Underrated Reads

An Underrated Read Revisited: Rupert: A Confession – Ilja Leonard Pfeijffer, (Translated by Michele Hutchison)

Posted on October 28, 2022 by J D Jung

(Reviewed by JD Jung) #CommissionsEarned “She was my martyrdom, my masochism, and my sugar-sweet, shimmering Mira. She appeared like a reflection before my eyes the first time I saw her, she killed me when she was mine, and she finally brought me back to life when she’d murdered me for good." Rupert: A Confession is…

Posted in Revisited | Tagged dark fiction, Dutch literature | Comments Off

An UnderratedRead Revisited: The Black Spider – Jeremias Gotthelf (Translated by Susan Bernofsky)

Posted on October 26, 2022 by J D Jung

(Reviewed by JD Jung) #CommissionsEarned "And now the people where gripped by the ancient fear that the spider might carry off an unbaptized infant, the pledge of their old pact. The woman was beside herself, she had no trust in God, so her heart was all more filled with hatred and revenge." In a farmhouse…

Posted in Revisited | Tagged dark fiction, German literature, horror | Comments Off

Citizens of Light – Sam Shelstad

Posted on October 24, 2022 by J D Jung

(Reviewed by JD Jung) #CommissionsEarned You may wonder how the characters in this story function in everyday life, but that’s part of the charm of Citizens of Light. Colleen Weagle is not proud of her past. As a teenage runaway, she was the perfect prey for a cult, and joined The Citizens of Light Rejuvenation…

Posted in Crime, Mystery and Thrillers | Tagged Canadian fiction, Crime, cults, Niagara Falls, Toronto | Comments Off

Virginia Bader: A Collage of Memories of The First Lady of Aviation Art – Jill Amadio

Posted on October 21, 2022 by J D Jung

(Reviewed by Christopher J. Lynch) #CommissionsEarned We often take things for granted in this world. Younger folks assume that smart phones and the internet were always in existence. I too, thought that the specialized world of aviation art had always existed. What the Virginia Bader book taught me was that it was only through her…

Posted in Bios and Memoirs, Reviewers' Top Picks | Tagged aviation, Non-fiction, WWII | Comments Off

I Feel Your Stare: An Autobiography – Cheryl Gillespie

Posted on October 19, 2022 by J D Jung

(Reviewed by Christopher J. Lynch) #CommissionsEarned It is often said that a wise person walks a mile in another’s shoes. I Feel Your Stare by Cheryl Gillespie takes us on just such a journey. Born with JRA, (Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis), Ms. Gillespie succumbed to what most with this affliction end up experiencing – total vision…

Posted in Bios and Memoirs, Reviewers' Top Picks | Tagged blindness, JRA, memoirs | Comments Off

Dragged into the Light: Truthers, Reptilians, Super Soldiers, and Death Inside an Online Cult- Tony Russo

Posted on October 17, 2022 by J D Jung

(Reviewed by JD Jung) #CommissionsEarned “The world is always ending, the government is always trying to poison you, and the church doesn’t know the truth.” Furthermore, reptilians (aliens) disguise themselves as human and fight for the New World Order, planning world domination while engaging in pedophilia and cannibalism. Sounds crazy? Author and journalist Tony Russo…

Posted in History, Non-fiction | Tagged conspiracy theories, contemporary culture, cults, New World Order | Comments Off

An UnderratedRead Revisited: House of Beauty- Melba Escobar (Author), Elizabeth Bryer (Translator)

Posted on October 15, 2022 by J D Jung

(Reviewed by JD Jung) #CommissionsEarned “I also hate the ladies of Bogotá among whom I count myself, though I do all I can to stand apart. I hate their habit of using the term “Indians” to refer to people they consider to be from a low social class…. I hate so many things in so…

Posted in Revisited | Tagged Colombia, Latin American Lit, mysogeny | Comments Off

An UnderratedRead Revisited: Fire and Vengeance (Koa Kane Hawaiian Mystery Book 3) – Robert McCaw

Posted on October 10, 2022 by J D Jung

(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. A volcanic explosion that destroyed a school building with multiple casualties just looked like an…

Posted in Revisited | Tagged crime fiction, Hawaii | Comments Off

Many Are Invited – Dennis Cuesta

Posted on October 6, 2022 by J D Jung

(Reviewed by JD Jung) #CommissionsEarned An untimely death at a housewarming party takes place just prior to the millennium, and Silicon Valley IT professional Steve Galanos is trying to make sense of it all. Later, he proceeds to recount events of December 1999 that led up to the tragedy. The ordeal centers around his friendship…

Posted in Crime, Mystery and Thrillers, Modern Literary Fiction | Tagged Big Tech, friendship, jealousy, Silicon Valley | Comments Off