John Staughton, Senior Reviewer

An homage to a beloved piece of boardwalk history, Mr. Fascination and the Fascination Machines by Michael Jasorka is an eye-opening peek into the colorful history of electro-mechanical pinball machines. This niche graphic novel traces the century-long journey of the mechanized arcade game Fascination, telling the tale of its mysterious mob ties, cult classic fame, and underdog survival in that growing industry. Written in comic book style, there is an overreliance on expositional bubbles that can be difficult to differentiate, but the illustrations and obvious passion for the project elevate the book over some stumbles in presentation. Celebrating a piece […]

An extraordinary adventure into the darkest halls of power, Menace: An Agent Dean Cold Novel by Ray Keating is a confidently cool piece of Cold War sci-fi, coupled with top-secret action. To stop a clandestine takeover of the Soviet Union by mind-controlling tech, Agent Dean Cold must put aside his grief at the loss of his partner and face down a sinister cabal of Commanders bent on pushing the world towards nuclear war. Joined by a handful of Secret Service vets and a drum-playing chemist, this spy-game group of companions becomes the first and last line of defense against a […]