John Staughton, Senior Reviewer

Reality, memory, and the dark side of dreaming collide in The Dominant One by Michelle Ian, a spiraling work of supernatural horror that hooks hard from the very first chapter. A wise protector with a hidden power finds himself on a desperate rescue mission in the Arizona mountains, haunted by the fatal fallout of his own tragic heroics. With a hypnotizing plot and enthralling, suspenseful prose, this is a sinister masterpiece of modern horror, with surreal sequences of mind-bending descriptions, dream-world battles, a corpse-swallowing void, and a psychotic killer who can terrorize outside of space and time. A disturbing escape, […]

From building competitive intelligence to sharpening your instincts in the heat of conflict, Sun Tzu’s Art of War in Business Strategy: Mastering the Battlefield of Commerce by M.K. Langley is a close reading of the titular text for an ambitious professional generation. Breaking down the keys to corporate success before distilling them through Sun Tzu’s keen military lens, this is a straightforward playbook for behavioral efficiency, self-improvement, and corporate ladder climbing. While the association of war and business may be a bit strong for some readers, the author’s exploration of corporate strategy, interpersonal dynamics, high-stakes decision-making, and behavioral science through […]

An addictive VR video game leads to surprising and challenging lessons about internet safety in Cyberama by Arthi Vasudevan, a clever children’s book laced with critical wisdom. Maya is a curious gamer with cyber-savvy parents working on a secret government project, but when bad actors attack via cyberspace, it will take fresh knowledge and clever defenses to save the day as the situation spirals out of control. Supported by AI-infused cyber pals that try to keep Maya safe as she ventures through the online world, this story of self-discovery, safety, and cybersecurity is equally entertaining and educational. Breaking down complex […]

The intrepid Delta Squad of space commandos is back in Invasive Species by Nick Snape, the sixth book in his wildly creative Weapons of Choice series. In need of recuperation after their recent tragic losses, the team descends into the Stratan system, only to find a shattered society of regressed humanity where trust is rarer than resources, and violence reigns supreme. Snape’s wholly original characters play with readers’ contemporary preconceptions about life, sentience, and the purpose of human evolution, while also delivering an action-heavy thriller that will satisfy any fan of tech-driven sci-fi. After six books, the pace and intricate […]

A captivating and original high-seas thriller, The Halcyon Crisis by Drew Harrison takes readers into the fascinating bowels and drama of a cruise ship as it navigates the dangers of a brazen pirate takeover. What the tech-savvy terrorists don’t expect is a skilled hostage negotiator among the ragtag cast of rebellious and entertainingly entitled travelers. Impressively capturing the energy and personalities of cruise directors, vice admirals, travel bloggers and villains alike, Harrison patiently unfurls this ransom-driven plot with masterful suspense, peppered with tongue-in-cheek narration and countless moments of clever dialogue. A conspiratorial heist like few others, this creative and compelling […]