Book Reviews | Self-Publishing Review

Review: The Great Migration by Steve Ramirez

A newly forged adventurer finds herself back in a rapidly changing world in The Great Migration by Steve Ramirez, a wildly creative and enrapturing novel. In a capital suddenly beset on all sides by mistrust, incursions, rebellion, and disease, unexpected heroes are forced to righteously rise in defense of their home, their way of life, and the future of the Kingdom.

A misunderstood race of monsters is spreading fear – and a fever – amongst the Citizens, but the true enemy of humanity is something far greater, and overcoming age-old ignorance may be the only hope to save the world. […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2022-02-25T10:45:48+02:00January 28th, 2022|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: Fantasy|

Review: Black, White, and Gray All Over by Frederick Douglass Reynolds

A riveting and eye-opening read for every American, Black, White, and Gray All Over by Frederick Douglass Reynolds is a powerful story of family, struggle, redemption, and resilience as a black police officer on the mean streets of Compton.

Recounting his life in emotional detail in the opening chapters, the author’s roots are revealed, as are the early struggles that led him towards a career in law enforcement. The majority of the book then details his decades on the force, delving into the nitty-gritty history of Compton street gangs and power structures, as well as the near-constant war being waged […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2022-04-27T04:41:58+02:00January 26th, 2022|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: Frederick Douglass Reynolds, Memoir|

Review: Ten Thousand I Love Yous by Lisa Slabach

A sweet and witty romance novel about a thirty-seven-year-old woman starting over, Lisa Slabach’s Ten Thousand I Love Yous is a relatable book about never being too old to redefine yourself.

Writer Kimberly Braxton gets the shock of her life after her daughter Haley’s high school graduation: Jay, her attorney husband of eighteen years, has fallen out of love and wants to get a divorce. Kimberly, who was anticipating having empty nest time to rekindle her romance, is suddenly single and thrown into the complicated world of adult dating.

With Haley attending UC Berkeley, Kimberly is finally alone – for […]

Michelle Hogmire2022-02-25T07:46:30+02:00January 25th, 2022|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: Romance, Women's Fiction|

Review: Bird of Passage by Dr. Nooshie Motaref

Bird of Passage by author Dr. Nooshie Motaref is a fascinating account of a woman born in Iran who moves through the world looking for love, spiritual healing, and an understanding of what has happened to her homeland.

Wherever Mitra goes, she finds adventure, insecurity, romance, danger and, at times, disappointment. Yet her inner strength remains honed to the tasks that face her. Her namesake, from Indo-Persian mythology, is a wise woman who speaks truth, “with a thousand ears…ten thousand eyes.” This fortitude will be especially needed, as when following the ascension to power of the Khomeini regime in Iran, […]

SPR2022-01-24T05:41:58+02:00January 23rd, 2022|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: Dr. Nooshie Motaref, International Fiction|

Review: Hourglass by Daniel James

A genre-busting thriller from author Daniel James, Hourglass is an occult masterwork of tension and grit, layered with shadowy government agencies, demonic villains, baggage-laden ghosts, and an unlikely pair of comic book heroes.

Clyde Williams is holding it together as best he can, despite struggling to finish his comic book, wrestling with the recent murder of his roommate Kev, and then navigating Kev’s ghostly return to the apartment from beyond the grave. However, when an Hourglass agent shows up at his door, inviting them both to join a nebulous government cell dealing with “post-life entities,” it’s clear that life is […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2022-01-20T07:14:31+02:00January 19th, 2022|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: Paranormal, Thriller|

Review: Self Help Sucks by Tony Blankenship

Tony Blankenship takes aim at traditional and inherently limited forms of self-improvement in Self Help Sucks: The Anti Self-Help Guide to Inner Peace and Contentment. Drawing from personal experience, spiritual traditions, and well-established multi-step programs, the author leads readers through an effective interrogation of their own beliefs, in order to help demonstrate what they actually need to get better.

While there is a massive catalogue of self-help books on the market, the premise of this book is not that the advice in those other books is wrong – instead, it is that the “self” part of the equation needs […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2022-02-24T11:00:28+02:00January 18th, 2022|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: Self-Help|

Review: Saving Me First III by Hui Beop

In the third volume of her self-help series, author Hui Beop takes a dynamic look at Korean and other medical systems to help us analyze how and why we feel and act the way we do in Saving Me First III: Unlocking What’s Always Within Us.

Hui Beop’s manual begins in full spin, declaring that each of our five major organs – kidney, heart, liver, lung, and stomach – is essential for life and each carries within it both physical and psychological or emotional tendencies. One whose health is dominated by a strong heart, likes to have an audience […]

SPR2022-01-17T04:32:23+02:00January 15th, 2022|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: Self-Help, Spirituality|

Review: Cute For A Black Girl by Amy Watkins

An emotional, affecting novel about existing and surviving as an oppressed person, Amy Watkins’ Cute For A Black Girl exposes the horrific, intrinsic racism and sexism that young Black women are subject to on a daily basis – as well as highlighting the importance of friends and found family.

Chloe is a young Black girl from an abusive home who is placed in the foster care system, where she’s eventually adopted by a kind, caring, and genuinely well-meaning white lawyer named William. The story tracks Chloe’s life on multiple timelines, including the discrimination she experiences as the only Black student […]

Michelle Hogmire2022-02-17T08:44:51+02:00January 13th, 2022|Categories: Book Reviews|Tags: Contemporary Fiction|