Lead Story | Self-Publishing Review

Review: The Character Route Tree by Marc R. Schneider

A self-help guide focused on the development of moral integrity and internal strength, The Character Route Tree: A Memoir, a Method, a Mastery of Obsessive Character Development by Marc R. Schneider is an innovative manual for growth, resilience, and situational success.

Penned by an author with a lifetime of experience in navigating the challenges of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, this book is more than a strict resource for others with this diagnosis; it contains his remarkable personal story and the highlights of his life’s work, distilled into a usable reference for people of all walks of life, not only those with […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2026-04-02T13:32:22+02:00April 1st, 2026|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: Memoir Book Reviews, Self-Help Book Reviews|

Review: Poison Pill by Anthony Lee

A probing examination into the darker sides of health, Poison Pill by Anthony Lee is a fearless medical thriller told from inside the belly of the beast.

In a span of two days, Dr. Mark Lin is presented with a pair of enigmatic patients – Hector, a person far too young for kidney failure who potentially faces a lifetime of dialysis, and Robbie, a severely obese man with rapidly worsening COPD and no clear cause. In the first case, Dr. Lin suspects the root cause to be an energy and weight-loss supplement called Motileaf, while in the second, he worries […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2026-04-01T10:31:52+02:00March 31st, 2026|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: Thriller Book Reviews|

Review: Abbot Lane by Jim Layeux

A slow-burning drama that crackles with contemporary fears and timeless heroics, Abbot Lane by Jim Layeux is a forceful spy-vs-spy thriller.

An existential threat to America has been identified, and “a highly placed official within US intelligence is hellbent on destruction.” In order to prevent a global holy war, reluctant college student Jesse Carlton is recruited by an aging intelligence agent, Lee Tondar, who moonlights as a history professor at the secretive Grissim Institute.

Plunged overnight into the bewildering world of international espionage, Jesse is tasked with quietly investigating the flow and unprecedented censorship of intelligence reports to Tondar’s particular […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2026-03-31T14:13:58+02:00March 30th, 2026|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: Spy Thriller Book Reviews, Thriller Book Reviews|

Review: Powerful Mind: 12 Simple Keys by Bill Harvey

A compelling, optimistic, and original approach to mental focus, Powerful Mind: 12 Simple Keys by Bill Harvey is an innovative tool for self-discovery and creative liberation. With the stated aim of helping readers to best utilize the skills and knowledge they already possess, this is an ambitious but undeniably edifying read.

Framed as a second essential piece of his “Mind Magic” methodology, this book explains why his established techniques have proven effective for tens of thousands of people in recent decades. Expanding on the author’s extensive experience working with the “Flow State” – namely, how to access this graceful energetic […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2026-03-11T14:14:16+02:00March 11th, 2026|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: Self-Help Book Reviews|

Review: Ophiuchus Flinched by Z. Bennett Lorimer

A riveting second installment from Z. Bennett Lorimer, Ophiuchus Flinched (Tales of Ciel Book 2) expands the fantastical realm of Ciel as one young woman’s destiny begins to unfold. In this high-flying realm of conspiratorial plots, airborne battlefields, and sociopolitical drama, a young generation of heroes persist in the fight for survival under an oppressive regime of elite overlords.

Following on the dramatic events of Book 1, Effie Strait leaves the only sky island she has ever known after proving herself to be one of the most Gifted plebiscites in a generation. As a result, she has fallen into the […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2026-02-13T09:15:57+02:00February 12th, 2026|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: Fantasy Book Reviews|

Review: MIJO: We Bend, Not Break by Francisco Castillo

A stirring portrait of the immigrant tradition in America and the burdens of memory that can bury us, MIJO: We Bend, Not Break by Francisco Castillo is an absorbing tale of resilience and reinvention.

Capturing the intergenerational trauma and trajectories of one fearless Mexican-American family, the story depicts the diverse journeys of Joaquín, his son Alejandro, and grandson Gabriel. From the violent dead ends of rural Mexico and back-breaking work in the tomato fields of southern California to struggling up the white collar tower and assimilating into contemporary US culture, this sprawling narrative runs the gamut of the immigrant experience […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2025-12-09T09:50:37+02:00December 8th, 2025|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: Contemporary Fiction Book Reviews, International Fiction Book Reviews|

Review: Memory, Memory, Go Away by Christopher W. Selna

Laden with warnings for our troubled times, Memory, Memory, Go Away by Christopher W. Selna is a timely piece of speculative fiction that echoes with contemporary weight.

In a parallel reality to our own, citizens of the United Founded States of America can participate in a program that wipes away traumatic memories, thanks to the technology of a company called NeuroGlo. Challenging the timeless pillars of religion and the insidious healing power of pharmaceutical drugs, this technology has radically reshaped society’s collective response to trauma, grief, loss, and regret.

At the heart of this rebellion against the societal dominance of […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2025-12-04T10:47:11+02:00December 3rd, 2025|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: Dystopian Fiction Book Reviews, Speculative Fiction Book Reviews|

Review: Being Human: A User’s Guide by David Ellis

A timely consideration of the foibles, failures, and turning points that define our lives, Being Human: A User’s Guide – Past Performance is Not a Guarantee of Future Results by David Ellis is a revealing combination of memoir and self-help manual, and a testament to the liberatory power of self-knowledge.

As a psychologist of more than four decades, Ellis sets out to answer some of the biggest questions that have been brought before him over the course of his career. From uncovering the root causes of our myriad existential problems and seeing the positive side of mistakes to eliminating despair […]

John Staughton, Senior Reviewer2025-12-01T14:33:27+02:00December 1st, 2025|Categories: Book Reviews, Lead Story|Tags: Self-Help Book Reviews|