Tag: Monthly Book Review Features

Monthly Features – August 2026

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The Weight of Snow by Sal Nudo

I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest opinion.

Synopsis: The past doesn’t wash away. It just freezes over.

For fourteen years, Alex Neitzel has lived a life built on a foundation of silence and blood money. To the residents of Champaign-Urbana, he is a wealthy, solitary remote copywriter. To his teenage children, Sammy and Cecelia, he is a ghost—a cold, self-absorbed father who nurses a bottle of Scotch in a silent house where nobody truly talks.

But Alex is living in a prison of his own making, haunted by a brutal midnight memory: his brother Trevor, dead at the bottom of a frozen playground structure in Cameron Park. Every night at exactly 2:49 a.m., his fracturing mind punishes him with the phantom echoes of that horrific winter night.

Then, a knock comes at the front door.

Two local cold-case detectives are rattling old trees, armed with a deathbed confession from a witness who knows too much about the money Alex inherited after the “accident.” As the psychological chess match with the police tightens around him, Alex panics. Desperate to find an escape hatch, he risks everything on a shadowy, international investment opportunity in Brazil—only to find himself blindly stepping into the trap of a lethal predator.

With his fortune stolen, his children severing ties, and the authorities closing in, Alex is forced to engineer the ultimate exit strategy: staging his own death on the freezing waters of Lake Michigan.

A haunting, slow-burn exploration of guilt, isolation, and familial decay, The Weight of Snow is a gripping literary noir character study that asks a terrifying question: How far can a man run when the monster he’s fleeing is himself?

Summary: The Weight of Snow is a short psychological crime thriller about guilt, paranoia, family dysfunction, and the impossibility of escaping your own past. Rather than building its suspense around the question of whether Alex committed a crime, the story focuses on what happens when the consequences of that crime finally begin closing in fourteen years later. I especially liked the irony of Alex, a man who has spent years living a lie, becoming the victim of an elaborate con when he desperately searches for a way to disappear. The ending is bleak but fitting and reinforces the idea that Alex’s real prison has never been a physical place.

I would recommend this to readers who enjoy morally complicated protagonists, psychological crime fiction, dysfunctional family dynamics, stories about guilt and consequences, and shorter thrillers that move quickly. Readers who prefer traditional mysteries with a concealed culprit may find this less mystery driven than expected, since Alex’s guilt is revealed relatively early. It is much more about watching a guilty man unravel. 

See the full review here: The Weight of Snow
Purchase here

 

Daughter of the Golden Realm by Eva Barber

I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest opinion.

Synopsis: Emery inherits a mystical necklace and a cryptic warning of its importance to humanity’s survival. When her mother’s body vanishes, Emery leads a band of refugees into a desolate, post-apocalyptic world and an eerie underground city, ruled by unscrupulous and immortal beings. Grieving her mother’s death, haunted by visions emitted by the necklace, and pursued by assassins enhanced by the technology her mother had invented, she uncovers a conspiracy that stretches from a dying Earth to the fabric of the universe itself. But things get even more complicated when a mysterious woman kidnaps her beloved Peter. She and her small group race against time to find him and stop a cosmic threat. Once again, destiny forces Emery to embrace her fate, which is far greater and more terrifying than she ever imagined, and to make an impossible choice.

Summary: Daughter of the Golden Realm is an ambitious mix of post-apocalyptic science fiction, dystopian rebellion, fantasy, mythology, romance, and family drama. The story follows Emery as she and her companions continue searching for answers about the destroyed Earth, the Masters, the mysterious golden necklace, and Emery’s own connection to forces she still does not fully understand.

I think this book would appeal most to readers who enjoy genre-blending speculative fiction, complicated world-building, found and biological family dynamics, environmental themes, supernatural or science-based powers, dystopian resistance stories, and romances built around the idea of soulmates finding one another across impossible circumstances. Because this story continues a much larger series mythology, I would definitely recommend reading the preceding Dark World books first rather than treating this as a standalone.

See the full review here: Daughter of the Golden Realm
Purchase here

 

Blood Gilt by Jessica Housand

I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest opinion.

Synopsis: In a world shaped by war, blood, and betrayal, Alejandro Whitmore has spent years trying to outrun the ghosts of his past. Torn from his family during the brutal Salvadoran civil conflict and raised in the shadow of cartel power, he now lives between two identities—American on paper, but haunted by the violence that forged him.

When a dangerous assignment forces him back to El Salvador, Alejandro is thrust into a web of corruption, political manipulation, and buried family secrets. As he reconnects with the sister he lost, confronts the father who weaponized his life, and falls for a woman who may be hiding secrets of her own, Alejandro must decide whether redemption is possible for someone born into bloodshed.

Dark, gritty, and emotionally charged, Blood Gilt is a sweeping crime drama about survival, loyalty, generational trauma, and the cost of freedom. Perfect for readers who love layered antiheroes, cartel thrillers, and emotionally complex literary suspense.

Summary: Blood Gilt is a dark, character-driven crime thriller that blends historical fiction, romance, and psychological drama. It has the conspiracies, betrayals, organized crime, and high-stakes confrontations you’d expect from the genre, but it spends just as much time exploring the emotional cost of living inside that world. Readers looking for an action-heavy thriller should know this is a slower burn, while those who enjoy layered characters, morally gray decisions, and suspense built around relationships as much as danger will likely find a lot to enjoy. 

See the full review here: Blood Gilt
Purchase here

 

Echoes of a Wild Girl’s Drum by Tiffini Johnson

I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest opinion.

Synopsis: I was seven when they tied me to the stake.

They wanted me to burn, burn, burn like Nángi. I threw blackjack petals in her ashes, but not even the strongest herbs can make dead mothers come back. Nobody threw blackjack petals for me, but when my turn came, a boy broke rhythm for me instead — the village drummer, the Commander’s ward — and he was scarred for it.

So I ran. Into the forest, into the dark. I learned to sleep where nothing could find me and eat what the forest gave and trust tree kangaroos and cuscuses before people. I forgot almost everything — except the boy who cut me loose from the stake. Except the tree where we carved a spiral with hair and blood and a poem nobody knows. Except the night we climbed so high the whole sky cracked open and I told him there were a million hundred stars. Except our beat — tap boom tap, tap boom boom tap — that belongs to no one else in the world. He was the only thing I kept.

Women burn in this village. They burn for sick children. For failed crops. For the herbs they keep. Some are tired. Some are angry. Some pass secrets. But I didn’t decide to come back. Something small needed me to.

And now they know: the witch’s daughter didn’t die twelve summers ago.

I know the sound the drum makes before whispers spread like fire.
The air already smells like smoke.

Only now the boy who once broke the rhythm is a man.
And I am no longer seven years old.

Summary: This was a beautifully written and emotionally powerful novel that stayed with me long after I finished it. It’s the kind of book that asks difficult questions about humanity while still leaving room for hope. I’d recommend it to readers who enjoy emotional historical fiction, character-driven stories, literary fiction, and novels that explore resilience, culture, and hope after unimaginable loss.

See the full review here: Echoes of a Wild Girl’s Drum
Purchase here

 

A Cakewalk to Memphis by Brenda C. Wilson

I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest opinion.

Synopsis: In the sweltering summer of 1958, the Jim Crow South is a landscape defined by danger, secrecy, and the need to survive.

A Cakewalk to Memphis, the debut novel by Charlotte-based author Brenda Wilson, follows Big Sallie Morning, a determined Black cleaning woman from Memphis who becomes caught up in a desperate search for her pregnant niece’s missing husband. What starts as a personal mission quickly turns into a dangerous journey across a segregated South, where each bus stop presents new risks and every encounter holds hidden significance.

Big Sallie is a force of nature. Intelligent, observant, and shaped by a past she has never fully escaped, she navigates a world of smoky nightclubs, backroom gambling halls, bootlegging routes, and counterfeit schemes operating just beneath everyday life. As she seeks answers, she is also forced to confront buried parts of her own history, including the reputation that follows her from town to town.

Brenda Wilson vividly details the era with rich Southern textures. The novel moves through dry county beer joints with deceptively cheerful names, crowded juke joints where blues music carries both joy and sorrow, and a society defined by strict racial boundaries and constant danger. Each setting reveals another layer of a world where survival depends on quick thinking, tough choices, and knowing when to speak up or remain silent.

Inspired by family stories, including an aunt who was jailed in the 1940s and a cousin who became a blues singer, Wilson weaves personal history into a broader story of resilience and reckoning. Cakewalk to Memphis is a compelling historical novel about one woman’s journey through a fractured time and the strong pull of truth, memory, and responsibility.

Summary: A Cakewalk to Memphis feels like historical fiction crossed with a Southern mystery, with a little noir and a lot of family drama mixed in. It’s funny in places, genuinely tense in others, and much more interested in complicated women than perfect ones. Sallie’s journey starts as an attempt to find one missing man, but underneath that is a story about guilt, faith, motherhood, secrets, and how difficult it is to keep the people you love from making mistakes of their own. Readers who enjoy Southern historical fiction, strong older female protagonists, family secrets, historical mysteries, blues and Memphis settings, and books about complicated women trying to make peace with who they used to be may enjoy this one. 

See the full review here: A Cakewalk to Memphis
Purchase here

 

Monthly Features – July 2026

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Eidolon: From the Case Files of the OHR by C.L. Stiles

I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest opinion.

Synopsis: When a man vanishes from a Kansas City diner — pulled through reality by forces no one can explain — Nathan Quipp knows it’s only the beginning.

As director of the Office of Hidden Realms, Nathan has spent his career keeping the supernatural world invisible to those who can’t handle the truth. But something is moving even deeper beneath the surface. Ley lines are surging. Cross-realm incursions are rising. And a near-divine source whispers the need to find the missing man — the Eidolon.

Now Nathan’s team is scattered across two continents and twelve centuries, racing to piece together a mystery that reaches from the streets of Kansas City to ancient Stonehenge and back again. The Veiled world is fracturing. The Unveiled are running out of time.

And something much older than the OHR is finally paying attention.

Eidolon: From the Case Files of the OHR is the first installment of the OHR Case Files.

Summary: Eidolon is an urban fantasy/paranormal mystery novel centered around the Office of Hidden Realms, a secret organization dealing with supernatural threats hidden beneath everyday life. The story mixes magical investigations, folklore, ghosts, fae, monsters, prophecies, and hidden conspiracies with a surprisingly emotional undercurrent about grief and identity. The tone balances humor, mystery, horror, and found-family energy while gradually building toward a much larger supernatural conflict. Readers who enjoy The Dresden Files, Supernatural, Men in Black-style organizations, SCP-style lore, paranormal procedurals, or ensemble urban fantasy casts will probably have a great time with this. 

See the full review here: Eidolon: From the Case Files of the OHR
Purchase here

 

The Meaning of Androsia by Eric Bush

I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest opinion.

Synopsis: It was a time of steam locomotives and horses, of city-states and principalities ruled by monarchs – but it did not take place in the past. It was a time of civil war between Protestants and Catholics over direct access to the Messiah – but the Messiah wasn’t Jesus. It was a place where Orthodox spires dotted the landscape, and people addressed each other with matronymics instead of patronymics – but it wasn’t a Slavic country, or even in Europe or Asia. It was a culture that venerated the great writers and composers from prior centuries – but their names were not Bach, or Shakespeare, or Beethoven. And when mid-winter rolled around, everyone celebrated the traditional holiday by decorating fir trees – but it was not Christmas. In short, it was a time very much like past centuries of our own – except that it was different. Something had happened to change the course of history.

Thus begins the story of Ilya Erynovich and Katerinya Emlynovna, a lifelong search for the meaning of something from the past. Ilya doesn’t know where he came from, or how old he is. He seems to know things he couldn’t possibly have learned. He has skills he couldn’t possibly have acquired. He is sought out, and sometimes captured, by political and religious leaders, and constantly followed by anonymous stalkers.

At first, he doesn’t even know that he is Ilya. He wakes up one evening in a train station, unable to remember anything about himself, including his own name. As he searches for someone – anyone – who might know who he is, he encounters Katerinya, a young writer, who takes an interest in his predicament and offers to help. She takes him in, and although strangers, they soon develop a mutual affection that blossoms into love.

This turns out to be good memory therapy for Ilya, and he recovers his knowledge of the last 20 years or so – but then it becomes stuck. He can’t remember anything prior to that. And it soon becomes clear to them that Ilya’s past self has left messages for his present self – there is something about the past that his present self needs to know – but the clues are cryptic and hard to decipher.

Over the course of a 24 year love affair, buffeted by political and religious intrigue, two epidemics, and a civil war, Ilya and Katerinya finally figure out who he really is…or was. But it’s not what either had expected.

Summary: The Meaning of Androsia is an ambitious speculative mystery that combines post-apocalyptic science fiction, romance, political intrigue, religion, genetics, philosophy, and alternate future history. It follows an amnesiac professor trying to discover who he is and why people are pursuing him, only for that personal mystery to gradually uncover a much larger story about a civilization that lost most of its connection to its own past.

I think this would especially appeal to readers who enjoy big-idea speculative fiction, stories about lost civilizations and reconstructed history, scientific mysteries, philosophical discussions about religion and knowledge, and slow-burning mysteries where seemingly minor clues eventually connect to a much larger explanation. Readers who enjoy a strong central romance alongside their science fiction may also really like Ilya and Katerinya. It will probably be a harder sell for readers who prefer very fast pacing or minimal exposition, because this is a long novel that frequently pauses the central plot for extended conversations about science, religion, history, literature, politics, and human behavior. 

See the full review here: The Meaning of Androsia
Purchase here

 

Monthly Features – April 2026

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SETTUP by TK Thoits

I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest opinion.

Synopsis: Respected neurologist and researcher Stella Murray was confident the FDA would approve the experimental medication based on its demonstrated superior efficacy. Knowing a serious side effect would not derail the approval process, she reports that a patient had a significant reaction to the investigational drug.

Shortly thereafter, Grand Rapids Detective Troy Evans is called to investigate the suspicious death of a Site Monitor who, he learns, worked with Murray. Evans asks Murray to educate him on the unfamiliar world of medical research. She discloses that conducting investigational drug studies has become a multibillion-dollar industry, with power brokers providing more oversight than the government.

When Murray informs Evans that a second Site Monitor has been killed, they team up to take down the corruption that is mercilessly burying unwelcome researchers and results of a promising drug trial.

Summary: Overall,  SETTUP is a fast, detail-heavy medical thriller that starts in the ER and expands into a layered story involving clinical trials, corporate pressure, and a criminal subplot. The medical realism is strong, and the tension builds as the threads begin to connect. The tone can shift a bit—especially with the assassin storyline—but it adds a darker, more unsettling edge. Best for readers who like medical dramas with conspiracy elements and multiple POVs rather than a single, straightforward narrative. 

See the full review here: SETTUP
Purchase here

The Knight’s Last Stand by Bear Pardun

I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest opinion.

Synopsis: In a world where gods walk among mortals and divine tyranny crushes the innocent, one knight’s investigation into ritual murders uncovers a conspiracy that threatens to consume an entire city. Commander Victus Andreas discovers that the seemingly random cult killings in Lindly are part of a far darker plan—the dark elven goddess Lestar seeks to harvest the souls of every citizen to feed her master’s insatiable hunger for power.
When Victus returns from his annual pilgrimage to find his city overrun by disguised dark elves posing as holy inquisitors, he must rally a small band of loyal soldiers, his adopted son Aris, and unlikely allies to stand against overwhelming odds. As ancient magic tears through the city and divine politics threaten to destroy everything he’s sworn to protect, Victus faces an impossible choice: save his people or preserve his own soul.
With breathtaking battles, complex characters wrestling with duty and honor, and a magic system that explores the cost of power, Battle of Lindly launches an epic fantasy series that challenges the very nature of divine authority. In Bear Pardun’s richly imagined world, heroes are forged not by destiny, but by the courage to defy gods themselves.

Summary:  Overall, I found this book to be a gritty, sincere fantasy that leans hard into classic themes of honor, sacrifice, and legacy. The writing had an emotional core — especially the father-son relationship and the relentless sense of duty.  If you like fantasy that is sincere about honor, duty, and sacrifice, then this book could be for you. 

See the full review here: The Knight’s Last Stand
Purchase here

Monthly Features – December 2025

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The Orichalcum Crown by J.J.N. Whitley

I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest opinion.

Synopsis: Makoto lost her mother to a battle she can’t remember before being adopted into the Kauneus Empire’s royal family. Upon her eighteenth birthday, she receives her mother’s necklace from the emperor. Makoto’s memories slowly return, haunting her with visions of her lost sister and her mother’s murder.

She is torn between the family and answers awaiting her across the sea and the relationships with her family, best friend, and his handsome brother. Makoto fears returning home will cast doubt upon her loyalty to the emperor and sever her from the family. After all, Kauneus has no need for a disloyal princess.

Makoto’s eldest adoptive sister, Athena, remains banished from Zenith Palace for uncovering the emperor’s secret bastard. She is visited by her former dragon uncle, who shares a rumor that the emperor will be assassinated during the annual ball. Athena has no choice but to break her exile to save her father. Returning home risks death, but she’ll pay any price for her family’s safety.

As night falls upon the ball, lurking shadows and hidden agendas threaten the empire’s fragile peace. Makoto and Athena must navigate the delicate lines between loyalty and betrayal and learn what they are willing to sacrifice for freedom, truth, and family.

Summary: The Orichalcum Crown may be best suited for readers who enjoy character-driven fantasy, political intrigue, and emotionally grounded coming-of-age stories. Fans of epic fantasy who value internal conflict over constant action will appreciate its pacing and tone. It also works well for readers drawn to themes of grief, found family, and morally complex authority figures, making it a strong choice for those who enjoy thoughtful, atmospheric fantasy with emotional weight. 

See the full review here: The Orichalcum Crown
Purchase here

Portraits of Decay by J.R. Blanes

I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest opinion.

Synopsis: Up-and-coming young artist Jefferson Fontenot has everything going for him: The hot New Orleans art scene has noticed him, and he’s finally found his true love, Nevaeh Parker. But Fontenot’s bright future hides a darkness known as Gemma Landry— the artist’s lover and art scene influencer. Gemma believes Jefferson’s talent holds the key to her seizing control of the popular Carondelet Street Gallery. But when Gemma discovers Jefferson’s infidelity, she enslaves the artist with a poison she acquired from swamp-dwelling witch Mirlande St. Pierre.

Now trapped in a rotting body and plagued by hellish visions, Jefferson finds himself reduced to a zombie-like servant for his unhinged ex, while Nevaeh is forced to embrace her past, hoping to save the man she loves. As the dark curse courses through Jefferson’s veins, everyone involved soon discovers—in the most brutal of fashions—the terror that awaits when you cross Gemma Landry.

Summary: Portraits of Decay is not a comfortable read, but it is an effective one. It examines obsession, artistic ego, and emotional captivity with an unflinching eye, allowing its characters to be ugly, damaged, and honest. The horror lies less in the supernatural than in how easily control can masquerade as love, and how ambition can justify cruelty. This is a novel that trusts its readers to sit with discomfort and draw their own conclusions, and it is stronger for that restraint.

It will resonate most with readers who enjoy psychological horror, literary horror, and character-driven dark fiction. It is especially well suited for those interested in stories about artistic identity, toxic relationships, and emotional manipulation. Fans of slow-burn tension, morally complex characters, and atmospheric settings will likely find this novel both disturbing and deeply engaging.

See the full review here: Portraits of Decay
Purchase here

Monthly Features – November 2025

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The Amalfi Secret by Dean Reineking and Catherine Reineking

I received a copy of this book from the authors in exchange for my honest opinion.

Synopsis: When Gabe Roslo arrives in Amalfi, Italy, a long-awaited reunion with his grandparents takes a tragic turn. His beloved grandfather is dead—and a cryptic diary left behind is Gabe’s only clue to the mystery surrounding his sudden death. But what starts as a personal tragedy quickly spirals into a high-stakes international puzzle.

Teaming up with Anna, a resourceful Roman local, Gabe follows a trail of hidden truths that stretches from the stunning Amalfi coast to the corridors of global power. Secret codes, powerful enemies, and a legacy of deception pull them into a world where nothing is as it seems. With each twist, they are forced to question their allies and uncover dark secrets that could shift the global balance of power.

But as the walls close in, Gabe and Anna must risk everything to expose the truth before it’s buried forever. Will they decipher the mystery and reveal the sinister forces at play? Or will they become the next victims of The Amalfi Secret?
Perfect for fans of Dan Brown and Robert Ludlum, The Amalfi Secret is a pulse-pounding thriller that will keep you guessing until the final, breathtaking twist.

Summary: Overall, The Amalfi Secret is a richly layered political and historical thriller that blends mystery, faith, and love against a vivid European backdrop. It’s ideal for readers who enjoy intelligent thrillers, religious or historical mysteries, dual-timeline narratives, and character-driven suspense. 

See the full review here: The Amalfi Secret
Purchase here

Blade Rider by Jaime A. Sevilla

I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest opinion.

Synopsis: In a future where stars map the last frontier and infinite space paves the road to dreams, Raven stands at the precipice of her world. In a vibrant, multi-species society filled with possibilities, she yearns to fly amongst the stars as an Air Ranger, an elite group of space pilots that navigate the cosmos and safeguard the world.

There’s only one catch: females aren’t allowed.

As Raven gets closer to her aspirations and learns what it takes to join them, she discovers lasting friendships,  new challenges, and what it ultimately means to be a ranger.

Can Raven push beyond the boundaries of societal norms and break through the stratosphere of glass ceilings, or will her star-filled quest for acceptance remain out of reach? Join her on this high-stakes,  interstellar ride and experience her exciting journey as she blazes her own path amongst the stars.

Based on the musical by Jaime A. Sevilla, “Blade Rider” spins an electrifying and poignant tale of courage, determination, and the relentless pursuit of dreams.

Summary: Blade Rider is perfect for readers who love hopeful science fiction, YA adventure, and music-infused storytelling. Think Ender’s Game if it had a soundtrack and a heroine who refuses to take no for an answer. Sevilla’s background as a composer gives the book a cinematic flow: every chapter feels scored.

For anyone who ever dreamed of flying — or just fighting for the chance to try — Blade Rider delivers that spark. 

See the full review here: Blade Rider
Purchase here

 

The Gift by Eva Barber

I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest opinion.

Synopsis: Emery travels through the dark dimension guided by dark shadows. She drops into a black hole and plummets into a desolate land that she believes is thousands of years in the past. She has to rely on her instincts to survive and her unwavering spirit to endure the harsh conditions.

A tribal chief’s daughter, Visla, finds her after she ingests poisonous berries and saves her life. Their friendship blossoms as they discover they share similar traits and both mourn the loss of their mothers.

Emery learns of the existence of the “bad people” whose description matches that of her mother. She sets out on a mission to find them. Visla leaves the tribe after learning her father held secrets from her. She joins Emery in her quest, which also becomes hers. But the “bad people” find them first, imprison Emery, and threaten to change Visla into a “superior” being against her will.

Emery escapes her prison using her powers and finds herself in a bizarre underground city with advanced technology outpacing the Stone Age. In her quest to find Visla, she befriends two beings whose humanity she questions. A brother and sister help her for reasons they do not fully understand. Emery’s presence cast doubts on their lives. They begin to suspect it is imposed on them by powerful “superior” beings. Looming over their quest to find Visla is the fear of change inflicted on those who rebel.

Captured again by the enigmatic “bad people”, Emery finds unexpected help from an unfathomable being whose identity further deepens the mystery surrounding her.

In the strange gray city, she stumbles on an artifact that shatters her understanding of the world around her and deepens the mystery further, implicating her mother in humanity’s most atrocious acts performed in the name of progress and survival. To find the answers, she forgoes the safety of the world on the surface and dives back into the underground, discovering more secrets and meeting the Masters—the superior beings with unmatched cruelty and depravity.

She barely escapes with her life, with even more questions, but with a budding understanding of what she has to do to get the answers and continue with her mission. If she’s going to save humanity, she’ll have to make choices that weigh losing what is most precious to her against the world’s survival.

Summary: Overall, The Gift  is a genre-bending blend of science fiction, fantasy, and metaphysical adventure, perfect for readers who enjoy character-driven journeys, time travel, and philosophical explorations of love, purpose, and destiny. Think The Time Traveler’s Wife meets Interstellar, with a touch of spiritual myth. It’s beautifully written and emotionally charged, ideal for fans of romantic sci-fi, cosmic or multiverse fiction, and stories where imagination meets heart. 

See the full review here: The Gift
Purchase here

 

Monthly Features – October 2025

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Hummingbird Moonrise by Sherri L. Dodd

I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest opinion.

Synopsis: The past two years have taken their toll on Arista Kelly. Once an eternal optimist, now she has faced the darkness and must recalibrate what true happiness means for her. Meanwhile, Shane, her ex-boyfriend, is pulling all the right moves to help keep her sane from her heightening paranoia. But it doesn’t help that Iris, her Great Aunt Bethie’s friend, has disappeared.

Still, one additional trial remains. While searching for Iris, Bethie and Arista stumble upon a grand revelation in the eccentric woman’s home. With the discovery, they realize their run of chaos and loss of kin may have roots in a curse that dates back to the 1940s—the time when their family patriarch first built Arista’s cottage in the redwoods and crafted his insightful Ouija table.

This pursuit will not follow their accustomed recipe of adrenalized action, but the high stakes remain. Will the mysterious slow burn of unfolding events finally level Arista’s entire world or be fully extinguished, once and for all?

Summary: Overall, Hummingbird Moonrise is a paranormal mystery that works because it never loses its human touch. Yes, there are curses, possessions, and supernatural forces, but there’s also cinnamon bread, inside jokes, and the kind of family loyalty that keeps people moving forward even when the odds feel impossible. What I admired most is the way Dodd lets the suspense simmer without sacrificing warmth. The book left me both unsettled and comforted—a rare combination that lingers long after the last page

See the full review here: Hummingbird Moonrise
Purchase here

 

Unborn by Eva Barber

I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest opinion.

Synopsis: Olesya was not born like other people but was found in the Siberian Forest by a couple unable to have children. Plagued by mysterious visions and dreams, she struggles to fit into a society both as a socially inept but brilliant child and as she becomes part of a research team to discover the nature of dark matter. The findings of this discovery never make it to the scientific community as the project leader goes missing and the physics lab blows up, destroyed by a powerful foe with seemingly noble intentions.

Seattle detectives question Olesya in connection with the explosion and the disappearance of her boss. She becomes a person of interest until she herself goes missing. From her kidnappers, she learns that her parents, knowing she lacked a belly button, suspected she was created by the Russian government as part of a scientific experiment, and emigrated to the USA to hide and protect her. She also learns she possesses powers related to dark matter and of the existence of a brother held captive since his discovery by the Russian government. Even though she suspects her kidnappers’ interest in her and their motivations aren’t so noble, she joins them in rescuing her brother. Catastrophic world events following the successful rescue force her to continue working with her foes to save the world from destruction.

While working to save the world, Olesya experiences a moral dilemma and becomes someone she never thought she’d be—a mother. Olesya learns of mysterious chambers scattered around the world, and her visions return to haunt her, until she opens the chambers and learns their secrets, wishing she hadn’t. Now she faces the heart-wrenching realization that she must travel into a dark dimension to save the world from self-destruction. Worse yet, her daughter, Emery, is the key to humanity’s salvation and must follow her mother once she becomes an adult because she is the only being who can travel where no one else can to restore balance to the universe and return with an extraordinary gift for humanity. But powerful entities have reasons to keep the gift away from humanity and will do anything to stop her.

Summary: Overall, Unborn is a haunting, beautiful story about science, motherhood, and the unknowable threads that connect us. It’s the kind of book that lingers quietly after you’ve finished it — the kind that leaves you wondering whether what you just read was speculative fiction or something closer to a modern myth.

If you like stories that mix atmosphere and emotion — think The Time Traveler’s Wife, Never Let Me Go, or The Daughter of Doctor Moreau — you’ll find something to love here. It’s for readers who enjoy a story that makes you think and feel at the same time; readers who don’t mind when mystery lingers even after the answers come. 

See the full review here: Unborn
Purchase here

 

Smoke on the Wind by Syvila Weatherford

I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest opinion.

Synopsis: “Smoke on the Wind” is a captivating tale that weaves the perils and dangers encountered on the Western frontier by Will Lawton, a young Black cowboy, after kidnapping then wedding his young Native American bride, Niabi. He plods a path packed with uncertainty that ultimately winds its way to an unthinkable opportunity – a race for free land.

Follow the characters of Smoke: the beautiful Louisa Ortega, who haunts the memory of the Chief’s son, Nashoba; Captain Horton, head of Fort Townsend, charged with keeping peace between settlers and tribes, and Dakota Sam, a rambunctious Civil War veteran attached to his military blues and backwoodsman ways.

This is the second book in an epic series, following the success of Weatherford’s first novel, “Blessings from the Four Winds.”

In this sequel, new characters are introduced: Liao Ming Chow, a Chinese immigrant, Sargent Thomas of the Buffalo Soldiers, and Mr. Todd Morgan the railroad tycoon. Niabi and Will raise two children and enjoy the protective company of their horses: Rodeo and FireTip. Their journey is marked by resilience, the spirit of community, and the ongoing struggle for safety and belonging.

Summary: Overall, Smoke on the Wind is a vivid continuation of America’s untold stories — where race, heritage, and faith collide. It’s tender and unflinching, full of voices that feel like they’ve been waiting a century to be heard. Weatherford writes history the way it deserves to be written: not as distant fact, but as living memory. For readers who are drawn to immersive, historical fiction.

See the full review here: Smoke on the Wind
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Monthly Features – September 2025

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The Boy with the Thorn in His Side by L.J. Robson

I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest opinion.

Synopsis: For most of my life, I felt like something was wrong – like I was living with a shadow I couldn’t see, a weight I couldn’t name. My childhood was marked by fear, confusion, and memories that never quite fit together. I knew there were pieces missing, but I never expected the truth to be more terrifying than my worst nightmares.

This is my story. A journey through trauma, survival, and the battle to reclaim my own mind. It’s about the ghosts of the past that never stopped whispering, the questions no one wanted to answer, and the slow unravelling of a reality I had been forced to forget.

Told with raw honesty, The Boy with the Thorn in His Side is not just an account of what happened to me – it’s a testament to resilience, a fight for acceptance, and a message to anyone who has ever felt trapped by their own past.

Sometimes, the truth is the hardest thing to face. But in facing it, we find the strength to break free.

Summary: Overall, The Boy with the Thorn in His Side is a raw, unfiltered memoir of trauma, resilience, and healing. L. J. Robson takes you into the shadows of his childhood home, unafraid to expose the scars of abuse and the chaos of survival. It’s heavy, often heartbreaking, but threaded with moments of hope and honesty. A difficult yet rewarding read.

See the full review here: The Boy with the Thorn in His Side
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The Hidden Life by Robert Castle

I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest opinion.

Synopsis: The police have just surrounded the hereditary mansion of Gladwynne Biddleton. He has just shot and wounded his security chief, Dominic Kittredge, and killed Dominic’s wife, Theresa. As he watches the siege unfold on TV, historical visions besiege Gladwynne’s mind. By turns he is a B-17 bombardier; an SS officer tasked with burning the bodies of Adolf Hitler and Eva Braun; a fugitive pursued by the celebrated Nazi hunter, Simon Wiesenthal; and a co-conspirator in the assassination of Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife, Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg.

Between the television coverage and the pageant in his head, Gladwynne becomes dissociated from what has just actually happened. Fixation on his immediate physical needs and with life in the mansion tend to conceal the enormity of his crime from him. He descends into a narrowing and harrowing spiral of isolation.

Why did he shoot his closest confidant, Dominic? We don’t quite know. But in Dominic’s thirty year diary of serving Gladwynne we begin to find clues. In this chronicle, Dominic recounts the “golden age” of their association, a time when the two men devised a mock nation with Gladwynne as its center. With Dominic’s encouragement, Gladwynne came gradually to conceive of his own physical person as a sovereign state, competing diplomatically with other world states, persistently resisting their efforts to deprive him of his sovereignty. Between the hostile international powers out to get him and the police now at his door, will Gladwynne’s confusion become total?

Summary: Overall, Robert Castle’s The Hidden Life is a dark, ambitious novel that intertwines wealth, madness, and loyalty into a portrait of a man unraveling. Both unsettling and absorbing, it’s a story that lingers long after the final page, not just for what it says about one family, but for what it suggests about the hidden lives we all construct.

See the full review here: The Hidden Life
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Settle Down by Ritt Deitz

I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest opinion.

Synopsis: A college kid endowed with hypnotic powers keeps telling himself there’s got to be more waiting for him after graduation than family in the neighborhood and an okay catering job. Maybe he just needs to get his story straight.

Kenny McLuher is far from his native Wisconsin, in his last year at the University of Virginia, majoring in history with no idea what he’s going to do with it. At his catering job, Kenny’s old Southern folktales keep putting his co-workers to sleep, and in Kenny’s dreams President Abraham Lincoln sure seems to be trying to tell him something.

Maybe the pieces will come back together after graduation when Kenny returns to Madison, where he can ask the big question: What is home, anyway?

Summary: Overall, Settle Down is a warm, heartfelt coming-of-age tale about finding home in unexpected places. It’s a quietly triumphant debut that will resonate with anyone who’s ever wondered where they truly belong. 

See the full review here: Settle Down
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How Deep is the Wound by Antonieta Contreras

I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest opinion.

Synopsis: Finally, a Clear Path Through the Confusion of Modern Trauma Language

If you’ve ever wondered whether your struggles “count” as trauma, felt overwhelmed by conflicting mental health advice, or questioned why some healing approaches work for others but not for you—this book offers the clarity you’ve been seeking. Today’s mental health conversations have reduced the rich complexity of human suffering into a single box labeled “trauma,” used for both devastating life-altering experiences and everyday disappointments—a confusion that serves no one well. This tendency leaves people either minimizing genuine injuries or pathologizing normal life challenges.

Antonieta Contreras introduces an approach that distinguishes different types of psychological wounds based on their actual depth and impact on your nervous system. Drawing from years of clinical practice, extensive research, and personal recovery, she provides the missing understanding to accurately assess your experiences and match them with effective strategies.

You’ll discover the differences between:

  • Emotional Pain: Hurts that sting but don’t fundamentally alter your system
  • Emotional Wounds: Deeper impacts that linger after the initial hurt
  • Traumatization: The active process of seeking safety
  • Trauma: Deep injuries that rewire how you perceive the world

Learn why using a hammer for surgery or a scalpel for construction both create problems—and how matching your healing approach to your actual wound depth accelerates recovery while preventing unnecessary suffering.

Discover how to honor your pain without being defined by it, moving from identity-based labels toward agency-focused growth that reclaims your power to heal and thrive. This book examines how your unique nervous system responds to overwhelm.

Real-World Applications

  • Assess childhood experiences accurately without minimizing or catastrophizing
  • Recognize trauma bonding and attachment wounds that keep you from living fully
  • Understand why some relationships feel impossible to leave
  • Navigate narcissistic abuse and emotional manipulation
  • Distinguish between healthy processing and rumination that reinforces pain
  • Build genuine resilience based on nervous system regulation

This book is for:

  • Anyone confused about whether their experiences constitute “trauma”
  • People who’ve tried multiple healing approaches without lasting results
  • Individuals stuck in cycles of pain, insecurity, lack of motivation or satisfaction, or relationship difficulties
  • Those seeking to understand childhood experiences and their adult impact
  • Anyone wanting to move beyond victim identity toward empowered recovery
  • Mental health professionals seeking more nuanced assessment tools and practical exercises for their clients

When you understand the actual depth of your wounds, you can choose interventions that match their severity. This prevents both under-treatment that leaves you unresolved and over-treatment that creates unnecessary pathology. You will spend less time on ineffective approaches and focus your energy on strategies that are effective for your specific situation.

This book avoids both toxic positivity and victim mentality, acknowledging real suffering while emphasizing human capacity for growth and adaptation. Learn to work with your nervous system’s intelligence rather than against it. You’ll finish with practical tools for regulation, boundaries, and building the safety your system needs to thrive.

Stop wondering if your pain is “enough” to deserve attention. Learn to honor your experiences and discover what it means to finally feel yourself again. Transform your relationship with your own story and step into the clarity, agency, and hope that effective healing provides.

Summary: Overall, Antonieta Contreras’s How Deep is the Wound?  blends clinical expertise with accessible storytelling to help readers understand the spectrum of emotional pain—ranging from everyday struggles to deep trauma—and argues that distinguishing between them is key to healing. By challenging the overuse of trauma language while offering practical exercises and compassionate guidance, Contreras reframes pain as a sign of our innate adaptability rather than evidence of brokenness, ultimately encouraging readers to approach their wounds with clarity, agency, and hope.

See the full review here: How Deep is the Wound?
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Monthly Features – August 2025

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Hunting the Red Fox by W. Kenneth Tyler, Jr.

I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest opinion.

Synopsis: This is the story of Perry Barnes, a multi-talented man who made one bad teenage mistake in the weeks leading up to his high school graduation in 1942. On a lark he “borrowed” some jewelry that wasn’t technically his. The local judge took it personally and gave Perry the choice of an assignment to a newly formed Army special operations unit at the start of World War II or go to jail for 15 years. As a result he winds up being trained by the United States government in the skills and arts of sabotage, killing, self-preservation, espionage and ultimately how to be a first class jewel thief.

Along the way he finds himself in the movie business in the Hollywood of the 1950’s, then uses his immense physical skills in pursuit of excellence as a journeyman golfer on the PGA tour of that era with the likes of Ben Hogan, Jimmy Demaret and Arnold Palmer. Before the adventure is over Perry has stolen the world famous Mecklenburg Diamond from a known jewel thief, worth a fortune, with the intention of returning it to the authorities for love, of all things.

All the while he is befriended by the most bewildering array of characters, some real, some not, who add marvelous vignettes of clever humor, situational intrigue, and steamy romance as he earnestly pursues the one goal he covets most: finding true love, martial companionship and family.

Summary: Overall, Hunting the Red Fox blends memoir-style storytelling with novelistic suspense, leaving readers to weigh for themselves whether Perry Barnes was simply a man with colorful tales or a true “Red Fox” whose life was stranger than fiction. Readers who enjoy historical fiction thrillers full of suspense, espionage, and memoir-style narratives may enjoy this book. 

See the full review here: Hunting the Red Fox
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Like Driftwood on the Salish Sea by Richard L. Levine

I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest opinion.

Synopsis: When they met in the fourth grade, it was love at first sight for Mitchell Brody and Jessica Ramirez. He was the freckle-faced kid who stood up for her honor when he silenced the class bully who’d been teasing her because of her accent. She was the new kid whose family moved to San Juan Island, Washington, from San Juan, Puerto Rico, and whom Mitch had thought was the most beautiful girl in the world.

She was his salvation from a strict upbringing. He was her knight in shining armor who had always looked out for her. Through the many years of porch-swinging, cotton-candied summer nights, autumn harvest festivals, and hand-in-hand walks planning for the ideal life together, they were inseparable…until 9/11, when the real world interrupted their Rockwell-esque small town life, and Mitch had joined the Marine Corps.

This is not just the story of a wounded warrior finally coming home to search for the love, and the world he abandoned twenty years before. It is also the story of a man who is seeking forgiveness and a way to ease the pain caused by every bad decision he’d ever made. It’s the story of a woman who, with strength and determination, rose up from the ashes of a shattered dream; but who never gave up hope that her one true love would return to her. As she once told an old friend: “Even before we met all those years ago, we were destined to be together in this life, and we will be together again, because even today we’re connected in a way that’s very special, and he needs to know about it before one of us leaves this earth.”

Summary: Overall, Like Driftwood on the Salish Sea is a thoughtful, unhurried story about coming home and facing the past you can’t outrun. Richard I. Levine gives us a main character shaped by war, haunted by loss, and pulled back to the San Juan Islands to reckon with love, regret, and responsibility. It’s a novel about memory and forgiveness, written with the patience of the place it inhabits. For readers who appreciate reflective, character-driven fiction rooted in a strong sense of setting, this one lingers like salt air long after you’ve finished the last page. Be ready to cry and happy reading!

See the full review here: Like Driftwood on the Salish Sea
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Monthly Features – July 2025

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MATE: A Novel in Twenty Games by Robert Castle

I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest opinion.

Synopsis: MATE: a novel in twenty games deals with marriage as a chess game. What distinguishes MATE from other stories and novels about the life and death of a relationship is its radical correlation of the actions of a husband and wife to chess moves. The logic of the novel suggests: chess is war reduced to a game; marriage is chess; marriage is war. That is the tragedy—marriage, as a human institution and human desire, is innately tragic. In marriage, one or the other partner feel obliged to annihilate the other in a struggle for…what? This is the central question and riddle of MATE.

Summary: Overall, sharp, exhausting, and wickedly funny, MATE argues that when love turns into a tournament, the best most of us can hope for is a well-fought draw—and maybe a laugh at the post-game press conference.

See the full review here: MATE
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Hearing My Secrets by Julie L. James

I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest opinion.

Synopsis: At first glance, Marion Andrews would seem to have it all. She’s just been promoted at her job at the top home design magazine where she’s worked for a few years on the creative team, and she’s earned it, even after a few blunders. Her personality and work ethic have taken her far, but not everything is as it seems in her personal life.

Marion’s been hiding her biggest insecurity for years, and now that she’s working closer with her handsome and austere boss, Mr. Shaler, she’s never felt more unsure about whether or not she should reveal it. Mr. Shaler isn’t as intimidating as Marion thought and she never expected things between them to be quite so friendly.

During her transition in her new position, she meets Charlie, a stranger who insinuates he knows things about her past. Charlie keeps popping up in her life, revealing more each time, and getting closer to Marion in every way.

Caught between her tragic past and her dramatic present life, Marion realizes she doesn’t have control over everything and has to find a way to navigate how she can “have it all” without the unforeseen drama that comes with it.

Summary: Overall,  this book is full of warmth, wit, and an eye for every day beauty. It offers a slow-burning romance wrapped in emotional honesty, making it a refreshingly grounded and relatable read. If you like romance with a splash of comedy, then this book could be for you.

See the full review here: Hearing My Secrets
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Monthly Features – June 2025

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A Song at Dead Man’s Cove by Ana Yudin

I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest opinion.

Synopsis: Never turn your back on the ocean…

2023. Another person has disappeared at Dead Man’s Cove in coastal Washington. Jaded from her job at the historic Irving Hotel, Zarya wanders to the scene of the tragedy. She has heard her Russian mother’s tales of rusalki—vengeful spirits that have died unclean deaths near a body of water—and never paid them much attention. But now, on a misty headland beside an abandoned lighthouse, Zarya locks eyes with the rusalka and is chosen to be the next victim. She must unearth the siren’s tragedy before Rusalka Week, a period in early summer when water-spirits roam freely on land.

1850. Josephine has just joined her newlywed husband in Washington, in the lighthouse erected by local businessman Hurley Irving. Marriage is not quite what she expected, and her melancholia grows over the course of the winter. The medic prescribes pregnancy as the antidote. What he doesn’t realize is how far Josephine is willing to go in order to become a mother.

The Gothic horror novel follows two protagonists, a modern-day misanthrope who fears intimacy and a woman in the Victorian era who thinks stealing love will make her whole. But how long can a person hide from love, and can love really be taken by force?

Summary: A Song at Dead Man’s Cove is a mesmerizing, multilayered ghost story that manages to be both otherworldly and deeply human. Ana Yudin delivers a narrative that is as much about ancestral trauma and unspoken truths as it is about sirens and shipwrecks. It’s a tale of women silenced by history—singing now through salt and shadow to be heard.

Highly recommended for fans of Silvia Moreno-Garcia, Erin Morgenstern, and readers who crave gothic atmosphere with a feminist edge.

See the full review here: A Song at Dead Man’s Cove
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With Time to Kill by Frank Ferrari

I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest opinion.

Synopsis: Everyone deserves a second chance, but how far would you go for one?

In the gritty streets of Edinburgh, Garry Plumb is about to find out. Living life on the periphery, never fitting in and always on his own, Garry’s world opens up when he meets Billy, the peculiar bus driver who has been watching him. Billy knows exactly how it feels to be ignored and his influence on Garry is immediate.

For the first time, Garry knows what it means to have his very own best friend. But this friendship is unlike any other, as Billy reveals how Garry can fix his entire life by changing his past.

But when the DCI John Waters, a relentless detective hunting a clever serial killer, enters Garry’s life, their friendship is put to the ultimate test.

Garry is willing to do anything for a second chance at life but, after meeting Billy, he has to ask would he kill for it?

This dark and captivating tale of self-discovery, murder and redemption will keep readers on the edge of their seats. With Time to Book One, a perfect blend of Scottish crime and sci-fi thriller, will leave you wanting more.

Summary: Overall, With Time to Kill is a gleefully dark mash-up of police procedural, serial-killer horror, and high-concept time travel. If you like your thrillers smart, Scottish, and just a little bit unhinged, clear an evening—you’ll race through this and immediately want the sequel.

See the full review here: With Time to Kill
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The People Who Paint Rocks by Michael Stewart Hansen

I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest opinion.

Synopsis: The People Who Paint Rocks is a multi-generational horror epic that transcends the boundaries of its genre. What begins as a period horror/drama in 1910 Santa Fe evolves into a chilling supernatural thriller by 1975, where a pregnant nurse and a detective tormented by spiritual doubt race to stop an evil older than memory. A moody, unsettling, and unrelentingly atmospheric work that grips the reader from the first page and refuses to let go.

The opening act is steeped in Western gothic, introducing us to Albert McCord, a grieving husband and father seeking revenge on the wolf that took his family. But the creature he hunts is no ordinary predator—it is the origin of something far more terrifying. Hansen cleverly seeds this early chapter with themes of loss, legacy, and the illusion of control. Albert’s struggle is both physical and existential, as he fends off his late wife’s scheming family while unknowingly chasing a malevolent force that will haunt generations to come.

Fast-forward to 1975, and the novel pivots into psychological horror, following Charlie, a pregnant nurse caught in a web of ritualistic murders, and Alonzo, a detective whose beliefs are unraveling. This shift is not jarring but deliberate, echoing the disjointed sense of time that defines much of the book’s unsettling tone. The narrative connection between Albert and the events six decades later becomes a dark thread pulling the characters toward an inevitable confrontation.

Summary: Overall, The People Who Paint Rocks is a gritty, big-hearted mash-up of western, creature feature, and generational ghost story. Come for the demon wolf and six-gun showdowns, stay for the way Hansen turns painted pebbles into the creepiest grave markers this side of Stephen King country. It’s messy, mean, and—when the sun finally comes up over Red Rocks—oddly hopeful.

See the full review here: The People Who Paint Rocks
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