Book Reviews

The latest indie book reviews from Self-Publishing Review

Review: The Last Surviving Dinosaur by Steven Joseph, Illustrated by Andy Case

The Last Surviving Dinosaur by Steven Joseph, Illustrated by Andy Case

The Last Surviving Dinosaur: The TyrantoCrankaTsuris is an imaginative picture book written by Steven Joseph, with vivid illustrations by Andy Case.

As a young boy, the father in the story grew up in his tight-knit Bronx neighborhood listening to his large group of relatives ranging from his Aunt Zaydie and Aunt Ruthie, his second cousin Dottie, and his Uncle Mottie and Uncle Shmukie out-do one another by “kvetching” about their “tsuris,” Yiddish for complaining about their problems. One had green fungus growing between her toes, another had a foot bitten by an alligator and was turning into a reptile, one […]

2019-05-22T07:28:31+02:00April 4th, 2019|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: |

Review: The Promise (Book 1 of the Piecer Chronicles) by Maxx Powr

The Promise (Book 1 of the Piecer Chronicles) by Maxx Powr

In The Promise, a futuristic new thriller by Maxx Powr, readers are dumped onto an Earth of the future, where the scars of an attempted alien takeover 20 years earlier have barely stopped bleeding. When that same threat returns in even more devastating style, a young band of unexpected heroes must rise up in defense of the only home they know.

After the human population was nearly destroyed by an alien invasion, recovery has been slow, but promising. Birth rates are rising, the militarized nature of life is beginning to shift, and there is even talk of ending the […]

2019-04-04T10:25:39+02:00April 3rd, 2019|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: |

Review: The Last Defender by Travis Pearson

The Last Defender by Travis Pearson

If you were witnessing the end of free will and life as you know it, would you have the courage to stand up and defend what you believe in? This is the gripping question that author Travis Pearson tackles in his rapid-fire new novel, The Last Defender. Seamlessly blending social commentary, dystopian science fiction and thrilling action, this novel casts a wide net in terms of a potential audience.

When a larger-than-life politician is elected to rule a sovereign nation, his constituents have no idea what horror they’ve signed up for. A shift in tactics is one thing, but […]

Review: Kaleidoscope of Colors by Robert A. Cozzi

Kaleidoscope of Colors by Robert A. Cozzi

In Kaleidoscope of Colors, poet Robert A Cozzi has created a new collection of his verse using the motif of the kaleidoscope, a device that fractures and re-orders reality in microcosm, just as poems reduce and revive the color and a shape of life’s situations to give them new meaning.

In the opening Author’s Note, Cozzi questions why we always seem to “explain emotions,” calling our feelings “tricky devils.” But he likes them, even when they are painful and cloud his mind. Despite this rather dark segue, his first poem, “Jumping Off the Shelf” is hopeful, using images of […]

2019-05-16T10:43:05+02:00March 28th, 2019|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: |

Review: Warrior Monk: A Pastor Stephen Grant Novel by Ray Keating

: A Pastor Stephen Grant Novel

There are those who say that all acts of service come from the same place, but in the case of Warrior Monk by Ray Keating, all acts of service can also come from the same person. After living an entire life as a warrior, serving his country as a CIA agent and NAVY Seal, Stephen Grant decides to wear a different uniform in the next chapter of his life – the robes of a pastor.

With this unique scenario to start off this entertaining series, Keating tosses readers headfirst into the crossfire. When a deranged woman comes into […]

Review: Forsaken Wrath (The Scorpio Files Book 1) by Alexander Ferrick

Forsaken Wrath (The Scorpio Files Book 1) by Alexander Ferrick

The life of a treasure hunter is never boring, and that’s certainly true of the hero in Forsaken Wrath, the first book in the Scorpio Files series by Alexander Ferrick. When professional fortune hunter Nick Reed, also known as Scorpio, sets his gaze on the ultimate treasure hunt in history, he isn’t going alone. In search of the ancient city of Atlantis, one of the “Gates to Hell” – and endless wealth – there are few things this swashbuckling adventurer won’t do.

Driven by the narrator of the story and Nick Reed’s sidekick, Bartimaeus, this novella whips through a […]

2020-01-30T12:24:06+02:00March 25th, 2019|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: |

Review: Across the River (Furnass – The Civil War Years) by Richard Snodgrass

Across the River (Furnass - The Civil War Years) by Richard Snodgrass

In Across the River, author Richard Snodgrass creates a vivid and intensely personal story couched within the chaos, madness and sacrifice of the Civil War. The two main characters are involved in a clever plan to turn the tide of the war for the South, but there are countless obstacles that stand in their way, including one another.

Walker and Reid are an unlikely pair who don’t seem to like one another all that much, but they’re both driven by loyalty and sincere belief in their cause…at first. They have been tasked to cross into enemy territory and acquire […]

Review: To You with Love by Gary W. Burns

To You with Love by Gary W. Burns

Loving relationships in a multitude of aspects and progressions form the focus of this new, emotive collection of works by poet Gary W. Burns.

The poems in To You with Love are divided into four segments: “Woven,” “Ins and Outs,” “Serenities,” and “Amore.”

“Woven” expresses the lover’s longing for as-yet-unrealized interconnectedness with his beloved. He imagines “The fabric of me, you: Tapestry.” The poet invites his cherished friend to share in experiences of summer’s natural bounty, recalling the tulips that grew in his youth (“The Songsmith”), picking “The First Marigold,” and often comparing his feelings to light and the warmth […]

2019-05-01T10:44:41+02:00March 23rd, 2019|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: |
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