Editorial Reviews

In this powerful memoir, I Must Have Wandered: An Adopted Air Force Daughter Recalls, Mary Ellen Gambutti narrates the complicated journey to restoring her identity after adoption. Gambutti describes her upbringing, in turns idyllic and traumatic, through reconstructed memories, speculation, and vignettes, aided throughout by personal knowledge, letters, and other artifacts. While some generalizations dilute the memoir’s pointed focus on adoption, readers will be enlightened by Gambutti’s portrayal of an adoptee’s pervasive feelings of loss, impermanence, and abandonment. Gambutti explains how adoptees must stay hypervigilant, which takes center stage when she devotes herself to the search for her family of […]

In the emotive novel Karma, co-authors T. Kennington and C. Roth unravel an engrossing mystery of two women running from a traumatic past of violence and addiction. After narrowly escaping their own deaths, Micah and Rowan flee to L.A. where they run a nightclub and find solace in unexpected love. The third-person perspective successfully cultivates a cagey tone, drawing readers into this decidedly dark take on romance, which dives into a number of difficult subjects, such as physical and emotional abuse. When the pair meet their matches in Caden and Declan, the savior-complex is somewhat disappointing for such fiercely […]

A young adult sci-fi fantasy replete with superpowers and interdimensional aliens, Diana Williams’ Alora Factor: Invasion of the Realm Jumpers is also a surprisingly down-to-earth story, as teenagers and adults alike grapple with changes ranging from the personal and social to the global and metaphysical. In this sensitively crafted YA read, thirteen-year-old Alora must come to terms with her own frighteningly powerful new gift, while fighting a body-snatching alien invasion and looking out for her family and friends. Strong, diverse, relatable characters each bring something unique to this well-woven story, interspersed with world-saving action, which will leave readers eager for […]

A charming children’s book from Ana Cortes that explores the unique challenges of young people starting fresh in a new city, Marco, Pablo, and Olivia: Fútbol Tryouts is a colorful, funny, and touching read. Marco wants to make his mark and some new friends in Guayaquil by trying out for the football team, but that means dealing with Victor the Fútbol King, a bully who takes a special interest in embarrassing the new kid. Fortunately, Marco’s two siblings always have his back, and with whip-smart writing, evocative illustrations, and three very memorable characters at its heart, this book is not […]

Prolific children’s author Michael A. Brown takes readers on a new journey of self-discovery in his latest book, Ships: Where Do You Want To Go? Embarking on an allegorical quest of youth, Dave wanders amidst a port of chatty boats, trying to find the ship that will take him to Life Island. Along the way, he meets sneaky submarines and brash aircraft carriers, as well as feisty cargo ships and humble tugboats, all of which teach young readers about a variety of marine vessels, as well as the framework and fit of a good relationship. The illustrations could use a […]

Author Morgan James delivers another masterful and colorful whodunit in The Havana Story, the playful and creative third installment of The Beyond Mysteries. Paula Vega is desperate to write the romance novel of her dreams, but her waking life as the manager of a B&B in North Carolina is as good as any thriller, particularly when the coastal escape turns deadly. Despite some heavy-handedness in the exposition and narration, the scene-building is beautifully done, and James has a keen ear for sharp dialogue. Boasting evocative characters, an unpredictable plot, and the perennially pleasing premise of a writer turned […]

Path of the Bearers and Other Stories by Nicholas Licalsi is a creative collection of seventeen science fiction tales that test the ingenuity and limitations of both man and machine – an orphan who grows to 1200 pounds eating pizzas in a spaceship, dangerous multi-limbed creatures, orbs that hold every child’s purpose, and humanized computers are among the original inventions that populate these stories. Thematically linking explorations into outer space and the examination of the interior space of human emotion and fallibility, Licalsi’s stories are uniquely varied and inventive. Several pieces would gain strength from more plot development and less […]

A woman struggles with a mysterious disease, a difficult marriage, and clandestine affairs in Metamorphosis by Isabella MacLeod, an original work that veers into supernatural fiction, erotica, and psychological thriller. The novel chronicles the life of Miranda, who is in a desperate search for someone who can provide a cure for the painful, debilitating, and often grotesque symptoms that threaten to dismantle her life as a nurse, wife, and mother. The story is compelling in its originality and creativity, but it is hampered by grammatical issues and a first-person narrator who is somewhat hard to follow given the abrupt transitions […]