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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: Fiction
A Cigarette Lit Backwards-Tea Hacic-Vlahovic
(Reviewed by JD Jung) #CommissionsEarned “Punk rock is pure, it stands for nothing.” It’s the early 2000’s and sixteen-year-old Kat feels that punk rock was intrinsically made for her. She desperately wants to be accepted by the punk crowd in … Continue reading
Posted in Modern Literary Fiction
Tagged coming-of-age, drugs, punk, punk rock
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The Safe Game – Wes Verde
(Reviewed by Christopher J. Lynch) #CommissionsEarned The Safe Game by Wes Verde is undoubtedly one of the best books I have ever read. Set in the late 1920’s America, it follows the story of three con artists trying to pull … Continue reading
Posted in Crime, Mystery and Thrillers, Historical Fiction, Reviewers' Top Picks
Tagged crime fiction, grift, Historical fiction
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The Weasel Cay Chronicles – Chadd Allan Wheat
(Reviewed by Don Jung) #CommissionsEarned Two brothers live in a remote area of paradise, Weasel Cay, a fictitious island in the Caribbean. Charlie Spinnaker is a former Navy pilot who runs the local helicopter service from the island to Key … Continue reading
Posted in Crime, Mystery and Thrillers
Tagged Caribbean Islands, CIA, drugs, murder
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Dark State – Christopher J. Lynch
(Reviewed by Don Jung) #CommissionsEarned “The terrorists know…The government knows…Now – YOU will know” A terrorist attack is something we all fear but would it ever be so horrific that you would want to leave your home and not come … Continue reading
Posted in Modern Literary Fiction, Reviewers' Top Picks
Tagged California, power grid, terrorist attack
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The Deceptions – Jill Bialosky
(Reviewed by JD Jung) #CommissionsEarned “Beautiful Aphrodite, she did what she pleased. Surely, she did not worry about pleasing her husband, or hate herself for her acts of infidelity. Those gods and goddesses, they have no shame.” Our unnamed narrator … Continue reading
Posted in Modern Literary Fiction, Reviewers' Top Picks
Tagged betrayal, Greek mythology, poetry, seduction
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The Hundred Waters – Lauren Acampora
(Reviewed by JD Jung) #CommissionsEarned “Grown people need friction to live.” Most people would think that Louisa Rader is living the perfect life. As the director of the town’s art center, this former model and photographer lives in a wealthy … Continue reading
Posted in Modern Literary Fiction
Tagged aging, art, boredom, environmentalism, privilege, rebellion, wealth
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The Risk in Crossing Borders – William McClain
(Reviewed by JD Jung) #CommissionsEarned “She kept coming back to the question of what to do with her life. Most people sorted that out in their twenties and thirties. What was wrong with her?” Yana Pickering is over fifty years … Continue reading
Posted in Modern Literary Fiction
Tagged immigration, Lebanon, refugees, Seattle, Syria, transgender, war
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The Scent of Burnt Flowers – Blitz Bazawule
(Reviewed by JD Jung) #CommissionsEarned It’s the mid-1960s and an African American couple, Melvin and Bernadette are on the run. Melvin sees that their only chance is to flee the U.S. Back in college, Melvin saved the life of a … Continue reading
Posted in African Literature, Historical Fiction, World Literature
Tagged 1960s, colonization, FBI, Ghana, racism
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Comeuppance – Frank Honorof
(Reviewed by Don Jung) #CommissionsEarned It’s the end of World War II and American military attorney, Philip Almeister, is sent on a liaison mission to Austria to help restore assets stolen by the Nazis. While working there he uncovers a … Continue reading
Posted in Crime, Mystery and Thrillers, Historical Fiction
Tagged intrigue, thriller, WWII
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