John Staughton, Senior Reviewer | Self-Publishing Review

Review: All Roads Lead to Lawrence by Craig Leener

Readers are welcomed back into the strange world of Zeke and the Seventh Dimension in the wild and wise All Roads Lead to Lawrence by Craig Leener.

A sequel to the acclaimed This Was Never About Basketball, our protagonist is a bit older and wiser, but his heart still beats with every bounce of the basketball. Now the point guard for his college team, he may think he’s done with his extra-dimensional adventures, but his journey is only beginning.

Upon the death of his brother, Zeke’s reality begins coming apart at the seams, and it doesn’t help that not […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2019-12-20T08:11:58+02:00November 4th, 2019|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: Contemporary Fiction Book Reviews, YA Fantasy Book Reviews, Young Adult Book Reviews|

Shackles and More Gripping Tales by James Hanna

Digging into the intimacies of life, with an authentic and striking voice, author James Hanna has curated an excellent collection of tightly edited stories in Shackles and More Gripping Tales. Cutting into the heart of the American experience, ranging from teenage angst to the pain of losing those you have loved, these stories swing from heart-wrenching to inspiring, demonstrating his great flexibility and empathy as a writer.

Set in different times and places, this collection moves at a quick pace, and each story is distinctly separate. Some stories tackle social issues from a more philosophical angle, such as “USA,” […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2019-11-04T07:15:55+02:00November 3rd, 2019|Categories: New Releases|Tags: Short Stories Book Reviews|

Review: Corporate Undertaker by Domenic Aversa

For those readers seeking an inside look at the downfall of business giants, as well as the slow fizzle of smaller companies, Corporate Undertaker: Business Lessons from the Dead and Dying by author and crisis manager Domenic Aversa offers a savage peek behind the corporate curtain.

With big business taking such center stage in the power dynamics of politics and the daily news, it is easy to forget that the majority of businesses still fail, a point that the author makes early on in the book. More than 50% of businesses fail in the first five years, while 70% are […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2023-03-06T09:56:54+02:00November 3rd, 2019|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: Business Book Reviews, Memoir Book Reviews|

Review: After Olympus by Santiago Xaman

Dabbling in mysticism, quasi-fiction, conspiracy theories, shadowy geopolitics and a healthy dose of mystery, After Olympus by author Santiago Xaman spans a broad and bizarre gamut of genres, making this an undeniably unique read in an age of carbon-copy thrillers.

The book is largely told directly from the mind of the apparent author, Santiago Xaman, with the novel presented as unearthed journal entries and scraps of memory. A screed of truth from a time in the past, these pages bear a secret that stretches from the 1960s to the modern day and beyond.

A downed Soviet spycraft bearing three mysterious […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2019-12-11T08:49:10+02:00October 31st, 2019|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: Science Fiction Book Reviews, Visionary Fiction Book Reviews|

Review: Holding On: Stories of Furnass by Richard Snodgrass

Brimming with rustic energy and written in an authentically American voice, Holding On by Richard Snodgrass is a surprising collection of stories that capture the rise and imminent fall of Furnass, a small American town like so many others.

In the industrial boom of the 20^th century, mill towns were enjoying their heyday, driving the great machine of the nation forward. Given the perspective of time, however, modern readers know that this would be a temporary golden age, one still gasping out its death rattles to this day. Within this framework of transient prosperity and bold hope for the […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2019-12-03T10:48:06+02:00October 29th, 2019|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: Literary Fiction Book Reviews, Short Stories Book Reviews|

Improve Your Health with Simple Data Analysis by Igor Stukanov

Author Igor Stukanov presents a comprehensive, thoughtful, and practical guide for anyone who takes medication in Improve Your Health with Simple Data Analysis.

Considering that there are hundreds of millions of people who take pharmaceutical medications (legally and doctor prescribed) every year, yet still suffer from overdoses, complications, and personal injury due to negative interactions from multiple prescriptions, the system is quite clearly broken. When it comes to education and common-sense understanding of the medication we put in our bodies, the companies generating these drugs provide the bare minimum. This guide from Stukanov is based in simple facts and […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2019-10-30T09:00:26+02:00October 28th, 2019|Categories: New Releases|Tags: Health Book Reviews|

Review: The Nawie by Alex J. Knudsen

From the twisted depths of memory comes The Nawie, a haunting psychological thriller by author Alex J. Knudsen that will make you keep the lights on.

When Marcelina Bajorek and her boyfriend take a trip back to Poland to reconnect with her family, she has no idea what horrors from the past she is about to unleash. As Marcelina is soon to learn, secrets aren’t the only monstrous things left behind in her childhood.

The opening of this novel sets a tragic tone, with a mysterious midnight terror in rural Poland envisioned through the five-year-old eyes of Marcelina, on […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2019-11-21T08:01:06+02:00October 23rd, 2019|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: Horror Book Reviews, Thriller Book Reviews|

Into the Woods by Josh Soule

Subtle horror and patient storytelling underpin Into the Woods, a slow-burning 16th century thriller from Josh Soule, showing that childhood terrors don’t always remain in the past. Henry, Thomas, and John are a fascinating trio of protagonists, and this ominous tale transports readers to another time, when “monsters” roamed and superstition ruled. As the dark truth of the beast terrorizing Carn is revealed, an impossible choice must be made, one that is haunting and evocative, leaving an indelible impact after the last page is turned.

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John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2019-10-23T14:48:44+02:00October 23rd, 2019|Categories: Editorial Reviews|