Author Archives: J D Jung

The Awkward Optimist’s Guide to Human Connection – Hector M Rodriguez

Posted on August 30, 2025 by J D Jung

(Reviewed by JD Jung) Version 1.0.0 For men who feel awkward navigating the world of dating, Hector M. Rodriguez offers a refreshing guide that is equal parts practical advice and comic relief. The Awkward Optimist’s Guide to Human Connection isn’t … Continue reading →

Posted in Your Best Self | Tagged dating, humor, online dating, Romance, self-awareness, self-help | Comments Off

All We Trust – Gregory Galloway

Posted on August 26, 2025 by J D Jung

(Reviewed by JD Jung) Half-brothers Peck and Al, launder money for a local crime lord through a bar and hardware store. They have been partners in petty crime since childhood, but adulthood has only deepened their dependence on each other. … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime, Mystery and Thrillers | Tagged crime fiction, grief, loyalty | Comments Off

The Night Swimmer – Simon J Houlton

Posted on August 22, 2025 by J D Jung

(Reviewed by JD Jung) Bill Eckersley, in his late thirties, drifts through life in the working-class seaside town of Hastings, England. He’s the kind of character who reminds us of the troubled, unstable writers we’ve all read about—but without the … Continue reading →

Posted in Modern Literary Fiction | Tagged dark humor, England, mental illness | Comments Off

Leverage – Amran Gowani

Posted on August 19, 2025 by J D Jung

(Reviewed by JD Jung) At only twenty-seven-year-old, Ali Jafar is a high-performing hedge fund manager for Prism Capital in San Francisco. He’s smart, respected, and has earned the confidence of his powerful boss, Paul Kingsley, founder of the firm and … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime, Mystery and Thrillers | Tagged exploitation, hedge fund, investments, racism, thriller | Comments Off

Great Again – Bill Day

Posted on August 11, 2025 by J D Jung

(Reviewed by JD Jung) Ex-Marine Jack O’Mally is divorced and estranged from his adult daughter. He just can’t accept that she is married to a black musician and living in California. Jack is captain of his New Jersey neighborhood watch, … Continue reading →

Posted in Immigration, Political fiction, World Issues | Tagged El Salvador, immigrants, racism, undocumented, Xenophobia | Comments Off

An UnderratedRead Revisited: A Death in Valencia – Jason Webster

Posted on August 4, 2025 by J D Jung

(Reviewed by JD Jung) When I visit a city for the first time, I like to go to a local English-language bookstore—if I’m lucky enough to find one— to discover novels featuring the town, incorporating its culture into the story. … Continue reading →

Posted in Revisited | Tagged corruption, crime fiction, gentrification, murder, Spain, Valencia | Comments Off

An UnderratedRead Revisited: Selamlik – Khaled Alesmael (translated from the Arabic by Leri Price)

Posted on August 1, 2025 by J D Jung

(Reviewed by JD Jung) “I am so glad I was born in Syria and get to be young in Damascus, no matter the fear and danger. I love Damascus even if she is cruel to me.” Our narrator Furat lives … Continue reading →

Posted in Revisited | Tagged homoerotic, immigrants, LGBTQ, refugees, Religion, Sweden, Syria, Syrian civil war | Comments Off

The Yellow Dog – Georges Simenon (translated by Linda Asher)

Posted on July 29, 2025 by J D Jung

(Reviewed by JD Jung) Originally published in 1931, in English in 1939, and now re-released in English, The Yellow Dog offers readers a taste of Georges Simenon’s signature crime storytelling. Set in the small seaside town of Concarneau, France, a … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime, Mystery and Thrillers, French Literature, Lost and almost forgotten | Tagged cozy mystery, crime fiction, France | Comments Off