? Bringing the story home for today’s readers, the novel questions […]

Review: Called by Marlena Fiol and Ed O’Connor

Called by Marlena Fiol and Ed O'Connor

Immersing readers in a vibrant slice of the past, Called by Marlena Fiol and Ed O’Connor is an original account of unsung heroism and unwavering faith in the face of impossible odds.

The story begins in the 1940s, as World War II raged and Hitler’s shadow seemed to stretch across the world, even to Paraguay, and right into the lives of Dr. John and Clara Schmidt. While his whirlwind invitation to Paraguay and sudden proposal may have been the tumultuous start of their journey into revolutionary medical practices, the stakes remained just as high in the many decades that followed […]

2021-12-10T08:26:17+02:00October 29th, 2021|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: , |

A New Day by Carrie Thorne

A New Day by Carrie Thorne

Author Carrie Thorne once again tosses readers into a feel-good love story spiral with A New Day, the fourth book of her Foothills series. Similar in its themes to earlier tales, but notable for its more deeply developed characters, the unabashedly honest narrative tone pulls readers into a small-town whirlwind romance with the potential for so much more. Though some of the plot feels predictable, loyal readers of this series will appreciate the occasional callbacks to old characters, and the ever-expanding charm of Foothills. Ideal for a long guilty pleasure of an afternoon, fans of full-blooded romance, football, and […]

2021-10-29T08:02:59+02:00October 29th, 2021|Categories: Editorial Reviews|

A Day Late by Carrie Thorne

A Day Late by Carrie Thorne

A charming and heart-pumping tale of inopportune timing, undeniable attraction, and the hardest truths to tell ourselves, A Day Late by Carrie Thorne is a quick and entertaining work of romance. Armed with snappy dialogue, longing glances, and narrative voices that are both self-aware and self-reflective, there may be something lacking in the character depth, or the emotional investment demanded of the reader, but watching a classic love triangle unfold is always entertaining, and handled here like a classic romantic comedy. Bursts of humor reveal the author’s wit, while the patient storytelling allows space for playful details and scene-crafting that […]

2021-10-29T08:00:01+02:00October 29th, 2021|Categories: Editorial Reviews|
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