Book Reviews | Self-Publishing Review

Review: Dodger’s Doorway by Alessandro Reale

★★★½ Dodger's Doorway by Alessandro Reale

In many ways, Dodger is a typical teenager. He suffers from bullying at school, struggles to fit in, and tries to act like he doesn’t care about trouble at home. But Dodger is slowly drowning under the stress. What’s worse, he knows he could make things better if he would only stand up for himself, but Dodger cannot summon the courage to face his fears…until he stumbles upon a magical portal to the alternate realm of Storyworld, that is.

Dodger is pushed into the unsettling role of hero in a world of magic and mayhem where fairy tales have […]

Henry Baum2016-03-04T03:51:30+02:00January 4th, 2016|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: Young Adult Book Reviews|

Review: Masque (The Two Monarchies Sequence) by W.R. Gingell

★★★★½ Masque by W.R. Gingell

Masque by W.R. Gingell is a retelling of “Beauty and the Beast” yet an engaging fantasy all its own, adding an intriguing murder mystery to the mix. Lady Isabella Farrah, an ambassador’s daughter, stumbles on a murder scene at the ball – one of her best friends has been killed. The investigation is led by Lord Pecus, the “Beast,” who wants Isabella out of the investigation. When her father is implicated in the murder, she decides to be held in his place at Lord Pecus’ manor, where she’s intent on solving the murder, and freeing Lord Pecus from his […]

Lysa Grant2016-03-04T03:52:05+02:00January 4th, 2016|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: Fantasy Book Reviews|

Review: Mystery of the Moonfire (Book 2 of the Spectraland Saga) by Brian Tashima

★★★½ Mystery of the Moonfire by Brian Tashima Life can be weird sometimes when you’re a teenager, but not as weird as seventeen-year-old Joel Suzuki. He’s a pretty average guy, he’s in a band, just got a record deal, he has some good friends, and he has (mostly) fond memories of living in a weird place called “Spectraland” too – a world apart from the Earth he’s living on now. They might have stayed memories, too, if an old friend hadn’t have come to one of his gigs to deliver grave news about the fate of his old home: not only is his clan in trouble, but […]

James Grimsby2016-03-04T03:52:40+02:00December 31st, 2015|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: Fantasy Book Reviews, Young Adult Book Reviews|

Review: Dissident (Forbidden Things #1) by Nikki McCormack ★★★★★

Dissident: Forbidden Things Book One by Nikki McCormack is a rollicking epic fantasy novel.

Indigo has great power, but her country, Caithin, has placed severe limitations on the use of ascard, which can strengthen, heal, and create. It can also destroy. Indigo, an orphan from a disgraced family, is engaged to an abusive and jealous man and is afraid to leave him because of her tenuous situation in society.

Yiloch, the prince of Lyra, wants to overthrow the mad emperor, who is also Yiloch’s father.

When Indigo and Yiloch meet their lives change as well as the fate of […]

T B Markinson2016-01-12T08:44:10+02:00December 30th, 2015|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: Fantasy Book Reviews|

Review: My Father’s Son: A Memoir by John Davis

★★★★½ My Father's Son: A Memoir by John Davis

My Father’s Son: A Memoir by John Davis is the harrowing yet riveting story Davis’ tumultuous and abusive childhood at the hands of his father, who was a high-powered cocaine dealer in Brooklyn, and a complete tyrant with Davis at home. Even after his father left the house, he gets replaced with a series of other tyrants, so Davis never had it easy, but still managed to come out ahead with an amazing strength and warmth of spirit. My Father’s Son is at once heartbreaking and uplifting with a dramatic climax that you’ll never see coming.

What makes the […]

Henry Baum2016-03-04T03:53:18+02:00December 30th, 2015|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: Memoir Book Reviews, Non-Fiction Book Reviews|

Review: Spare Me the Drama by Karen Tomsovic ★★★★

Spare Me the Drama: A City Lights Romance Book 1, by Karen Tomsovic, is a heart-warming story about second chances.

Martin Leon has a lot on his plate. His wife died from a tragic accident and now he’s supporting eight kids. He’s the head writer of a daytime soap opera. His responsibilities at home and at work are equally demanding. He realizes he nearly forgot to invite Roxanne to a birthday party for one of the kids.

Roxanne Hunter, a former actress on the soap opera, is now a successful business woman. However, she’s been unfortunate in love and […]

T B Markinson2019-01-22T05:58:17+02:00December 30th, 2015|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: Chick Lit Book Reviews, Romance Book Reviews, Women's Fiction Book Reviews|

Review: Busker’s Holiday by Adam Gussow ★★★★★

Busker’s Holiday by Adam Gussow is a fictionalized account of busking in the streets of Europe over one summer. Filled with a great passion for the Blues, and lyrical evocations of European life, it reads like a Beat Generation novel for a new generation. If you have a love of music, a love of travel, and a love of eccentricity, Busker’s Holiday is an exhilarating read.

Given that Gussow is an acclaimed harmonica player himself, with a popular how-to YouTube channel and a non-fiction book about busking in Harlem, there is little doubt that this book is a veiled memoir, […]

Henry Baum2019-01-22T15:39:31+02:00December 29th, 2015|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: Contemporary Fiction Book Reviews|

Review: Sharky Marky and the Scavenger Hunt by Lance Olsen ★★★★

Sharky Marky and the Scavenger Hunt (An Alphabetic Adventure) finds Sharky Marky in a car race as he races to find different items in a scavenger hunt, each corresponding to a letter in the alphabet. Written in rhyming verse, it’s a sweet, good-natured children’s book with colorful and detailed illustrations.

Like Sharky Marky and the Big Race, Scavenger Hunt begins with a stoplight countdown. Sharky Marky then races to the finish line to find each item in the alphabet. First, Sharky sees some algae (“Marky scoops up some Algae, his first on the list. As he speeds by Eddy […]