July, 2018 | Self-Publishing Review

Review: Happiness and Success by Raphaël Savoy

Author Raphaël Savoy has created a pragmatic philosophical guide for leading one’s life more fully through acceptance in Happiness and Success: 12 Key Steps and a Few Little Changes to Transform Your Life.

Savoy has aimed his book at people who are ostensibly comfortable based on their location and station in life, but who continue to feel dissatisfied – in other words, to be happy with success, not just to achieve it. He begins by stating that human beings are uniquely designed to seek happiness – as humans have evolved, they have designed complex cultures dedicated to principles of […]

SPR2018-08-24T10:37:32+02:00July 31st, 2018|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: Non-Fiction Book Reviews, Self-Help Book Reviews|

The Fantastic Phantasmic Detective Agency: And the Rebel Realm by D.L. Dugger

The Fantastic Phantasmic Detective Agency: And the Rebel Realm is the first delightful installment in the paranormal fiction series for middle-grade readers by D.L. Dugger.

Billy, Toby and Abby, twelve-year-old sleuths of The Fantastic Phantasmic Detective Agency, help a ghost called Mary find her cherished locket but in pursuing its disappearance, the friends soon find themselves locked in a mortuary run by a shady mortician. After escaping and returning the locket to her, a grateful Mary informs them that her friend needs help finding her missing brother. The three seek the help of a crabby medium, unaware that he’s made […]

Marta Cheng2018-07-31T10:33:32+02:00July 30th, 2018|Categories: New Releases|Tags: Middle Grade Fiction Book Reviews, Paranormal Book Reviews|

Review: Legacy of Dolyn: Volume 1 by Amelia Guillem

Told in the format of blog posts, Legacy of Dolyn: Volume 1 is an entertaining modern fantasy, replete with pop culture references and nods to anime.

Glendolyn Villem works as a secretary in a police station, with everyday problems that are easily relatable, like searching desperately for guy on an app called “Mingle.” Then, to her great dismay, she is ordained with magical powers and joined by a cat confusingly called Gwen, who, whether Glen likes or not, will be her mentor.

Glen must deal with the burden of being a sorceress and the complexities of her powers in a […]

SPR2018-08-23T07:36:04+02:00July 30th, 2018|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: Fantasy Book Reviews, Urban Fantasy Book Reviews, YA Fantasy Book Reviews, Young Adult Book Reviews|

Review: To the Sacred Valley with Koko by Ayyappan R. Nair

Writing a book that can hold a young person’s attention, while also guiding them on a healthy path is not always easy, but Ayyappan R. Nair manages to do so in the marvelous book, To the Sacred Valley with Koko. Cleverly blending science fictional elements with a relatable story and powerful underlying messages, this book is ideal for middle school readers, but holds wisdom for any age group.

A number of stories gradually interweave through the larger narrative, from the advanced robot-designing James’ family to Ankit, the primary character of the story, who lives in a state of constant […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2019-01-22T11:04:22+02:00July 29th, 2018|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: Middle Grade Fiction Book Reviews|

A Kiss of Little Consequence by BC Hartwell

A Kiss of Little Consequence by B.C. Hartwell is a novel filled with adventure and romance waiting at every turn. Parker Moon, a guide with Tourcey Travel Company, is convinced that he is destined to find true love and that it might just be on one of the tours he leads. Relying on his “vibe” he finds himself drawn to different females, hoping against hope that one of them will be “the one.”

While finishing up a tour in an exotic beach location, Parker receives a spiritual reading from a woman named Zafrina who had given him the “vibe.” She […]

SPR2019-01-11T14:51:15+02:00July 26th, 2018|Categories: New Releases|Tags: Romance Book Reviews|

An Interview with Keith Martin-Smith: Author of Only Everything

Only Everything is Keith’s fourth book and first novel. A collection of short stories, ‘The Mysterious Divination of Tea Leaves’, was published in 2009, followed in 2012 by the award-winning memoir A Heart Blown Open and its follow-up, The Heart of Zen. He is also a professional book coach.

Tell us about your book.

Only Everything is a reflection on the costs and promises of following your dreams, and what it means to live a life on your own terms. It also explores the sometimes terrible costs of doing this, through the lives of a number of artists who […]

SPR2018-07-26T10:12:37+02:00July 26th, 2018|Categories: Interviews|

Review: The Candle Room by Daniel K. Gentile

One of the noblest of professions isn’t all it’s cracked up to be in The Candle Room, a gripping legal thriller by debut author, Daniel K. Gentile.

It doesn’t take long for rookie lawyer, Zachary E. Morgan, Esquire to realize that the gross over-billing practices of his Los Angeles insurance defense firm isn’t something he wants to be a part of – especially after four years of busting his butt in night school to obtain his law degree. So he quits, thinking that going into practice for himself is the better way to go. Convincing his wife, Sasha, isn’t […]

Marta Cheng2019-01-22T11:14:32+02:00July 25th, 2018|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: Legal Thriller Book Reviews, Thriller Book Reviews|

Review: Aura (The Senses Novels Book 1) by K M Aul

Shifting your perspective as a reader is one of the fundamental reasons to pick up a book, and great authors can immerse readers in worlds they couldn’t have imagined before the first page. In Aura, the first installation of the Senses Novels by K M Aul, the author does not hesitate to throw readers off the deep end of all they assume about the world – and about how it’s going to end.

The gifted young characters that sit at the center of the novel, particularly Jacob, must navigate their own inherent struggles in the larger world, while also […]