Maximum Taxi – Douglas Bales

(Reviewed by JD Jung) #CommissionsEarned “As I come out of the tunnels on my way home, the city lies below me with its lights sparkling. I think about Misty and Mickey and all of the screwed-up people running around the world. It’s a clear, beautiful night and the stars are shining, but the universe is…

Read More →

Posted in Modern Literary Fiction | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Maximum Taxi – Douglas Bales

Not Too Late: Changing the Climate Story from Despair to Possibility – Rebecca Solnit & Thelma Young-Lutunatabua

  (Reviewed by JD Jung)   “Nothing is inevitable, and that’s crucial to remember in this fight.” Personally, I have felt both hopeless and helpless when it comes to preserving our planet and fighting climate change. Not Too Late convinced me through its essays and interviews that what I do on an individual basis and…

Read More →

Posted in History, Non-fiction, Politics and Social Justice, Social Justice | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Not Too Late: Changing the Climate Story from Despair to Possibility – Rebecca Solnit & Thelma Young-Lutunatabua

Who is bombing Kyiv?! – Marina Alova

(Reviewed by JD Jung) #CommissionsEarned “It was disheartening and revolting to witness the country repeating the same mistakes and going around in circles. Slava believed that after the collapse of the Soviet Union, it would be impossible to make the same mistakes again. However, not much time has passed, and now Stalin is gaining popularity…

Read More →

Posted in Slavic Literature, World Issues, World Literature | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Who is bombing Kyiv?! – Marina Alova

The Wishing Pool and Other Stories – Tananarive Due

(Reviewed by JD Jung) You’ll keep looking over your shoulder as you read these eerie stories of horror, with a little science fiction sprinkled in, in The Wishing Pool and Other Stories. The title piece, “The Wishing Pool” features Joy, a woman returning home to North Florida to visit her father who is suffering from…

Read More →

Posted in Sci-Fi/Speculative/Fantasy/Mythology, Short stories | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on The Wishing Pool and Other Stories – Tananarive Due

An UnderratedRead Revisited: The Broken – JJ Hernandez

(Reviewed by Christopher J. Lynch) There are quite a few novels that chronicle the struggle of formerly incarcerated individuals returning to civilian life, but none that I have read that are as good as    The Broken by JJ Hernandez . The novel puts you on parallel paths with several disparate characters: the former inmate,…

Read More →

Posted in Revisited | Tagged , , | Comments Off on An UnderratedRead Revisited: The Broken – JJ Hernandez

The Fitful Sleep of Immigrants – Orlando Ortega-Medina

(Reviewed by JD Jung) “We were a family of emigrants, on the move from generation to generation. Forced to flee our homes because of intolerable situations imposed on us by those in power. The United States was meant to be the last stop on that journey.” Such is the case of thirty-six-year-old attorney and recovering…

Read More →

Posted in Crime, Mystery and Thrillers, Modern Literary Fiction, Reviewers' Top Picks | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on The Fitful Sleep of Immigrants – Orlando Ortega-Medina

An UnderratedRead Revisited – A Season in Lights: A Novel in Three Acts – Gregory Erich Phillips

(Reviewed by JD Jung) #CommissionsEarned “Less than a year ago, when the curtain fell after the opening night applause, I assumed the New York City I knew---and my place in it---could last forever.” A Season in Lights celebrates performers and other creative artists who travel to New York to fulfill their dreams. Specifically, the story…

Read More →

Posted in Revisited | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on An UnderratedRead Revisited – A Season in Lights: A Novel in Three Acts – Gregory Erich Phillips

The Blue is Where God Lives – Sharon Sochil Washington, PhD

(Reviewed by JD Jung) #CommissionsEarned “If Satan is successful, the family’s history will end with the blue baby girl.” It is currently 2008, and Blue (referenced above) is grieving the murder of her daughter. She questions God’s existence, which leads her to travel from her home in Houston south to The Ranch, a retreat run…

Read More →

Posted in Historical Fiction, Sci-Fi/Speculative/Fantasy/Mythology | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on The Blue is Where God Lives – Sharon Sochil Washington, PhD

The Vulture Fund (Curtis Westcott Crime Thrillers Book 3) – Jeff Buick

(Reviewed by Don Jung) #CommissionsEarned Two unlikely murders that don’t appear to be related become the focus of Boston detective Curtis Westcoast and his team as they try to unravel one mystery after another. This is a murder mystery series that is fast-paced, suspenseful and full of twists and turns. First, a woman with an…

Read More →

Posted in Crime, Mystery and Thrillers, Reviewers' Top Picks | Tagged , , | Comments Off on The Vulture Fund (Curtis Westcott Crime Thrillers Book 3) – Jeff Buick

An UnderratedRead Revisited: Tard – Del Staecker

(Reviewed by JD Jung) #CommissionsEarned “Thou shalt not be a victim, and thou shalt not be a perpetrator. But above all else---thou shalt not be a bystander.” That's one lesson Richard Bettis learned from Matt. One referred to Matt Mueller as an “enlightened outcast”, as he lived with compassion, love, a sense of serenity, and…

Read More →

Posted in Revisited | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on An UnderratedRead Revisited: Tard – Del Staecker