Book Reviews

The latest indie book reviews from Self-Publishing Review

Review: The Best of Intentions by Gilbert Van Hoeydonck

The Best of Intentions by Gilbert Van Hoeydonck

A moving work of literary fiction, The Best of Intentions by Gilbert Van Hoeydonck illustrates the stark message of its title: the best of intentions are too often not enough.

Transplanted Melbourne social worker, Kurt Edelman, is hardly a typical Buddhist. With a penchant for cheap wine, leather jackets, and violent video games, he’s disillusioned and frustrated by the social system for which he works – a system that is for the most part understaffed, underfunded, and forces a high case load on its workers.

However, when young Kylee Watson, one of his former charges, jumps from the roof of […]

2019-09-30T09:12:25+02:00August 20th, 2019|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: , |

Review: Littlethumb Sneezed by Truant D. Memphis

Littlethumb Sneezed by Truant D. Memphis

When 10-year old Littlethumb Brooks emerged from the “Occurrence,” the world around him had not changed, but he had. Always sensitive, but now a precocious artist, he possesses a wiseness beyond his years. In front of him stands an amazing series of events involving his parents, a kind yet eager teacher, an evil rock-star, a devastating fire and a beautiful nanny. Littlethumb Sneezed by the creatively named Truant D. Memphis captivates and careens through mystery, love, and a head-spinning jaunt through the enigmatic art world.

The story begins on Coney Island where a caricature artist meets a nanny and the […]

2019-09-27T09:29:48+02:00August 17th, 2019|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: , , |

Review: Ramona’s Man by D.L. Yoder

Ramona's Man by D.L. Yoder

Flipping the script on the classic tale of Pygmalion, author D.L. Yoder presents a quirky and unpredictable novel with Ramona’s Man. Tackling issues of parental control, societal expectations, and the half-blind nature of love, this book is an intriguing dive into family psychology and has plenty of squirm-worthy moments to which younger readers will relate.

There is always some pressure when you bring a person home to meet your family for the first time – this pressure is much greater when that person is a homeless man named Harley you picked up less than an hour earlier as a stand-in […]

2022-01-14T07:34:04+02:00August 17th, 2019|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: , |

Review: Hot Solar (Cold Solar Book 2) by Anthony Robinson

In the not so-distant future, the remains of Earth and the Martian colonists are locked in a bloody battle for control of resources, the destiny of their planets and the ultimate fate of mankind itself. This is the sci-fi premise of Hot Solar, the entertaining second installment of the Cold Solar series from Anthony Robinson. Balancing well between suspense and action, the author draws readers into a number of mysteries in his twisted future vision.

While the first book set up this dystopian world and the major players within it, this sophomore of the saga allows for more intense […]

2019-09-26T07:59:19+02:00August 16th, 2019|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: , |

Review: Education from a Deeper and Multidisciplinary Perspective by Chandana Watagodakumbura

Education from a Deeper and Multidisciplinary Perspective by Chandana Watagodakumbura

Most people believe that a strong education provides a foundation for the future, but there are also those who believe our educational philosophy in the 21st century is outdated and limiting, if not downright harmful to coming generations. In Education from a Deeper and Multidisciplinary Perspective, author Chandana Watagodakumbura presents a bold new vision for the future of education, an individualized and customized approach that could alter communities, populations, entrenched infrastructures, and global society as a whole.

Rather than arguing over the merits of the current educational system, or presenting small adjustments to improve standardized test scores, this book […]

2020-08-27T04:03:00+02:00August 14th, 2019|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: , |

Review: A Family Affair and Other Stories by Joseph E. Fleckenstein

A Family Affair and Other Stories by Joseph E. Fleckenstein

A Family Affair and Other Stories by Joseph Fleckenstein is an engaging collection of fictional and non-fictional stories that span the globe.

Many of these stories have been previously published in literary journals, which speaks to the quality of the writing throughout, which includes those that have not been published before. Written in bite-sized portions, with some stories only two pages long, this is a collection that you can breeze through quickly, in part because of the eclectic variety of Fleckenstein’s storytelling. The stories travel to Egypt, India, Germany, and more, acting as a kind of travel diary, as well […]

2019-09-16T08:54:26+02:00August 13th, 2019|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: , , |

Review: Jack of Thorns (Inheritance Book 1) by A.K. Faulkner

Jack of Thorns (Inheritance Book 1) by A.K. Faulkner

Jack of Thorns by author A.K. Faulkner is a surprisingly complex and powerful novel that blends the bizarre with the brutally honest.

While many authors compromise plot integrity, character depth or meaningful social commentary in exchange for steamy scenes and snappy dialogue, this book steps away from that basic design. Still working as a fast and furious summer read, Faulkner also delivers a serious bit of writing that tackles subjects with real emotional weight.

After a lifetime of feeling like an outsider, Laurence Riley has slipped into a pattern of addiction, succumbing to temptation rather than facing the psychological turmoil […]

2019-08-14T10:42:11+02:00August 12th, 2019|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: , |

Review: Chromatophobia by W.D. County

Chromatophobia by W.D. County

It feels like a struggle these days to find sci-fi or horror novels that don’t regurgitate old plot lines and rely on classic tropes to snag a bit of attention, but Chromatophobia, the new novel by author W.D. County, will cause fans of these genres to sit up and take notice.

After a childhood living on the edges, isolated by his grey vision of the world, Miles Reardon has found his sweet spot in the military, where he turns tragedy into triumph as a precise and renowned sniper. From the very first scene, readers are given an intense dive […]

2020-05-20T05:17:13+02:00August 12th, 2019|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: , , |
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