John Staughton, Senior Reviewer

Review: Steel, Blood & Fire (Immortal Treachery Book 1) by Allan Batchelder

★★★★

There are many fantasy authors who rely too heavily on the work of others, or the favorite tropes of the genre, when creating their own worlds. Fortunately, there are authors like Allan Batchelder who derive inspiration from fantasy masters and then construct wholly new and endlessly engaging realms for readers to enjoy. Steel, Blood & Fire, Book 1 of the Immortal Treachery series, is a grim, edge-of-your-seat pleasure to read.

Batchelder doesn’t concern himself with too much exposition, but instead jumps right into the action, transporting readers into a dark, brutal world and introducing them to one of […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2017-09-18T07:20:14+02:00August 14th, 2017|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: Fantasy Book Reviews|

Review: If Nobody Listens by Rikard Sommer

Scandinavian writers have recently captivated the attention of the literary world, beginning with Stieg Larsson’s breakout trilogy, and Rikard Sommer’s debut novel certainly follows in those illustrious footsteps. If Nobody Listens is a novel that defies classification to a certain degree – one part social commentary, one part an emotional tale of personal growth, and a final dash of thrills and danger for good measure. The subject of medical research and the struggles of global pharma companies may not sound like compelling reading, but in this case, you would be mistaken.

With a patient, methodical approach to exposition and storytelling, […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2019-02-11T08:53:04+02:00August 8th, 2017|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: International Fiction Book Reviews, Thriller Book Reviews|

Review: Brainwalker by Robyn Mundell & Stephan Lacast

★★★★

“Getting inside someone’s head” tends to be a figurative idea, or turn of phrase, but in Brainwalker, the boundlessly creative new novel from Robyn Mundell and Stephan Lacast, the concept is taken quite literally. This fast-paced novel takes readers deep into the actual human brain – and beyond.

Bernard is a typical YA literature protagonist – an unusual teen with some personality quirks who is suddenly thrown into an extraordinary situation. For Bernard, that situation arises when his curiosity gets the best of him in his father’s lab, who happens to be a particle physicist. After fiddling like […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2017-08-08T04:25:50+02:00August 6th, 2017|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: Science Fiction Book Reviews, Young Adult Book Reviews|

Review: The Breaking (The End Time Saga Book 2) by Daniel Greene

★★★★½

In a world of mindless zombies, eccentric hillbillies, deadly skill sets, and endless loyalty to the people you’ve survived beside, Daniel Greene has carved out an exciting apocalyptic series that stands head and shoulders above other offerings in the zombie genre.

In The Breaking, the sequel to End Time, readers are dropped back into the world of Steele, Mauser, and Gwen, as well as a United States that has fallen under the weight of a zombie onslaught. Multiple narrative perspectives provide readers with a three-dimensional picture of this harsh new world, which constantly borders on insanity. Death […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2019-01-21T09:37:34+02:00August 4th, 2017|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: Horror Book Reviews, Zombie Fiction Book Reviews|

Son of Syria by Ben Schafer

With the premise of a super-secret spy infiltrating dangerous lands to carry out impossible missions, Son of Syria by Ben Schafer is instantly appealing, but the power of the narrative and the timely, heart-wrenching story is what makes this book unforgettable.

Kyle Hoyek is an action hero in every sense of the word, but returning to his homeland – the site of his deepest sadness – threatens to chip away his armor that has been tested in battle and bloodshed. Readers are not only thrown into an edge-of-your-seat thriller with brilliantly depicted action scenes, but also moments of reflection, sorrow, […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2017-08-04T05:22:22+02:00August 4th, 2017|Categories: New Releases|Tags: Thriller Book Reviews|

Review: Seeds of Hatred (Scions Awakened Book 1) by Christian Nadeau

★★★★½

In Seeds of Hatred, Christian Nadeau proves that he is more than up to the task of creating an ambitious and creative fantasy universe. The opening chapter sets the mood for the entire book – danger around every corner, assassins and informants in a deadly dance, and cryptic warnings about mysterious threats from distant lands.

Marac is one of the main characters of the book, a man who knows how to kill, but also when to lay low, yet his need for employment leads him into cult-infested waters. The Brotherhood of Khan is only one of the many […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2017-09-14T10:42:41+02:00July 26th, 2017|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: Fantasy Book Reviews|

Devils by Erik Henry Vick

Devils by Erik Henry Vick is a horror collection of deliciously disturbing and unsettling tales about many varieties of devil: revenge fantasies, kidnapping, murderous salesmen, and more. The collection is brilliantly composed through slow, creeping exposition and enough shuddering moments to keep readers awake at night.

The subtle writing style isn’t overdramatic or macabre, but the weight and power of Vick’s words infuse more than enough fear into every story. Taking the time to develop rich and unique characters is often lacking in short story writers, but Vick makes certain that readers are engaged and intrigued by each player that […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2017-07-19T09:11:15+02:00July 19th, 2017|Categories: New Releases|Tags: Horror Book Reviews, Short Stories Book Reviews|

Review: Freeing Linhurst by Al Cassidy

★★★★½

Targeted at younger readers, Freeing Linhurst is a thrilling mystery that follows the adventures of Jack Alexander, an intrepid young investigator who is following in his mother’s footsteps – determined to uncover the truth about Linhurst State School and Hospital – an abandoned mental asylum in town.

Jack doesn’t know exactly what happened at Linhurst, but after choosing to write a school paper on the subject, his curiosity leads him down the proverbial rabbit hole. The scars of the asylum can still be seen all around, particularly in the ex-residents who still populate the town of Spring Dale. There […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2018-09-11T10:55:18+02:00July 16th, 2017|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: Middle Grade Fiction Book Reviews|