The Patient – Jasper DeWitt

Posted on July 11, 2020 by J D Jung

(Reviewed by JD Jung) “Patient additionally shows a high propensity toward violence and sadism. Patient has assaulted numerous members of staff and has had to be restrained. Despite relative youth, patient seems intuitively aware of which parts of the human body are most vulnerable or sensitive to pain. “ “He’s developed an ability to induce…

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Brother’s Keeper – Richard Ryker

Posted on July 8, 2020 by J D Jung

(reviewed by Ann Onymous ) Two types of Maple wood? Who knew? I figured maple is ‘quilted’ or ‘flamed’ and used to make fine musical instruments, guitars or violins: think pieces of a Stratocaster, Les Paul or Stradivarius. But ‘quilted’ wood is being poached in the Pacific Northwest. There’s lots of money to be made…

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Have Black Lives Ever Mattered? – Mumia Abu-Jamal

Posted on July 3, 2020 by J D Jung

(Reviewed by JD Jung) “The unity of the people is the greatest weapon against the silence, fear, and oppression imposed by the system.” “…organizing makes a difference, protest has impact; for without the pressure of protest, there would be no counterforce against bigotry in American society.”  Mumia Abu-Jamal wrote these words in 1999 and 2012,…

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Pizza Girl: A Novel – Jean Kyoung Frazier

Posted on June 26, 2020 by J D Jung

(reviewed by JD Jung) An eighteen-year-old pregnant pizza delivery girl is lost, with no idea where she is headed in life. Even though she has a loving boyfriend who is excited about the baby, that isn’t enough. She has never been out of Los Angeles and yearns for more in life. Unfortunately, she also realizes…

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Nairobi Noir (Akashic Noir Series) – edited by Peter Kimani

Posted on June 22, 2020 by J D Jung

(reviewed by JD Jung) > “In this concrete jungle, the hunters and herders live on. As do the hunted…” This summarizes the essence of Nairobi Noir, a collection of fourteen stories released early this year from the Akashic Noir Series. In addition to themes of crime, these stories highlight various perspectives on history, culture, race,…

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Fire and Vengeance (Koa Kane Hawaiian Mystery Book 3) – Robert McCaw

Posted on June 18, 2020 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…

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How Speleology Restored My Sex Drive – Michael Bernhart

Posted on June 12, 2020 by J D Jung

(Reviewed by Christopher J. Lynch) A thrilling romp with twists and turns and more fun than should be legal. I’ll be honest when I say that I didn’t expect much when I read the description of this book and agreed to review it. To me, it seemed as if the author had way too bizarre…

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An UnderratedRead Revisited – We Are Taking Only What We Need: Stories – Stephanie Powell Watts

Posted on June 6, 2020 by J D Jung

(Reviewed by JD Jung) “What was I thinking? The restaurant was a fishbowl full of floor-to-ceiling windows. Just beyond the parking lot Highway 18 looked like a runway, a straight shot, launching me anywhere…until my eyes settled on the across-the-street hamburger joint…making me forget that I was in the middle of my life, in the…

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Ivy is a Weed- Robert Morse Roseth

Posted on June 1, 2020 by J D Jung

(Reviewed by Don Jung) A public relations director for a university, Mike Woodsen, is called by the campus police to the scene of the dead Information Technology department head. This popular professor, Jeremy Ronson, apparently fell from a four-story campus building. Was it an accident, a suicide or possibly a murder? Mike Woodsen reviews the…

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There Has to Be a Knife – Adnan Khan

Posted on May 25, 2020 by J D Jung

(reviewed by JD Jung) < “Those pleasures that I always had access to with her---the tactile, her body, food, her laugh---I knew I would have to keep her away from my darkness to preserve them. I wanted too many shallow, pleasant insights, and quick repetitive happiness; I did not want to risk discovery. I did…

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