Editorial Reviews

A captivating time travel romance set in Brooklyn, Crossing the Dateline by Carrie Hannah offers readers a startling mystery surrounding an evocative painting. Justine finds a portal in her home which takes her back in time to 1905 where she sees an illustration that looks strikingly like her mother and begins to fall in love with the portrait’s dashing artist. With the help of Maggie, the housekeeper, Justine gathers clues to determine the origin of the likeness and solve her connection to the past. A clever mix of historical fiction, contemporary fiction, and fantasy, the short chapters of this […]

Tom B. Night’s Circadian Algorithms is a fast-paced sci-fi thriller with a conspiracy angle that prompts questions about the nature of experiential reality itself. Following point-of-view characters Madeline and Darwin in various states of wakefulness and sleep, the story unravels a plan to reorder the future of humanity, while the protagonists unravel somewhat as well, as they must fight to gain and maintain a grip on just what is real. A profound book for any enthusiast of biohacking and dreams, Circadian Algorithms is a profoundly inventive work of visionary sci-fi.[…]

A country lawyer begrudgingly takes on a complicated and notorious murder case in R.G. Ashcroft’s Fetch Me A Hangman, a page-turning legal thriller about crossing tangled ethical lines. Brandeis Fields does not want to defend Aaron Tait, a young man accused of killing the mayor’s daughter, but there’s no one else for the job. Not only will Fields have to contend with the wrath of locals, but he’ll have to cope with a cantankerous client, an incompetent co-lawyer, and the feelings of his own family. While Ashcroft’s writing is sometimes a bit stiff, the book’s gradual twists and turns are […]

A one-sided love story about obsessive fantasy gone wrong, C.O.B.’s The Beauty in Ms. White is a striking novel about the power of delusional assumptions. Carlos Castillo is an unsuccessful novelist living in Philadelphia, where he spends his days as a shoe store manager and his nights in a drunken stupor. After moving into a new apartment, Carlos becomes infatuated with a woman living next door and fabricates an intimate relationship with her. Readers should hold on tight for a wild, sharply plotted ride, as C.O.B.’s unreliable narrator sinks further and further into shocking madness, for an intriguing mixture of […]

In this exquisitely illustrated book written by Elissa Kerr, children will love to learn about beekeeping and making honey. The story, crafted in loose rhyme making it immediately memorable, is both educational and fascinating. The illustrations by Zoe Saunders are so charming and full of natural splendor that the story will give young children a real thrill, especially when we see the bees working in a fantastical hive, complete with goggles and honey jars. A wonderful journey into a fascinating and unusual hobby that will open avenues for exploration and imagination in any child who is lucky enough to discover […]

A personal and intimate story collection, Babak Hodjat’s The Konar and the Apple is a vivid exploration of childhood memories in Iran after the revolution. Drawing on autobiographical material, Hodjat shares defining moments of his lived experience, such as inventing a soccer board game and putting on a play with friends, alongside stark descriptions of the Shah and horrifying scenes of war. This collection eloquently rides the line between upsetting defeat and inspiring triumph; although the narrator has seen appalling violence, he ultimately survives and thrives, for an inspiring and evocative work of autobiographical fiction.

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A summer stay at an uncle’s cottage in England turns into a risky search-and-rescue mission in Doug Weller’s Calico Rae: The Twisted Towers, an entertaining work of middle grade fantasy about the enduring link between people and animals. Twelve-year-old Calico Rae learns that she can command a leopard, and she must put this power to good use when her older brother is kidnapped by an abusive, nefarious being. With some elements of Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials series, Doug Weller’s book stands out for its imaginative characters and perilous plot points that will keep young readers turning the pages.

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A mind-bending novella that will have readers questioning their own grasp on reality, The Fake Among Us by Samuel Ludke is a sci-fi action thriller like few others. A twisted tale of “resetting” one’s reality and the dangerous power that technological progress can hold, this story sees a lawman bent and broken by a sinister scientist, proving that the line between human and robot is not as clear as we might imagine. Despite the intriguing premise, the execution needs significant work, as the writing is plagued by repetitive language, stilted dialogue, unclear scene cuts, and basic proofreading errors, which is […]