Book Reviews | Self-Publishing Review

Review: Paladin (Firebrand Book 2) by Sarah MacTavish

Secrets are at the heart of Paladin, Sarah MacTavish’s inspirational work of historical fiction for young adults, and the second book in the Firebrand series.

It’s the spring of eighteen sixty-one. The country’s torn in half by those in the South who don’t want slavery to end and those in the north who find the concept despicable – so when Lincoln calls men to arms, four friends from Dove Hollow, Pennsylvania rise to the call.

Jack, Westleigh and Allison have their own reasons for joining, but collectively they’ve made a pact to protect the fourth member of their group. […]

Review: Crimson Arrows by Eyad H. Yehyawi

For someone who has never hunted an animal in their life, the prospect of a collection centered around bowhunting may not hold much immediate appeal, but Crimson Arrows: A Bowhunting Odyssey by Eyad H. Yehyawi is much more than it may initially seem. This book is a heartfelt exploration of youth and growth through the lens of a hunter finding his feet in that sport – and in his entire life.

The first thing one notices about Yehyawi’s writing is the sincerity; each story hums with personal touches and genuine emotion. He is able to dig through his memories, some […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2019-05-17T02:28:25+02:00May 16th, 2019|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: Memoir Book Reviews, Sports Book Reviews|

Review: Epiphany’s Gift by Mallory M. O’Connor

Any reader of popular fiction knows that underestimating the unlikely heroine is never a good idea, and this is poignantly restated in Epiphany’s Gift, a timely thriller by Mallory M. O’Connor.

Epiphany Mayall stands in the center of this story, while a storm of corporate corruption, spiritual energy, betrayal, climate change and grief swirl around her. Returning to Ohio to see her nonagenarian mother, Epiphany must face the difficult past she left behind so long ago, but this time with the wisdom of age.

Epiphany has known she was special since birth – always able to read the energies […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2019-06-04T03:06:40+02:00May 9th, 2019|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: Thriller Book Reviews, Visionary Fiction Book Reviews|

Review: The Fractured Mind by Ottavio Lepore

As the old saying goes, if something seems too good to be true, it probably is. Ryan Stark learns that in the hardest way possible in The Fractured Mind, a tense and gripping new novel by Ottavio Lepore.

What begins as a harmless getaway spirals into a desperate fight for survival and sanity as Ryan discovers that not every good samaritan wants nothing in return. A tragic car accident sends him and his partner from the throes of a weekend trip into the intensive care unit, and Ryan’s life is turned upside down in an instant.

Facing a long […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2019-05-07T09:49:40+02:00May 4th, 2019|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: Thriller Book Reviews|

Review: Snapshots: Say Cheese! The World is Watching by Cara Cilento

Poems and short prose pieces are mated with vibrant photos in the emotive collection Snapshots: Say Cheese! The World is Watching by debut writer Cara Cilento.

The two dominant themes are Cilento’s acceptance of herself as a lesbian, and her decision to adopt two boys, a bold move, especially as both children are African American. Cilento is of Italian descent, this made clear as she describes messages (“The Facts”) from her upbringing:

…I was made from two parents

who went to school to get out of the ghetto

who tried to forget their last name had too many vowels in

[…]

SPR2019-05-03T13:09:47+02:00May 2nd, 2019|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: LGBTQI+ Book Reviews, Poetry Book Reviews|

Review: Midtown Madhatter by Mateo Monda

An American living in Guadalajara, Mexico travels to New York City to attend a wedding and hang out with his Seattle childhood friends. From beginning to end, the trip is a non-stop drug and alcohol binge. Midtown Madhatter by Mateo Monda tells of a weekend in Peter Walsh’s life along with flashbacks to his relationships with his friends and wife. He’s an unhappy man, and he’s got the addictions to prove it.

Peter’s dissatisfaction with his life comes across with every cigarette he craves, every beer he gulps, and each line of cocaine he hurriedly snorts. Under the surface of […]

Greg Rideout2019-05-03T13:35:41+02:00May 1st, 2019|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: Contemporary Fiction Book Reviews|

Review: Colored Armpits: Poems for Social Justice by James Kityo Ssemmanda

Ugandan born poet Ssemanda casts light on critical issues that we all need to explore in the collection of personal, political, and perceptive works, Colored Armpits: Poems for Social Justice.

Ssemanda’s book of verse is divided in three sections – “The Mzungu,” “The Armpits,” and “The African African.” Each touches on different aspects of the human condition, and particularly, the condition of African and other third world people in connection or confrontation with first world denizens and value systems.

Mzungu is the African language term used in Uganda and elsewhere to designate white people – whether they be colonialists, […]

SPR2019-06-03T08:46:18+02:00May 1st, 2019|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: Poetry Book Reviews|

Review: Enemy Immortal by Jim Meeks-Johnson

Two centuries in the future, our world will look very different, but hopefully it won’t turn out anything like the vision Jim Meeks-Johnson’s presents in Enemy Immortal, his debut work of science fiction.

Two alien empires – the Entanglement and the Immoral Ascendency – are vying for control of the galaxy, and the fate of Earth may hang in the balance. Lieutenant Jade Mahelona works for the Solar Defense Force, and is tasked with investigating a lost colony on a distant world with a motley crew of bizarre companions. Little do any of them know that they are placing […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2020-09-14T07:29:22+02:00April 30th, 2019|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: Science Fiction Book Reviews, Space Opera Book Reviews|