John Staughton, Senior Reviewer | Self-Publishing Review

Review: Back to Serve by CW3 Cesare Giannetti

Back to Serve by CW3 Cesare Giannetti

Author and decorated veteran CW3 Cesare Giannetti U.S. Army (Ret.) draws readers into a fascinating crucible of loyalty, war, family, and self-determination in Back to Serve: Return of a Soldier.

Written as a fictional memoir of the similarly-named Captain Nico Corretti, the novel no doubt reflects the author’s own experience, but it is intriguingly woven together with the elements of a thriller. It is unusual for a military story to begin with the protagonist retiring from service, but Captain Corretti’s respite is short-lived, as his loyalty and willingness to sacrifice are endless. With a mother who died when he […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2022-08-16T11:34:04+02:00June 17th, 2022|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: Military Book Reviews, Thriller Book Reviews|

Review: Letters to Sis by CW3 Cesare Giannetti

Letters to Sis by CW3 Cesare Giannetti

A stirring memoir in an unusual form, Letters to Sis by CW3 Cesare Giannetti is an intimate look into the everyday lives of ordinary servicemen, and a peek behind the curtain at the lives they leave behind.

A blend of non-fiction epistolary writing and narrative confession, this book is deeply personal and revealing about the author’s lived experiences, during his years before, during, and after serving in the US Army. Telling the story via letters gives the book genuine emotion and honesty in these scribbled snapshots of prose, while Giannetti’s dramatic accounts of his service fill in the blanks, providing […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2022-08-08T07:20:52+02:00June 17th, 2022|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: Memoir Book Reviews, Military Book Reviews|

Review: Revolution by David Dorrough

Revealing how everyday lives can be extraordinary in countless ways, Revolution by David Dorrough is a deep dive into a Southern California social bubble with a cadre of well-drawn characters and drama aplenty. A commentary on the epic level to which we raise the banalities of our own lives, and the struggle to achieve or feel contentment in the modern world, this book cuts deep into our current culture.

Each player in this drama represents some small and strange slice of California dreaming – seeking something better, newer, faster, sexier, but ultimately finding their hopes dashed, or their expectations unmet. […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2022-07-25T07:16:25+02:00June 14th, 2022|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: Contemporary Fiction Book Reviews|

Review: Person to Person by Joeri Torfs and Pim Ampe with Greta Myers

Person to Person by Joeri Torfs and Pim Ampe

Authors Joeri Torfs and Pim Ampe with Greta Myers delve into a possible better path forward for our world in Person to Person: Change Your Life and Fix the World.

Examining the present day through a sparkling lens of technological knowledge, sociological insight, and philosophical foundations, these authors ask cutting-edge existential questions that are relevant for everyone. Partially inspired by a rare opportunity to breathe new life into an old space in southern France, this book blends a quartet of fictional characters with the speculative yet sober dreams of the authors.

Driven by the idea of creating a “heterotopia,” they […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2022-06-13T06:36:14+02:00June 12th, 2022|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: Social Science Book Reviews|

Tattered Coat by Mike H. Mizrahi

Tattered Coat by Mike H. Mizrahi A tense Tennessee drama set in the early 20th century, Tattered Coat by Mike H. Mizrahi is a powerful tale of Southern justice, racism, truth, and courage.

A ten-year-old already scarred by too much trauma and loss, Hickory Crabtree is the only witness to the violent murder of a young white woman in the woods. To save a wrongfully accused black musician from an inevitable lynching, Hickory must find his voice, speak truth to power, and overcome a lifetime of fear. Exploring not only the twisted tools of injustice that define America’s past, this book also strikes a contemporary chord, […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2022-06-13T06:23:05+02:00June 10th, 2022|Categories: New Releases|Tags: Historical Fiction Book Reviews|

Review: 2359 Hours by Jack B.S. North

2359 Hours by Jack B.S. North

Immersing readers in the mind of a conflicted soldier desperately seeking inner peace, 2359 Hours by Jack B.S. North is a timely reflection on war, trauma, and the myriad roads to redemption.

Archie has attempted to overcome his devastating experiences in Afghanistan by moving to Canada, near his wartime comrades, but has found that all the ghosts of his past came along for the journey. Embarking in a new direction after being forged in a crucible of war is never easy, as this gritty and relentless story shows. The twist of this narrative, however, is that the novel takes place […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2022-07-21T01:24:40+02:00June 8th, 2022|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: Contemporary Fiction Book Reviews, Military Book Reviews|

Caribbean Counterstrike by Edward M. Hochsmann

Caribbean Counterstrike by Edward Hochsmann

The USCG Kauai and its crew are back for another fast-paced thriller in Caribbean Counterstrike by Edward M. Hochsmann, the second installment of his Cutter Kauai Sea Adventures series.

Fresh off their lethal drug ring battle a few months earlier, the cutter has been quietly promoted to perform sensitive missions under the Director of National Intelligence, thanks to its elite crew. Their latest assignment brings them into even more dangerous waters, where they hunt down a murderous drug cartel boasting biochemical weapons, along with an international crime syndicate that knows how to hold a grudge. The rugged crew returns for […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2022-06-08T06:49:18+02:00June 7th, 2022|Categories: New Releases|Tags: Action and Adventure Book Reviews, Thriller Book Reviews|

Dagger Quest by Edward M. Hochsmann

Dagger Quest by Edward Hochsmann Submerging readers in the octane-fueled action of America’s coastal military, Dagger Quest by Edward M. Hochsmann is a highly entertaining cross between a seafaring adventure and a high-stakes military drama.

When a suspected drug-running ship is found destroyed in Cuban waters, Ben Wyporek, the Executive Officer of a Coast Guard cutter, is plunged into an international quagmire of missiles, secrets, and organized crime. Though the nuclear premise is exciting enough, the more interesting tension of the novel comes from the richly penned cast, with their interpersonal struggles, romances, bruised egos, and conflicting philosophies of leadership. The relationship between Sam and […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2022-06-08T06:52:19+02:00June 7th, 2022|Categories: New Releases|Tags: Action and Adventure Book Reviews, Thriller Book Reviews|