New Releases | Self-Publishing Review

Being Different by Ada Glustein

Being Different by Ada Glustein Being Different: From Friday Night Candles to Compassionate Classroom by Ada Glustein is a deeply moving memoir about childhood, education, and the challenge of fitting in.

Ada Glustein was born in Canada into a devout Jewish family who had migrated decades before from Europe. Excluded at school and at times bullied for being Jewish, Ada was painfully aware of how different she was from her peers. However, her experience taught her to be inquisitive, curious, and compassionate – the opposite of those who made her feel left out. Ada always chose to embrace diversity and learn from these early struggles, […]

Marina Dora Martino2022-12-20T14:11:34+02:00December 20th, 2022|Categories: New Releases|Tags: Education, Memoir Book Reviews|

The Zalthagor Box by Terrie Schultz

The Zalthagor Box by Terrie Schultz The supernatural and the uncanny are at the heart of Terrie Schultz’s The Zalthagor Box, a fun and chilling middle-grade read that will appeal to adults as well as young readers.

Not yet 14, Evelyn discovers she has a rare power: she can see things before they happen. So far it has been more of a curse than a gift, as not only does her mother not believe her, but she’s bullied by everyone at school. When her great-aunt Lillian passes away unmarried and childless, Evelyn and her family travel down to Virginia to settle Lillian’s affairs. While learning […]

Marina Dora Martino2022-12-13T13:55:53+02:00December 12th, 2022|Categories: New Releases|Tags: Middle Grade Fiction Book Reviews, Paranormal Book Reviews|

The File by Gary Born

The File by Gary Born An accidental discovery in western Uganda summons monsters and memories from the past in The File by Gary Born, a thrilling international adventure.

Though Hitler may be long since dead, discovering the whereabouts of his golden treasure trove is a mission worth killing over, putting an innocent father/daughter team of researchers in the crosshairs of multiple countries. From the Deputy Director of the CIA and sinister Nazi sympathizers to deadly Russian operatives and an overly curious botanist, this novel is packed with colorful characters, and Born does an excellent job weaving each narrative together without losing readers in the weeds. […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2022-12-08T16:31:41+02:00December 6th, 2022|Categories: New Releases|Tags: Action and Adventure Book Reviews|

The First State by Tshekedi Wallace

The First State by Tshekedi Wallace A vicious and power-mad despot rules over London 50 years in the future in The First State by Tshekedi Wallace, a dystopian thriller with chilling echoes of our present-day world.

As tensions rise between the metropolitan police and the urban fist revolution, the line between justice and violence blurs more dangerously than ever. With a myriad of players, from noble rebels and simpering yes-men to political charlatans and sadistic authorities, this dark drama is Shakespearean, yet pointedly contemporary.

Thematically, the novel offers a strong warning for readers, as great sci-fi so often does. Authoritarianism is on the rise around the […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2022-11-23T12:03:46+02:00November 23rd, 2022|Categories: New Releases|Tags: Dystopian Fiction Book Reviews|

Contracts for Sale by Edward Izzi

Contracts for Sale by Edward Izzi A brilliant burst of crime fiction, Contracts for Sale by Edward Izzi is the latest of this author’s tension-dripping thrillers – a dark and gritty story of assassins for hire that is at once far-fetched and brutally realistic.

A hard-nosed journalist with an inside line to the Chicago PD, Paul Crawford is the mystery-unfurling investigator at the heart of this urban drama. It doesn’t take long to realize that solving a recent string of perfect murders is beyond the average detective’s pay grade, while Crawford’s sleuthing skills bring him to the deadly mix from a different angle. As he fills […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2022-11-22T16:32:45+02:00November 19th, 2022|Categories: New Releases|Tags: Thriller Book Reviews|

Dive Bartender: Flowers in the Desert by T.K. O’Neill

Dive Bartender: Flowers in the Desert by T.K. O'Neill

Painting a gritty and visceral picture of life on the road, specifically the rugged west, author T.K. O’Neill crafts a haunted hero in his latest novel, Dive Bartender: Flowers in the Desert.

Frank is itching for a new chapter in Denver, but there aren’t enough mountains in Colorado to keep old habits and bad luck from catching up. Navigating a seedy minefield of manipulation, desperation, desire, and even hope, this wandering rogue of a protagonist finds himself in strange company, compelled to stay just a bit longer in decadence and pleasure, and delaying his California dreams one day at […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2022-11-22T16:01:19+02:00November 19th, 2022|Categories: New Releases|Tags: Contemporary Fiction Book Reviews|

On the Waterfront by Mike McCoy

On the Waterfront by Mike McCoy A classic coming-of-age story, On the Waterfront by Mike McCoy recounts a pivotal summer in the life of a boy struggling to discover who he is in the world.

It’s 1972 and 13-year-old Danny Novak is hired by the Oregon Trail Council of the Boy Scouts of America to spend the summer working at Camp Baker. The youngest staff member, Danny, quickly realizes that the troubled home life he’s escaping may have been easier than trying to fit in and be accepted by his older teenage workmates, as he must contend with the brooding, intimidating Mark, a 16-year-old senior staff […]

SPR2022-11-17T14:55:53+02:00November 16th, 2022|Categories: New Releases|

The Black Swan Killer by Daniel McKay

The Black Swan Killer by Daniel McKay A refreshingly unique and cerebral take on the eccentric detective archetype, The Black Swan Killer by Daniel McKay is a fast-paced crime novel with an unforgettable protagonist.

When it comes to solving heady and head-scratching cases, John Consequent is the philosophical key for any bizarre lock, and the police have once again come knocking at his door. Putting his circuitous wit and wisdom to the test, this brainy sleuth must outmaneuver a wickedly sharp intellect whose existentialism has turned to murderous nihilism.

Celebrating the beauty of that which cannot be tested empirically, this is a clever thriller, and surprisingly light, […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2022-11-10T17:14:25+02:00November 10th, 2022|Categories: New Releases|Tags: Detective Fiction Book Reviews, Thriller Book Reviews|