Lead Story | Self-Publishing Review

Review: Fatal Decision by T.K. Wolf

The road to vengeance is paved with deadly choices in Fatal Decision by T.K. Wolf, the first novel in what promises to be an exhilarating series. Sam Harker, a masterful assassin with a score to settle, is putting her unmatched skill set to work, biting at the hand that lied to and created her, but she lands in dangerous waters after diving into the past, in this world-spanning, high-octane thriller.

Moving at the speed of the best Bond movies, this spy thriller has plenty of recognizable elements from the popular genre, from the single-minded revenge of the Jason Bourne series […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2020-11-05T04:43:01+02:00November 4th, 2020|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: Spy Thriller, T.K. Wolf, Thriller|

Review: The Art of Influencing Project Success by Nicholas Ferguson

Nicholas Ferguson, a successful technical advisor, suggests new, innovative, and at times radical ways to view one’s work life in The Art of Influencing Project Success: Positively Accelerate Project Outcomes Working from Home or the Office.

A uniquely wide-ranging self-help guide, Ferguson’s book examines the way that project management can be successfully achieved through broadened perspective. He recounts that from childhood he had an innate belief that the universe from its smallest particle was charged with energy. In the same way, our work and the projects we undertake are imbued with energies that need to be recognized and channeled. […]

SPR2020-11-03T07:55:25+02:00November 2nd, 2020|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: Business, Nicholas Ferguson, Self-Help|

Review: The Actor by Mharlyn Merritt

Bizarre worlds collide with even wilder consequences in The Actor by Mharlyn Merritt, a non-stop ride through the realms of fame, sex, regret, and redemption. A burst of spontaneous brilliance from the first page to the last, this novel is a love note to the weird edges of celebrity, and a homage to a golden era of Hollywood that may have never existed outside the tabloids.

Known only as The Actor, the enigmatic protagonist finds himself in hot water after his lover mysteriously disappears, but that doesn’t stop him from shacking up with the next lit fuse of a person […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2020-11-02T04:20:29+02:00November 1st, 2020|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: Contemporary Fiction, Literary Fiction, Thriller|

Review: Cutout: White Knight Dark Knight by Don Helmig & Scott Robertson

Following the prophetic writing of Cutout: Government Conspiracy, authors Don Helmig and Scott Robertson have expanded this series with Cutout: White Knight Dark Knight. Diving deeper into the global cabal of shadowy powers directing us towards doom, this dystopian allegory is frighteningly timely, given the state of the world.

With events set after the pandemic our real world has yet to handle, this is a near-future horror story of China’s rise to global power, and the struggles of an American president facing mounting pressure from all sides. From exploding lake houses and murderous Aussie intelligence agents to delicate moments […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2020-11-02T04:08:25+02:00October 31st, 2020|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: Thriller|

Review: Shadowshine by Johnny Armstrong

A timely and fearless tale of courage in the face of insurmountable odds, Shadowshine: An Animal Adventure by Johnny Armstrong is a brilliant piece of creative fiction.

When Zak the “poet possum” realizes that his home and those he cares for are being threatened, he embarks on an epic journey into the unknown to rally support and find a way to protect the forest. Somehow, he must unite the Forest Folk to push back the dangerous humans and their allies, but there are secret suspicions and old enemies who stand in his way.

An incredibly intelligent and philosophical protagonist, Zak […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2020-10-30T03:42:03+02:00October 29th, 2020|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: Children's Books, Johnny Armstrong, Middle Grade Fiction|

Review: Soul Seeker by Kaylin McFarren

When a corrupted child grows into an unrepentantly evil young man, he must be stopped, and that will require the investigations of a horrified father and the services of a dedicated demon, in the colorfully complex fantasy by author Kaylin McFarren, Soul Seeker.

Firefighter Benjamin Poe is fed up with his lazy, complaining son Gabe, but those feelings amplify when there’s a fire at Gabe’s workplace, killing the three co-workers he particularly despised. Poe can’t help but try to learn more until he is confronted by a strange man with bright flashing eyes. Crighton is so well acquainted with […]

SPR2020-10-27T08:10:47+02:00October 27th, 2020|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: Fantasy, Kaylin McFarren|

Review: Black River Lantern by Alex Grass

A surreal carnival of horrors, Black River Lantern by Alex Grass is a genre-spanning novel of dangerous powers, cruel fathers, and the secrets that shape our lives.

The Maravicos Carnival is a legendary institution in the town of Kayjigville, but so is the temper and ambition of Papa Maravicos, who will do anything to keep the family business thriving. After escaping from his father’s never-ending cycle of abuse and pain, Eddie Maravicos is dragged back to this torturous circus, armed with the surprising new power to read minds. It doesn’t take long for his father to capitalize on this new […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2020-10-23T07:13:13+02:00October 23rd, 2020|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: Alex Grass, Fantasy|

Review: Just Buy Her a Dress and She’ll Be Fine by Amanda Dodson Gremillion

The emotionally charged yet sensible treatise, Just Buy Her a Dress and She’ll Be Fine by Amanda Dodson Gremillion, is the moving story of postpartum depression and OCD as it played out in the author’s own life, and how that became a medium for guiding others.

Gremillion’s mental distress seemed to begin when she had her first child. She and her husband Jay had met in their early teens, courted for ten years, and married – happily, at first. Both wanted a child and when their daughter Aubrie Lynn was born, she was welcomed.

Soon afterwards, the problems set in. […]