John Staughton, Senior Reviewer | Self-Publishing Review

Review: Kelly is Unbreakable by Jackson Keller

Kelly is Unbreakable by Jackson Keller

A surprisingly deep musing on trust, power, truth, and friendship, Kelly is Unbreakable by Jackson Keller is a unique and suspenseful YA thrill. Exploring personal boundaries, and perhaps even finding the edge, this super-powered debut novel takes adolescent exploration to an inventive new level.

Kelly has grown up in the shadow of what’s “wrong” with her, and while age has taught her discretion, her superhuman strength is starting to show, just as it did a decade earlier, when her only friend Chris discovered her dangerous secret. After a lifetime of hiding, Kelly may finally be forced to come into the […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2021-09-29T02:51:26+02:00August 17th, 2021|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: YA Fantasy Book Reviews, Young Adult Book Reviews|

Junk Sale by Patrick Lombardi

Full of razor-sharp wit and driven by a hyper-contemporary voice, Junk Sale by Patrick Lombardi is a wickedly smart and hilarious collection of short stories and essays. From a casual thief who gets the tables turned on him to a scathing hot take of modern job interviews, these brief tales capture a collective disdain for modern life, a dissatisfaction with normality, and the essential role that humor plays in our survival. The dialogue feels ripped from real life, despite their clever articulation, and each story is tightly edited and polished. Highlighting the painful isolation of our internal monologues, and what […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2021-08-16T09:19:13+02:00August 16th, 2021|Categories: Editorial Reviews|

Review: Surviving the College Admissions Madness by Kevin Robert Martin

Surviving the College Admissions Madness by Kevin Robert Martin

An unflinching and savagely honest review of the college admissions process and modern-day higher education as a whole, Surviving the College Admissions Madness by Kevin Robert Martin is a must-read for those who are entering the convoluted system of university life.

Unlike so many other books on the admissions process, this revelatory read begins with the author’s simple premise – that elite colleges don’t care about their applicants or future students, seeing them merely as investments. Martin argues that the process of gaining admittance has become so cutthroat and competitive that it is genuinely traumatic for tens of thousands of […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2021-09-28T03:02:10+02:00August 15th, 2021|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: Education|

Review: The Wolf Lords by F.T. McKinstry

The Wolf Lords by F.T. McKinstry

A masterfully detailed second installment of the Fylking series, The Wolf Lords by F.T. McKinstry is an immersive fantasy novel mixing well-known mythology with complex layers of magic, political intrigue, ancient traditions, and noble heroes.

Vaethir, the immortal warlock and destroyer of the Math Gate, has gathered an army on the other side of the Veil, but his single-minded drive for revenge against the woman who permanently wounded him means returning to Math by other means. Then there is Leofwine, a ranger and apprentice to the Order of Fenrir, who bears a mountain of grief for his dead lover and […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2021-09-27T09:22:08+02:00August 14th, 2021|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: Fantasy Book Reviews|

The Witch’s Song by J. Lyndon Hickman

A dazzling opening salvo in The Queen of the Witches Trilogy, The Witch’s Song by J. Lyndon Hickman is a magical work of fantasy, resonating with contemporary lessons and classic adventure. Stirring the waters of gender dynamics and calling into question humanity’s destructive fascination with technological advancement, the prose is impactful, but just as easily lighthearted. This broad emotional range, buttressed by a pair of unique protagonists, makes this a gripping read from start to finish. The revelatory progress from normal life to a magic-infused existence is exhilarating and immersive; Hickman has crafted a gem of a read with […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2021-08-13T04:18:36+02:00August 13th, 2021|Categories: Editorial Reviews|

Review: The Venus World by Hywel Richard Pinto

The Venus World by Hywel Richard Pinto

A femme-dominated future falls into fracture and peril in The Venus World by Hywel Richard Pinto, a sprawling slice of post-apocalyptic and speculative fiction.

Men are reduced to reproductive necessities after a freak biohazard virus is unleashed on the world, wiping out males across the world in staggering numbers. With their population diminished and their power contained, it seems that the future truly is female, but not all are in agreement about the way forward.

Six queens rule over this new world, and each of their regions has its own supplies and demands, leading inevitably to conflict and decidedly bad […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2021-09-17T06:54:42+02:00August 13th, 2021|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: Dystopian Fiction Book Reviews, Speculative Fiction Book Reviews|

Review: Pike’s Passage by John J Spearman

Pike's Passage by John J Spearman

Taking an unexpected turn in the Sandy Pike series, Pike’s Passage by John J Spearman is a stellar second installment of his sci-fi saga. Capturing the same authenticity in terms of detail and world-building, this follow-up turns inwards to a more adventurous and character-driven drama, rather than a sprawling epic.

When Sandy Pike sees his lifelong dream of being a starship captain slipping away as the Alliance stumbles into an unthinkable cosmic defeat, he refuses to let the mistakes of other men steal his shot at happiness. The idea of entering the freight business means a smooth transition away from […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2021-09-16T03:50:24+02:00August 12th, 2021|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: Science Fiction Book Reviews|

Rand by Silvia Shaw

A sprawling and majestic epic start to a fantasy new series, Rand by Silvia Shaw is an empowering and timely piece of fantasy fiction, bridging two worlds with grace and a whip-smart pen. Readers are drawn into a brilliant world with a detailed history that is unlike so many other carbon-copy realms in the genre. Driven by an intrepid protagonist imbued with the mind of an academic and the courage of a warrior queen, this read populates these pages with a pantheon of unique female characters, and cleverly ties off loose ends. From backstabbing court drama and savage magical battles […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2021-08-12T03:39:21+02:00August 11th, 2021|Categories: Editorial Reviews|