John Staughton, Senior Reviewer

A reflective and raw peek into the tattered mind of a desperate academic, The Melancholy Strumpet Master by Zeb Beck is a heartfelt and carefully crafted novel about finding purpose where you never expected. Working his way through brothels, street corners, and shady upstairs rooms across Tijuana, Gilmore Crowell is trying to find his master’s thesis, but ends up discovering an enlightened new direction for his investigative passions. Addressing a broad array of themes, from research integrity, white privilege, and sexual identity to drug use, economic prejudice, and the importance of linguistic flexibility, this is an enthralling roller coaster of […]

Senseless conflict with Julu Kiatan heathens is merely the start to Embers of Wrath by Seth Halleway, a war-torn sci-fi novel chronicling the chaos that unfolds when the people of Shentonia lose faith in their petty, yet impossibly powerful deities. An exploration of blind faith, rebellion, and belief in oneself over any dogma, this nuanced and character-driven story feels timely and relatable, despite the drastic chasm of fantasy between Shentonia and our world. The world-crafting is exceptional, the plot is fast-moving, and Halleway’s descriptive language is subtle and vivid, making it a joy to get lost in this original epic.[…]

A comprehensive, thoughtful, and compassionate guide for parents to properly connect with and support their children on the spectrum, Yes! You Will Understand Your Teen With ADHD: A Parent’s Journey to Find, Learn, and Develop Effective ADHD Tools to Help Her Teen Communicate and Thrive by Jennifer Pagano is an accessible and powerful read. Pagano’s lived experience comes across in quite a few of the narrative sections, providing a first-person account of common conversations and potential challenges that might help avoid conflict or confusion in the future. There are some overly informal passages, and sections that feel a bit too […]

Author Nick Snape raises the ante in his immersive military sci-fi series with Zuri’s War, a first contact thriller that is equally thought-provoking and action-packed. Leaving the dangers of Haven behind, Zuri, Noah, Finn, and Yasuko find a horrific new enemy on a human-seeded planet, and they are quickly pulled into an interspecies war of epic proportions. The world-building on Bathsen is done beautifully, showing readers how “humanity” could evolve on a separate path, while the three-dimensional characters of this tight-knit crew continue to deepen and strengthen. Neatly balancing action sequences, interpersonal plot development, and philosophical questions of extraterrestrial intervention, […]