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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.
Category Archives: Modern Literary Fiction
Errata – Michael Allen Zell
(Reviewed by JD Jung) “New Orleans seems to exist as a blank slate for outsiders to grasp and cast their own aspirations, pretenses, and prejudices upon. A few of the outsiders always end up lingering, holding fast, and adding to … Continue reading
Posted in Crime, Mystery and Thrillers, Modern Literary Fiction, Reviewers' Top Picks
Tagged book reviews, mystery, New Orleans, noir
1 Comment
Crossroads: A Camino Tale – F. R. Merrill
(Reviewed by JD Jung) “As they stood before a large stone crucifix of the body of Christ carved in a three-dimensional form she pulled out her syringe. When she moved toward Amanda to complete the deed, her sister Margie stepped … Continue reading
Posted in Modern Literary Fiction, Travel
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Soy Sauce for Beginners – Kirstin Chen
(Reviewed by JD Jung) One pushed me to return to America, the other urged me to pull out the knife, let the wound heal, and remain in Singapore. But I was done choosing sides, pleasing one over the other. From … Continue reading
Posted in Culture, Modern Literary Fiction, Travel
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The Fall of a Sparrow – Robert Hellenga
(Reviewed by J.D. Jung) After reading one of my favorite books, The Italian Lover, I just wanted to grab anything related to it and its characters. Author Robert Hellenga wrote a book about the protagonist’s lover, classics professor Alan “Woody” … Continue reading
Posted in Modern Literary Fiction, Reviewers' Top Picks
Tagged Italy
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Philosophy Made Simple – Robert Hellenga
(Reviewed by JD Jung) Rudy Harrington, a sixty-year-old widower, is trying to find the meaning of life…his life. Is there any purpose left? To try and answer this question, he takes up the study of philosophy. Since his wife, Helen, … Continue reading
Posted in Modern Literary Fiction
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Return of the Heroine—Kaye Michelle
(Reviewed by Melanie Hamilton) In Kaye Michelle’s provocative and inspiring novel, Return of the Heroine, West Point Cadet Jane Archer has a problem: Should she do what’s right or save her career? The daughter of senior counsel to Providence Rhode … Continue reading
Posted in Historical Fiction, Modern Literary Fiction
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Together Tea – Marjan Kamali
(Reviewed by JD Jung) “Darya loved to calculate the statistic of available Persian bachelors, factoring in their attributes, family histories, education, the probability for divorce. She had her very own system of assigning numbers to certain qualities… Darya was so … Continue reading
Posted in Culture, Modern Literary Fiction, Travel
2 Comments
Defection Games – Haggai Carmon
(Reviewed by JD Jung) #CommissionsEarned The CIA and Mossad (Israel’s intelligence agency) engage in a constant battle to thwart Iran’s nuclear capabilities. This is how we meet up again with former Mossad agent, Dan Gordon, as he continues his dangerous … Continue reading
Posted in Crime, Mystery and Thrillers, Modern Literary Fiction, World Issues
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Jacob’s Folly
(Reviewed by JD Jung) “Something amazing had happened to my sight: it was as if the top of my head had been removed and replaced with an enormous eye. I could see jagged purple clouds drifting above me, the streets … Continue reading
Posted in Modern Literary Fiction
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