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UnderratedReads is devoted to discovering underrated books and under-represented authors. We highlight hidden gems from around the world–honest reviews only, never pay-to-play.
Author Archives: J D Jung
The Big Clock – Kenneth Fearing (Introduction by Nicholas Christopher)
(Reviewed by J.D. Jung) Everyone adjusts their life to the big clock; sometimes it races forward, sometimes it moves backward. It impersonally reaches for some, and forgets others. George Stroud is one who it reaches for, but fortunately misses. Stroud, a married … Continue reading
Posted in Crime, Mystery and Thrillers, Lost and almost forgotten, Reviewers' Top Picks
Tagged 1940, book reviews, mystery, noir
2 Comments
A Vicky Hill Exclusive! – Hannah Dennison
(Reviewed by J.D. Jung) Buy it! Imagine that a young journalist is stuck in a small town working for a small newspaper, but is plagued with a huge imagination and a tendency to stumble into even bigger predicaments. You say … Continue reading
Posted in Modern Literary Fiction
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Oscar Wilde and the Vatican Murders – Gyles Brandreth
(Reviewed by J.D. Jung) What happens when the self-indulgent, romantic poet Oscar Wilde joins the reserved and pragmatic Arthur Conan Doyle to solve a mystery at the Vatican? You get Oscar Wilde and the Vatican Murders, a fun read featuring … Continue reading
Through These Veins – Anne Marie Ruff
(Reviewed by J.D. Jung) Imagine that a cure for AIDS is well within our reach but research is halted and discoveries kept from the public because it may not be lucrative enough. Author Anne Marie Ruff explores this premise as … Continue reading
A Conversation With Denise Hamilton
Crime novelist Denise Hamilton’s latest novel, Damage Control, is an exciting thriller featuring Maggie Silver, a “crisis manager” in a prominent PR firm. I spoke with Denise about the book, inspiration and her career. JDJ – With a background in journalism, what prompted … Continue reading
Posted in Conversations
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What You See in the Dark – Manuel Muñoz
(Reviewed by J.D. Jung) “The woman had to live before she could die…Even if it was the vulgarity of real life—the needs and the mistakes, but also the desire to correct them, the effort toward a forgiveness of herself. A … Continue reading
Posted in Crime, Mystery and Thrillers, Historical Fiction, Modern Literary Fiction
Tagged noir
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Elevating Overman: a novel – Bruce Ferber
(Reviewed by Don Jung) *Buy it!* Veteran sitcom writer Bruce Ferber is switching gears with his debut novel, Elevating Overman. This clever, off- beat, kooky story centers around a 55-year-old loser who is experiencing a mid-life crisis. He realizes the … Continue reading
Posted in Humor & Satire
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Damage Control – Denise Hamilton
Reviewed by JD Jung Buy It! “Does the past ever really go away?…Or does it remain inside us, hidden under calluses of age and experiences but still affecting everything we do the rest of our lives?” Thirty-two-year-old Maggie Silver works … Continue reading
Posted in Crime, Mystery and Thrillers
4 Comments
3 to Kill – Jean-Patrick Manchette(Translated by Donald Nicholson-Smith)
Reviewed by JD Jung Acheter ce livre! Shit happens. OK, that’s probably an understatement as it relates to Georges Gerfaut. Then again, maybe not. Gerfaut, a rather ordinary 30-something businessman, discovers how twisted life can get in the late Jean-Patrick … Continue reading
Posted in Crime, Mystery and Thrillers, French Literature, Lost and almost forgotten, World Literature
Tagged French literature, noir
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Berlin Noir: March Violets; The Pale Criminal; A German Requiem – Philip Kerr
reviewed by Lillian Thurston Buy It! Did you ever wonder what it was like to live in Berlin during the reign of the Nazis? If you weren’t a Nazi, how did you survive? Berlin Noir, a trilogy by British author … Continue reading
Posted in Crime, Mystery and Thrillers, Reviewers' Top Picks
Tagged noir
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