-
-
About
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 Patient – Jasper DeWitt
(Reviewed by JD Jung) “Patient additionally shows a high propensity toward violence and sadism. Patient has assaulted numerous members of staff and has had to be restrained. Despite relative youth, patient seems intuitively aware of which parts of the human … Continue reading
Posted in Crime, Mystery and Thrillers, Dark/Sordid/Bizarre, Modern Literary Fiction
Tagged contemporary fiction, mental illness, Psychiatry
Comments Off on The Patient – Jasper DeWitt
Brother’s Keeper – Richard Ryker
(reviewed by Ann Onymous ) Two types of Maple wood? Who knew? I figured maple is ‘quilted’ or ‘flamed’ and used to make fine musical instruments, guitars or violins: think pieces of a Stratocaster, Les Paul or Stradivarius. But ‘quilted’ … Continue reading
Posted in Crime, Mystery and Thrillers
Tagged crime fiction, Pacific Nortwest
Comments Off on Brother’s Keeper – Richard Ryker
Have Black Lives Ever Mattered? – Mumia Abu-Jamal
(Reviewed by JD Jung) “The unity of the people is the greatest weapon against the silence, fear, and oppression imposed by the system.” “…organizing makes a difference, protest has impact; for without the pressure of protest, there would be no … Continue reading
Posted in History, Social Justice
Tagged Black lives matter, BLM, police, racism
Comments Off on Have Black Lives Ever Mattered? – Mumia Abu-Jamal
Pizza Girl: A Novel – Jean Kyoung Frazier
(reviewed by JD Jung) An eighteen-year-old pregnant pizza delivery girl is lost, with no idea where she is headed in life. Even though she has a loving boyfriend who is excited about the baby, that isn’t enough. She has never … Continue reading
Posted in Modern Literary Fiction
Tagged coming-of-age, dark humor, Los Angeles
Comments Off on Pizza Girl: A Novel – Jean Kyoung Frazier
Fire and Vengeance (Koa Kane Hawaiian Mystery Book 3) – Robert McCaw
(Reviewed by Don Jung) When I first started reading Fire and Vengeance, I didn’t know what I was in for. What I soon realized was that I was experiencing a thrilling murder mystery amidst the gorgeous Big Island in Hawaii. … Continue reading
Posted in Crime, Mystery and Thrillers, Reviewers' Top Picks
Tagged crime fiction, Hawaii
Comments Off on Fire and Vengeance (Koa Kane Hawaiian Mystery Book 3) – Robert McCaw
How Speleology Restored My Sex Drive – Michael Bernhart
(Reviewed by Christopher J. Lynch) A thrilling romp with twists and turns and more fun than should be legal. I’ll be honest when I say that I didn’t expect much when I read the description of this book and agreed … Continue reading
Posted in Crime, Mystery and Thrillers, Humor & Satire
Tagged humor, thrillers
Comments Off on How Speleology Restored My Sex Drive – Michael Bernhart
An UnderratedRead Revisited – We Are Taking Only What We Need: Stories – Stephanie Powell Watts
(Reviewed by JD Jung) “What was I thinking? The restaurant was a fishbowl full of floor-to-ceiling windows. Just beyond the parking lot Highway 18 looked like a runway, a straight shot, launching me anywhere…until my eyes settled on the across-the-street … Continue reading
Posted in Revisited
Tagged African-American, North Carolina, rural America
Comments Off on An UnderratedRead Revisited – We Are Taking Only What We Need: Stories – Stephanie Powell Watts
Ivy is a Weed- Robert Morse Roseth
(Reviewed by Don Jung) A public relations director for a university, Mike Woodsen, is called by the campus police to the scene of the dead Information Technology department head. This popular professor, Jeremy Ronson, apparently fell from a four-story campus … Continue reading
Posted in Crime, Mystery and Thrillers
Tagged crime fiction, university politics
Comments Off on Ivy is a Weed- Robert Morse Roseth
There Has to Be a Knife – Adnan Khan
(reviewed by JD Jung) < “Those pleasures that I always had access to with her—the tactile, her body, food, her laugh—I knew I would have to keep her away from my darkness to preserve them. I wanted too many shallow, … Continue reading
Posted in Culture, Modern Literary Fiction
Tagged Canada, class conflict, grief, Islam, mysogeny, Toronto
Comments Off on There Has to Be a Knife – Adnan Khan