December 2024 Review Issue

Table Of Contents
Prime Picks
Fantasy & Sci Fi
Literature
Mystery & Thrillers

Fantasy & Sci Fi

Alien Nation
Raymond King
Visceral Books
979-8-218-36298-0         $2.99
Website: www.raymondkingbooks.com
Ordering link: www.amazon.com/dp/B0DL3GXRHY

 Alien Nation moves Asimov’s futuristic robotic law into new territory. It describes the dilemma of service model android Jason Freeman, who has long dreamed of becoming a socially acceptable psychopath, but fails the test to move beyond his programming. This failure means that in a year he will be replaced by a court-sanctioned, soulless avatar.

 Even though Jason has failed, his ability to dream and craft ambitions beyond his programming as a servant holds startling ramifications for not just his future, but society as a whole.

 When he is granted a pardon so that he can participate in a strange Utopia where psychopathic behaviors are applauded and compassion rejected, Jason makes innovative choices in an effort to subvert his deviant traits. His idol, Prince Marcus Kane, faces similar paradigm-changing experiences. Both lives are thrown into turmoil as a civil war threatens their ambitions, unique purposes, and personas.

 In portraying a milieu in which two seemingly disparate entities reinvent their lives, purposes, and society itself, Raymond King creates a powerful survey of moral and ethical conundrums that weave into the sci-fi scenario in unpredictable, gripping ways.

 The notion that psychopathology is a condoned social structure introduces intriguing concepts to readers which considers the morals of social acceptance and the definition of deviance.

 A host of characters lend consistency and thought-provoking insights to the two main characters. These range from Marcus, who questions the belief in a higher faith and feels that torture lends character and joy to his life, to his rescue Claudia, whose dilemma forces further thought-provoking insights about the nature and application of violence in society:

 Every strain of resentment I had buried inside cried out for violent release. It was now or never. For the first time in my life, I acted without passing judgment. What sweet freedom!

 The many themes that come into play in Alien Nation (from social acceptance, socially accepted pathology, shame and redemption, and miscarriages of justice) create a multifaceted tale that will lend especially well to sci-fi book club debates and discussions.

 The dichotomy of how “two things can be true at the same time” contrasts notes of love with deadly dangers fueled by alternative thinking struggles.

 Libraries seeking heady philosophical and social inspections from sci-fi stories that rest as firmly on these examinations as on nonstop action will find Alien Nation a powerful acquisition and recommendation. It will attract readers and book clubs seeking notable works that defy pat categorization, delivering the one-two punch of novel scenarios and challenging redefinitions of life.

 It’s a story well worth the effort of absorbing its twists and turns, which lead readers into unanticipated futuristic territory and revised moral grounds.

Alien Nation

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eMortal
Steve Schafer
Koehler
979-8-88824-578-1
$29.95 Hardcover/$19.95 Paperback/$7.99 eBook
https://www.amazon.com/eMortal-Steve-Schafer/dp/B0DDR6XPDR

 The room is set to explode. The clock is ticking down. There is no way out. This opener to eMortal then shifts to a scenario in which advanced programmer Liv codes an AI who becomes self-aware—and in so doing, challenges the AI’s existence and future, limited by the six-day contest challenge Liv has entered.

 She never intended to create an artificial personality, much less one that believes in his humanity. Liv never intended to tell him there was a kill switch on his existence, but when she does, Breck revolts, defying his end date to make a break for freedom while making a case for his continued right to exist.

 Steve Schafer shifts viewpoints to get the most action and insight from this situation. The story unfolds not just around Liv and Breck’s perceptions, but from memos by team leaders, others involved in AI creations and programming, and even family relationships, which are all affected by the contest’s outcome and promise.

 Nobody could have predicted what Liv goes through as Breck’s simulations mount and the lessons they both receive from her efforts and his responses venture into realms nobody has thought of before.

Moral, ethical, and psychological conundrums evolve in a manner that thoroughly involves readers in Breck’s evolutionary process and the impact it holds not just for Liv and the contest, but the world.

 Schafer creates a memorable, thoroughly absorbing story powered as much by realistic characters and Liv and Breck as it is by bigger-picture thinking about AI perceptions, rights, and concerns. He humanizes the AI component in a way that makes Breck a likeable character whose determination to ‘stay alive’ rivals that of any real human.

 His choice to contrast chapters between Liv’s spring break experiences and Breck’s evolving persona simulations creates especially thought-provoking insights as the plot moves into arenas that highlight issues of freedom, control, and life choices.

 Libraries and readers seeking an action-packed, vivid story that embraces far more psychological depth than the usual singularity AI exploration will find eMortal more than a cut above the ordinary. Young adult and new adult readers will appreciate the growth Liv experiences as she tackles technological and psychological shifts in her experience and education.

 Packed with shifting perspectives, satisfying twists and turns, and objectives which challenge all participants in novel ways, eMortal is a top recommendation for both leisure pursuit and book clubs interested in discussions about the morals and ethics of controlling AI creations that might evolve independent thinking.

eMortal

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 Innocents, Immortals, and Amoral Gods
Harry Dehrian
Independently Published
979-8868458606             $20.98 Paperback/$6.42 eBook
https://www.amazon.com/Innocents-Immortals-Amoral-Harry-Dehrian-ebook/dp/B0CLBSBBWY/

 Space opera fans are in for a treat with Innocents, Immortals, and Amoral Gods, a romp through the galaxy that features murder, aliens, supernatural forces (even other planets aren’t immune to them!), and a young interplanetary investigator.

 The journey leads readers to the planet Mosaar, where investigators become involved in royalty’s dilemmas and a battle for control, whether it be among various hierarchies of humans or between humans and cyborgs.

 The tale opens with officers Laf Fras and Morsa Renal, who have moved into duties beyond chasing pets, and are joining other investigative police officers on a case.

 Fauna traps, holo balls, and other devices are employed, along a wry sense of humor involving missed meals and a three-story-high crime scene that defies the assignment of murder (after all, the giant sea creature’s demise could be an artistic political statement!). A closer inspection reveals that a mortal was killed and made part of the display—so that benign theory’s out the window.

 Investigator Dev is perplexed as he considers motives for murder and the allure of Mosaar, which is attracting more visitors all the time. His identity as an SSA operative and his secretive mission to ferret out truths runs headlong into situations in which he must reveal both his intentions and his background to scientists involved in his latest case.

Harry Dehrian excels in contrasts of perception and assumption that pepper this vivid story of mortals and struggles for power and purpose. He portrays rich junkies, thieves, arrogance, and struggles for control among various sectors of society, building characters that hold different perspectives about murder and power.

Dehrain deftly dovetails the bigger picture of galaxy-changing environments and encounters with the narrowed scope of an investigation which expands to embrace situations well outside Dev’s comfort zone and experiences.

 He builds tension on many levels, centering them in a strange world that offers eye-opening revelations to visitors and strategic opportunities for those who would wield schemes in novel ways.

 The result is a gripping saga that blends murder mystery with bigger-picture thinking about interplanetary politics and advanced technology as it affects communities and disparate worlds.

 Sci-fi readers should anticipate a weighty world-builder on par with George R.R. Martin’s Game of Thrones series. The story’s attention to detail and intricate dances between special interests and characters juxtaposes a host of concerns and clues to puzzles that traverse different environments, from political to psychological concerns.

 Libraries seeking weighty but attractive space opera stories designed to attract readers of fantasy and sci-fi with scenarios that are unexpected, compelling, and thought-provoking will find the weave of entertainment and educational value in Innocents, Immortals, and Amoral Gods makes the book attractive to book clubs and reading groups, as well.

 Packed with action and intellect, Innocents, Immortals, and Amoral Gods is substantial, to be sure … but it will prove a winning addition to collections strong in sci-fi that is more than a cut above ordinary. What Innocents, Immortals, and Amoral Gods requires of its readers in intellectual acuity is more than rewarded by an absorbing story that is powerfully compelling and hard to put down.

Innocents, Immortals, and Amoral Gods

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Lovers in Arms
T.Q. Sims
Mars + Pan Books
979-8218515263             $24.99 Paperback/$4.99 ebook
https://tinyurl.com/Lovers-In-Arms

 Lovers in Arms is the second book in the LGBTQ+ sci-fi Lovers Universe series, returning many of the prior characters to a new rollicking, ribald adventure.

 Supernaturally-empowered world protector Casey is back, but he’s never lost his connection to Oscar. The StarTemple’s power binds them:

 The temple, a timeless source of the energy within all heartstars, is why I have been able to still feel him. Though we’ve been worlds apart, Oscar is in my heart. Literally. It’s why I still hear his heartsong. Why I still have faith.

 As in the previous tale, transformative power blends with existential struggle and love to create a curious and compelling plot that defies pat categorization on many levels.

 Prior readers of Godspeed, Lovers will absorb Casey’s continuing saga as he embarks on new ventures, yet remains rooted in affections, passions, and connections to the StarTemple, Oscar, and other characters and networks which further challenge him.

 These include The Shadow MaalenKun, Sage Milo Lim, Skylar, and a race against the Crimson Chain, a deadly cult. Zinwara’s desire for revenge, the impact of previous life choices, and the unexpected opportunities for growth and transformation emerge from adversity to affect not just Casey, but other characters:

 “…it was the people I had hurt who helped me get away. It’s the people I had hurt who’ve given me shelter and a part in something that is undeniably good. The people I had hurt not only forgave me, but they gave me place amongst them and showed me what happiness is.” She looks back at Sahil. “I don’t usually answer for my Captain Commander, but to answer your question, Sahil, yes, she believes the Chains can change. We all do.”

 Sci-fi readers will appreciate the high-tech encounters and struggles that challenge each character in a different way, while those primarily interested in Casey’s ongoing incarnations and sexual encounters will be entranced by his involvements with the sexy Harjaz and others who buffet his body and soul.

 As in his previous story, Sims develops a stellar presentation of psychic, physical, and psychologically entwined lives that keeps readers engaged and immersed in the story’s unexpected twists and turns.

 Powered by male love, new bonds, and old connections, Lovers in Arms carries the Lover’s Universe into new dimensions of discovery and adversity as Oscar, Harjaz, Zinwara, and others celebrate love while finding new paths to survival, growth, and collective connections.

 Libraries seeking a blend of sci-fi material and sometimes-explicit homosexual love entanglements, especially those who have seen prior patron attraction to the first Lover’s Universe story, will find Lovers in Arms an excellent continuation which expands this universe while propelling its characters (and their readers) into new experiences, relationships, and polyamorous love.

Lovers in Arms

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Origins Progeny
Diana Fedorak
The Wild Rose Press
978-1-5092-5902-1
$22.99 Paperback/$5.99 eBook
Website: https://www.dianafedorak.com
Ordering: www.thewildrosepress.com

 Origins Progeny is the second book in the Children of Alpheios epic science fantasy series. It’s especially highly recommended for prior fans of the first book, who will experience a smooth segue into a sequel that follows Alina DeHerte’s return to genetically engineered city Alpheios. Fans may be surprised at this premise because they will recall that Alina’s goal in the first book, Children of Alpheios, was to escape with her son to a place of sanctuary—which she achieved.

 Why would she return? Because the lasting impact of a supposed age-combating drug gone bad has affected her mother, and only Alpheios holds the answers—along with other family members whom Alina has not seen for a very long time (since her flight).

 Her return is anything but predictable in its outcomes and encounters. Alina works with friend Aurore, political payoffs and twists come into play, and she becomes immersed in many different situations. These range from stealing a cryopump to help return power to the people of Evesborough to facing a bone marrow transplant to help her mother survive.

 Further complicating her life is a romance, a death that wounds an entire village, and a complication of ‘directed evolution’ that introduces further questions of lineage, loyalty, and relationship challenges.

 Diana Fedorak creates a world-building epic in a story that centers on a young mother’s adventures within and outside of the family fold. She crafts an intriguing blend of high-tech encounters, complex family relationships, and shifting purposes and values. These all provide readers with a powerful blend of action-packed scenarios and psychological insights, weaving revelations about birthright into bigger pictures of world-changing choices and actions in such a way that readers will be captivated by Alina’s challenges and how she navigates very different environments that test her values and commitments.

 Libraries seeking epic fantasies that build upon prior books in a solid, compelling manner will find Origins Progeny a delightfully complex, thoroughly engrossing acquisition. It should be as highly recommended to sci-fi and fantasy patrons and book club as Fedorak’s prior Children of Alpheios. The seamless marriage of personal and family connections with social and political struggle is simply outstanding.

Origins Progeny

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Literature


Eternal Damnation
Eric Larsen
Atmosphere Press
979-8-89132-347-6         $14.99 pb/$8.99 eBook
www.atmospherepress.com

 Eternal Damnation: Stories builds themes based on shifting perspectives about reality, history, human affairs, and life’s meaning. Each story cultivates both philosophical reflections and extraordinary experiences and observations that include unexpected pivot points. These reflect each character’s observation of either eternal damnation or life satisfaction that makes choices worthy of taking risks.

 The title story that opens this collection reviews a boy’s candid observation that while his family dutifully attends church, nobody really believes in god. An impromptu ball game after church leads the narrator to exact an unexpected revenge for years of bullying—only to realize that his action on this particular day could be a sin worthy of eternal damnation. Still, was it worth the pleasure of revenge?

 This contemplative piece is followed by “Whiteout,” in which the narrator takes a trip down memory lane to 1953, when he was twelve, to review the source of events that would ripple into 2001. Fifty years later, in 2004, he recalls the blizzard that changed everything when a perspective and illusion was cultivated that challenged reality itself, as well as the progression of civilized society:

 I heard the first hint of the catastrophe that was to become inevitable when reading ended and television took over. Television would pander to the population with its trillions of small betrayals that would make the catastrophic betrayal, in September of 2001, invisible to everyone who saw it. Even though they saw it with their own eyes. Or with what had once been their own eyes. 

 Each short story offers a succinct, hard-hitting, thought-provoking insight into shifts between personal experience and social standards and acceptance. Each reviews the sources of fears, phobias, and illusion in a different way. Another example of this powerfully disparate analytical focus lies in “Failure,” in which the origins of unexplained fears and their growth are explored:

 I am happy to be free of my old fear of travel— but I regret that it has been replaced of late by a new and different kind of fear, more deadly than what came before it. This new manifestation is withering, ominous, and all but omnipresent. It comes not from the act of moving from one place to another, as my old fear did, but it comes to me, instead, and it comes from everywhere; from extremely loud noises as much as from midnight’s dead silence; from within the very things, objects, and structures, even the feelings, that make up the very stuff of life every second of the day. How ironic it is that now, when I’m able at last to enjoy freedom from my old fear by exposing myself only to small things and tiny distances—how ironic it is that, just now, the world itself has changed in such a way that fear, pain, death, and terror seep invisibly out of every curbstone and crack, every lamp post and fire hydrant, every alleyway and window, every brick, hallway, latch, and door, every screen, every face, every pair of eyes.

 The collection represents a vivid literary, psychological, and philosophical inspection of life and its fears, follies, and fiercely diverse influences.

 Libraries seeking a wide-ranging literary short story collection highly recommendable to book club and reading groups for its astute observations and insights will find Eternal Damnation powerful in both its disparate insights and in its descriptive language and ability to grasp the pivot points which change individual perspectives and lives.

Eternal Damnation

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Insistence, Persistence, and Resistance
Lee Orlich Bertram
Kelsay Books
978-1-63980-544-0         $20.00 Paperback/9.99 eBook
Website: www.leeorlichbertrambooks.com
Ordering: www.amazon.com

 The poems in Insistence, Persistence, and Resistance reflect Lee Orlich Bertram’s family heritage and legacy, the opportunity for transformation, and the foundations of literacy and determination, without which this collection could never have been created.

 They transmit to readers a special kind of hope and growth that embed descriptions of life journeys, friendships, and reflections about life within the structure of free verse that exhibits its own special, diverse approaches to form.

 Take “Seven Instruments and a Volkswagen,” for one example. Here, Bertram presents a story of seven young musicians on the way to an all-district orchestra who aren’t picked up by the school bus, and are stuck waiting while clinging “…to frosty strings and bows.”

 The story is invigorating and imparts a “you are here” feel as a father and his Volkswagen come to the rescue:

 A panicked phone call to Dad, mein Vati, our transport wizard, sent him to us Volkswagen in flight, its rubber band a whir. He stacked us in with aplomb, a violinist on each side of two cellists squeezed in the middle, petite violists on their laps.

Dad shouted, “One, two, three, small instruments on your heads,” as he tenderly guided each through the window to its player.

 Contrast this with “The Brightest Echo,” a very short work which, again, captures the moment:

 Lighted silence overshadows

shining dimness,

sighing peacefully…

 Seconds of enlightenment and realization are captured in a Proust-like manner that succinctly represent rich moments in time. Indeed, ‘moments in time’ might better describe this collection as a whole, which unfolds a treasure trove of impressions as life is explored in various verse forms and manners:

 Inhumed in law studies on a darkly somber, early morn, weighed down by tediousness and pallets of stress, I seriously considered another gargantuan-sized pot of coffee, as fatigue lurked fiber-deep in each cell of my body.

In survival mode, seeking even the tiniest of distractions necessary to avoid the sinkhole where aspiring lawyers go to perish,

I reached for the coffee, a filter, and my favorite, big-mouth mug, as the drip, drip, drip provided a flashback to the last contracts lecture.

 Under Bertram’s pen, family, love, and stories blossom from the minutiae of the moment into bigger-picture thinking exploring many emotions and experiences.

 Libraries seeking modern poetry collections that demonstrate a wide-ranging number of forms, topics, and considerations of impacts, connections, and growth will appreciate the opportunity to highly recommend Insistence, Persistence, and Resistance to both literary and general-interest audiences interested in poetic explorations of life and survival tactics.

Insistence, Persistence, and Resistance

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Taking Flight
Jacques Sardas
Archway Publishing
978-1-6657-5902-1        
$42.00 Hardcover/$20.99 Paperback/$3.99 eBook
www.archwaypublishing.com

 Taking Flight: Short Stories of the Unexpected is a short story collection that’s hard to neatly peg. Call it a work of magical realism, “weird fiction,” the tales of an uncommon individual whose exploration of different realms leads to revelations about life’s bigger picture, or an expose of nonconformist individuals who lead extraordinary lives because of their beliefs and pursuits, but one thing is certain. Its heady mix of personalities and perspectives, centered on Egyptian protagonist Avi, creates a lens of inspection that is delightfully novel and unexpectedly diverse.

 Take “The Three Old Buddies,” for example. This introductory story revolves around three old friends who decide to get together while their wives go shopping. Sounds simple, right? But these extraordinary men hold shared experiences and roots in Egyptian politics and their flight from their homeland (which has resulted in a comfortable life) … and their latest decision to spend time in Uruguay.

 Eddie, always prone to introducing lofty topics that lead to weighty discussions about life, considers the upcoming close of the decade, providing a litany of natural disasters that have challenged or destroyed lives. This casts a pall over their normally-pleasant reunion until the group begins to realize their blessings and luck in being able to meet yet again, despite world threats.

 The sense of desperation introduced in this short piece is carried into other stories as Ari begins to reinvent his life perspectives, acknowledging new truths and ideas that accompany his journeys with Eddie, Moti, and others.

 Expect the unexpected, from the short story “Cannibalism,” which documents what turns out to be a dangerous getaway adventure to Paupa New Guinea to visit the Korowai tribe (which may or may not still be practicing cannibalism), to “My Mother, My Hero,” which reveals Ari’s deepest desire:

 What was the thing I wanted most? What would be my dream come true? After all, I already had everything my heart desired—a happy and healthy family, good friends, success in my professional life . . . What more was there?

There was no doubt: I wished I had my mother with me. I closed my eyes and said to myself, I want my mother back. I want to see her one more time. And I blew out the candles.

 Each piece introduces a different facet of surprise and connection to newly evolving relationships between past and present. Each reflects Ari’s ultimate journey to reconnect with deceased loved ones as he inspects his own inevitable future and the impact of his life choices.

 Libraries interested in literary short story collections which embrace elements of bigger-picture thinking, magical realism, family and friendship connections, and changing ideals of adventure and discovery will find these interconnected tales thoroughly engaging, even as they’re hard to define.

 This makes Taking Flight: Short Stories of the Unexpected a standout recommendation for those who delight in novel renditions of life experience, miracles, and Jewish heritage.

Taking Flight

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Vestiges
Daniel J. Patinkin
Transmitter
979-8-9913363-0-7
$18.00 (retail paperback); $20.00 (autographed paperback available at:
www.danielpatinkin.com/shop)

 Vestiges’s short fiction will especially appeal to audiences interested in emotional stories. It features characters who interact with their environments and react to their circumstances in different ways, employing disparate coping skills.

 The opening story, “Departure,” outlines the dilemma of 29-year-old Sidney Guthrie, who spends her birthday in the hospital having her stomach pumped of poison, having drunk herself into oblivion. Sidney’s discovery that her hospital roommate has participated in World War II leads to a realization that he’s the first and only old person she’s come to know, however lightly. After she meets a cancer patient shortly before she’s discharged, Sidney discovers that these brief encounters have somehow changed her life perspective and trajectory in unexpected ways.

 Astute observations of her world and her longtime driver/employee Chandler’s support and place in it invites readers to consider their own attitudes towards aging and the nature of both life connections and becoming more mindful:

 A tiny, ancient woman with an orangish perm sat in a chair nearby.

“Is that his mother?” Sidney asked Chandler.

“Yes. She’s ninety-two.”

Another one from the “greatest generation,” Sidney thought. They must be utterly befuddled by what this disgusting country has turned into—by people like me who do nothing other than befoul the air and bitch.

 In contrast is “The Bodyguard’s Tale,” which opens with gunfire at performer Polyana’s concert. Her bodyguard and head of security Big Don tackles the assailants, but can’t prevent disaster as the star’s Israeli concert erupts in violence.

 Polyana usually doesn’t attract the mayhem that more politically charged musicians draw. But in this case, the aging Big Don is pushed to his limits as he effects a rescue, then finds himself trying to save a life for only the second time in his career.

 As explosions and more violence lead him to epically fail both himself and his mandate to protect another, Big Don emerges from the fray a year later a broken man in more ways than one, confronting the vestiges of his past and considering if he has a future worth living for: …he had lost all faith in himself. Even if he could recuperate his body, he had lost his instinct, his edge.

 Each story captures an important pivot point in a character’s life. Each is a masterful interplay of emotional growth and transformation offering readers hard-hitting scenarios and realistic characters.

 Libraries and readers interested in short story collections that soundly rest on a blend of psychological enlightenment and responses to life will find Vestiges compelling, diverse, and worthy of reading group discussion. It allows readers to link their own turning points to characters who find their lives and objectives shifting in unexpected ways.
Vestiges
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Biography & Autobiography


Because It’s Funny!
Billy Van Zandt
Independently Published
Ebook ASIN: ‎B0DJ1MY371  
$25.99 Hardcover/$19.99 Paperback/$9.99 eBook
www.vanzandtmilmore.com  

Because It’s Funny! The Plays of Billy Van Zandt & Jane Milmore (from the author of Get in the Car, Jane) provides humor and theater enthusiasts with a zany, wild, rollicking ride through the process of writing and producing over twenty plays.

 It may be hard not to arrive at this memoir without prior familiarity with the names of author Billy Van Zandt and Jane Milmore. Together, they hold nearly fifty years of experience as playwrights, actors, and producers. Anyone involved in the theater world will readily recognize them … but Because It’s Funny!’s ability to reach beyond these special interests to attract general-interest audiences makes it a special acquisition.

 The focus on the plays the duo wrote from 1979 to 2020 translates to a rich, decades-long observational memoir that pairs production snafus and creative experiences with fun observations:

 In Merrily We Dance and Sing, which is one of our show-within-a-show plays, actor Jeff Babey grabbed an unsuspecting Frank Andrews backstage and frantically screamed, “You’re on!” Frank bolted onto the stage skipping in, in his Peter Pan hat and lederhosen, thinking he’d missed an entrance, entering a scene he had no place being in, yelling “Hooray!” at the top of his lungs, which is what he was supposed to do about seven minutes from then. Frank quickly saw what happened, froze, and skipped backward off the stage as if was trying to rewind the video.

 Laughs abound, as important as serious portraits of the theater world and its participants. These give readers a backstage introduction to the changing milieu of writing, producing, and acting in a play. The lively tone and diversity of these experiences supercharges the memoir with fun in-depth observations which are compelling and thought-provoking all in one:

 This play introduced us to Michael Kroll, another eventual staple of our company. He played Stan Kemrite, the FBI agent. A brilliant debut with us. Capturing Babu the terrorist, Stan explained that ours was a kinder and gentler country, before kneeing Babu in the crotch, handcuffing him, and violently dragging him away. Michael has probably created the widest variety of roles for us throughout the years, playing everything from a silent movie villain, an effeminate wedding planner, a cigarettehacking crusty old doctor, Richard Nixon, Elton John, and talk-show host Mike Douglas. (Who imitates Mike Douglas?) And every one is a home run.

 Readers will not only learn about the techniques and basics of theater production, but will be entertained by its disparate participants and the manner in which they develop relationships on and off stage, handle critics and snafus, and enjoy their work. A lively sense of pleasure and fun permeates these reflections.

 This is why libraries seeking theater exposés which illustrate the processes, attractions, and enjoyment of this world from a long-time professional’s vantage point will find Because It’s Funny! a winner. Few theater memoirs hold the ability to attract general-interest audiences as does Billy Van Zandt’s engaging, vivid memoir.

Because It’s Funny!

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Dear Mama: A Journey Through Poverty, Race, and Resilience
DK Edwards
Independently Published
979-8333918413            
$19.95 Hardcover/$12.95 Paperback/$4.99 eBook
https://www.amazon.com/Dear-Mama-Journey-Through-Resilience/dp/B0DBN4NQ58

 Dear Mama: A Journey Through Poverty, Race, and Resilience is a memoir set in 1970s and 80s Baltimore. It follows a life story in which a father’s betrayal and a mother’s persistence shaped the author’s world, creating impacts that resonate into future generations.

 The story opens with a four-year-old’s observation of his family shoveling their worldly belongings into garbage bags. This represents the culmination of months where an increasingly elusive, distant father and shaken mother move from the stability of a grandparents’ rental situation into the world.

 A father’s infidelity is thrust into the limelight in a manner his mother can no longer ignore, forcing the family to react and act in manners that divide them and challenge family connections and personalities.

 From the start, Dear Mama expresses candid hope and resilience, paired with the racial experiences, influences, and flavors of the times. This carries readers from personal to social milieus—often within the same descriptive paragraph:

 My father carried an unusual air of quietude, his average height complemented by a lean build and a serious demeanor that often masqueraded as anger. His light complexion and striking bluish-green eyes, atypical for an African American, acted as a metaphorical “apartheid pass” in the still largely segregated climate of 1960s Baltimore. This turbulent period was marked by a surge in the black population, civil rights protests, and the riots following Dr. King's assassination. These events added to the already racially tense atmosphere, creating a sense of fear and suspicion towards African Americans.

These observations elevate Dear Mama in many important ways, documenting the circumstances, impact, and undercurrents of prejudice, poverty, and strife that were as much a part of his childhood as family dynamics and struggles.

 As DK Edwards carries readers into his childhood, through quests for friendship and connection, and into matters of adult concerns, he crafts a journey through American racial tensions. This account reviews constant moves, severed ties, urban and rural contrasts in experience, and how his mother’s determination and sacrifices built his character and life perspective.

 Through his tribute to his mother, Edwards creates a concurrent examination of the forces of family and racial struggle that permeate not just communities, but homes.

 Moving in its survey of personal and social experiences and their lasting impacts, Dear Mama is the perfect item of choice for libraries seeking examples of how one strong family figure can not just influence, but change the lives of future generations for the better. The pivot points of how such resilience is identified, fostered, and nurtured are especially poignant and thought-provoking.

 Reader groups and book clubs interested in family psychology, dynamics, and the concurrent weaving of racial issues into its structure will find Dear Mama holds plenty of fodder for vivid reflection and discussion.

Dear Mama: A Journey Through Poverty, Race, and Resilience

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Fearless
Alison Monda
Independently Published
979-8-9895134-0-6                
$17.99 Paperback/$24.99 Hardcover/$7.99 eBook; Audible TBA
www.amazon.com

 Fearless is a memoir perfect for audiences seeking vivid, action-packed memoirs and wanna-be adventurers who would ride alongside Alison Monda into the fabulous and challenging world of the outdoors. Her confrontations with nature and develop in hilarious, eye-popping, and thought-provoking “you are here” moments that creates reflections on long-distance plane travel:

 I had just bought tickets to New Zealand to backpack 272 miles on the most dangerous section of the 1,864-mile Te Araroa trail—by myself. But first I had to get on the plane. I hate flying. I once got a prescription for Xanax to help with the fear, but that plan failed when I became convinced I wouldn’t be able to save myself if the plane went down because I’d be too high thinking about more important things, like what the color blue tasted like. I’d be screwed if we crashed. Plus, if I did survive, I would be left floating in the ocean on a door for days eating only seaweed, the pubic hair of the sea.

 Take this as one reflective example of Monda’s special voice, which continues throughout her saga, whether she’s confronting the impact of her dangerous, erratic life on a new dog she is forced to rehome or backpacking into danger, newly healed from her last exploit, with a friend:

 We hiked into the dark gorge, enthusiastic for what the evening would bring. The morale was high until I got a bad gut feeling. I couldn’t put my finger on it because my gut sat inside me, but something was off. I couldn’t figure out what it was. I found no real reason to leave other than that my stomach had sunk for a moment and I thought it might fall out of an opening somewhere. I shrugged the feeling off.

 Fellow adventurers may not have the guts or moxie to attempt half of Monda’s exploits, but as an armchair adjunct of danger and survival, it’s the next best thing to personal involvement:

 “Don’t worry, cougars don’t swim, so it can’t be a …cougar,” I said, pretending to scan for a way through the swamp.

“I’m not afraid of animals out here. I’m afraid of humans,” Flatlander said.

 Libraries seeking a fresh, enthusiastic adventurer’s voice will find Fearless an astute, completely compelling examination of nature and the great outdoors, human folly, and the passion of a life explorer who translates her fearless attitude to all kinds of experiences:

 I can dive with sharks one hundred feet beneath the ocean’s surface and go on to accept a position as a rescuer swimmer at my work, despite being afraid of deep water. And even though I am scared of being hurt again, I continue to go on dates. I am afraid of failing like anyone else, but I put myself out there because every time I fail, I’m closer to that fucking win. Fearlessness grants you genuine badassery.

Fearless

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Onward Forward: My Journey With ALS
Brian Jeansonne
DartFrog Blue
978-1-961624-89-4        
$25.99 Hardcover/$15.99 Paperback/$5.99 ebook
www.DartFrogBooks.com

 It’s unusual to find a memoir that opens with a foreword from a famous musician (in this case, Alanis Morissette), but Onward Forward: My Journey With ALS does so in order to firmly root Brian Jeansonne’s experience with Morissette’s inspirational song, which led him to solidify his journey. She reveals:

 Right out of the gate, Brian shared with me that he was attempting to chase and find the ultimate word to describe life and God and light … “I didn’t know what to call it for a minute,” he told me. “And then I saw that you used the word Oneness in your song “Ablaze”—‘keep your core connected to the Oneness.’” He said it just felt like the most appropriate word to use to describe something indescribable.

Ah, I had just met a brother. A lover of music, people, philosophy, life, and God—in all its “everythingness.”

 This is the perfect introduction to a journey that proves to be as much a spiritual saga as it is an account of living with ALS.

 Readers can anticipate the usual account of the disease’s progression and the adaptation process it demands from those who struggle with it. What they may not foresee is Jeansonne’s ability to dovetail these physical challenges with evolving mental and spiritual pivot points. Vivid focuses review the process of identifying and being present for some of the major events in his life:

 Wheelchair me was overwhelmed with a sense of immense gratitude that I get to be here for it, and I was reminded that this is why I am still here. I also realized I had been distracted lately as to my purpose. At present, I am working on a book as well as meeting with people in person and talking with so many online, and yet when the kids come around me, I allow myself to remain enmeshed in my computer instead of giving them my undivided attention. And honestly, there is nothing worse than being preoccupied, for when one is preoccupied, they are no longer present in body or soul, and I will not live another day not present. Especially to my reasons for being here. So, if the book doesn’t get finished or I don’t ever inspire another person, oh well. As long as my kids and my wife get all of me, then my life is lived exactly as I desire it to be. Ultimately what I came to realize is that this might be the most difficult way to exist in the world, and yet I am the richest man in the world.

 These personal revelations (and how Jeansonne incorporates them into the process of living with ALS and constantly reinventing his life’s focus) translate to an attractive and inspirational guide for others in the same position.

 As Jeansonne addresses topics ranging from how to best and most fully live the one life he gets, including everything good and bad that this embraces, he provides examples for readers living not just with ALS, but with other chronic or progressive conditions who are seeking direction and insights on how to make the most of their lives.

 Readers who anticipate a collection of tips on how to navigate ALS’s restrictions receive a more joyful, thought-provoking consideration that serves as a teaching tool and inspirational reflective piece for virtually anyone looking for better insights on how to construct and navigate life.

 Libraries that choose Onward Forward: My Journey With ALS will thus want to recommend it for group and individual discussion beyond ALS audiences. It’s a fine example of making lemonade from life’s lemons—and of learning how to find, recognize, and make the most of real love and uplifting circumstances in life:

 Love is when you get sick with a terminal disease and people rally around your family and cook meals. Love is when a friend offers to pay your mortgage for a few years, or when your buddy says he’ll get a few people to maintain your house so your wife doesn’t have to worry about it …

Stories of love abound. They have the power to transform us if we allow them to.

Onward Forward: My Journey With ALS

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The Salaryman
Michael Thuresson
Story Scribe Books
979-8-9863597-7-9        
$34.95 Hardcover/$17.99 Paperback/$9.95 eBook
https://www.michaelthuresson.com

 The Salaryman: An American Dude Joins the Ranks of Tokyo’s White-Collar Warriors is a memoir of cross-cultural encounters. Delivered with humor, it captures an insider’s examination of Japanese business, and will entertain as well as educate any reader interested in Japanese culture or living abroad in the country.

 Michael Thuresson gave up his California job to move to Japan and work there. His stories are filled with manga-style drawings by Rena Saiya and Kazuhiro Yoshida which accompany vignettes about workplace and leisure traditions. This colorful approach illustrates, far more than most stories about Japan, the cultural and social undercurrents permeating the Japanese life.

 Candid assessments reveal many aspects of conducting and engaging in Japanese business that even books devoted to Japanese cultural differences may not address:

 The reality I had to learn is that the world in Japan is benign, and it takes your American survival instincts time to realize that and disarm themselves. There’s no need to waste energy worrying about your physical safety; all of it needs to go towards summoning the patience and discipline needed for Manner Mode.

Thuresson’s vignettes are thought-provoking and revealing:  There’s nothing in a standard suburban American upbringing that prepares you for Japanese Manner Mode. During flu season, one of the Tokyo companies I worked for required employees to have their body temperature measured by a sensor before entering the building, with an HR person standing post at the sensor ready to send you home. Japanese people simply try to gut everything out and must be told to go home if they have a fever.

 As the psyche and surprises of the “salaryman” unfold, readers gain a thorough appreciation for this unique brand of worker that Thuresson encounters. These are delivered with a dash of humor that makes Japan and its culture accessible and memorable to those who may hold little prior familiarity with the nation.

 Descriptions range from the nation’s toilets, where “…the famous charm of Japanese toilets is a godsend” to the distinct lack of workplace snacking, where:

 Japanese factories don’t allow you to leave the building for a snack, and of course you can’t eat at your desk, so by evening, we were coasting on fumes, having eaten nothing but a company-provided bento box lunch. 

 The result imparts an extraordinary “you are here” feel that nicely captures disparate facets of Japanese business experience. The illustrations and humor both capture these encounters and add attraction and comic relief to the serious situations that lead Thuresson to learn about Japanese perception, routines, and insights on acceptable versus improper behaviors.

 The Salaryman should thus be considered a “must” acquisition for libraries interested in Japanese culture, cross-cultural business descriptions, or humor. Book clubs and business reading groups, especially, will find it packed with important points for discussion and consideration.

The Salaryman

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The Silent Tree
Carol Slayden Arnold with Cheryl Russell Morrow
Goldfinch Press
9798811674565              $17.86 Paperback/$9.99 eBook
https://www.amazon.com/Silent-Tree-Family-Slavery-Reparations/dp/B0BMGBVCVP

 The Silent Tree: Our Family From Slavery To Reparations builds a trans-generational story of slavery and reparation to engross and inform readers who harbor an ongoing interest in slavery’s lasting impact on American families.

 It documents Carol Slayden Arnold’s personal journey into her past—but goes well beyond most memoirs about family slavery history, delving into the previously-unrevealed stories of others impacted by family actions and decisions. Then The Silent Tree takes another giant step by considering personal accountability in the present, following how Arnold made her own decisions to reveal these impacts on other lives, acknowledging the ongoing impact of silence on not only historical legacy, but modern connections.

 These stories accompany a chronological history of slavery that places each of these people and experiences in period settings. This gives a high degree of personalization to history and personal lives, again standing out from accounts which choose either one approach or the other.

 Nothing is sketchy or presumed, here. Arnold connects dots, fills in blanks, and personalizes social and political events in a manner designed to, in itself, serve as a form of reparation.

 It’s no easy fete to reveal family shameful moments in writing, much less publish it for the world to see. Arnold’s choice to do so results in a vigorous, candid book that pulls no punches as it continually melds footnoted historical facts with social and personal insights:

 In 1880 Oscar Slaton sat in jail in Autauga County. I don’t know why Oscar was sentenced or for how long or even if he committed a crime at all. But he was likely the victim of a new version of slavery created by Alabama’s so-called penal “justice” system.

 Readers anticipating a self-depreciating story of choices that today would be considered poor will be surprised to find a positive, uplifting atmosphere supported by stories of courage, promises made (as well as broken), and perseverance. Perhaps the most important facet of all lies in the impact of family experience and lessons handed down through generations that resonate in all kind of social circles, as well:

 The resiliency of the Slaton family created a lasting legacy in Meriwether County. Today Mt. Pleasant Baptist Church— the church where the Slatons worshipped—is located in Woodbury at 146 Tulip Road, a short walk from the intersection of Jones Mill and Woodbury Roads. In February 2021, the Reverend J. D. Walker, the pastor, delivered a sermon entitled “The Principle of Perseverance.” “Don’t give up,” advised Reverend Walker. “Keep on trying.”A century and a half ago, Si and Anna Slaton planted deep roots in Meriwether County. Over the years, the family never gave up, even in the face of segregation, discrimination, and racial violence. They persevered.

 Turbulent, transforming decades unfold with a rare eye to considering unspoken truths, lives, and realities.

 Libraries strong in African-American studies, memoirs, history, and accounts of family legacies of slavery and redemption will find The Silent Tree an important lesson in how (and why) to break the silence of past experience. It is very highly recommended for book clubs, study and reading groups, and classrooms, as well as individual pursuit, offering many important subjects for consideration, debate, and discussion.

The Silent Tree

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Staying Alive Is a Lot of Work
Pat Camalliere
CAMPAT Publications/Eckhartz Press
ASIN: BODGHWHCBX           $5.99 eBook
Website: www.patcamallierebooks.com
Ordering: https://www.amazon.com/Staying-Alive-Lot-Work-Cancer-ebook/dp/B0DGHWHCBX

 Staying Alive Is a Lot of Work: Me and My Cancer documents a survival process that differs from many other personal stories of cancer. Pat Camalliere focuses on her life experiences before and after her diagnosis of advanced tongue cancer. The fact that Camalliere is a singer makes her diagnosis even more ironic and challenging, as she reveals in a memoir packed with thought-provoking insights on the cancer survival process’s many requirements.

 A fast-growing lump in her jaw led Camalliere to first her dentist, then her doctors, where a cancer diagnosis was made. Before readers embark on her healthcare journey, Camalliere digresses into her childhood and growth to make sure they receive a full-bodied report of her entire life—not just her cancer. This offers a fine opportunity to appreciate her personality and pursuits before her life-changing diagnosis.

 As chapters move through her diagnosis, surgery, radiation and chemo treatments, they also probe various interesting facets of navigating not one doctor, but a medical team consisting of multiple specialties and individuals. These provide readers with additional insights that few other cancer stories reveal:

 Some patients are annoyed when they have multiple doctors. They have already told their story to their personal doctor, and then repeated the story to a nurse, and then again to another person whose role they don’t clearly understand, and they have yet to see their surgeon. I, however, was used to having students and residents involved in my care. I enjoyed talking with them and usually asked questions about their future plans.

 From staging to various procedures and cancer-fighting options, Camalliere invites readers on a struggle to not only battle cancer, but regain her life. Her in-the-moment descriptions are key to understanding both the immediacy of daily challenges and the bigger picture of fighting for survival:

 I knew that my infusion would have me sitting in a chair with a line running medicine into my arm. Anything could happen, and it could be nasty.

My treatment had begun. I felt like I was on a fast train to the vast unknown.

 Special notes about the impact of cancer treatments lend understanding and realization to those facing their own cancer diagnosis and the choices it introduces:

 Radiation would kill not just my tumor but also much of what it passed through. Also, some radiation is absorbed by the tissue through which it travels and can then spread from that central point to damage nearby tissues and organs. Clearly, much more tissue was involved than the tumor in my tongue. We take simple, automatic functions, like swallowing, for granted. Like everyone else, I never thought of the structures in my body individually before their existence was jeopardized. They just worked. Until they didn’t.

 Libraries familiar with the plethora of cancer memoirs already on the market will find Staying Alive Is a Lot of Work a different, worthy acquisition for several reasons. It incorporates the challenging results of having detailed knowledge of both people and cancer; it provides candid assessments of the rigors of surviving not just cancer, but the treatments; and it offers an ultimately uplifting account of promise and the potential for returning to a revised life grateful for just staying alive.

Staying Alive Is a Lot of Work

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Suddenly Jewish: The Life and Times of My Jewish Mother
Joan Moran
Independently Published
978-0985437565             $16.99 Paperback/$7.99 ebook
https://joanfrancesmoran.com/

 Suddenly Jewish: The Life and Times of My Jewish Mother blends Joan Moran’s historical review of her mother’s life with insights on changing trends and culture affecting Jewish people across America. The juxtaposition of memoir and broader social inspection creates an inviting, moving discourse of Jewish Identity that exposes the changing world over three generations of Jewish family experience: matriarch Rose, rebellious daughter Esther, and Esther’s daughter Joan.

 Close-held family secrets emerge as the undercurrents of anti-Semitism affect these three lives, but one of the main threads of the title is how Jewish identity and Catholic culture intersect in surprising ways as this Jewish family evolves.

 Another plus is that Moran depicts evolving events with the drama and flair of fictional description, bringing not only her family but the milieu of early San Francisco to vivid life:

 In late June, Estelle entered the office of The San Francisco Examiner on California Street at ten o’clock in the morning. Like a professional, she held her head up and her back straight. She was dressed, as Rose would say, to beat the band, with a matching dress and coat in a nutty brown color, complete with a scarf, an old remodeled hat, and a fold-over leather case that held her Lindbergh story.

 From the San Francisco Bay area to Las Vegas, events unfold with an attention to psychological, cultural, and political detail that places Jewish history in sync with social changes and difficult decisions that evolve from these pivot points in life.

 Vivid scenes, such as a description of an abortion, might trigger sensitive readers, but lend authenticity and insight into the saga overall that creates a “no punches pulled” atmosphere.

 Estelle’s journey embraces (almost as an aside) many of the issues affecting not just Jewish people, but women:

 Estelle was disappointed to discover that her new salary was not noticeably more than her job at Canada Dry. It seemed that salaries in San Francisco were comparable across the board, unless you owned a company or were a president or a top manager. Certainly women did not command salary increases.

 These all contribute an immediacy to unfolding events as Estelle and John live their lives and face challenges that then trickle down to author Moran’s decisions:

 Four months later, I realized that Jerry and I needed to clear the air. “It’s time to talk about the elephant in the room.”

“What’s that? I thought we’re doing pretty good. In fact, I think I’m in love with you.”

“Hold that thought. You’re Jewish, and I’m Catholic. I still go Mass when I can, and I’m sure you’ve got some religious obligations. And if we decide marriage is for us, then what?”

“The elephant in the room looks like this: I drink bourbon, and you drink scotch.”

“Same thing: I’m Catholic, and you’re Jewish.”

 Readers interested in intergenerational explorations, stories that fully embrace San Francisco Bay Area culture and history, and presentations that read with the drama of fiction while revealing important social and historical experiences will relish the focus and feel that is Suddenly Jewish.

 Its personalities come to life; but most of all, different facets of Jewish culture and identity create a wide range of important insights suitable for discussion and reflection; whether they be about family legacies and secrets, changing times, Jewish and Catholic identity, or the special challenges involved in making peace with Jewish roots and identity.

 Libraries that choose Suddenly Jewish for their collections will want to make sure that it moves from the memoir section to the attentions of patrons and book clubs interested in lively and thought-provoking discourses about Jewish identity and choices.

 Its special opportunities to contrast four generations of personal family history and the resourceful attention to social and psychological survival that various family members cultivate in different ways makes the memoir a winner that stands apart from many memoirs about Jewish lives and culture.

Suddenly Jewish: The Life and Times of My Jewish Mother

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A Tree with My Name On It: Finding a Way Home
Victress Hitchcock
Bold Story Press
978-1-954805-90-3         $19.99 Paperback/$9.99 ebook
Website: Victress Hitchcock  
Ordering: https://www.amazon.com/Tree-My-Name-Finding-Home/dp/195480590X

 Stories about urban dwellers that move to the country to homestead on acreage are nothing new, but A Tree with My Name On It: Finding a Way Home is as much a story of a phoenix-like rebirth as it is about making a radical move between disparate environments.

 More so than most such accounts, it documents the process of transformative change and reinventing one’s life—and these aspects set A Tree with My Name On It apart from other accounts of uprooting and adaptation.

 From the start, the remote location of this historic Colorado ranch and its seesawing, shifting effects on marriage dovetail environment with emotional impact and change. Victress Hitchcock embeds these two elements with vivid descriptions and insights designed to outline personal habits and pivot points, dovetailing these with the ranch’s requirements to step away from the familiar, employing an unfamiliar mindfulness:

 Over the years, I had become less explosive, but I would still, in the face of what I perceived as control, shut down, going dead inside for as long as I could. For most of my life, I had held my breath out for long stretches of time, not breathing back in. It was only when I began riding that I became aware of my habit of keeping my throat closed, sealing off my head from my body. Every time I rode, I would remind myself to breathe past the cut-off point and into my belly. It was gradually becoming easier.

 This gives readers a foundation of emotional support through which they can absorb the music, passions, and changes Hitchcock experiences as her life shifts:

 After another long moment, Richard turned and walked to the door. In my memory, it is all happening in slow motion. He paused in the open door, turned around, looked at me, and said, “Are you coming?” Of course I was. How could I not have gone with him at that moment, loaded with so many fantasies fulfilled. If I hadn’t gone I would have betrayed every lyric in every song I had ever heard.

 Such evocative moments lend her memoir an immediacy with a moving series of connections that flow between past and present, family ties and breakups, and marital distress. These lead Hitchcock into more unfamiliar territory as she hones her identity and future.

 It’s rare to find a memoir that entwines elements of Buddhist wisdom with psychological insights sparked by loss and grief, and a sense of home and place that keeps Hitchcock reassessing her values and what she can count on as ‘home’:

 I wasn’t ready to leave the ranch. It was no longer a place in the mountains where I had inexplicably found myself living; the ranch was my home. It was the place where I had found a way to crack open my heart.

 A Tree with My Name On It imparts all these elements with the grace and metaphorical prowess of an author who wields poetic description and psychological reflection with equal strength. It deserves a prominent place in libraries, recommendable as a book club or women’s reading group choice. Its many themes of transformation, independence, growth, and how to grow an identity rooted in a sense of place and self describe the process of engaging and opening to a path of lifelong change:

Over time, everything changes. How many seasons has my tree weathered, dying each winter and being reborn each spring? How many lifetimes does it take to transform confusion into wisdom?

A Tree with My Name On It: Finding a Way Home

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 Mystery & Thrillers


Crime Paradise
Gene Desrochers
Acorn Publishing, LLC
979-8885280716 
$14.99 (Paperback) $28.99 (HC) $7.99 E-book
Website: https://genedesrochers.com/
Ordering: https://books2read.com/u/318own

 Out of the three Boise Montague mysteries, Crime Paradise creates the most uncommon and compelling of stories, building on previous Caribbean paradise settings to involve Boise in a personal dilemma that places him in the heart of a storm of death.

 Imagine waking up with a hangover on a beach … only to find three dead women around you, with blood all over your clothes and no memory of what has transpired. That would make you a suspect in anybody’s book. But Boise’s role as a PI places him in the uncomfortable role of being both the likely perp and the only person who can truly investigate what really happened, even though the authorities and legal system are ready to condemn him from the start.

 It’s a challenge to investigate oneself in the best of circumstances. However, even though Boise is at his lowest point in life, his ability to reveal truth serves him well in perhaps his most important case to date.

 Once again, Gene Desrochers steeps Boise in the Caribbean culture and world of his new home, but adds further enlightenment about the psychological drives, turmoil, and forces which seem to repeatedly thwart his desire for a peaceful island life.

 Not only does paradise turn out to harbor more than enough killers, but Boise’s search for the truth also involves a self-analysis that reveals facets about his life and choices that he’d never acknowledged before.

 As Boise’s world expands from St. Thomas to Los Angeles, readers follow in his footsteps to encounter unexpected facets of Virgin Islands life and connections to Boise’s own darkness and past.

 Libraries that choose Crime Paradise, either as a stand-alone mystery or as an adjunct to the other ‘Paradise’ legal and PI thrillers, will find this story even more compelling and engrossing than its predecessors.

 Perhaps this is because Crime Paradise adds more personal inspections as Boise probes his own past … or maybe it’s because of the nature of the crime itself, which pulls the savvy investigator into truths he’s never acknowledged about either himself or island life.

 Either way, libraries and readers seeking a solid investigative piece which crosses from murder mystery to legal thriller and back again, building with powerful characterization and “wow” moments, will find Crime Paradise an exceptional read, worthy of adding into any mystery collection or onto recommended reading lists.

Crime Paradise

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Dark Paradise
Gene Desrochers
Acorn Publishing
978-1-947392-16-8
$24.63 Hardcover/$13.99 Paperback/$3.99 eBook
Website: https://www.genedesrochers.com/
Ordering: https://www.amazon.com/Dark-Paradise-Caribbean-Mystery-Montague/dp/1947392166

 Dark Paradise is a Boise Montague mystery centering on a return home that proves anything but comforting:

 I hate it when I go to visit an old friend and he’s been murdered.

 Boise is already emotionally compromised after his wife’s death, but the paradise he remembers from his childhood Caribbean island home is no longer the same. However, neither is he. His investigate prowess was crippled by recent events—but that doesn’t mean he’s incapable of connecting the dots to solve a case revolving around a death that hits far too close to home.

 A hunt for his friend’s killer in the island city of Charlotte Amalie involves Boise in the concurrent investigations of reporter Dana Goode, who is trying to solve a kidnapping. Home isn’t what it used to be. Boise and Dana join forces to probe what turns out to be a hornet’s nest of subterfuge and dark intentions.

 Gene Desrochers’s mystery not only delves into Caribbean culture and atmosphere, but creates a compelling portrait of two individuals joined by similar experiences and drives to uncover the truth. The psychology of their interactions and revelations enhances the atmospheric island backdrop. This not only draws readers, but lends a powerful ‘you are here’ feel to evolving events.

 Of special note are the explorations of cultural connections that help newcomers to Caribbean matters understand the diverse nature of these islands:

 Most Saint Thomians were of African descent, brought over as slaves to harvest sugar cane. I suppose that’s another difference between Santa Anna and me. He came from an elite Mexican military family. I came from African slaves and Europeans making babies together.

 Why does this matter? Because it lends explanation and authenticity to the complicated relationships which emerge during the course of mystery problem-solving, offering added value with backdrops and information that allow readers to fully appreciate the evolving dilemmas.

 Realistic dialogue is also strong as Boise and Dana interact, with narrator Boise’s first-person perspective further enhancing the immediacy of his impressions and encounters:

 “Yeah, I comin,’ I comin,’” I shouted. I stumbled over my sneakers and cursed before finding the light. The sun had taken the morning off. Dana stood there, using a dripping umbrella as a cane. “Shit, it takes a long time to get up here in the goddamn rain,” she said as she pushed her way past me and sunk into my only chair.

 The result comes steeped in sultry island politics and culture, giving Dark Paradise an especially realistic and compelling countenance. This makes it a top pick for libraries and mystery genre readers seeking stories that are immersive and as captivating in their sense of place and personalities as they are in whodunit revelations.

Dark Paradise

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Double-Crossed
Eliot Parker
Rough Edges Press/Wolfpack Publishing
978-1-68549-419-3         $12.99 paperback/$2.99 ebook    
www.roughedgespress.com

 Double-Crossed is another Ronan McCullough techno-thriller that continues to explore Ronan’s life and investigative career.

 Ronan is still recovering from the emotional and physical challenges of his last case—but there’s little rest for the weary when it comes to crime-busting. A federal agent’s gruesome murder leads him to probe a professor’s cleverly-coded money laundering scheme. This then forces Ronan into a situation where even knowing about the encryption places him on a killer’s hit list … even if he doesn’t yet understand its meaning and applications.

 When he does, that just makes him more vulnerable as the clock ticks down on resolution, forcing him into a dangerous cat-and-mouse game where vying forces struggle to fund crime and disable any inquiries.

 Eliot Parker creates a memorable, capable protagonist in Ronan. His latest adventure requires no prior reader familiarity with Ronan’s exploits in order to prove accessible to newcomers.

 The detailed probe not only comes from Ronan’s approach to problem-solving, but the involvements of perps well capable of wielding the combined forces of money, power, and death. Comprehensive descriptions of these efforts will especially please detail-oriented detective story readers, providing background information key to understanding how forces conduct themselves:

 Reno Senghavi had been smart and developed his own blockchain. Thus, he was able to acquire CompCoins early in their development, where one CompCoin could be worth over $50,000. Tomasi’s mole found out that Senghavi had made a sizable withdrawal from his retirement account to purchase CompCoins. The fluctuation in their value made them worth over 350 million dollars now and Gordon wanted it before Tomasi discovered it.

 These elements combine well with emotional discoveries and revelations that keep readers interested in Ronan’s character and his comprehension of his strengths and limits through important self-assessment processes:

 Ronan’s eyes became glassy as he thought about those moments that had tested him physically and mentally beyond anything else in his career. He shook off a chill.

 The tension is nicely developed, a wide cast of characters contribute many disparate notes of interest to the plot, and the complex engagements and plans are not only readily understandable, but involve twists and turns even seasoned techno-thriller readers won’t see coming.

 Libraries that invest in Double-Crossed will find it easy to recommend to patrons looking for its winning blend of complexity, psychological revelation, and well-developed, realistic action and confrontations.

Double-Crossed

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The Fifth Seal
Robert Albo
Independently Published
ASIN: B0DHST2PX3              $4.99 eBook
https://www.amazon.com/FIFTH-SEAL-Robert-Albo-ebook/dp/B0DHST2PX3

 The moment Barry Adams stepped into the Pour House, he felt the air crackle with possibility, as if the universe conspired to make this night different from all the others. Muted chatter from the after-work crowd blended with the clink of glasses and the haunting melody of “Summertime Madness.” He mouthed the words, “kiss me hard before you go, summertime madness.” The melancholy lyrics resonated with a part of him he usually kept buried under equations and star charts.

 From the moment this story opens, readers are embraced by a heady mix of contrasts that juxtapose the capabilities of a noted astrophysicist with his flawed emotional makeup. This leads him to reflect that “in matters of the heart, he felt adrift, like a solitary pulsar sending its lonely signal into the indifferent, empty space.” Maybe he just hasn’t met the right person … but maybe he’s actually incapable of making such a connection. In his early thirties, however, Barry is ripe for transformation.

 His consideration of faith versus reason allows him to open his mind to new possibilities. When he does, a virtual whirlwind of the unexpected emerges that shakes his worldview, his place in it, and his beloved politics and science, which suddenly feel more fluid and dangerous than stable.

 The Fifth Seal gives thriller readers an edgy, thoroughly engrossing read that incorporates elements of sci-fi, thriller, spiritual inquiry, and political probe. These elements follow Barry into a milieu in which his scientific expertise is called into question by events beyond his comprehension.

 Dreams of Gaia and God, issues of proof and truth, and fluctuating scenarios in which aliens and wives clash over bigger issues than Barry had ever imagined create a story that excels in swift twists and turns. Events propel Barry into uncharted waters, both scientifically and spiritually. His emotional growth follows as he tackles unfamiliar concepts and scenarios.

 The tone of Robert Albo’s creation is reminiscent of The DaVinci Code with its delicate interweavings of spiritual and scientific objectives and nonstop action. These give the story nice tension and a firm rooting in the unexpected which keeps the ground shifting under readers in satisfyingly novel ways.

 Another strength to The Fifth Seal lies in its further development of intrigue from international encounters and plots, spies, CIA involvements, and more. These also contribute to Barry’s spirals of discovery and confrontation to add a spellbinding atmosphere to his journey.

 It’s a delicate dance to weave such disparate influences into a logically-progressing plot that expands ever outward into the unexpected. Albo does so with a strong attention to maintaining the strength of rational and seemingly irrational thoughts and insights to keep Barry and his readers on their toes.

 Libraries might find shelving this book a challenge. It’s as much a spiritual thriller as a sci-fi story, and is as astute in its development of emotional growth components as it is in building a plot steeped with intrigue, mystery, and discovery.

 Put it on display and mark it as a top pick for readers interested in a rollicking journey through time, space, and experience, as it weaves new perspectives on Gaia, chaos, and the ultimate complexity and resiliency of the human spirit. Books clubs will find The Fifth Seal simply packed with many thought-provoking themes suitable for avid discussions.

The Fifth Seal

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The Killing Ground
Larry Lauritzen
Independently Published
979-8334257542             $15.00 Paperback/$2.99 eBook
https://www.amazon.com/Killing-Ground-L-D-Lauritzen-ebook/dp/B0DBBCZWM3

 The Killing Ground is a crime thriller that revolves around murder, dangerous border gangs and FBI cat-and-mouse games, and the efforts of border control director Brad Hanley to address what looks like a mole within his trusted operations.

 He and his friend Lance Tallbear go undercover to enter a cartel’s circle to ferret out the perp, inadvertently sparking a much wider dilemma when they find themselves operating in a vacuum sans either the FBI strength or various other support systems they’ve relied on in the past.

 Larry Lauritzen spins a fine yarn rooted in a desert atmosphere, human follies and plots, and Native American culture. Mystery and thriller readers are treated to a tale well steeped in environmental, cultural, political, and personal issues that draw with realistic backdrops and compelling assessments of danger, honor, and loyalty. Lauritzen’s ability to build a compelling story of escalating violence and thwarted objectives creates a plot that proves hard to either predict or put down.

 Tallbear’s perspective is especially intriguingly displayed as he is pushed to the limits of his ability to consider all angles the investigation and his connections to justice:

 Tallbear watched DeLorca amble, pushing his wooden wheelbarrow filled with adobe bricks up the road toward the barns. What was the old man’s game? The wind kicked up dust, whistling through the ruins as night closed in. Whispers of the old mission’s past drifted down the halls, leaving Tallbear to wonder what secrets they hid or stories they could tell.

 This brings readers into the political and social concerns of border patrol operations and motivations on both sides of various related issues. It introduces a more complex series of face-offs and questions than in typical thriller scenarios.

 The Killing Ground is a study in loyalty, love, and commitment that brings into play many disparate issues stemming from the clash between different cultures and questions of subterfuge and spying:

 Hanley coughed, waving off the plume of smoke. “I think you’re expecting the impossible. Especially since we appear to have a traitor giving away our every move.”

Like an accusing finger, Hanks pointed his cigarette at Hanley. “You’re still trying to use that phantom spy in the office to excuse your recent failures.”

 Libraries seeking a murder mystery/thriller replete with cross-cultural and intelligence dilemmas that force two men to the brink of their abilities to threaten their lives and ethical commitments and ideals will find The Killing Ground offers a thought-provoking, action-paced story that is delightfully, thoroughly engrossing.

The Killing Ground

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Killing Kraken
Ian Domowitz
Casa Muerte Books
979-8339438694             $9.99 Paperback/$4.99 eBook
Website: www.iandomowitz.com
Ordering: https://www.amazon.com/Killing-Kraken-Magical-Mystery-Mysteries-ebook/dp/B0DG648BLH

 Killing Kraken is the fourth book in the Getz Parker Magical Mysteries series, returning Getz to the limelight with a combination of intrigue and magic that opens with a prologue set in Alexandria, Egypt in AD 1. Here, an older women operates under a rare blend of alchemy and spiritual beliefs as she hones her skills and cultivates a philosophical perspective on her life and culture:

 She had skirted problems associated with husband and family to become a sage in her own mind and a builder of others’ thinking. Humans can be built in the same way as copper is studied on the way to gold. Copper has two faces, in which spirit combines with the material in ways to be unbound and harnessed for other use. The philosophical thought best suited her salon, where luminaries debated the dual nature of beings and the a!nity of their principles with those governing metallurgy and all other things natural. Apotheosis remained attractive for the intellectual set, but the real work lay in transmutation, the making of gold from base metal.

 What do her early experiences have to do with modern-day Getz’s interests and challenges? Plenty. Ian Domowitz crafts a story which moves from these early influences to modern-day politics and mystery that emerge from Kraken’s latest campaign for president.

 Getz finds he’s been misled in many ways by the politics and assumptions of Kraken’s efforts. When murders point to Kraken’s involvement, Getz finds himself drawn into a case involving an ancient artifact (The Philosopher’s Stone) and circumstances which blend magic and mystery with modern political dilemmas.

 Domowitz’s ability to weave seemingly disparate trails of thought and experience into a compelling tale that dovetails many compelling moments and questions draws readers who may not anticipate that related questions of power, privilege, and politics could blend so neatly into a murder mystery story.

 But, they do. The proof of a superior mystery lies in how the action, presumptions, and events play out—and in this arena, Killing Kraken serves up many thoroughly compelling, action-packed moments:

 Who sent the Searchers? It makes little sense for four strangers to band together to look for an artifact about which nobody claims to know anything, despite the effort and blood that has gone into it. An acoustical engineer, an unemployed seller of personal data, a dilettante wannabe artist, and a recluse with no known profession or source of income walk into a bar––a joke, right? Except you would have to search long and hard for a punchline because nothing ties them together. Unless there is something special about the artifact, which leads to the second question. What is it?”

“Something worth three corpses,” grated Getz. He was going into withdrawal, and I hoped Akuji would soon find the exit. Getz would say anything at this point to be alone with himself.

 Prior readers well know that Getz is a flawed investigator as much at odds with his own addiction as the influences of those around him. He operates on the spectrum, which lends him a special form of acuity that a select few (the narrator included) appreciate as one of his strengths. These features make him more human as he considers the many ways in which “elections can be murder” and takes step to resolve a barrage of new questions about candidates, processes, and magical influences.

 The connections to modern political times cannot be ignored, which makes the story of even greater interest:

 Kraken and Uziki tied the polls within limits of statistical discrepancy. I thought someone should flip a coin and finish things.

 Add the presence of AI in unexpected places and situations, a search for the Name of God, and more than a light dose of magical realism for a mystery that defies the boundaries and norms of investigators, heroes, villains, and belief systems in such a way as to keep readers engaged, guessing, and thinking outside the normal borders of a mystery.

 Libraries will find Killing Kraken as exceptional as other Getz Parker mysteries, yet perfectly able to stand alone for newcomers attracted to magical ventures into politics, belief, and interpersonal psyches. This audience needs no prior introduction to the premise and people of this latest mystery.

Killing Kraken

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O’SHAUGHNESSY INVESTIGATIONS, INC.: Bangtails, Grifters, and a Liar's Kiss
A.G. Russo
Independently Published
ASIN: B0DHHL3WHB            $3.99 eBook
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DHHL3WHB

 Just because O’SHAUGHNESSY INVESTIGATIONS, INC.: Bangtails, Grifters, and a Liar's Kiss is the second book in the O’Shaughnessy Investigations Inc. Mystery Series doesn’t mean that newcomers aren’t welcome here. Indeed, prior fans and those who stumble into its action will be delighted by its investigative lure, atmospheric 1940s setting, and challenging mystery.

 Smalley Pauley is missing. Even more importantly, so is a key racehorse he was tending. His gangster brother hires Vic and Maeve to find Smalley—but what they find instead is a boatload of trouble. Another gangster claims he is actually the hiring brother’s kingpin and becomes involved in threatening and directing their investigation, and Maeve faces the dual challenges of protecting her younger brother while facing the possibilities about what might have happened to her missing soldier boyfriend overseas.

 Vic and Maeve fell into their investigative roles when the detective agency came under their care, but it appears they won’t be falling out of them as easily. Too many bosses, too much unsolvable mystery, and too many mobster connections force them to redefine their actions and relationships as they face adversity from more than one direction.

 A.G. Russo constantly shifts and juxtaposes personal challenges with intrigue. This flushes out the main characters and adjuncts which were introduced in the previous book, The Cases Nobody Wanted, revealing more dynamic psychological and professional engagements that keep the characters and their followers on their toes.

 Even more compelling is the manner in which the twists and turns evolve, moving between the mystery of a vanished man and horse to the bigger pictures of war’s impact on the home front, the deployment of a large segment of American society overseas, and the rise of domestic mobster influences.

 Readers seeking a detective noir piece firmly rooted in the 1940s will relish the added value of issues of women’s roles, soldier experience, and revised family duties placed on those left behind from the war’s action. These dovetail nicely with the action and confrontations of the dynamic investigative duo.

 Libraries seeking either stand-alone 1940s investigative pieces or stories that fully embrace the social and political concerns of the times will relish how O’Shaughnessy Investigations, Inc.: Bangtails, Grifters, and a Liar's Kiss so neatly and compellingly integrates its subjects that readers become immersed in the realities of the times, drawn into an atmospheric experience that proves hard to put down.

O’SHAUGHNESSY INVESTIGATIONS, INC.: Bangtails, Grifters, and a Liar's Kiss

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Safe in Death
S.K. Rizzolo
Independently Published
979-8-9914785-0-2         $12.99 Paperback/$4.99 ebook
Website: skrizzolo.com
Ordering: www.amazon.com

 Safe in Death: An Esther Hardy Victorian Mystery is set in 1861 England. It follows the exploits of a spinster who finds her only two (distasteful) choices in adulthood (marry, or become a governess) changed when a dying woman lands on her doorstep.

 The victim was once considered a person of interest in a murder eleven years prior. Now she has, herself, become a victim. The puzzling circumstances of her demise draws Esther into a strange world replete with hidden villains, secrets—and even unexpected love.

 S.K. Rizzolo’s prior talents in writing Regency mysteries are just as powerfully exhibited in Safe in Death as Esther not only probes a mystery that tests her mettle and future, but virtually reinvents her life during the course of her investigations.

 Rizzolo builds a vivid set of encounters which open with a perfectly ordinary, even dull, day that propels Esther into uncharted territory both personally and, potentially, professionally.

 As she probes Alice Denton’s life, Esther receives information that demands she not only cough up money, but revise social connections and approaches to her formerly-familiar milieu. Realistic, compelling dialogues between characters help cement these challenges and foster the psychological changes Esther makes in order to deal with people and situations quite distant from her familiar life experiences:

 “So that’s it. Hardy. The surgeon. I read the story in The Times. I can’t say I expected to see the man’s daughter in my sitting room. You’d better watch yourself, Miss Hardy, or you’ll be mixed up in a nasty affair. That Alice Denton was no better than she should be, from what I hear. Paid up regular and all. But we’d come to a parting of the ways. I’d have chucked her out if she hadn’t got herself killed first.” She wagged a plump finger.

How to respond? My annoyance had already chilled to dislike. “I did want to learn about Miss Denton’s last hours.”

From fortuitous meetings and challenging relationships with her mother to the blossoming of new connections and romance that accompany these revised possibilities for her future, Esther’s relationships power a story that remains vividly compelling throughout:

 I amused myself by ticking off the emotions crossing my mother’s face. Irritation. Trepidation. Excitement. Trepidation again. And under it all, I could read her never-spoken fear that every time her daughter walked out the door, there was always a very small chance she would not come back again. Mama had lost one child. Why not another? Nor did it matter how old I got. That would never change.

 Much more moves this story than a murder mystery or romance alone. Social issues of the times swirl around adultery, blackmail, illegitimacy, and the shifting roles of women in society, represented by Esther’s transformation and newfound strengths.

 Readers holding a special interest in women’s changing roles in Victorian times will find Rizzolo’s research nicely dovetails with the fictional drama, painting astute portraits of fallen women, victims, and issues of respectability and economic stress. Historical figures such as Prince Albert come into play in unusual, realistic ways as the plot progresses.

 Libraries that choose Safe in Death for its promise of an enlightening period piece powered by social, political, and investigative questions will find the story easy to recommend to a wide audience. This will include patrons interested in historical fiction or women’s issues and those who like either romance or a compelling detective story. Safe in Death features far more depth and detail than most, while maintaining a lively countenance that will attract and hold the interest of leisure readers with a vivid protagonist who becomes immersed in life-altering encounters.

Safe in Death

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Sweet Paradise
Gene Desrochers
Acorn Publishing
978-1952112379
$29.99 Hardcover/$13.99 Paperback/$4.99 eBook
Website: https://www.genedesrochers.com/
Ordering: https://www.amazon.com/Sweet-Paradise-Boise-Montague-Desrochers/dp/1952112370

 Sweet Paradise is the second book in the Boise Montague island mystery series, and focuses on Boise’s ongoing challenges settling into his Caribbean island home.

 His new private detective agency has only one problem—a lack of clients. This leads Boise to welcome a job he might ordinarily eschew when a wealthy client assigns him to locate his missing grandmother. Easy, right? Wrong.

 The more Boise investigates, the more connections he uncovers between island affairs, families, and hidden motives for a murder. These unfold to challenge a wide circle of people. His probe ties into the underlying cloud over the island which he’d sensed upon arrival as well as his own past and doubts about his future, lending further tension and unexpected developments to his investigation.

 Sweet Paradise may be an adjunct to Boise’s first story, but it also stands nicely alone for newcomers. This book, steeped in Caribbean history and culture, proves easy to absorb without any prior familiarity with Boise’s past escapades.

 St. Thomas comes alive (even though the subject here is death), as does Boise, whose search for the truth and a murderer leads to a reconsideration of mortality and his future in this dubious island paradise.

 Psychological notes of insight revolve around Boise’s ‘reactionary nature’ and the shifting subjects of his investigation, leading him into ever-murkier waters surrounding St. Thomas and his former concepts of paradise and peace.

 Whether Boise is probing how his employer perished or engaged in bigger-picture philosophical reflection, his psyche and perspective are presented in a manner that dovetails fine tension development with reflective moments:

 Everything was slathered in green trees and brush. One ruin stuck out and one white house. All that life. All that death.

 Boise’s insights on connections which are ‘dead and alive’ and strained family relationships lends further realistic value to the murder mystery.

 Sweet Paradise is another fine foray into Caribbean island culture and the threats imposed not just by murder, but undercurrents of intrigue and secrecy.

 Libraries either seeing popularity with the first book or interested in an excellent stand-alone, Caribbean-centric murder mystery will find Sweet Paradise attractive and involving.

Sweet Paradise

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Vengeance of the Vanished Ones, Book One
Lee Orlich Bertram
Black Rose Writing
978-1-68513-518-8         $20.95 Paperback/$5.99 ebook
www.blackrosewriting.com

 Vengeance of the Vanished Ones, Book One blends archaeological issues of discovery and preservation with action surrounding a macabre murder. It’s a story designed to appeal not just to murder mystery genre readers, but beyond.

 From secret military missions in Central America to archaeological rock art breakthroughs that, some believe, must be suppressed, Vengeance of the Vanished Ones, Book One lays a foundation of action and discovery that plays out in unexpected ways.

 From the beginning, Lee Orlich Bertram builds tension and atmosphere into her story as characters are developed and motivations for choices explored:

 When pressing family obligations and personal struggles had compelled Marcos early in his career to leave academia, Dave had passionately appealed to him not to do it. Despite that closed door, however, Marcos remained current with the scholarship in the discipline. As time passed, he and Dave had shared the utter euphoria of archaeological exploration and discovery in Baja. This time, however, Marcos felt an unfamiliar knot in his stomach as he faced the trip to Baja. Dave would never have killed himself, he reassured himself. But I haven’t a fig of a clue about who could have killed him and what circumstances I am about to get into down there. Uncertainty and fear gnawed away at his reserve of self-confidence.

 Spirits come into play to lend further intrigue to developments when Marcos is dragged into the spirit world where Davis Pearce languishes. Psychiatrist-psychic Susan guides him to better understand not only this spirit realm, but the art and influences which permeate its borders.

 The fictional story is made all the more intriguing for its foundations in reality—it’s based on an existing archaeological mystery and real archaeologists, so the atmosphere is at once rational and surreal. Characters explore not just archaeological findings and spirit realms, but an unexpected love that blossoms even under adversity and paradigm shifts.

 What begins as an investigation of a missing archaeologist sends Dr. Marcos Andersson into a self-guided journey to uncover the hidden meaning of rock art and his life.

 Elements of psychological understanding, murder mystery, surprising interpersonal connections, and archaeological processes of discovery all lend to a ‘can’t-put-it-down’ read that is highly recommended for libraries seeking evocative, action-packed stories.

 It is also highly recommended for book clubs interested in stories that exhibit well-done tension, plot and character development, and unexpected twists that keep characters and readers on their toes with bigger-picture questions and issues that offer food for thought and book group debate opportunities.

Vengeance of the Vanished Ones, Book One

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Novels

Bending the Arc
Nicholas Gretener
Qualitas Publishing
978-1-897093-14-6         $14.95
Website: www.nicholasgretener.com
Ordering: www.amazon.com

 Bending the Arc is a LawForce novel that describes the efforts and engagements of an elite legal SWAT team that balances the scales of justice with political impact. The Texas case that opens this story may not sound so lofty:

 “All Ishmael had to do, your Honor, was battle a whale. A great white whale. That’s a walk in the park compared to my job here. I need to convince these twelve fine citizens that my client may use his business name in the face of overwhelming odds.”

 However, independent commercial litigator Steve Shane’s courtroom prowess and interests dovetail with those of young idealistic U.S. Attorney General Jonathan Hendrix. Hendrix taps him to become part of LawForce to address the problem of huge civil jury awards that threaten to destroy big companies and destabilize the economy.

 Shane finds himself unexpectedly retained in the legal battle of his lifetime when oil and gas giant Wildcat faces the Green Action Coalition in court, only to find that the bad guy may be masquerading as the good one. This holds potentially devastating results that reach far beyond this singular, albeit large, case.

 Courtroom proceedings mark back-and-forth games between major players as Shane suddenly finds himself in a legal battle that tests every trick he’s ever employed to stay on top of his cases.

 Other characters and situations emerge from the fray to add their own elements of subterfuge and spying, hidden agendas, and overt dirty tactics to the mix. These include Herky Cantrell, who works a tough but satisfying job on the oil development well Explorer 7 (“the pride of ARI’s drilling fleet”) as well as the presence of others involved in “wildcatting” strikes and deadly destructive targeting.

 Shane’s job takes him out of the courtroom into unfamiliar territory. Here, important evidence key to his case lies at the bottom of the Gulf, while sabotage, leaks, and accusations of negligence muddy his case’s waters. Suddenly, he’s not so sure that his efforts fall on the side of justice, after all.

 Nicholas Gretener crafts a compelling legal and political thriller. It introduces intriguing issues centered on big business, moral and ethical conundrums, and impossible trials. Of special interest are the tactics employed by both sides that add complexity and influence to the case:

 Trust Hillerman to use a standard tactic of big-file commercial litigation—if required to disclose anything, bury the other side in a paper blizzard or, more recently, an electronic avalanche. Finding anything incriminating would be difficult.

 While Bending the Arc may be defined as a legal thriller, its added value as a political inspection of big and small business connections to economic instability creates extra dimensions of insight. This will prove especially inviting to both legal novel readers and students of litigation’s impact on political outcomes.

 Libraries that choose Bending the Arc for their collections will find it easy to recommend for its realistic courtroom drama and political scenarios and its bigger-picture thinking about the perceptions and ethics of companies large and small. It features many discussion opportunities for book clubs interested in stories that explore connections between developers, environmental impact, and flawed judicial systems and jurors.

Bending the Arc

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The Boy with Six Fingers
Barry Vitcov
Finishing Line Press
979-8-88838-777-1         $23.99
https://www.finishinglinepress.com/?s=vitcov&post_type=product

 The Boy with Six Fingers is a novella that revolves around Seymour S. Seymour, who has "rehomed himself" at the Visions of Eden Home for Active Seniors for the final years of his life. He likes to spend time sitting and observing in a medical office's waiting room between walks and other life interactions. That's where he encounters a young boy sporting six fingers on his hand, who walks in with his parents. From that moment on, both Seymour’s and the boy’s lives become forever intertwined.

 Seven-year-old Wink was raised by wise parents who taught him to accept and celebrate his difference, rather than worrying about it. Perhaps this is why he immediately recognizes the elderly Seymour, dressed in a red beret and sporting red tennis shoes, as a kindred spirit:

 "Dad was good about reminding me to not worry about things. He had a way of describing anything that was unusual or unique as being a gift. He always told me that the extra finger on my left hand made me special and that being different was a blessing. It took me well into my adulthood before I understood what he meant. I looked at Mr. Seymour and saw someone who was different, too."

 As Wink and Sy get to know one another, differences are acknowledged and appreciated in a story that grows inter-generational relationships based on strangers that learn to view one another as a 'rare treat'.

 Barry Vitcov creates a warm narrative of empathy and discovery that evolves as the years pass. Wink becomes a twelve-year-old with a special friend that gives him new perspectives on himself, life, and the value of growing older and wiser.

 "Mr. Seymour had described Wink as a boy gifted with the skill to absorb wisdom as his own without subsequent pretentiousness or arrogance. 'He always amazes me with his ability to listen, to listen with genuine openness. It’s been a privilege to have such a young friend at the end of my life.' She remembered that Mr. Seymour had lost an infant grandchild during the time she was teaching one of his grandchildren, and how his endearing kindness to his living grandchildren was present every time he and his wife came to school events. 'We give them love with no expectations. Some call that unconditional love. We’re not so technical.'”

 The ramifications of and lessons in this relationship unfold to affect the wider world and other people that come into contact with Wink to confront life cycles in a world that appears to be falling apart.

 Vitcov builds a host of characters from this initial encounter who find their lives changed and challenged by gifts of perception as new generations absorb the impact initially created from the ripples of friendship between Wink and Sy.

 As the retirement home morphs into the entity Visions Luxury Condominiums with new possibilities that emerge from its revised incarnation, readers gain a tremendous boost from absorbing the impact and gifts of time that resonate from Wink's life into the worlds of his descendants.

 Is there life beyond death? Mr. Seymour's associations and lessons proves such in an unusual way, inviting readers into a discourse that is evocative, thought-provoking, and gently celebratory of love and legacy alike.

 Libraries and readers seeking novellas that juxtapose discovery, mystery, and transformation will find The Boy with Six Fingers filled with "profound surprises" about intergenerational relationships. These encourage positive reflections about the importance of being different and open to change and new ideas.

The Boy with Six Fingers

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The Dark Night of the Soul
Daniel Hryhorczuk
Golden Bough
978-1-7352400-3-9                 $14.99 Print/$3.99 eBook
Website: www.danielhryhorczuk.com
Ordering: https://www.amazon.com/Dark-Night-Soul-Daniel-Hryhorczuk/dp/1735240036 

 In The Dark Night of the Soul, Ukrainian author Lev Veles’s spiritual journey to seek redemption involves a possible family reconciliation, a religious confrontation that shakes his deepest beliefs, and a consideration of the roots of demons and salvation. This occurs against the backdrop of a war-ravaged Ukraine, but is set in Venice. It depicts an existential journey of revelation as Russian daughter Sophia, who has blamed Lev for her mother’s demise, discovers that the real root of evil is far more complex than she could have imagined while father Lev’s spiritual journey progresses during forty days of Lent, from Carnival to Easter, during which resurrection is contemplated and identified.

 Daniel Hryhorczuk crafts a powerful story of faith, death, and life, creating a entwined story of lives buffeted not just by war, but by individual choice and clashing belief systems.

 The pandemic and Russia’s war on Ukraine serve as important contemporary backdrops for this probe of each character’s perspective and life as events unfold in the tumultuous racket of physical, mental, and spiritual confrontation:

 “The professor and I first met in the contessa’s palazzo several weeks before you arrived in Venice. The contessa organized a small coterie – she and I, Professor Brown, and Father Stephan – to meet in her palazzo on Thursday evenings to share our thoughts on metaphysics. We were all on our own spiritual journeys and thought we could learn from one another. We were following different paths searching for the ultimate reality. Father Stephan was on the Way of Christian mysticism, Professor Brown on the path of humanism, and I was on the path of science.”

“And the contessa . . .?” Lev asked, though he already knew the answer.

“She was an enigmatic woman. Father Stephan referred to her as a Benandante, or white witch. She began her journey on the right-hand path, but as the pandemic progressed, her worldview became darker, and she began to explore the left-hand path.

“What’s the difference?” Lev asked.

“The right-hand path follows ethical codes and conventions; it seeks union with and dependence on God. The left-hand path seeks an even higher law based on knowledge and power. It abandons morality. Some believe it’s the path to true freedom.”

 Hryhorczuk’s contrasting focuses provides deep-rooted inspections that will lend especially well to book club debate and consideration. Readers who look for fast reads should be advised that the nature and contrasts of these characters and shifting settings require a slow inspection to properly absorb the simmering passions and evolution of evil which emerges from these encounters.

 Lev’s real challenges during the unexpected course of his journey steeps readers in questions of influence, moral and spiritual transformation, and the definition of evil’s intentions and processes:

 “She cradled Lev in her arms. She was pulling him into the Burning Grounds. But he didn’t care. He was sharing his darkest secrets without judgment. He was not sure what she wanted from him, other than everything. Was she a succubus, a demon lover who seduced men in their dreams? He was sure she was a phantasm, a creation of his own imagination. Yet she felt more than real. She craved sensuality, as if it were something she could not have without feeding on his. If he lay with her, would it be a sleep from which he would never awaken?”

 More so than many novels of Ukrainian history and culture, The Dark Night of the Soul is delivered with the stinging blows of physical and metaphysical change and the real pain the war has unleashed on many different levels.

 Libraries seeking a novel set rooted in Ukraine affairs but set in Venice, which exposes the nation and its peoples’ history, legacies, belief systems, and paths of Christian mysticism, will find The Dark Night of the Soul a vivid, aching, revealing story that is hard to put down or stop thinking about long after events conclude:

 “The human evil that threatens us is far worse than any supernatural evil. Ukraine is where the best in humanity confronts the worst in humanity. The challenge is difficult, and we are facing our own dark night of the soul. But the night is darkest before the dawn.”

The Dark Night of the Soul

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Fallen Kings: Unholy Secrets
June Gillam 
Gorilla Girl Ink 
978-1-7324642-9-2         $14.99 Paperback/$4.99 ebook
Website: www.junegillam.com
Ordering: https://shorturl.at/Pr4PF

 Fallen Kings: Unholy Secrets depicts a nightmare that unfolds from an Italian family vacation when Professor Hillary Broome’s daughter Claire goes missing. This forces her to step up to investigate, but the plot that unfolds proves to involve far more than a singular kidnapping as women’s rights and social issues become focal points of threats, as well.

 From the start, June Gillam’s story of a religious conspiracy grabs reader attention with the news report of a killer’s latest victim and the “surge in femicides” that has plagued Italy. This observation of crime and social unrest leads neatly into the first chapter in which protagonist Hillary considers world threats and the vulnerability of her own family:

 Hillary poured cream into her Intenso coffee to round out the bitterness. If only she could pour a mantle of protection around her teenaged daughter, Claire. 

 This observation takes place not on Italian soil but in the U.S., where her daughter’s participation in a local Pride parade is accompanied by worrisome headline news from Sacramento that “Local AntiLGBTQ Crimes Doubled.”

 As events unfold, Gillam creates a moving series of confrontations and characters including Xavier, whose caretaking of the elderly Father Joseph and the possibility of a new romance in online contact Albert swiftly moves into uncharted territory as he becomes entwined with the promise of redemption and religious retribution in Claire’s kidnapping and confrontation with Father Tommaso, who harbors a vengeful and cruel perception of absolution:

 “Truth is always truth. You are bewitched. We beg you confess before you become insensible to the pain of the flames.”

“I confess to loving women and helping others to be proud, but not by witchcraft. This is not a sin!”

 These confrontations force LGBTQ+ issues and women’s rights to the forefront of a dangerous battle of beliefs and propriety. Events spring to life through Gillam’s intense focus not just on crime and Catholicism, but on various individuals who are convinced that their paths are not only individually morally superior, but should form the belief systems of the world around them.

 Gillam’s approach creates a thought-provoking crime novel that is as much about Italian culture and religious and social systems as it is about one family buffeted by the changes introduced to old-country thought by women’s and LGBTQ+ rights.

 From the Pope and nuns and prayers to opposition to gender studies programs and a satisfying blend of historical precedent and social changes, the crime story is heightened by Claire and Hillary’s perceptions and involvement as special interests clash.

 All these elements make Fallen Kings: Unholy Secrets more than a singular crime story, but a satisfyingly complex survey of Italian culture and how religious institutions and social change trends can not only clash, but subvert moral and ethical pathways.

 Libraries seeking a blend of crime story and vivid Italian culture will find Fallen Kings: Unholy Secrets an exceptional portrait whose multifaceted topics contribute to a novel that proves hard to put down and impossible to stop thinking about long after the read is over and events concluded.

Fallen Kings: Unholy Secrets

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The Good War of Consul Reeves
Peter Rose
‎Blacksmith Books
978-988-76748-7-0         $17.94
https://www.amazon.com/Good-War-Consul-Reeves/dp/9887674877

 The Good War of Consul Reeves opens with a prologue of a 1945 assassination in Macao, but the main story begins in 1941. It tells of counsel John Reeves, who takes up his post in the Portuguese colony of Macau in southern China six months before war breaks out.

 Unexpectedly, Macau, being Portuguese, becomes one of the few ports of neutrality in Asia. This places John in the unusual position of being the sole representative of the Allies in the region. Of necessity, this also demands that he oversee spy rings and intelligence efforts, supervise refugee safety, and more.

 Peter Rose’s compelling story revolves around an ordinary man dedicated to doing his duty, who finds his quiet pursuits inadvertently become a pivot point during the chaos of war. Rose depicts John’s countenance and concerns with a solid hand to considering how ordinary individuals became caught up in affairs beyond their ken and experience:

 Reeves tried to imagine gliding down from the sky in some sort of flying ocean liner to an uncharted tropical paradise in the South Seas, where a beautiful woman would be waiting for him. He remembered his clumsy fumbling with girls at University and then here he was, a British mid-level civil servant in an obscure posting. Languid women in tropical gardens did not wait for people like him. He had his life with Rhoda and his daughter. They would be here soon, he was sure. His daughter would surely get better and Rhoda and he would finally grow close. He would make a success of his time in Macao. 

 Even more importantly, the novel weaves the political and military confrontations swirling around this dutiful man in a way that readers can readily understand how the personal (and psychological) can dovetail with unexpected events to influence and direct not just individual lives, but the courses of nations.

 Rose is particularly adept at adding elements of surprise to his “you are here” atmosphere to keep readers engaged in the good counsel’s challenges and confrontations:

 There was a shout from two of the Japanese officers and all three stood up, opening the flaps on their holsters and this time grasping the handles of their sidearms. Colonel Sawa took a step back and grinned at Reeves. It took Reeves a few seconds to realize what was happening,  that his hand was resting on the top of his revolver, and the Japanese officers had reacted. This was very much like one of those scenes in a Western film where the sheriff was in a standoff with some villains. How would this scene end? Would Colonel Sawa actually kill a consul?  This was not part of the plan. Why was this happening?

 These build a strong historical novel replete with unexpected twists and events that keep both protagonist and readers on their toes.

 As Rose points out:  The definitive work on Macau during the War has yet to be written. There must be accounts within the Japanese and Portuguese archives (just the documents from Portuguese intelligence and the Macao police would be enthralling) which would round out and amplify the picture we now have of this fascinating period.

 The story of Portuguese Macao does not receive widespread attention. This is yet another reason why this particular World War II story is a standout. It’s highly recommended for libraries and readers that would absorb its little-discussed history in a way that personalizes and draws audiences who may hold little prior familiarity with either the colony or its history.

The Good War of Consul Reeves

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Hang Fire
Anthony Mora
The Royal Penny Press
978-0-9912370-3-6         $14.95
https://anthonymorawriter.com

 Hang Fire is a novel inspired by a true Hollywood experience, and thus comes steeped in a “you are here” sense of realism that brings to life the setting and encounters of 2019 Hollywood and a writer whose books might be translated to the big screen. Or not.

 Movie producer Lanier is a hustler adept at dangling the carrot of fame and fortune to struggling novelist James Lansing. As James comes to find her spiel strong and her promises vague, he discovers that success is not right around the corner, as promised, but well up the street.

 All James really wants to do is write, with the financial security to back up this effort. It all seems so simple. But his growing association with Lanier is anything but uncomplicated, and his growing awareness about her and Hollywood begin to overshadow his creative ambitions in a manner that ultimately affects his objectives.

 Anthony Mora introduces and then intermixes a host of disparate characters who each harbor their own visions of personal ambition and Hollywood success. Each seems destined to fail in one way or another, confronting promises and possibilities that prove challenging in different ways.

 Mora’s ability to capture Hollywood’s milieu with the hopes and dreams of aspiring actors, psychiatrists, and others who move within its boundaries makes for a story replete with action-packed discoveries.

 He also juxtaposes wanna-be film writer James’s psyche with that of Jerry, who enters the story early, posing a question to his psychiatrist about if she would be required to report the confession of a wanna-be murderer. Jerry, too, is writing a script. And his psychiatrist is a former actress whose online image contrasts with the staid countenance she tries to maintain with Jerry and her other clients.

 Everything entwines in Mora’s novel … so much so that the culture and psyche of Hollywood assumes a complexity that other novels about Los Angeles rarely achieve. This gives Hang Fire added value, boosting the underlying influences and atmosphere of Hollywood which dovetail nicely with changing and challenging character ambitions.

 These contrasts offer studies in psychological and social perspective that enhance the depth of Hang Fire. Between Lanier’s struggle to stay a viable and powerful force in Hollywood and the shared objectives of those around her, the politics and influences of the times come to life:

 Jerry sat at his desk, working on his laptop. He was already behind schedule. His plan was to have his sci-fi horror script ready. Once James’s film got the green light, they needed to have another project that was good to go. The Hollywood machine needed to be constantly fed and Jerry was more than willing to oblige.

 Libraries seeking a different kind of Hollywood saga that follows not just one, but a host of characters into unfamiliar territory will find Hang Fire a winner. Its ability to contrast lives and perspectives, as well as what each of the characters will do and sacrifice for the sake of success, makes for a thought-provoking, lively series of interactions that’s hard to put down.

Hang Fire

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I Want You to Know
Sandy Speers Markwart
Legacy Book Press LLC
979-8-9891170-5-5         $17.99 Paperback/$5.99 ebook
Website: https://sandyspeersmarkwart.com/
Ordering: https://www.amazon.com/Want-You-Know-Posthumous-Nineteen-Year-Old/dp/B0DKTHDT8V

 I Want You to Know: A Posthumous Story Told By a Nineteen-Year-Old cultivates an unusual approach for a novel, in that it is firmly rooted in real events, but narrated in the voice of Sandy Speers Markwart’s deceased brother Jarett, who explores the impact of his death on the family he’s left behind.

 An introductory Author’s Note explains the background for this story, allowing readers to more fully appreciate its origins, influences, and nuances based on the added bonus of choosing this unusual method to explain events and their emotional results. This first-person voice opens the story with a powerful bang of posthumous reflection:

 I see my sister — the youngest — the one who waits for me.

I see her discontentment rising and the inkling of fear that blossoms within.

I see her drive aggressively, leaving the place where I am not, but should be.

She takes the road that is not a road, the dirt path lined with sunflowers that smile and wave at me.

Their tall stalks stand sturdy in the wind. They, like me, will soon lie twisted in the sun.
I didn’t see it coming.

 Markwart takes the time to firmly root her story in her brother’s reality and her family atmosphere. She portrays the family farm environment, taking care to paint realistic and compelling portraits of each family member:

 My dad is a wheat farmer who works harder than most and expects the same from his offspring. He is a man of few words. He would tell you that there is no such word as “can’t” and that hard work can produce anything you want. He would also tell you that having children is the most important thing that you will do in your life. He loves the country, the fresh air, the open spaces, and the hard work that it demands. He approaches any task with the determination and the work ethic of a Clydesdale. He stands tall in judgement and short in praise.

 The accident that propelled Markwart to write this discourse is only one part to a multifaceted story that follows health challenges, life transition points, and revised connections that challenge Sandy and her surviving family to come to terms with many new realizations about their lives and Jarett’s ongoing presence.

 As time passes and the family structure and challenges change, Jarrett observes its fluctuations and the many family dynamics which come into play.

 Readers who anticipate that I Want You to Know will be a work of sadness may be pleased to note that there are many uplifting memories and moments within the story. Even more notable are the psychological insights on this family’s dynamics as they continually buffet health problems and a sibling and son’s death. These are delivered as astute, insightful moments that deserve reader contemplation as well as book club or psychology group discussion:

 My sisters are so alone with everything that is happening to them, and they can’t help but cannibalize little pieces of each other — the accusers and the foes alternating — they are the vultures flying overhead looking for an error by another. They dive bomb the aggressor and they say, You are not doing your share, you are not sacrificing all that I am, you do not spend as much time here as I do, you don’t take care of them like I do, you need to do more. And so it goes.

 These elements, combined with the unusual choice of a posthumous observer, make I Want You to Know an exceptionally vivid story that libraries and readers should place at the top of their reading lists.

 More so than most other stories of death, survivors, and family conditions, Markwart’s effectiveness in capturing a wide range of insights about the family’s evolutionary process gives her novel a particularly vibrant countenance that makes it hard to put down.

I Want You to Know

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Lunch Ladies
Jodi Thompson Carr
Century House Press
979-8-9915682-0-3         $14.99 Paperback/$3.99 ebook
Website: www.jodithompsoncarr.com
Ordering: https://www.amazon.com/Lunch-Ladies-Jodi-Thompson-Carr-ebook/dp/B0DKPJFRKK

 Lunch Ladies is a novel about women’s friendships, community involvement, and 1976 politics and social circles in Hanley, Minnesota. It follows the changing lives and perspectives of a circle of women who find themselves pulled into a community July celebration. Each woman already has her plate full, so tapping these school district “lunch ladies” seems an overloaded situation.

 Despite the added and unwelcome workload, however, each woman is motivated to participate and support their community, because Hanley is a place where:

 …most have called Hanley home for generations. Why would they leave? Among them are Crystal, Coralene, and Sheila; their families, friends, and co-workers; the people who died and left them; and the people who died and didn’t.

 The story opens with Crystal’s habit of reading obituaries as she sits on a park bench alongside a stranger. She imagines this richly-dressed woman could have been a match for the late Roger Remington Squirrel … but apparently she’s already taken by an “aging Clark Kent.” So, her fantasy stops here.

 Jodi Thompson Carr alternates viewpoints between the ladies. This solidifies personalities that approach people and problems from disparate angles, creating a satisfying shift in perspectives that gives Lunch Ladies a full-bodied flavor of adventure and discovery as each woman navigates family, hurt feelings, anger, and new options.

 This allows readers to examine clashes and encounters from different vantage points:

 How was Darcy supposed to respond if this was going to be Crystal’s approach? God dammit. She was always the one left to handle things. Always… How quickly the tables had turned. Help Crystal out? What the hell?”

 How the women and their community join together to overcome obstacles and contribute their talents to the greater good creates a heartwarming story that captures relationships, growth, and tragedy in an enlightening atmosphere readers will find engrossing. Especially notable are the disparate paths each woman chooses in her life, and how these are influenced by the attitudes of and encounters with others.

 Discussion points at the novel’s end make for perfect pointers for book clubs and reading groups interested in a closer examination of small-town relationships in general and women’s transformations in particular. Added value comes in the form of wry humor injected throughout the story.

 Libraries seeking a beach read about evolving relationships, community participation, and the special challenges of aging and illness will find Lunch Ladies a compelling recommendation about revised relationships and growth, whether these connections be friends, family, or romantic possibilities.

Lunch Ladies

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Nawleens
Frank Muskeni
Independently Published
ASIN: ‎B07VRW7YJD              $4.99 ebook
https://www.amazon.com/Nawleens-Frank-Muskeni-ebook/dp/B07VRW7YJD

 It’s hard to out-Puzo Godfather author Mario Puzo, but if any such claim can be made, it would be Frank Muskeni’s authentic Nawleens, which embeds its story with local color, complex subplots and characters, and an authentic flavor of the famous city and its underworld.

 Readers with an affection for or connection to New Orleans will readily recognize this book’s title reflects the local pronunciation of the city’s name. This indicates that the customs, atmosphere, and flavors of the city come to life in a historical novel set in the 1920s that follows the lives of Cajuns, Creoles, and crime families whose colorful lives represented much of the city’s culture during these times.

 This is evident in the opening lines of Frank Muskeni’s novel:

 The cortege left the Labat-Ray funeral home and headed through the French Quarter, in its odd and meandering way, toward the cemetery. Those musicians leading the procession played music that was an eccentric homogenization of Beguine funeral dirges. To quote historical reports, these demonstrations often recounted that: “these mostly Negro communities had evolved these unique methods of saying goodbye to their dead and that these displays sprang from similar rituals, centuries old, preceding their pre-slavery African traditions.

 Muskeni’s focus on contrasting two Mafia crime families and their personalities, evolutionary process, and politics through the experiences of a female doctor and her companion, the as-yet-unknown writer William Faulkner, makes for a rollicking ride through nearly New Orleans that embraces its unique musical and social heritage.

 A host of characters, from Jacques DuLieri (who heads a powerful French family that considers Nawleens their territory) to Jean-Marie DuLieri (who commands Legionnaires overseas and contributes his special experience to the family’s ambitions) and Missy Montgomery (a ‘floozy’ involved with the local Sheriff) live their lives, absorbing and representing the various factions and vivid countenance of New Orleans. History comes alive, both through these characters’ perceptions and experiences and through vibrant descriptions of the 1920s milieu:

 The long holiday period of New Orleans’ Mardi Gras season starts about two weeks before Shrove Tuesday, which according to Catholic tradition is the day before Ash Wednesday and the official kick-off of the time of fasting and abstinence know to the faithful as Lent. So, it had been traditionally incumbent upon that Christian community to get in as much fun before Lent as possible. And, man oh man did they do that.... big time! Les Bon Temps Roule! Let the good times roll! And they really knew how to roll in Nawleens in the Roaring Twenties! They still do.

 Who controls Nawleens? While it seems to boil down to powerful families, in fact the city’s effervescent culture receives its special allure from a wide range of artists, musician, and cultures; all of which are explored in a novel that excels in depicting both families and individuals and their contributions to building the New Orleans allure.

 Libraries and readers interested in historical fiction that simmers with action, insight, and a New Orleans-centric exposé of growth and evolution will relish the blend of historical fact and fictional characters that all contribute to a series of battles and struggles that ultimately define the city’s unique countenance.

 Book clubs, too, will find Nawleens’s contrasts especially invigorating and worthy of much discussion.

Nawleens

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A New America
Aaron Morell
Unconscious Will Publishing
979-8-218-98811-1
$29 hardcover/$19 softcover/$11.99 ebook
www.aaronmorell.com 

 A New America: The State of Independence tells of the new state of Independence which emerges from Midwestern states Kansas to Texas and secedes from the union. Four years after this event, reporter Roman Wolfe enters the boundaries of this state to cover its life, politics, evolutionary process, and challenges.

 The fictional narrative form presents Wolfe’s impressions, encounters, and insights on the state’s interactions on local and global levels, covering an area under-reported in the U.S. for those interested in a compelling juxtaposition between personal and political relationships.

 Astute insights come from the variety of individuals who engage Wolfe during the course of his survey, posing important questions about cause, effect, and ultimate impacts of vision and change on all levels of society:

 Juan Diego believed if Independence failed, it would bode poorly for the world and the ideals of liberty and justice. The U.S. would make a big to-do of coming to the rescue, showing the world how generous and forgiving it was, like a parent taking in her misguided children. After so much suffering, who wouldn’t be happy to return to the old ways?

 Perhaps now is the best time for Aaron Morell’s book to appear … in the midst of national turmoil that impacts personal relationships as much as politics with questions of control, power, and law.

 Morell’s ability to step into a milieu fraught with struggles that seep outside the new state’s borders into the greater world at large, affecting reporting focuses and altering perceptions of what constitutes a fact, gives the story a powerful atmosphere that makes it hard to put down.

 Many nonfiction elements give additional food for thought to audiences interested in modern American political and social dilemmas. Meanwhile, the added value of dramatic fictional embellishments keeps the saga fast-paced, filled with unexpected discoveries, and relevant to anyone interested in shifting arenas of American legal, political, and social endeavors.

 Libraries that choose A New America will find its marriage of fiction with nonfiction realism to be engaging and worthy not just of leisure reader recommendation, but to book clubs and political discussion groups interested in a range of subjects, from America’s future and the rights of states to divide and grow to the freedoms and mandates of journalists charged with reporting these events and their underlying motivations and challenges.

 “What is it about this country that makes it worth suffering for?”

 That is the question. The answers will surprise.

A New America

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Roller Coaster Romance
Kate Moseman
Fortunella Press
978-0999659489             $15.99
Website: https://www.katemoseman.com/ 
Ordering: https://books2read.com/rollercoasterromance 

 Roller Coaster Romance is a sweet romance highly recommended for readers whose main attraction to the genre is its emotional emphasis. While a sweet romance novel can include physical admiration, as well, its primary focus on emotional connections over sexual content lends it a clean countenance that will prove especially attractive to romance readers seeking emotional depth in their stories.

 Roller Coaster Romance blends humor into the ironic encounters of a workplace relationship for the added value of whimsical observation as Vanessa’s coveted new management position demands she not only navigate potentially treacherous waters between her boss and employees, but similarly field matters of the heart.

 As area manager, Vanessa is tasked with handling the four themed lands of Destiny Park. The last thing she anticipated was also navigating love and intrigue.

 Kate Moseman juxtaposes Vanessa’s perspective with that of Thomas, who holds his own objectives for the theme park and the shows he oversees. The last thing he expected from the new manager was her involvement in an attraction he is charged with building … or the union he is introducing into the park’s workplace milieu.

 Employee group psychology and relationship conundrums emerge from the political and business atmosphere of the corporation to introduce realistic obstacles (as well as new opportunities) to all the characters. Each has difficult choices to make about their loyalties, objectives, and relationships.

 Moseman’s attention to detail infuses her story with more than romance alone as Vanessa toes a delicate (and sometimes confusing) line in her new job:

 Vanessa placed both hands on her desk for emphasis. “You think I don’t want people to make a choice? You’re wrong. I’ve been fighting to protect that choice since the get-go.”
Charlotte uncrossed her arms and leaned forward. “Then why are you giving up the fight?”
“Because I can’t win. At this point I can only hurt people.”

 Vanessa, Thomas, Charlotte, and others find more than their jobs (or hearts) at stake as events build towards an unpredictable outcome for all involvements.

 Sweet romance readers looking for a compelling blend of action, insight, and growing relationship connections among disparate characters forced to work together will find Roller Coaster Romance notably compelling for its realistic story of workplace and personal challenges.

 Libraries seeking clean romances for readers that come infused with psychological insights and depth will find Roller Coaster Romance easy to recommend. It’s highly appealing to genre leisure readers looking for realistic scenarios and thought-provoking conundrums that spark not only relationship-building, but love.

Roller Coaster Romance

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Russian Nonsensical
Edward D. Webster
Dream House Press
978-0-9970320-7-9
$24.95 Hardcover/$14.95 Paperback/$4.99 eBook
Website: www.edwardwebster.com
Ordering: https://www.amazon.com/Russian-Nonsensical-Edward-D-Webster/dp/0997032073

 Fans of satirical fiction and social and political thrillers delivered with a humorous edge may well recall the broad cast of characters and conundrums in American Nonsensical. Now Russian Nonsensical arrives to continue the worldly romp of Edward D. Webster’s signature whimsy, which delivers its first powerful punch in its opening lines:

 Clem Dudas learned the hard way that any of God’s glorious days can explode into a shit storm.

 The good pastor holds many faces: a snake-wielding church leader, an astute businessman, and a scammer whose Russian ties represent trouble and big money.

 Bud employs a company called Russian Brides Unlimited to arrange to meet Russian women. Perhaps he’s the perfect man to investigate the sudden disappearance of Pastor Clem’s wife and his two favorite snakes (it’s hard to tell which he values more).

 A rollicking mystery and romp evolves which stomps through international waters and Russian romance as investigative efforts prove challenging and revealing on more than one level for both Bud and Clem.

 In addition to its quirkiness, and mystery, the book brings up serious issues involving the nature of truth in a society galloping toward a future shaped and threatened by Artificial Intelligence. Sveti and Bud have serious discussions about American and Russian deceptions, and AI is a big part of Clem’s tool bag.

 Prior fans will welcome Bud’s return and the familiar feel of a zany series of encounters which demand from him extraordinary responses to both love and unfolding political struggles. All are iced with a taste of mystery and intrigue to keep readers alert and engaged as they navigate a series of unexpected twists and turns.

 Throughout the story, Webster cultivates a breezy and compelling series of events that brings characters and colorful, unexpected personalities and scenarios to life:

 The plain cardboard box divulged no secrets. It contained an inner carton with a ghoulish picture and the words: Realistic Human Skeleton, Female. Sitting on his bed with the skeleton staring at him from the open box and granny’s real bones close beside, Bud visualized a deep conversation between cadavers. They had to be confused, but all would become clear if Bud’s crazy-crap idea succeeded.

 Amidst the real backdrop of Russia’s war in Ukraine and a woman’s involvement in protests in a nightmare nation, Russian Nonsensical demonstrates the same attention to edgy humor and ironic situations (as well as romance) as Webster’s previous American Nonsensical.

 Even more importantly, the political subterfuge and commentary winds so neatly into the evolving characters’ special interests that even readers with relatively little background in Russian politics or affairs, much less Webster’s prior story, will find plenty of guideposts for easy enjoyment.

 Webster’s character development is built as much upon the intersection of Russian and American cultures as it is on individuals whose differing objectives meet and clash. Dialogue emphasizes these cultural connections:

 “Snakes, we have snakes in Russia (Roos ee a) also. When I little girl, my parents have dacha-house in country. We go two week in summer. Father pay me two ruble, every snake I kill. Three ruble for poison snake. Big spider, one ruble.”

“Rattlesnakes?” Bud asked.
“What is rattle snake?”

“The kind that makes a noise like this to warn you before he strikes.” He tried to make a rattle by clucking his tongue several times fast.

She laughed. “Snakes in Russia not warn you. Politicians same way. I can not say which politicians on telephone.”

She didn’t have to say. She hated Putin.

 
The result is another frolic through romance, nonsensical situations, and evolving relationships which will immerse newcomers and prior fans in the exploits and wonder of lives joined in adversity and sleuthing dilemmas.

 Libraries and readers seeking a story that doesn’t neatly fit into the boxes of mystery, satire, or political thriller, but deftly marries all three into a novel and compellingly fun read, will find Russian Nonsensical’s atmosphere translates to witty and reflective reading.

Russian Nonsensical

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Serpent Boy
Suleimane Camara
Soncata Press LLC
979-8-9898574-5-6         $29.95
www.soncatapress.com

 Readers of African literature and culture who enjoy novels steeped in African communities and social issues will relish Serpent Boy. It’s a novel about Kamboda, a boy with physical disabilities, whose condition is considered to hold spiritual significance. When he vanishes, his cousin Maladho N’Gayou becomes obsessed with uncovering the boy’s whereabouts, inadvertently stumbling upon hidden truths, shaking long-held traditions, and revealing deadly social and political practices that simmer under the village’s surface. These, he feels compelled to confront.

 In so doing, Maladho introduces readers to different facets of not just African culture, but a special form of group psychology that condones abhorrent and cruel practices under the name of social propriety and acceptance.

 From violence against women and the almost supernatural powers equated to Kamboda’s presence in the village to a sense of immediacy cultivated by vivid descriptions,   Suleimane Camara’s “you are here” feel may challenge some sensitive readers with its vivid descriptions of violence and group dynamics:

 “Bakar, this isn’t the man we know you to be,” one villager said sternly, stepping forward to mediate. Karamoko sat nearby, calmly smoking his pipe, seemingly indifferent to the turmoil unfolding around him. Tombom, scared but strong, watched as her community came together to help her. Even though things were chaotic, she felt safe with the community’s help. She lay on the floor, her tears flowing uncontrollably as the pain and shock overwhelmed her.

 From questions of insanity, charms, and protection to the involvement of those outside this African community, the events created by Kamboda’s birth and disappearance swell into a revolution sparked by relentless probes of old traditions and new thinking processes.

 Readers will enjoy the moments of relief that offer atmospheric descriptions, subtly connecting bigger-picture human experiences and events in a philosophical and suggestive manner:

 When he had finished relieving himself, Maladho spotted a bird struggling on the ground. The bird couldn’t fly. He ran to help it. He gently tried to assist, following its every attempt to take off. But the bird kept falling. He followed the bird, but he didn’t realize he had already gone so far into the bush. When the bird finally managed to fly away, Maladho chuckled, “Sly little thing.”

 These and ongoing psychological, social, and political revelations contribute to this vivid story. It’s a journey undertaken because of love and family connection which blossoms into deeper-level thinking about traditions, cruelty, and the changing nature of human interactions and acceptable and unacceptable viewpoints.

 Libraries interested in adding more contemporary African fiction to their collections, given prior patron enthusiasm for authors such as Ben Okri and Chinua Achebe, will find Suleimane Camara’s Serpent Boy of high value, holding literary acuity alongside important contrasts in moral, ethical, and social thinking. Its analysis of the wellsprings of compassion and love is invaluable to the process of connecting the personal to the political.

Serpent Boy

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Shanghai'd
Curtis Stephen Burdick
Gene Freak Publishing
979-8873860265             $9.99 Paperback/$.99 ebook
https://www.amazon.com/SHANGHAID-Curtis-Stephen-Burdick/dp/B0DMFD9TSY

 Shanghai'd blends history with action-packed fictional adventure in a novel that focuses on the experiences of Boston-born Joshua Cabot. Here is an educated young man enticed to travel to San Francisco for a job that promises to land him the fortune needed to open his own science lab, his ultimate goal.

 When a personal tragedy leads Joshua to drink, he’s abducted from a San Francisco saloon and conscripted into service on a merchant ship sailing for China.

 The story’s subtitle, “The Adventures Begin,” portends that this is an introductory book in a series—but that’s not to say that Shanghai'd reads as though it’s been artificially divided to produce multiple books.

 All the action, adventure, and tension is well-developed, creating a stand-alone story steeped in nautical, psychological, and historical experiences as Joshua navigates a very different outcome than he’d anticipated from his choices, and a situation which leads him to travel the world.

 Curtis Stephen Burdick develops a powerful “you are here” feel to the story:

 Once beyond the Gulf Stream, one hundred miles southeast of the coast, the fourth mast was fully employed, as were the jibs off the bowsprit. Soon after, having encountered favorable winds, the clipper was under full sail, and the Sea Squall soon reached the unheard-of speed of seventeen knots in the spring of 1848–twenty miles per hour–the fastest speed ever recorded by a commercial sailing vessel. Its overall average speed would be less, and its actual distance traveled would vary based on the direction and velocity of the prevailing winds, but the days at sea that were saved by the clippers were truly significant. It quickly allowed the ship owners involved to charge ever-increasing premium passenger fares and freight rates that allowed them to recover their investments in record time, especially once news of the discovery of gold in California exploded throughout the U.S. and, immediately after, around the world.

 This example shows that reader need not arrive with prior historical knowledge about the 1800s in order to absorb its social and political nuances. Burdick provides all the details necessary to understand Joshua’s perceptions, decisions, and their impact.

 This gives a compellingly rich flavor to developing events, which reach out to educate and embrace readers in many different ways.

 As Joshua steps into his new world and duties, readers follow the daily operations of ships making long-distance journeys from America to Asia. This also imparts a realistic, absorbing countenance to nautical experiences of the times, as well as offering cross-cultural perspectives between white Americans and residents of other countries.

 Burdick’s attention to detail and the depth with which he explores and presents Joshua’s world results in an especially inviting saga that will both entertain and enrich readers of lively fiction.

 Libraries seeking a novel that operates in many different ways—as a swashbuckling adventure, a story of kidnapping and revised directions, a historical work packed with insights about the times, and a rollicking, action-packed saga—will welcome the opportunity to add Shanghai'd to their shelves.

Shanghai'd

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Shep and the King of Hearts
Stacy J. Ladyman
Redemption Press
979-8-218-45355-8         $14.49    
Website: www.stacyladyman.com
Ordering: https://a.co/d/b0E6dyC

 Shep and the King of Hearts is a novel of faith, love, and forgiveness. It opens with author Stacy J. Ladyman’s personal description of how her father's gambling addiction impacted her as she began writing and researching for this novel:

 A few weeks prior, an advertising flyer for a presentation entitled “Gambling: The Hidden Addiction,” sponsored by the Council on Compulsive Gambling of New Jersey, caught
my attention. A picture of poker cards and chips bordered the flyer. I arrived at the stone church with red doors and walked to the entrance under powdery white flakes. Upon entering, I did not immediately see anyone, but I heard Christmas hymns softly playing. I followed the music to the beautiful sanctuary. Heavy wooden trusses formed the
vaulted ceiling. Christmas decorations adorned the altar. I listened to the recorded music for a moment. The soothing melodies calmed my fears. Fears of coming here in the first place. Fears of listening to a talk about the very thing that had changed my life and severed a crucial relationship for me some forty years earlier. Why was I here? Why had I come? As strong as the urge to come here for this talk was, there was now an even stronger urge to get up and walk out.

 Ladyman’s father’s gambling addiction heavily impacted the family, resulting in patterns of response and recovery, and that turbulence is woven into the fabric of this novel. Thus, the fictional depiction is based not just on her father’s experience, also on the shared conundrums many gamblers and their families face over confronting their addiction.

 Relatively few novels cover gambling addiction, in comparison to other forms of addiction, already making Shep and the King of Hearts notable. Ultimately, it’s not just a story of struggling with destructive urges and behavior patterns, but a tale of love.

 Readers who embrace Ladyman’s creation and her characters’ journeys will find, here, a vivid depiction of not just Jim’s gambling life, but the loving family that turns to God for help in bringing him back home:

 Grandmother said, “Before I knelt, I felt my hands. They seemed so rough and dry, I reached for my lotion and rubbed some on. My hands felt better. Then I opened my Bible and found these words from Jeremiah 32:27 ‘Is anything too hard for me?’ I felt like God was saying to me, ‘Don’t worry. Nothing is too hard for me. I can heal hearts and hands.’ I know God can find Jim and bring him home to us.”

 Spiritual insights, applied Christian beliefs and attitudes, and family psychology thus entwine in an account filled with the back-and-forth of failure, success, and healing that incorporates a God-centric focus into the family’s relationships, whether they lie between each other or with God.

 As preacher Shep becomes immersed in this milieu (and Jim’s downfall), readers receive important insights about all manner of relationships. These juxtapose ranching life and challenges with the equally powerful task of confronting matters of heart and soul.

 Is isolation the key to resolving addictive drives? Can Shep bring healing and comfort not only to Jim, but to Chris as well? Ladyman embeds these philosophical and spiritual quandaries and queries with the psychology of interpersonal relationships to draw Christian readers into spiritual inquiries that are both important and unexpected:

 Chris followed Shep over some stones in a small stream. She took his hand as he helped steady her. “I just wanted a father.”
“You have one.”
“I know, but …”
“You have a heavenly one that loves you and sees how much you’ve been hurting. God wants to heal the hurt in your heart. He really does.”

 Although Shep hunts for both Jim and resolutions, he also finds himself on a path to examining the faith which has influenced not only his direction, but Jim’s choices and viewpoint. Along the way, he gains knowledge of both himself and Jim in a manner that ultimately leads both to new revelations and choices about forgiveness.

 Any reader who feels they have somehow lost their way will find plenty of pointed insights perfect for individual contemplation and Christian book club discussion groups alike.

 Libraries interested in Christian-rooted stories of faith, gambling addiction, recovery, and revelation will find all these facets (and more) in the powerful novel Shep and the King of Hearts.

Shep and the King of Hearts

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A Stone’s Throw
Alida Winternheimer
Wild Woman Typing
978-0997871418             $16.99 Paperback/$5.99 eBook
Website: https://alidawinternheimer.com/a-stones-throw
Ordering: https://amzn.to/4eeg8Ij

 A Stone’s Throw is a novel steeped in magical realism and contrasts. It juxtaposes the lives of two women—Minneapolis artist Simona Casale, who discovers she is pregnant on the cusp of her greatest artistic coup to date; and childless Gemma Ledbetter, whose heart aches to become a mother.

 They live worlds apart, but when a mysterious woman in a painting steps forth to connect their disparate lives, magic blossoms in an unusual manner that gives each new hope, wisdom, and insights into a realm of women that neither knew existed.

 Simona’s embryo is becoming a person as, perhaps ironically, she’s in the process of reinventing her own life, her art, and the idea of motherhood, which feels like a complication to her life.

 Gemma finds a confidante and lover in Nicolai and discovers nuances of sexuality and love that she hadn’t experienced before with Peter, but grief over miscarriages and lost opportunities have cast a shadow over her relationships. With her husband out of town so much, who is she accountable to? Is it wrong for her to find love in a friendship that assuages some of the pain of her losses?

 Even as Simona converses with her artistic muses and considers their wisdom and surprising insights, Gemma is poised to transform her life in an unexpected way.

 Alida Winternheimer dovetails their two lives in a manner that slowly draws together the rich complexity of these worlds, employing the magical, artistic forces that connect them with a creative focus, showing how each woman is creating and contributing to life in a meaningful manner.

 Their ultimately collaborative work portends unusual transformations for each woman:

 …the plaque that would go on the side wall nearby would explain that the central figure could equally be the artist’s mother carrying the artist, or the artist carrying her daughter, making it a mysterious double, or even triple, portrait. It was fitting for a piece titled Womankind, that celebrates the ultimate creative act: life itself.

 Libraries and book clubs seeking women’s writings that review friendships, the impact of children and grief on life trajectories and choices, and the possibilities of a bit of magic that pushes new transformations in two women’s lives will find A Stone’s Throw holds much opportunity for discussion.

 Beautifully rendered and astute in its contrasts and insights, A Stone’s Throw is a top pick for readers interested in art, motherhood, and relationships both connected to and challenged by circumstance, trauma, and recovery.

A Stone’s Throw

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Until It Was Gone
David B. Seaburn
Black Rose Writing
978-1685135225             $21.95 Paperback/$5.99 eBook
Website: www.davidbseaburn.com
Ordering: https://www.amazon.com/Until-Was-Gone-Contemporary-Resilience/dp/1685135226/

 Until It Was Gone: A Contemporary Family Novel of Resilience and Hope opens with a fortieth anniversary celebration between Laney and Franklin. Decades ago, a whirlwind courtship led to their marriage. Now new mandates from the COVID outbreak have created an ongoing war between them … one that Franklin can’t win. A forty-year anniversary seems the perfect moment to leave the relationship. Or so thinks Laney.

 Laney’s departure on a road trip to locate her estranged daughter and yet-unseen granddaughter may conclude her relationship, but it almost seems like Franklin’s life will end, too, when he then contracts COVID. Struggling with these blows and the effects of long COVID, Franklin embarks on his own assessment of his life and dubious future.

 As subplots evolve over the divided family’s struggles with illness, revised abortion protocols, and new directions, David B. Seaburn brings readers into a journey in which this family is buffeted by the winds of change, dancing in the winds of American transformation like a mobile.

 It was a good life … until it was gone. What’s next on the agenda?

 Seaburn creates a thoroughly engrossing contemporary story of a family in turmoil not only because of COVID and relationship changes, but because of social flux.

 Perspectives shift, from pregnant granddaughter Maggie to mother Laney’s journey and father Franklin’s realization that his life isn’t as stable as he once thought. Laney similarly makes discoveries about her past and family connections:

 “But you don’t know her,” said Maggie.
 “How’s that?”

 “You don’t know her. What she’s like, I mean.”

“I don’t need to know her, I love her.”

“If you love her so much, why’d she run away from you.”

 These psychological revelations evolve a story that proves a revealing, thought-provoking read. It’s perfect not just for individual pursuit, but for book clubs and reading groups interested in the intersection between family growth and social change.

 Libraries that choose Until It Was Gone for their collections will want to highly recommend it to readers interested in intriguing fictional pursuits of family heritage, truths, and adaptation processes.

Until It Was Gone

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Wordsworth in Bogotá
Scott E. Sundby
Black Rose Writing
978-1-68513-550-8         $21.95
Website: scottsundby.com 
Ordering: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1685135501?peakEvent=1&dealEvent=0

 Wordsworth in Bogotá is a novel that opens with Diego Velasquez’s collapsing financial cocaine-driven empire. The disintegration stymies his decisions about his future, injecting his psyche with something uncommon to his proactive, controlling impulses—self-doubt.

 9/11 changed everything, heavily impacting efforts which provided Diego with customers and wealth. The days of Diego’s being able to bribe American officials to help smooth his operations are gone, thanks to the national patriotic fervor that 9/11 sparked. His receding wealth, in turn, leads to the departure of his girlfriend and impacts his wife, who just might also abandon ship.

 Feeling his carefully-constructed, wealth-laden world falling like a house of cards, Diego then finds his relationship with son Esteban Adam Smith Velasquez also under the gun. When they embark on a journey that changes everything (including their relationship), special interests emerge over newfound attractions and shared interests:

 Part of him wanted to keep reading but he knew he needed to think through tomorrow’s conversation with Esteban. Most of the pieces were now in place and he experienced the familiar mix of anticipation and anxiety of launching a plan and watching it unfold. He had always been surprised how events took on a life of their own once the greatest intangible of all – human nature -- came into play.

 The perspectives shift between Diego and Esteban. While chapter headings would have provided quicker understanding of these shifts, it’s fairly evident where the attitudes and observations are coming from by the first paragraph of each new chapter.

 Esteban’s homecoming in Bogotá and his changing relationship with his father introduce intrigue and psychological growth into this action-packed story of cartels, life transformations, and revelations:

 Diego strode over to Esteban and for the first time that he could recall in his adult life gave him a hug. Granted, it was a tentative hug, not one of those warm all-encompassing embraces featured in sappy commercials as families gather to celebrate the holidays, but first times are almost always a bit awkward.

 Agents, customs officers, DEA and ex-military man Bronson McArthur Attles, educator and traveler Percy, and other lives are introduced. These resonate with revised goals and betrayal from agencies and groups designed to support them. Scott E. Sundby crafts a story which defies pat categorization, at once operating as a tale of literary and familial discovery, an account of illicit deals gone awry, and a probe of innocence and treachery.

 Sundby’s contrasts between the cultures and atmosphere of America versus South America are finely woven into the plot, lending a ‘you are here’ aura to unfolding events. Meanwhile, a host of characters fine-tune their relationships and interactions via precise literary and psychological undercurrents that run powerfully through the plot like a river.

 Libraries seeking stories of suspense, intrigue, shifting relationships, and discovery will find Wordsworth in Bogotá an excellent addition to their collections. Patrons that harbor a special attraction to stories of drugs, discovery, and contrasting social issues and involvements will find Wordsworth in Bogotá hard to put down.

Wordsworth in Bogotá

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Reviewer's Choice


Asteroid 6 and Other Tales of Cosmic Horror
R. David Fulcher
Gravelight Press/Current Words Publishing LLC
978-1-957224-06-0         $11.99
www.gravelightpress.com

 Asteroid 6 and Other Tales of Cosmic Horror is a companion collection to R. David Fulcher’s The Pumpkin King and Other Tales of Terror. Its further explorations of horror fiction will delight both newcomers to Fulcher’s writing and prior fans of his special brand of intrigue and horror.

 An introductory poem acknowledges the influence of H.P. Lovecraft before the collection presents its title story, “Asteroid Six.” Here, Jones is in space on asteroid-clearing duty. It’s a dangerous job, at best—especially when one asteroid is the size of a small planet.

 Impact is eminent. So is the real impact of this mission and story, because Jones unexpectedly receives a direct transmission from the asteroid that forces him to investigate a strange world of crashed spaceships and alien runes.  Even more challenging is the plea of Old Ones to release them from their imprisonment. But, to what purpose?

 Readers will relish the fast-paced action, encounters, and dangerous situations which materialize in unexpected ways.

 A fine contrast emerges between this extraterrestrial horror and the down-home atmosphere of “The Bogeyman, Part II,” in which a little boy’s night terror dovetails horror dreams with the reality of what actually resides in his closet.

 Move away from planets and home to “The Land Spider,” in which a supernatural sinkhole and the Indian legend of a great spider that walks the New Mexican mesa draws an investigator into the strangest encounter of his life.

 Each story is succinct, hard-hitting, and filled with unexpected twists that will delight even seasoned horror readers well used to the devices of Lovecraft and other modern horror writers.

 Each posits situations which are diverse, challenging, and alluring, featuring investigator involvements that draw readers into the heart of true horror.

 Asteroid 6 and Other Tales of Cosmic Horror is not only just as powerful as Fulcher’s The Pumpkin King and Other Tales of Terror, but continues to inflate the scenarios and definitions of horror and terror in a way that will delight libraries and readers seeking novel, creative approaches to expanding and exploring the genre’s boundaries.

 Asteroid 6 and Other Tales of Cosmic Horror should be in any definitive modern horror collection—especially libraries seeking literary works that are thoroughly compelling.

Asteroid 6 and Other Tales of Cosmic Horror

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Backyard Politics
Dr. Craig B. Wiener
Torchflame Books/Top Reads Publishing LLC
978-1-61153-597-6         $19.95
www.torchflamebooks.com

 Backyard Politics: A Psychological Understanding of Today’s Social and Political Divide appears in its second edition to update Dr. Craig B. Wiener’s approach from parenting techniques to a broader spectrum of participants in modern democratic and social processes. In so doing, he creates a formula of new approaches to dialogues that hopefully will help heal and change a divided America.

If this feels like a lofty ambition for any author … it is. Ideologies and logic receive close inspection as Wiener tackles tough subjects ranging from problems of inequality and immigration to health care, racism and affirmative action, gender disparities and women’s issues, and family struggle.

 Each of these topics is analyzed with an attention to identifying the pivot points that divide people, communities, and the nation as a whole. Many surprising thoughts are delivered along the way, supported by studies and research:

 The American Dream is now more out of reach for struggling minority groups due to the explosion of single-parent families. However, instead of malicious racism causing the problem, it occurs in relation to “two-parent privileges” and the role that helping policies contributed to family breakup (Rowe, 2020). According to Thomas Sowell, and consistent with this view, even in the 1980s, two-parent Black households were “out-earning” two-parent White households (BasicEconomics, 2012).

 Wiener’s psychological probes embrace the reasons behind perceptions, reactions, choices, and behaviors that may initially seem irrational, but have their roots in various forms of family and social history. Understanding this history and these precedents is a key part of healing admonitions and understanding designed to not just rationalize behaviors, but survey new approaches to typical division points in all kinds of social and personal issues.

 From definitions of fairness and control efforts to how to build and understand a new social order, Wiener’s vast topics and insights will prove especially valuable to book clubs and readers interested in building foundations of personal and political change.

 Libraries that choose Backyard Politics for its promise of enlightenment and action will find that its psychological insights are only one piece of solving the puzzle of a divided society. The other lies in observations that support positive directions and change on all sides.

Backyard Politics

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Being on the Wing
Angela M. Rosenberg
Inside Out Enneagram, Inc. 
978-1-7366767-3-8                
$18.99 paperback; $24.99 hardcover; $9.99 ebook
http://www.insideoutenneagram.com/

 Book Two in the Enneagram in Nature series, Being on the Wing: Feathered Reflections of the Enneagram Subtypes, will appeal to readers who love birds, philosophy, and Enneagram typology. While the latter may seem a strange approach to the biology and appreciation of birds, Angela M. Rosenberg here produces a heady experience that defies pat categorization or psychological perspective as it navigates the world of birds in a novel manner.

 Lovely color illustrations by Ng Hui Jing enhance the appreciation experience, adding rich embellishments as Rosenberg applies Enneagram concepts to exploring different birder types, from supportive and accomplished birders to conscientious or peaceful birders.

 Each category receives thought-provoking analysis and inspection, which leads readers to consider the varied acts of birding itself. One example comes from the aforementioned Conscientious Birder overview:

 The Type 1 focuses her binoculars on improvement and is tireless in her quest to perfect herself as well as others. She is conscientious in all of her endeavors, with the highest standards in mind. Her nesting boxes, strategically placed, will meet size and entry requirements for her bird community. Her actual and metaphysical lens is trained toward conservation efforts to preserve increasingly scarce natural resources and prevent the extinction of bird species. If you notice a bird burning the midnight candle to refurbish her nest—I’d bet on a Type 1.

Consider the cardinal: If barren trees are the cold bones of winter, the startling red cardinal represents the perfect, warm, beating heart.

 Readers involved in the birding community likely know examples of all these types, but what sets Rosenberg’s approach apart from the typical book on birds and the art of birding is its psychological associations between personalities and birding choices, which marry philosophical with psychological insights to cement a better understanding of bird and birder:

 To an extroverted Type 2, like me, the owl sets a high branch for how I could aspire to navigate the world. I read somewhere that given the owl’s unassuming presence and noiseless flight, they point out the value of not standing out, but fitting in to the world. Quite the exception to the general rule of the current social media notice-me culture. There’s great wisdom to be had in exploring the art of camouflage, and much to learn from the unobtrusive owl and the discerning Type 5.

 Rosenberg also inserts her own personality and motivations into this exploration, which creates many insights from a personal vantage point that lends to bigger-picture thinking about empowerment, choice, intuition, and other life lessons.

 Employing archetypal descriptors, Rosenberg creates an inviting, thought-provoking discourse that explores and connects survival traits, observational style and choice, and bird assignation alike.

 Readers may thus come to Being on the Wing with a prior affection for or familiarity with either birds or Enneagrams, but will be surprised (and delighted) by the bigger-picture thinking that weaves archetypes of personality into a model that departs from the traditional nine personality types of the Enneagram Institute.

 Widely inviting and uplifting, Being on the Wing is a top recommendation for not just libraries, but discussion groups ranging from book clubs to birders and psychology gatherings who will be interested in Rosenberg’s lively, unique connection between personalities, birds, and life approaches.

Being on the Wing

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Being with the Body in Depth Psychology
Barbara Holifield
Routledge
978-1032286082    
$160.00 Hardcover/$39.95 Paperback/$35.99 eBook
Website: www.BarbaraHolifield.com
Ordering: https://www.routledge.com/Being-with-the-Body-in-Depth-Psychology-Development-Trauma-and-Transformation-in-the-Unspoken-Realm/Holifield/p/book/9781032286082

 Being with the Body in Depth Psychology: Development, Trauma, and Transformation in the Unspoken Realm blends Jungian psychology with Relational Psychoanalysis. It is highly recommended for college-level libraries seeking a blend of well-researched neuroscience, developmental theory, and psychoanalysis.

 Barbara Holifield surveys mind/body connections and what happens when these connections are broken or dysfunctional. She considers the definition and nature of depth psychology, applying its principles to trauma experiences and therapeutic approaches while juxtaposing case history vignettes with bigger-picture perspectives on healing and recovery.

 Surveys of experiential, pre-verbal systems move beyond the usual choice of talking about the body to consider how body and mind perceive and absorb experiences both separately and together. This somatic approach allows readers to draw important connections between body awareness development and working wounded and disassociated parts of the self to experience a fuller sense of self separate from body identity.

 Readers who anticipate that Being with the Body in Depth Psychology will be a work of scholarly analytical study should be advised that Holifield’s work ideally will serve as a dynamic, interactive model for transformation. It includes a toolkit of approaches, from meditative instruction to help identify the “vibratory aliveness of your body” to tips on integrating linguistic and nonverbal modifications into the therapeutic model to encourage connection and transformative realizations:

 Words can be spoken, then reworked and respoken, deepening, furthering, and elaborating on experience. In this way, language does not recapture what has just occurred but furthers it, carrying experience forward, elaborating affect, meaning, and aesthetic appreciation. A deeper understanding becomes possible. Relational sharing allows one to unfold meanings that might not have been conscious otherwise. Cultural shapings can become more explicit (apparent). This is language at its ideal, but all too frequently, this is different from what unfolds. Words function to signify and categorize. The speed of language and our pace of life rarely allow the nuances of the actual lived moment to be brought into words. Even in the psychotherapeutic encounter, where the intent is to make room and give time for lived experience to be unpacked, much is lost in the service of understanding and the quest for meaning.

 Holifield’s blend of insight, philosophy, psychotherapeutic process, and contemplative practices allows for flexibility. This encourages readers versed in either science or contemplative movement or meditation practices to adapt research-oriented mindsets to draw new conclusions and insights from the therapy process.

 The depth psychotherapeutic process assembles so many seemingly disparate insights under one cover that readers may at first find the expansive applications and themes to be daunting. Holifield’s ability to weave these elements into a powerful overview of clinical and analytical applications to further the goal of in-depth healing creates an opportunity for interactive moments between author, subject, and real-world applications that moves Being with the Body in Depth Psychology from the realms of scholarship into the clinician’s office.

 College-level students of psychology as well as practicing psychotherapists and clinicians interested in connecting the dots to solidify the bodily basis of experience in their clinical practices will find Being with the Body in Depth Psychology well-researched and footnoted. It’s specific in its connections between theory and the therapeutic process, which is important for anyone working with trauma victims, who are interested in a more integrative approach than most singular focuses offer.

 Libraries seeking a volume that melds practical, real-world healing techniques with scientific inquiry and results will find Being with the Body in Depth Psychology a fine addition, highly recommendable to practicing clinicians working in all types of psychological settings.

Being with the Body in Depth Psychology

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Below
Alaric Cabiling
Independently Published
978-969-48-9201-6         $15.99 Paperback/$3.99 eBook
https://www.amazon.com/Below-Alaric-Cabiling/dp/9694892015

 Below entices horror readers with a special brand of intrigue. It depicts a zombie pandemic that hits modern society, adding realistic elements of street crime, drugs, and illegal activities to set the new threat of apocalypse within a bigger picture of social disintegration and modern unrest.

 The story opens in 2022 Manila, site of the first zombie apocalypse. Here, one of the poorest districts in the city erupts in flames, forcing the zombies (largely drug addicts, as well as those who have been bitten) from their refuges.

 Alaric Cabiling’s use of the first person viewpoint places the narrator’s readers smack in the middle of this environment, offering a bird’s-eye view of unfolding events as well as a personal connection to the ghetto life that birthed them:

 After infected cases started increasing in the shanties where we lived, they spread like wildfire. Literally. Fires burned down homes. Bodies fell into the stagnant tarn. The polluted bay filled with corpses. It was Armageddon.

 The narrator who observes all this was a child when it all began. His early survival instincts have placed him in the rare position of being able to document the addiction and struggle which existed long before zombies struck the Philippines:

 Life in Tondo before the zombie apocalypse was hard enough. You were a slave to the grind, the worst way how—scavenging for recyclable wastes, going knee-deep in refuse.

 Cabiling’s ability to cultivate both lines of insight within the context of a gripping horror story of how an already-malignant society faces its deadliest invasion creates food for thought, revealing not just survival tactics, but the cost of maintaining civilization on the backs of so much suffering.

 Readers well versed in the horror genre will find this approach stands out from the crowd in many unexpected ways. Cabiling’s approach moves the plot from a survivor’s story to an examination of how zombies and life-challenging events reflect the greater divide between rich and poor and different strata of life in the Philippines.

 As the scenario moves to the U.S. and its vastly different communities, readers receive changing atmospheres that emphasize not only the differences between first and third world nations in how they live and respond to disaster, but in survival possibilities and threats which emerge from the surface of normalcy. Cabiling’s attention to detail lends a “you are here” feel to evolving situations that move from dramatic to staid, much as the rhythms of daily living:

 We drove down the freeway at a relatively slow speed. Cars and trucks hurtled by. The officer asked me if I wanted the windows down. “Cool day today. Want to feel the breeze?” he asked. I was glad he was laid back. “Sure,” I said, like an American teenager. He rolled down my window with the touch of a button, and cool wind rushed though my hair. It felt like Baguio or Tagaytay in the Philippines, towns with cooler climate because they were way above sea level.

 The tension of news media reporting as the world gets on board with what has begun in the Philippines is incorporated into the overall story. This produces a realistic sequence of events that will prove especially haunting in post-COVID years as the zombie horror spreads around the world:

 News reporters predicted an outbreak in the United States much worse than the bubonic plague and coronavirus pandemics from years past. Or worse than the zombie pandemic in Asia. Worse than what I experienced in the Philippines.

 The result is a powerful apocalyptic zombie story that moves well away from any hint of formulaic writing, immersing its readers in scenarios that are startling, socially revealing, filled with exquisite tension, and hard to predict.

 Libraries seeing patron interest in zombie apocalypse stories will especially appreciate Below’s literary depth, attention to detail, and perfect contrasts between psychological, social, and action-packed tension. Events evolve with unexpected, horror-packed twists and turns to delight the mind of even the most seasoned horror reader. Below will also attract many outside the horror world who are in search of an engaging, hard-to-put-down, frighteningly realistic story of social and medical ailments that prove equally difficult to cure.

Below

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Big Lake Troubles
Jeffrey D. Boldt
Atmosphere Press
979-8-89132-459-6         $8.99 eBook
www.atmospherepress.com

 Big Lake Troubles is a novel of social, political, and legal trouble, delivered in the form of an eco-thriller that continues the saga begun in Blue Lake. No prior familiarity with the background is required, however, in order for newcomers to find Big Lake Troubles a thought-provoking story. Power and politics in a coal shipping endeavor tests the legal prowess of former judge Jason Erickson.

 A prologue sets the story in La Crosse, Wisconsin, where Jason has returned to his father’s gravesite on the anniversary of his death. Coal is at the heart of these memories and also, apparently, his legal future as he again becomes embroiled in the power plays and manipulations of special interests over shipping and production methods which are create a big impact on the environment.

 Jeffrey D. Boldt presents these dilemmas and Jason’s controversies and contemplations early in the story. This sets the stage for the action surrounding vying special interests:

 The fate of the world was at stake. But was he up to the challenge? Had Tara’s death killed some part of him too? The part that gave two figs—that was willing to do more than post pictures on Instagram?

 As Jason struggles to continue healing from losing Tara and considers his own ethical and moral prowess in the face of unrelenting forces, a host of characters enter his world, adding their own interests and influences to his choices and confrontations.

 These create excellent tension and unexpected developments in the plot as Jason navigates mysteries, legal challenges, and matters of the heart. All these threads lend depth and interest to his character, as well as to the bigger picture of planetary environmental impact and individual responsibility in combating or acquiescing to forces interested in profit over preservation.

 From his involvement with girlfriend Grace Clarkson to his choice of spending the winter in California over helping Grace fight the coal industry in Lake Superior City court, Jason faces many conflicting conundrums that pull him, emotionally and ethically, in too many directions. The contrast between California and Wisconsin milieus are nicely presented.

 Readers will especially appreciate how these forces play out on personal and professional levels to test Jason in different ways. These introduce thought-provoking scenarios that book clubs will want to discuss and debate as the thriller steeps its readers in unexpected outcomes.

 Libraries that pick Big Lake Troubles for its multifaceted, thought-provoking survey of how new lives are tailored on the experiences and choices of old patterns will find it easy to recommend this book to thriller, ecological fiction, and legal issues readers. Its strong insights on environmental management choices, impact, and hard questions that demand new answers gives it an allure that will translate to Big Lake Troubles’s appeal to a wide audience.

Big Lake Troubles

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Bringing Sunshine Back to My Mind
Momoko Uno
Independently Published
‎979-8322627654            
$27.99 Hardcover/$21.99 Paperback/$9.99 eBook
https://www.amazon.com/Bringing-Sunshine-back-Mind-overcoming/dp/B0D1J6R7PZ

 Bringing Sunshine Back to My Mind: A Story About Overcoming Trauma & Finding Wholeness presents middle-aged mother Sachi Kubo-Sanchez, who leaves her family and conservative small-town lifestyle for the big city of New York and its promise of excitement and refuge.

 Sachi’s search for “a vibrant life” motivates her to press forward in her efforts to rise above the safe but mundane life she’s crafted for herself, but the underlying cause of her search for peace lies in unresolved trauma and guilt, and she can’t evolve something new on the foundations of what is left unsaid.

 From this, the first note is that sensitive readers struggling with themes of trauma and sexual assault may find Sachi’s progression difficult reading. Depending on where readers are in their own recovery process, however, it may prove enlightening as the stepping stones of building acknowledgement and resilience are illustrated.

 Sachi’s probe into how relationships can be successful and healthy income forays into the unexpected, even in such simple matters as how underwear choices contribute to or quash romance. More doses of humor arrive with her newfound considerations of all the ingredients that go into building attraction:

 Sachi, no more Fruit of the Doom granny panties!

 As she changes her focus from short-term to long-term relationship possibilities and virtually revises her entire approach to life, Sachi undergoes a transformation that is both enlightening and thought-provoking. She faces truths about a myriad of subjects she never confronted before, from her ability to judge character to family dynamics, all the while weaving these revelations into revised choices that impact her perception of the past and her objectives for a better future.

 These insights lend positivity to a story that might otherwise prove challenging and difficult, creating uplifting moments of discovery that nicely detail the process of psychological healing, repression and acceptance, and formulating revised thought processes that ultimately drive people in new directions.

 Readers with a special interest in psychologically rich stories of trauma, recovery, and growth will find Bringing Sunshine Back to My Mind as surprisingly uplifting as it is serious about its probe of a woman whose life revolves around finding new light in old darknesses.

 Libraries that choose Bringing Sunshine Back to My Mind will also want to recommend it (with a caution about its theme of trauma and abuse) to book clubs and women’s issues groups. Its hard-hitting, revealing insights provide plenty of food for thought and discussion fodder for topics ranging from recovery from past abuse and the types of safe choices which can thwart living a full life to formulating better alternatives.

Bringing Sunshine Back to My Mind

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Delaware from Freeways to E-Ways
Dave Tabler
Independently Published
979-8-9870006-6-3
$42.00 Hardcover/$30.00 Paperback/$9.99 eBook       
Website: www.davetabler.com
Ordering: https://www.amazon.com/Delaware-Freeways-Ways-History-Overview-ebook/dp/B0D8YRJJPT

 Delaware from Freeways to E-Ways: First State; Solid State is an overview of Delaware history that surveys the First State’s colorful modern history. Dave Tabler does more than chronicle events—he roots them in the personalities, experiences, and spirit of individuals and communities that make up the complex and multifaceted Delaware society as a whole, from the influence and communities of the Nanticoke Native Americans to war heroes, family influences, and companies that pioneered Delaware’s unique financial structure and attractions to business.

 Tabler weaves local color with bigger-picture thinking in a manner that lends well to both leisure reading and historical insight, creating an attractive read that appeals across broad sectors of audience makeup. One needn’t even have a prior familiarity with Delaware, or an affection for the state, in order to appreciate its trends and the figureheads of innovation and change.

 Black and white photos, colorful maps and illustrations, and visual reinforcement of these events create additional attraction as Tabler follows the 20th century events that built modern-day Delaware.

 From the digital revolution that “swept through Delaware like a tidal wave” to how Delaware’s choices influenced states beyond its borders, Tabler uses this wealth of visual imagery to reinforce facts that many readers will find thought-provoking and attractive, whether they be about historical precedent, conservation issues, or individual influence on state and national affairs:

 The horseshoe crab is the Delaware State Marine Animal, a major beneficiary of the Coastal Zone Act. (Origami horseshoe crab shown here designed by Michael G. LaFosse, folded by Phillip West/ Flickr.) The Coastal Zone Act of 1971, a landmark in Delaware’s environmental policy, aimed at protecting the state’s 381-mile coastline from heavy industrialization. This legislation, championed by Governor Russell W. Peterson, reflected a period of growing ecological consciousness influenced by broader social movements. The law continues to stir controversy, symbolizing the ongoing struggle to balance natural world preservation with Delaware’s economic growth.

 What makes Delaware from Freeways to E-Ways so compelling are these connections, which grow from individual influence and effort to national changes, cemented by a wealth of captivating illustration throughout.

 Libraries seeking history titles that are exciting, insightful, and designed to appeal to a broad audience will find Delaware from Freeways to E-Ways a wonderful opportunity for introducing patrons to the lure of nonfiction history and the power of illustration-centric approaches to illuminating these people, places, and events.

 Readers who believe history to be a relatively dull collection of dates and facts will find the method of delivery that Tabler employs in Delaware from Freeways to E-Ways to be exceptional, proving that the right author can add fire and vigor to history to make it a lively attraction for contemporary audiences.

Delaware from Freeways to E-Ways

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The Invisible War
Emily Refermat 
Black Rose Writing
978-1-68513-434-1         $21.95
https://www.amazon.com/Invisible-War-Novel-Emily-Refermat/dp/1685134343

 The Invisible War is a novel of magical realism, mystery, love, and life that is delivered with a heavy dose of the unexpected. This will especially delight readers who look for surprises in their reading, whether these lie in character evolution or emerging intrigue. The latter stems from a strange hobby farm’s ability to lure young Garrison away from his video game passion (no internet helps) into strange encounters that hold implications not just for his life, but all of humanity.

 Carly’s arrival at the farm, injured and with memory issues, involves Garrison in artifacts, secrets, and new connections as he becomes more engaged with his surroundings.

 Given his ability of being able to see and converse with figures that others (such as his parents) cannot acknowledge, Garrison finds himself caught up in an endeavor that reaches out to involve him in his Grandmother Mae’s world and life.

 Emily Refermat crafts an inviting story of magical realism and discovery that excels in creating contrasts between personalities, worlds, and discoveries. Vivid descriptions bring this world and its characters to life:

 The ringing stopped. But it left an echo in the air, an imprint of tension and malice. The side door slamming made Garrison jump. It also broke the spell. Everyone in the dining room got up to follow. Outside, the sky was full of a sunset rainbow. It cast dark shadows among the trees and bushes of the forest. Garrison could hear yelling now that he was outside. And screaming. He shivered.

 As Mae and Carly interact, lessons about kindness and giving involve not only their characters, but their readers. These elements elevate The Invisible War into arenas of psychological understanding and evaluative perspectives about choice and consequence that dovetails fast-paced action and adventure with deeper-level insights.

 Libraries can easily recommend The Invisible War to YA readers into adult audiences. Its focus on solving mysteries, developing extraordinary problem-solving techniques with the aid of new and uncommon friends, and its survey of another world’s new possibilities not only ends definitively, but also leaves the door ajar for more adventures.

The Invisible War

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My Life in Dog Years
Candida Pugh
Delarouse Books
979-8-218-50290            $12.99 Paperback and eBook
https://www.amazon.com/My-Life-Dog-Years-Melodramas/dp/B0DLFR2G8R

 My Life in Dog Years: A Poodle Named Henry and Other Melodramas charts time spent with memorable canines. It will appeal to dog lovers interested in tales of animal bonds and experiences which embrace both love and loss.

 It’s a “love story dedicated to all the dogs who have enriched my life—to those I’ve lost and to those still with me.” It’s also an exploration of the bonds between dog and human that provides a window into the affection, attraction, and psyche of the dog. Canines provided Candida Pugh many opportunities to understand animal behavior and training.

 Readers receive specifics on how to modify animal behaviors, including many approaches which failed. These are all described in lively language that imparts insights which will draw any dog lover struggling with their own training challenges:

 I could’ve crated him, and that would’ve solved that. He’d never soil himself, I felt certain of that much. But I wanted him to love his crate. Making it into a prison was a way to ensure he’d never go in it willingly. I so wanted him to do things willingly.

 Love, pain, and tears permeate this story, which gives caution for readers who may have suffered their own animal loss. There is no animal love without eventual loss, however. Pugh also offers insights into moving on, handling very different dog personalities, and embracing the richness a dog can lend to life.

 The amount and nature of poodle and other dog breed encounters creates an appealing story that charts the ups and downs of dog ownership and animal psyches.

 Libraries seeking stories that are moving, embracing, educational, and psychological draws will want to add My Life in Dog Years: A Poodle Named Henry and Other Melodramas to their collections for its wide-ranging stories and opportunity to better understand not just dog nature, but human interactions with them.

My Life in Dog Years

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The Quantum and the Dream
Douglas Grunther
Epigraph Publishing
978-1960090560             $19.95
Website: www.douglasgrunther.com
Ordering: https://www.amazon.com/Quantum-Dream-Visionary-Consciousness-Renaissance/dp/1960090569

 The Quantum and the Dream: Visionary Consciousness, AI, and the New Renaissance will appeal to new age, philosophy, and psychology readers alike. It features a wide-ranging survey of consciousness shifts, illustrating how imaginative thinkers have not only forged new pathways for human perception, but cultivated myths, faith, and perceptions that redefine the nature of visionary approaches to life.

 From media studies and thought experiments to new approaches to language, communication, and protocols leading into the New Millennium, Douglas Grunther’s wide-ranging exploration considers the messages and impact of various influencers from Marshall McLuhan to Einstein, female researcher Elisabet Sahtouris, and others honing formulas for novel ways of considering consciousness and the future.

 This may sound like ethereal postulating—but it’s not. Embedded within these reflections are important associations between philosophical and scientific advancement and daily life incarnations and choices which embrace collaborative efforts, vulnerability, and emotional connection.

 Historic shifts between information-building, recognition, assimilation of new paradigms, and different values and approaches to life dovetail in an intriguing manner. This will especially interest classrooms and reading groups, from science and philosophy debaters to students of media history.

 While The Quantum and the Dream will prove weighty and challenging to some, the importance of its message lies in its connections and approaches to better understanding technology’s lasting impact on human development.

 Its powerful “new Renaissance” formula for global understanding is very highly recommended for libraries and readers that would consider and analyze the culture, biology, and shared connections of visionaries who provoke audiences to move beyond personal transformation into ideals of collective growth.

The Quantum and the Dream

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The Thyroid and Hormone Solution
Amanda Hinman, AMFC
Muse Literary
978-1-960876-71-3
$25.99 Hardcover/$15.99 Paperback/$.99 eBook
https://www.amazon.com/Thyroid-Hormone-Solution-Hormones-Naturally/dp/1960876716

 The Thyroid & Hormone Solution: A 5-Step Plan to Balance Your Hormones Naturally! is a self-help guide for readers interested in how thyroid and hormone regulation affects energy levels and overall health. It’s especially appropriate for aging readers who have not been diagnosed with obvious issues, yet feel their health is anything but optimal.

 From understanding natural health changes and the nature of various health support approaches and systems to acknowledging connections between unconscious and unhealthy patterns of dieting and exercising and disempowerment, Amanda Hinman probes all aspects of health.

 Her background of over fifteen years of study and certifications in integrative nutrition, applied functional medicine, exercise science, behavioral psychology, and energy medicine mixes science with new age thinking to draw important connections between mind and body.

 Readers who choose The Thyroid & Hormone Solution will appreciate Hinman’s historical review of changing diagnostic procedures and healthcare concepts. These influence the perception of thyroid and hormone system function, dysfunction, and treatment options. With this foundation of knowledge, a better appreciation of the roots and differences between these and Hinman’s modern-day analysis is cultivated which requires no prior medical knowledge or history in order to prove accessible.

 Chapters present these concepts, employing a revealing tone which seeks not to bludgeon with statistical and medical terminology, but to invite with thought-provoking considerations of how health, social, and medical systems tie together:

 I believe that all women are designed with different body shapes and sizes, and there is no such thing as a perfect weight or size. However, it is important to recognize when your body is within a healthy range and when it is not.

Especially when significant changes occur (either an increase or decrease in body weight, body fat percentage and skeletal muscle percentage), it is often a sign from your hormones to take a closer look at your overall health.

 This invites easy understanding of many previously-obtuse obstacles to healthcare choices which may have been based on perception, prejudice, or past precedent. As Hinman considers supplements and other ways of boosting health, she emphasizes natural adjustments that can lead to better results, placing these admonitions in bold so they are attention-grabbing:

 One of the most impactful nutrients for women that I have worked with is fiber. This can be especially beneficial for someone challenged by allergies, anxiety, or difficulty concentrating.

 Case history examples accompany these insights for added impact, personalizing the process of formulating personal strategies for better health.

 Amanda Hinman, AFMC, is the founder and CEO of Hinman Holistic Health, a health and wellness consulting company rooted in functional medicine and the creator of the Thyroid & Hormone Solution Program. These credentials support the detailed supportive healthcare advice geared to individual body types and objectives.

 All these factors make The Thyroid & Hormone Solution a ‘must’ for women’s health libraries and collections as well as readers seeking better self-help approaches to carving a unique healthcare path in life—one that’s finely tuned to individual needs.

The Thyroid and Hormone Solution

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Tokyo Tempos
Michael Pronko
Raked Gravel Press
ASIN: ‎B0DLBPH88J               $9.99 ebook
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DLBPH88J

 Tokyo Tempos captures life and culture in Tokyo like few others. Perhaps that’s because educator Michael Pronko is no temporary resident or tourist, but an expat whose three decades of living in Tokyo allows him to capture the city’s subtler undercurrents and nuances for his readers.

 Pronko’s documentation of daily life in his ‘Tokyo Moments’ series began in Motions and Moments and continued through two other books. Tokyo Tempos both enhances and expands the series with further reflections, offering invaluable observations about the impact of the pandemic years on relationship-building in general and “meishi” in particular:

 By the end of the pandemic, the diameters of my social circles hadn’t budged. I met no one new. I know that because I didn’t acquire any new meishi name cards. I didn’t give or receive the small cards, about the size of three fingers and loaded with contact information, for about two years. The drought of new meishi made me miss meeting people, especially since there are so many people left to meet in Tokyo. Before the pandemic, a new meishi was clear evidence of entering into a new circle of exchange. I loved that ritual of moving from outside to inside, from not-knowing to knowing, from separate to connected. It’s a way of leaping over differences and distances to enter another circle.

 Pronko’s observations of daily life rituals and Japanese culture offer invaluable reflections that will prove of special interest not just to prior readers of his books, but newcomers seeking accessible, inviting personal material that delves into the heart of Tokyo’s rituals:

 On the last day of the year, my western Tokyo neighborhood fills with the hum of machines and the splash of water. The swish of brooms and the clink of laundry poles echo through the air … The last few days of the year, but especially on the last day, laundry covers the poles and not the usual laundry, but blankets, sofa covers, and futons. Everything washable gets washed. Every surface, inside and out, gets a wash, wipe, or sweep. Everyone is cleaning everything. Even the cleaning equipment gets cleaned—gloves, mops, buckets, and rags. It’s “Osoji,” or “big cleaning,” a ritual of energy and

activity that brings the year to a close and leaves everything sparkling clean. It’s a clean ending for a clean start.

 These vignettes insert readers into the beating heart of Tokyo’s culture, offering insights and knowledge that is nearly impossible to find in more general books about travel to Tokyo and understanding its special culture. This type of approach can only come from decades of experience—which is why Tokyo Tempos reflects a compelling rhythm of daily life that readers will be hard-pressed to find elsewhere.

 Tokyo Tempos is quite simply a blend of travelogue, history, memoir, and engrossing insights that libraries will find an especially attractive recommendation to patrons seeking a deeper view of Tokyo’s atmosphere. Book clubs that look for riveting books packed with stories and insights will find Tokyo Tempos perfect for can’t-put-it-down reading and thought-provoking group discussions alike.

Tokyo Tempos

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What’s the Endgame?
Sean Collins
Collins Sports Publishing
979-8991320306             $19.95 Paperback/$9.99 eBook
https://www.amazon.com/Whats-Endgame-Families-Navigate-Baseball/dp/B0DDWS9463

 What's the Endgame?: Helping Families Navigate Youth Baseball comes from a former professional coach who takes an unusual, innovative approach to directing his coaching insights not just to player and fellow coaches, but the baseball families who support their young players.

 This translates to a support system that parents of young players rarely receive—in effect, a how-to of coaching basics that tackle strategies and outcomes with insights on how baseball choices lead to better decisions on and off the field:

 … winning coaches want to see production. Ballplayers taught winning systems develop great habits that transfer to production on the field. Examples of great habits are max speed from home to first after a swing which exhibits a great desire to play the game correctly, great hitting mechanics, appropriate intentions under pressure, and being trustworthy on defense with a high fielding percentage. Another example is pitchers who pitch with command while still executing pitches with base runners. Coaches simply want to be able to depend on players in game situations.

 The same may be said of life. And so the coaching process is linked to bigger-picture thinking. This reinforces the value of the game, the endgame, and the lessons kids learn from effective coaches who are committed to building not just great team players, but, ultimately, effective young adults.

 Coaching specifics couched in these interests lead to insights that parents can use to support their kids. Even more importantly, these lessons of life and sports can be reinforced at home by parents who absorb the coaching specifics in What's the Endgame?

 Among the many insights provided in this book are keys to choosing good instructors (and recognizing the “gurus” who portend to be such, but in actuality are less skilled); understanding training routines and exercises designed to build player bodies; understanding the politics and opportunities of athletic scholarships and baseball programs; and virtually anything else related to the sport.

 Libraries seeking specific insights packed with examples of real-life experience backed by a professional’s attention to detail can’t go wrong by acquiring What's the Endgame? and recommending it to parents of young players.

What’s the Endgame?

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Young Adult/Childrens


An Ambush of Years
J.A. Enfield
Wayzgoose Press
978-1961953222             $4.99 ebook; $14.99 paperback
Website: https://www.wayzgoosepress.com/authors/jon-enfield/time-alleys/an-ambush-of-years/. 
Ordering: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1961953226

 An Ambush of Years is the first book in the Time Alleys trilogy for teens and young adults. It pairs an alternate history with elements of steampunk time travel experience to engage a wide age range in its involving tale of transformation.

 Mick Conway is sick of his world. He’s filled with grief for his absent parents, exhausted from having to make the rounds between family members unwilling to take him in for very long, and struggling with being responsible for his baby sister.

 All these gang up on Mick to make him feel that his life will never be any different—until new worlds replete with pirates, time travel, and novel possibilities emerge to shake the foundations of everything he’s taken for granted about reality itself.

 Part of what makes An Ambush of Years so compelling is J.A. Enfield’s atmospheric descriptions, which capture Mick’s perceptions and experiences on a more evocative level than most young adult time travel stories feature:

 Mick knew those sounds—what they were, where they came from. In the pauses between those sounds, he realized that he was hearing something new. Probably. There was a murmur right at the border of hearing and imagination, a hum or a whisper. He closed his eyes and listened, trying to figure out where it was coming from. It disappeared under a series of snores from Uncle Dan and then again under the growl of a bad muffler.

 These descriptors elevate the feel of the story, such as when Mick undertakes a new journey when he observes a strangely alluring shimmer in the air and tries to protect his baby sister from it:

 …a little part of his brain thought of the fishing lures his mom had taught him to use when they went camping. Beautiful songs made out of humming colors that suckered fish out of the water and into somebody’s frying pan.

 When his quest reveals a deadly plot in a “large city full of dirty trades,” Mick not only develops innovative, proactive skills and revised objectives, but makes a host of new friends (and a few enemies). Dolly, Leech, and Alison each emerge to accept him (after some grilling about his origins) into their world, lives, and objectives.

 Enfield crafts a thoroughly engrossing blend of mystery, history, and intrigue that will keep young adults reading and engaged. Excellent characterization and plot development rest firmly on tension and discoveries that most readers won’t see coming, while the time travel elements juxtapose nicely with issues of asking too many questions, receiving paradigm-changing answers, and making philosophical inquiries:

 People and their plots do not have bright lights and telltale signs. Sometimes the most perilous ones are never seen.

 Libraries seeking collection additions for young adults that are novel, engaging, and fast-paced will find An Ambush of Years an excellent acquisition. It deserves top recommendation to teens interested in compelling leisure reading choices and time travel stories that shine.

An Ambush of Years

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At the Heart of the Game
Paula Benge
Walking Hill Press
979-8-9913320-0-2         $14.99 Paperback/$4.99 eBook
Website: https://paulabenge.com 
Ordering: https://books2read.com/u/mgwJP0

 At the Heart of the Game follows seventeen-year-old softball pitcher extraordinaire River Harte to college, where she discovers that pursuing her dream at a higher level is a very different game.

 Both competition and the squad she participates in operate in ways she has yet to master. Add an undercurrent of romance with a math tutor and River has her hands full not just with softball, but life.

 From the start, Paula Benge embeds her story with extraordinary players and events. These are driven by the dilemma of moving from a familiar high school milieu in which softball has become a mastered art to college-level sports in which the same game has all new players and challenging routines.

 River’s best game is challenged by elite-level competition. This demands she step up in extraordinary ways. Surprisingly, even her increasingly obsessive dedication to improvement does not earn her the expected achievements—or accolades:

 He waits until I look up. “I’ve been doing this a long time, you know. Obsessive practice isn’t what makes the difference. Purposeful practice does. You need to focus on your snaps and relax after releasing the ball. Follow through.” He narrows his eyes. “I recognize that you’re a hard-working athlete, but don’t forget that progress is made during rest periods. You’re too tense. It’s defeating the purpose.”

 When she is unjustly accused of something that could kill her budding career and college experience, River grapples with more than just love and sports. Her new mandate is to clear her name and respond to challenges far from her usual comfort zones that stem from too-adult, complex situations.

 Young adult and new adult readers who choose At the Heart of the Game should have some prior interest in softball, as its rules, games, and players are the heart of River’s experiences. River’s first-person voice brings her dilemmas to life, powering a riveting play-by-play story in which the college experience feels real.

 This will especially intrigue young adults on the cusp of their own higher education experiences, whether or not they are sports players, bringing more facets into play than academic challenges alone.

 What do you do when your best isn’t good enough? That’s one of the key themes running through River’s experiences that give her readers food for thought and fodder for book club and group discussions:

 Best softball player, Dad had said. Don’t let your team down. I hadn’t known to ask what happens after you’ve done your best and your team leaves you behind, anyway.

 Libraries choosing At the Heart of the Game for its appealing image of a strong young female softball player will also be attracted to its strong psychological growth component. This makes the novel of widespread interest and attraction, highly recommendable for young adults entering college and new adults finding themselves in the eye of maturity’s storms and requirements to step up into adulthood.

At the Heart of the Game

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 Beyond the Cemetery Gates: The Secret Keeper’s Daughter
Valerie Biel
Lost Lake Press
978-0-9981736-4-1         $15.99 Paperback/$4.99 ebook
Website: www.ValerieBiel.com 
Ordering: https://www.amazon.com/Beyond-Cemetery-Gate-Keepers-Daughter-ebook/dp/B0DF46KPSW

 Beyond the Cemetery Gates: The Secret Keeper’s Daughter is a young adult mystery in which teen Chloe decides not to accept the reason for her father’s sudden death. It’s not an accidental overdose … it must be murder, she believes. And so she embarks on a personal investigation of her father’s work as a cemetery caretaker. This leads her into not just graveyards, but the skeletons of family secrets which rise from the dead to threaten her life, as well.

 Valerie Biel creates an emotionally rich, suspenseful story that rests as much upon personal revelations and discoveries as it does upon mystery and suspense. The atmospheric descriptions of a cemetery that is actually (and, perhaps, ironically) Chloe’s home, her determination and courage in not accepting the easy explanation for her father’s demise, and her proactive investigative efforts contribute deeper insights into this empowered yet vulnerable female’s determination and psyche.

 These revelations are enhanced by a timeline of past events (clearly outlined in chapter headings, so nobody gets lost) that introduce Dean (her father, starting fifteen years before his death), Aunt Maggie, and others from within family and outside of it who contribute to Chloe’s determination to uncover the truth against all odds.

 Biel’s representation of a young woman’s dogged decision to buck pat answers and pursue her father’s truth into its darkest corners and connections creates a tense, delightful atmosphere cemented by Chloe’s first-person inspections. These juxtapose nicely with the impressions of those who love her.

 Chapter headings continue to solidify the shifting viewpoints, smoothing the path of a thoroughly engrossing story of confrontation, intrigue, and discovery. Its many unexpected twists and complexity promises its cross from young adult into adult reading circles.

 Libraries that choose Beyond the Cemetery Gates: The Secret Keeper’s Daughter should be advised that this is the introductory book to a series for young adult and adult mystery readers. Both audiences will share an intense affection for Chloe, whose ability to ferret out the truth leads her into uncharted waters in which family secrets form the foundation of a new life unfettered by complex hidden influences.

Beyond the Cemetery Gates: The Secret Keeper’s Daughter

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CHILDREN, You Can Help Your Mental Health!
Linda Yianolotas
Independently Published
979-8335901260             $10.50 Paperback/$2.99 eBook
Website: www.crystalcityseries.com
Ordering: https://www.amazon.com/CHILDREN-HELP-YOUR-MENTAL-HEALTH/dp/B0DDJC9F2F

 CHILDREN, You Can Help Your Mental Health! is a rhyming self-help picture book about personal mental empowerment designed to reach a much younger audience than this topic usually attracts.

 The basic premise is that kids who receive guidelines to better understanding mental health and their own possibilities in maintaining it can receive these early lessons in time to affect perceptions, choices, and outcomes before they become engrained habits that are hard to break.

 Zainab Asif Rahi’s illustrations enliven the story with colorful, large-size drawings of children in a style reminiscent of artist Margaret Keane. These reinforce the concept of physical and mental health through divided panels of colorful portraits showing how physical aches and pains and mental aches and pains are similar, both in impact and how children can address them.

 The rhyme points out the common routines employed to maintain and help physical health, then illustrates the comparison to mental health, where “Mental health/always stays hidden from sight./Only you know what’s happening/during the day and the night.”

 With these ideas in hand and mind, kids learn about the equal importance of recognizing and addressing mental acuity and moods. Read-aloud adults who choose CHILDREN, You Can Help Your Mental Health! for its interactive opportunity will find its very simple, yet precise lessons on mental health offers the perfect starting point for early understanding.

 Libraries receive many picture books about moods, but few address the bigger-picture of mental health and illness as a whole-body concept. This is why CHILDREN, You Can Help Your Mental Health! stands out from others for its broader message and tips on self-empowerment and its opportunities to engage the very young on a simple level they will find easier to understand—especially with adult participation and encouragement.

CHILDREN, You Can Help Your Mental Health!

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Downbeach
Matt Overs
Moonshine Cove Publishing
9781952439896              $20.00 Paperback/$7.99 eBook
Website: mattovers.com

 Downbeach provides young adults with a historical novel packed with local color as it traverses the coming-of-age story of Gibb, who moves through the late 1980s in Atlantic City with a finely tuned sense of savvy and purpose. His attitude reveals accompanying conundrums as he works within the constraints of his environment’s limitations:

 “He hated stealing, so any time they had to do it, he made sure everybody gave him the money upfront so he could leave it behind. It helped assuage his guilt. Was it really stealing if you paid for it? It wasn’t their fault the legal drinking age prevented them from walking in the front door and buying it proper.”

 Gibb confronts streetwise individuals who are tougher than he and hones not only further skills, but revised visions of life in Atlantic City. He thus approaches adulthood with a more calibrated sense of reality and purpose than not only many of his peers, but most adults. This leads him to form relationships based as much on survival as upon mutual growth connections:

 “Even if they weren’t all in the same school together anymore, they still spent every day after school finding things to get into while roaming the streets. Well, maybe not every day, day in and day out, but for important moments they always came together.”

 Readers who choose Downbeach will likely be young adults, but the novel will appeal into new adult circles. It depicts realistic street culture and life challenges that introduce Gibb and his friends to adult confrontations involving fighting, revenge, brutal disagreements, and revised realities about racial and social conflicts and influences:

 “He couldn’t grasp all the history of the city and why it was still the way it was, but he knew inherently that there were places you didn’t go and areas you just stayed away from.
It wasn’t because he was scared or didn’t want to play with Huge and JJ, it was that he knew other people would take offense to him being there, the same way white kids would if he showed up at Jerome avenue with black kids from the High.”

 Gibb navigates two worlds and a series of confrontations that distance and challenge his ability to maintain close friendships. All kinds of readers will readily recognize and relate to this world and the disparate forces that test life connections and choices.

 Matt Overs not only brings this era and environment to life, but laces it with a powerful overlay of language “known to teenage boys all over the world.” This gives his story an evocative atmosphere that contrasts the interests and experiences of different generations.

 Libraries and readers seeking a multifaceted story of evolution, the ultimate impact of violent choices, and the lasting efforts these experiences hold for a lifetime of regret and influence will find Downbeach compelling. It’s as worthy of individual pursuit as discussion group debate.

Downbeach

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Grandma Marjorie and the Feathered Pirate
Melissa Robinson and Olga Sall
Paper Parrot Press
978-1-965281-02-4        
$19.95 Hardcover/$10.95 Paperback/2.99 ebook
www.paperparrotpress.com

 Picture book readers who appreciate colorful stories of adventure and action, as well as read-aloud adults who look for stories of elderly characters who are proactive and engaged with the young, will relish Grandma Marjorie and the Feathered Pirate.

 It presents a child’s-eye view of a granddaughter’s observations of her “magical” grandmother, who “…decided when she was young to never grow up.” Thus, this grandmother is able to play and engage in mischief like a child. It isn’t until the young narrator is six years old that she realizes how truly amazing her grandmother is.

 One day, Grandma invites her granddaughter to accompany her and her parrot on an adventure rather than just baking brownies. And it’s not one that involves Grandma’s golf cart (her usual mode of transport), either.

 As magic unfolds, Melissa Robinson and Olga Sall create a compelling scenario in which grandmother and granddaughter take a trip down memory lane, face off a large thieving seagull, and take full advantage of parrot Misty’s amazing abilities.

 Laughter and risk-taking permeate a story that emphasizes the wonder of sharing experiences and new adventures in life. Surprises, action, and magical encounters power a story that also delivers a subliminal message about the elderly and the possibility of engaging with and understanding opportunities for adventure and new life discoveries no matter what one’s age may be.

 A concluding section of African Gray Parrot facts and a game that helps youngsters test their observational and recollection skills enhances a story packed with action and winning, colorful illustrations.

 Libraries interested in a vivid tale that will attract both young leisure readers and read-aloud adults will find it easy to highly recommend Grandma Marjorie and the Feathered Pirate.

Grandma Marjorie and the Feathered Pirate

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Haven
Valerie Biel
Lost Lake Press
781-0-7713865-2-8
$19.99 Hardcover/$12.99 Paperback/$4.99 eBook
https://www.amazon.com/Haven-Valerie-Biel/dp/0998173622

 Haven is a middle-grade story about family violence, flight, and a young girl’s opinion that her revised living circumstances are her fault (for calling 911 on her drug-dealing, abusive father).

 Despite the new life she and her mother are now living in a small Minnesota town, 11-year-old Mardella and her mother still suffer from the turmoil that has impacted their lives in the past. They still feel threatened, even though her father is now in jail. The emotional cost of these events lingers in both their minds. Physical freedom only goes so far when mental anguish remains.

 The process of rebuilding their lives—especially when their new home is at Rest Haven Senior Living, where her mother now works, surrounded by residents over the age of 65—leads Mardella to finely tune efforts to make friends of all ages, forcing her to cultivate positivity over these vast changes.

 More so than most books about victim relocation and recovery, Haven offers middle graders the opportunity to connect the dots between attitude, choice, and revised outcomes in all kinds of situations. Mardella notes the changes in her reactions to life, exploring them in a reflective manner that encourages young readers to consider their own options:

 Mardella surprised herself with her confident answer. Even though she hadn’t told her the whole story, it felt good to tell Ginger as much as she had. Mardella was surprised that she could keep going and not run and hide like she used to when she felt this way.

 Equally astute are lessons about responsibility, Mardella’s growing ability to acknowledge and accept her faults and mistakes, and her revised capability of identifying responses that stem from her keeping a watchful eye on everyone around her, automatically anticipating trouble or disaster.

 The rudiments of PTSD as they pertain to and impact a young person’s life and recovery becomes a personal odyssey attractive to any young reader—especially those struggling with their own environments and reactions.

 Haven is about finding peace and safety from turbulence and chaos. It’s also about a girl who grows into a gentler, savvier young person as she reaches for young adulthood more cognizant than her peers of how quickly life can change.

 Valerie Biel’s compelling story of survival, recovery, and discovery builds a story not only important for libraries and educators to recommend as leisure reads, but which ideally will serve as a point of discussion for classrooms and in middle grade reading circles.

 Haven’s consideration of different possibilities of healing and recovery, and what truly constitutes finding a safe place during a journey from uncertainty to empowerment, makes for a thoroughly engrossing, thought-provoking saga.

Haven

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Kianola
Nathan Roth
Independently Published
9781735678724              $0.99 ebook/$14.99 paperback
https://kianola.com/

 Kianola will attract middle grade fantasy audiences with a unique blend of psychological reflection and action.

 Nole is a nerd who excels at being an adventurer in the digital world of Enix, but faces bullying and hostility in his real life. His ability to navigate all kinds of challenges in his online fantasy environment doesn’t seem to translate to empowerment in the real world … until he discovers that in the process stepping up to face new fears, subtle changes are at work to impact his familiar life.

 Nathan Roth creates a particularly memorable read with Kianola; partially because of his attention to exploring issues of friendship, bullying, and empowerment in introvert Nole’s two worlds. These enjoy evocative descriptions that draw in middle grade readers from the story’s opening lines:

 Harsher than any tundra and crueler than any barrens was a place long feared for its savagery, middle school, and in the far corner of the playground, two eighth-grade boys sat side by side on the swing set, chatting away the last few minutes of their recess.

 The new online game Enix attracts Nole and his geeky friends, promising a monster-slaying experience that they can’t wait to engage with. Budding middle grade interests in girls pair with game objectives in a realistic, memorable way:

 “Maybe I can actually get a girl to talk to me if they’re part of the video game, like a non-playable character.”

 Nole considers new approaches to both gaming and life, and so his story evolves a compelling countenance that keeps readers engaged with the changes in communication, purpose, and approaches to life. These keep Nole on an upward trajectory of self-improvement and realization:

 “You don't stop trying because you've already won someone over. The more someone matters, the more effort you should put in. If you care about someone, shouldn’t you show them you care by putting in that extra effort?"

Kia scratched her head.

"Even with goodbyes?" she asked.

"It's not even about being longer," said Nole. "It's about quality. A decent goodbye is like tying a nice bow on things. It doesn't take much, and it's a nice gesture. Like, come on. It's not hard to do things right.”

 The transition points in his psyche that emerge in response to Enix and his life make important points throughout that will especially delight adults that choose Kianola in hopes of engaging with middle graders about growth and life choices.

 Educational and empowerment strengths aside, Kianola is quite simply a rollicking quest through self-improvement, friendship-building, and adventure. It is highly recommended for middle grade leisure readers, book discussion groups, and elementary-level libraries seeking middle grade stories steeped in wizards and coming-of-age dilemmas.

Kianola

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Level Up! 50 Game-Changing Life Skills for Young Adults+
Steve M. Scott
AR Press
979-8-9909744-1-8        
$29.99 Hardcover/$14.99 Paperback/$2.99 eBook
Website: http://stevemscott.com
Ordering: https://books2read.com/LevelUp50

 Level Up! 50 Game-Changing Life Skills for Young Adults+ contains fourteen hand-drawn illustrations by new adult Ukrainian artist George Miroshnichenko, which highlights and embellishes the points Steve M. Scott makes in his uplifting treatise on life skills. The Ukraine connection comes from Scott’s role with the U.S. Embassy to Ukraine in 2023, where he co-managed USAID’s foreign assistance program office amid the Russian invasion. He was to do so during a summer’s effort, leaving his family at a perhaps pivotal point in his twin sons’ lives as they entered new adulthood, and was motivated to craft a series of letters to them that reflected his lifetime of love, life philosophy, and encouragement.

 These form the crux of a program that opens here as a memoir and moves into the arena of practical applications of life philosophy and experience:

 Throughout my life, I’ve been deeply inspired by compassionate idealists and humanitarians—those extraordinary individuals who dedicate themselves to the betterment of our world. They are, in every sense, my soulmates in spirit and purpose. This profound admiration propelled me into the Foreign Service, particularly in the dynamic field of international development. My heart was set on contributing to the global fight against poverty, dedicating my efforts to a cause greater than myself, and genuinely making a difference.

 The skill sets Scott explores are wide-ranging, including exercise and physical fitness, adapting to and developing fluency with AI, avoiding the drive to be a perfectionist by adopting boundaries for what is “good enough,” and working with and understanding team-building dynamics.

 Each life skill consideration receives a blend of psychological, philosophical, and practical application that helps new adults (and many an adult) embrace concepts of cooperative thinking, ideals of building positive, uplifting encounters and experiences, and undertaking basic training to identify and realize dreams.

 Ideally, Level Up! 50 Game-Changing Life Skills for Young Adults+ should be on the gift list of any adult seeking to provide up-and-coming new adults with a practical course on building a better life. Rarely do dreams sync so practically and specifically to the task of creating boundaries, understanding avenues to success, and developing critical thinking skills.

 All these themes are reasons why Level Up! 50 Game-Changing Life Skills for Young Adults+ should not only be given to high school grades, but discussed in classrooms, homes, and book club reading groups as a specific and enlightening routine for forging ahead in the world.

Level Up! 50 Game-Changing Life Skills for Young Adults

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Moon Spirit
Fred Gracely
Bisket Press, LLC
979-8-9861364-8-6         $3.99 eBook
www.FredGracely.com

 Moon Spirit offers YA readers the magical story of Max Berger, a teenage boy who has been abandoned and who lives in an orphanage. His dreams of a lovely girl who seems connected to the moon unexpectedly turn into reality when he meets her in the flesh one night, only to find that she is fleeing a persecutor and wants to give him her magic orb so he can keep it safe if she’s caught.

 Of course he wants to help. Certainly, he has an open mind for adventure … which seems to conflict with his dream of finding a family. Magic and clashing worlds seem to drive him far from his life and objectives, sending him on a series of mysteries, encounters, and dangerous missions that make him a possible world-saver.

 Fred Gracely neatly dovetails fantasy with the realistic portrait of a young boy’s efforts to solidify not only his place in life, but his interpersonal connections. A dose of humor enhances the action-packed adventure:

 Bob and Lucy were usually asleep in their room by 10 P.M., but as luck would have it, they chose this night to stay up late watching a documentary about the organic tofu industry. Max nearly jumped out of his skin in frustration while he waited for the stupid show to end.

 As Max grapples with either returning to his world or utilizing the Orb, the story touches upon good and evil decisions in a manner that leaves young adult readers thinking about the outcomes of good intentions and the possibilities of wielding magic and identifying villains versus good forces in life. Considerations of who is an enemy and who a friend encourage teens to think about their own relationship choices and those developments that force them to either take charge or make difficult decisions and alliances.

 As Max expands his circle of friends, teens also receive enlightening information about shifting relationships, personal growth, and setting goals that can be altered in unexpected manners.

 Gracely’s attention to weaving elements of fantasy and magical realism into a story that ultimately centers on a young man’s growth creates a story that simmers with adventure, but rests this action on a foundation of opportunities and experiences that foster maturity and new thoughts about life.

 This is why libraries and readers interested in tales steeped in magic will find much added value in Moon Spirit. Its blend of psychological insights and magical outcomes will attract book discussion groups, while its consideration of evolving friendships and nightmares gives it an intriguing depth that makes the novel hard to put down.

Moon Spirit

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Never Have I Ever
Harker Jones
Independently Published
979-8-3507-3737-0         $7.99 Paperback/$1.99 eBook
Website: www.HarkerJonesLA.com
Ordering: https://www.amazon.com/Never-Have-Ever-Harker-Jones/dp/B0DL4JBVHV/

 Never Have I Ever represents young adult horror fiction at it strongest. It presents the story of a dangerous game, ‘Never Have I Ever,’ which, in the past, attracted a teen who then vanished, and now tests eight modern teens with new challenges.

 The lengthening autumn days in Michigan open this story with a prologue that covers the game and its edgy confessional requirements. Amid sexual jokes and LGBTQ+ references lies the undercurrent of a dare that reveals attractions, connections—and possibly something dangerous.

 Fast-forward a year later in the first chapter, which is set in the “one-horse town” of Manchester, Michigan. Once again, it’s autumn … but this time, the fall season arrives with the angst of precedent. Harker Jones nicely captures this feeling in atmospheric descriptions that neatly round up the small town’s psyche:

 It was detached from the rest of the world, a population caught up in its own turbulent events, a pall cast over it and its citizens. There was a quiet that did not stem from peacefulness. It was as if the townspeople were afraid to make noise, as if that noise would shatter a spell, a protection spell they feared was tenuous.

 The contrast between a town recovering from a terrible loss and the traditions of the season is intriguingly illustrated by a flyer for a scarecrow contest that’s placed alongside many others pleading for information about a missing teen.

 Biff Branigan, the fabled town “witch” Swampy Susan, and a host of other characters face different kinds of threats, both from their personal evolutionary processes and in town interactions. A student’s murder provokes thoughts of revenge and fear as, once again, the town becomes embroiled in conflicting personalities, accusations, speculations, and a growing horror that sparks insights about bullies, cowards, and bravery.

 Harker Jones is especially adept at contrasting the high school milieu with the bigger picture of a small town shaken by events usually associated with big-city problems. His delicate weave of personalities and paranoia creates interactions readers won’t see coming, and will find especially enlightening and thought-provoking.

 As Christa, Scott, and others consider issues of safety and what it means to enter survival mode, young adults receive a story both action-packed and tempered by social and psychological introspection and depth.

 Threats, love, worship, and redemption coalesce in a horror story delivered with the bang of the unexpected, drawing in teens interested in the outcomes of not just dangerous games, but relationship choices.

 Libraries that choose Never Have I Ever for its satisfying blend of horror and social inspection will find the story exceptional. It’s also easy to recommend to YA book clubs and reading groups because it tempers its action with bigger-picture thinking about small towns, relationships, and adversity, all of which offer much food for thought and discussion.

Never Have I Ever

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Rigged
Rose Horn
Independently Published
979-8-3393-6046-9         $8.99 Paperback/$4.99 ebook
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DHWJVHS8

 Rigged is the first book in the StarNet series, and follows thirteen-year-old cadets at the cusp of important changes in their roles and lives. In the opening pages, Kaylah a thirteen-year-old alien, is about to attend the all-important Blast Ball Ceremony where the next leader of Adoni is chosen. This occurs every eight years. However, this time, Kaylah’s presence translates to a major change that ultimately threatens the peace treaty with StarNet when she’s tapped to become a young leader.

 Cadet Tori, new to StarNet, has finally achieved her dream. She’s never enjoyed many friends, so her position represents a chance to start over. Unfortunately, her roommate Celia’s tendency to brag and one-up proves a challenge from the start. Tori begins to realize that new beginnings don’t necessarily translate to opportunities that prove either supportive or fruitful:

 “Do you know anyone?”

“Nobody but you,” Tori admitted.

“Really? I would have thought you would know at least a few people. I know Kerome and ffiathy and ziles and Santiago and Andrew and Manny and Timmy and his twin, Tundo, and Reynold and Francesca and—” Celia stopped suddenly, looking a little ashamed of her ramble. “Well, they’re here from science camps I’ve attended, or they’re from the Chicago area, which is where I’m from.”

“I . . . was homeschooled. But I have”—Tori paused, looking for the right word—“friends,” she finished in a rush, noticing Celia’s slightly curled lip. Or maybe not, if we’re not friends.

 Rose Horn takes the time to build important connections between characters and their personalities. The action, intrigue, and clashes keep young readers interested in Tori and her fellow cadets with a series of adventures and twists. Additionally, the focus on character-building (as well as developing a strong atmosphere of place and politics) gives readers both entertainment value and important reflections on the process of command, control, and developing new strengths.

 Bigger-picture thinking emerges as physical and mental clashes lead Tori, Anna, and peers to engage with one another on unexpected levels:

 “One: Fainting does not make you a loser. Two: I get where you’re coming from. My older sister used to talk about her destiny. I create my own destiny; I can help change the world’ type of affirmations,” Anna said.

“Yeah, you told me that,” Tori said softly. “And don’t we all try to change the world?

 These themes (and their emergence during the action-packed adventure) promise that book club reading groups and classrooms will enjoy discussion material about a range of topics, from friendships and growth to handling adversity and employing critical thinking skills to solve very adult problems.

 Libraries and young readers that choose Rigged for its promise of sci-fi action and adventure will appreciate the realistic details of Tori’s evolutionary process, the opportunities it introduces for considerations of empowerment and proactive thinking, and the twists and turns that keep readers guessing until the end.

Rigged

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Timelight
Faith Conlon
Flashpoint Books
978-1-959411-81-9         $19.95 Hardcover/$9.99 ebook
Website: faithconlon.com
Ordering: https://www.amazon.com/Timelight-Faith-Conlon/dp/1959411810

 Timelight is a compelling time travel story for ages 10-14. Unlike most adventure-oriented children’s time travel stories, 13-year-old protagonist Charlie Winter comes from a family impacted by a mother’s disappearance. Three years later, the family still struggles—especially on dates which should be celebratory, like Charlie’s birthday, the date when his mother vanished. Only his grandmother is willing to even talk about it … the rest of the family suffers the mystery in silence. When she is injured, it falls to Charlie to keep up the faith and step up into what proves an extraordinary truth and situation.

 Faith Conlon opens her story not with Charlie’s experience, however, but with the appearance of antagonist Malcolm Mordrex at a seaside grave site. Catriona Winter presides over a strange ceremony that transmits the job of being Keeper of the Mordrex Stone to Malcolm while cautioning him that his grandfather’s pursuit of power nearly destroyed the world.

 Unfortunately, the obsession with power has been transmitted to Malcolm:

 He’d been powerless all his life. Never again. Someday, he’d have his revenge. 

 How that revenge plays out is the crux of a vivid time travel story that crosses generations of intent, power, and legacy to rest on young Charlie’s shoulders.

 Like many children’s time travel stories, there evolves a quest for a magical amulet that brings a circle of young friends together in a conjoined effort. Time traveler Malcolm has only become more dangerous over time and it is up to them to achieve their goals while surviving confrontations with him.

 Conlon also devotes time to building the detective process underlying the quest, which involves Charlie and his three friends in a journey that intersects their interests with others’ lives as well as his family.

 The action is swift, but what shines is the characterization, which embraces perceptions and diverse personalities and purposes as the adventure plays out.

 Readers will become immersed in a time travel quest in which the movements through time are secondary to powerful movements through psyches, choices, and good and evil developments.

 Is the amulet worth dying for? Is the evil character truly evil, or merely broken? Can the Ring of Stones be broken … and, more importantly, should they be contained?

 Libraries seeking an action-packed children’s adventure that elevates its subjects beyond time travel alone and into moral and ethical conundrums and family legacy will find Timelight a powerful acquisition that works on a number of different, thought-provoking levels. This lends the novel a deeper series of inspections that makes it attractive to leisure readers while worthy of reading group discussion about a journey that comes full circle to return to a changed home.

Timelight

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Miriam and Naomi: A Christmas Story
Peggy Dudarchik
Grey Eyed Publishing
979-8-9916546-0-9         $18.99
peggydudarchik.com 

Miriam and Naomi: A Christmas Story gives picture book audiences an important Biblical lesson that ultimately supports Micah’s prediction. Simply gorgeous and exceptionally outstanding are the illustrations of Russell Mason, which capture the landscapes and peoples of Biblical times as Peggy Dudarchik’s engaging story unfolds.

Read-aloud parents will find plenty of detail and description in the tale as many facets about Mary and Joseph’s journey to Bethlehem are revealed. One example of its unusual depth is how Joseph is mandated by political decree to return to the place of his birth to be officially counted. Mary is adamant about traveling with him, despite her advanced pregnancy. 

Joseph insists that Mary have some help of her choosing, and she unexpectedly chooses a child, Miriam. How can a youngster aid a very pregnant woman on an arduous journey? Turns out that Mary has chosen very wisely as events reveal some of the many smaller miracles that influence the journey’s outcome. 

Miriam brings Naomi, her beloved pet goat. The two are committed to helping. And so they do. 

Dudarchik captures the joy in life’s small moments. Even mucking out the barn comes with opportunities for fun: 

Then they scattered clean straw around the stable with abandon, Miriam whooping and Naomi gleefully “maaing,” which sounded an awful lot like screaming. 

This atmosphere of joy and engagement translates to a story nicely rooted in “you are here” moments and experiences that the very young can easily understand and appreciate. This, in turn, leads children to better appreciate this exploration of the Christmas miracle through a different set of eyes and ears than is normally presented. 

Another striking note is that, in the pictures, the participants are smiling, laughing, and engaged in their world. The journey itself depicts many aspects of God’s wondrous creations: 

Miriam was astonished when they got to the top of one of the hills that surrounded Nazareth. She could see forever. She swept out her arms. “Look, Naomi,” she said, “I think you can see to the end of the world.” 

Kids and read-aloud adults will experience the camel caravans against blue skies and how “big, noisy, and smelly” they are, alongside the tender care that young Miriam displays by being sensitive to Mary’s pregnancy and needs. 

Readers anticipating the usual coverage of the birth of Jesus will find that more takes place before his birth than expected. Miriam and Naomi: A Christmas Story lays a foundation of kindness and giving which in turn supports the arrival of Jesus and the birth of a more hopeful era. It’s just the ticket for facing the angst of modern times, as well as the holiday season. 

These elements of immediacy, kindness, observation, and engagement set Miriam and Naomi: A Christmas Story heads and shoulders above most other Christmas picture books. The format will engage not just picture book readers or listeners, but the entire family, expanding its value as well as its audience. 

Libraries that might wonder at yet another picture book Christmas story will find Miriam and Naomi: A Christmas Story easy to choose and highly recommend to a wide range of patrons. It’s an expressive, powerful creation that moves beyond the typical trappings of a Christmas miracle to reveal the heart of kindness, generosity, and a joyful approach to life and dealing with others.

Miriam and Naomi: A Christmas Story

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