Review: Throwing the Hammer by Gary J. Kirchner

 

Genre: Literary Fiction/Humor

Description:

“Paranoid administrators, interdepartmental feuds, quirky staff members, and an eccentric headmaster: welcome to Winston Grant High School.

Mark Patterson has a master’s degree in physics, wants to do nothing more than surf and ski, and believes that high school teaching will be the cushy job of his dreams. He receives a rude awakening when he becomes a physics teacher at Winston Grant, a begrudging little brother amidst rival private school heavyweights.

From the outset, Mark must tiptoe through a virtual minefield of Procrustean rules, coddling parents, scheming colleagues, and, of course, teen-aged students.

Things don’t go well, inside or outside the classroom. His students call him Mr. Goofegg. His football team is pathetic. His lunch-table kids behave like Neanderthals. His teaching supervisor, aka the ‘education implementation strategist,’ criticizes him for using equations. His colleagues have even organized a betting pool for when he will get fired.

And when Mark discovers that a weak student in his class is a physics genius, he finds himself caught in the middle of a conflict between father and son, a conflict which could destroy the young man’s potential. Or help Mark find his.”

Author:

“Gary J. Kirchner studied physics at McGill University and did his Master’s work in sports biomechanics. He also played football with the McGill Redmen and continued as a coach with the team for many years after he graduated. In 1993 he was a recipient of Football Canada’s Gino Fracas Award.

Kirchner taught physics at several Montreal area high schools as well as at John Abbott College. In 2014 he was awarded La Mention d’honneur de l’Association québécoise de pédagogie collégiale for teaching excellence.

He is also a flute-player, amateur astronomer, and keeps physically active as an avid cross-country skier, curler, and triathlon participant.

Kirchner lives in Dorval, Quebec, with his Estonian wife Hille. He is the author of five novels.”

Appraisal:

This book is an interesting read. It’s funny at times, frustrating at others if you’re imagining yourself in the place of or at least feeling a minimal amount of empathy for the protagonist, and thought provoking as you consider the complications that our protagonist Mark has to work through. For various reasons Mark finds himself using his education to get a job as a physics teacher because someone has to support his wife and the baby on the way. If he had his way he’d be in Vancouver surfing in the summer and hitting the slopes in the winter. The frustrations, battles, and learning he experiences are humorous at times, but the messed up priorities of a private school, sometimes more concerned with keeping the tuition paying parents happy than actually helping the kids being taught, the internal battles between different cliques (talking other teachers here, not just the students), and all the other complications keep this interesting and engaging to the end. What that end was going to be, I was not sure what it was going to be until we got there, but I had to find out and I eventually did. (You’ll have to read it yourself if you want to know too.)

Buy now from:            Amazon US        Amazon UK

FYI:

Uses Canadian spelling conventions.

Some adult language.

Format/Typo Issues:

No significant issues.

Rating: **** Four Stars

Reviewed by: BigAl

Approximate word count: 70-75,000 words

Review: The Crushed Can by F.E. Beyer

 Genre: Literary Fiction

Description:

“Kurt and Reece don't fight the reputation foreign teachers have in China in 2002—they embrace it. Opium, brothels, and booze help them forget unsuccessful classes and long commutes.

When Reece abruptly leaves the country, Kurt takes over his apartment and inherits Ronghua—Reece’s ex-girlfriend.

Originally from Anhui Province, Ronghua once sold cigarettes on a Shanghai street and is now an unlucky gambler. As her problems spiral, Kurt senses a chance to redeem his own failures through helping her. Or should he jettison her to avoid sinking?”

Author:

” F.E. Beyer writes about dead-end jobs, travel, history, and crime. He is the author of three novels. His articles and reviews have appeared in the South China Morning Post, Los Angeles Review of Books, Inside Indonesia, and Travelogues Magazine.”

Appraisal:

The premise of this book, a teacher from Australia is living in China and teaching English there is an interesting one. How realistic the culture and things he goes through are, I have no idea. It may be very accurate and it may have no relationship to the reality someone in this situation would experience. But either way it’s an interesting thought exercise as Kurt works his way through the things he encounters and tries to figure things out in a culture that he’s trying to figure out on the fly. If you’ve ever spent time in a foreign country, especially if that involved trying to communicate in a language you aren’t experienced in or depending on others to understand your foreign (to them) language, you’ll probably flash back on that a time or two. All in all an interesting read.

Buy now from:            Amazon US        Amazon UK

FYI:

Some adult language and some relatively minor references to adult subjects.

Format/Typo Issues:

A small number of typos and proofing misses.

Rating: **** Four Stars

Reviewed by: BigAl

Approximate word count: 40-45,000 words

Review: The Gardener’s Wife’s Mistress by Cassondra Windwalker

 

Genre: Literary Fiction/LGBT

Description:

“Hayden Hill has always felt most comfortable with his hands in dirt, nurturing life. He designs natural spaces for others and comes home to his back yard, where he seeks refuge amidst the fruits and vegetables, flora, and shade-giving trees. When he finds himself suddenly a widower, his garden becomes the resting place for the ashes of his wife, Shelly, and he’s thrown into an unexpected vortex of pain, shock, and guilt. As Hayden struggles to survive the torment of each day and keep his landscaping company functioning, a directive in Shelly’s will leads him to the discovery of a shocking secret.

Fighting to find a path through the weeds of grief, Hayden meets his wife’s secret connections and becomes involved helping local, homeless teens cast out by their families for choosing to be who they are. Rocked by this newly discovered, complicated facet of Shelly’s life, he begins to question their marriage, her identity, his past choices, and whether anything he believed about his wife was ever true.”

Author:

“Cassondra Windwalker earned a BA of Letters from the University of Oklahoma. She's the author of nine novels and three works of poetry who does her best to keep fed the menagerie of stray critters, cryptids, marooned kelpies, and lost specters. Born and raised on the red clay, she's wandered the sticky corn fields of the Midwest, the frozen seas of the Wild North, and frequently rests her wings where orange skies meet purple mountains.”

Appraisal:

The description and even the title of this book hint at some things at the heart of the story. In order to avoid spoilers, I’m not going to expand on any of the specifics, but will say I found this book to be an incredibly great and in many ways inspiring. The author of the book works through some difficult discoveries in the wake of his spouse’s death. It’s a difficult time for him, but in the end, he grows as a person and learns a lot that will help him in the future. As a reader, it might get you thinking as well. I wonder how I (or you) would deal with things if you found yourself in the same situation.

Buy now from:            Amazon US        Amazon UK

FYI:

A small amount of adult language.

Format/Typo Issues:

My review is based on an ARC (advance reader copy) so I can’t judge the final product in this area.

Rating: ***** Five Stars

Reviewed by: BigAl

Approximate word count: 60-65,000 words

Reprise Review: The Last Line of a Goat Song by Jonathan Doyle

 

Genre: Literary Fiction

Description:

“Living a life of self-imposed isolation, a lonely man finds himself on a road trip to Mexico with a woman whose life becomes intertwined with his. Forging an unlikely friendship, they must learn to navigate the dangers and chaos of their adventure while confronting ghosts from the past.”

Author:

“Jonathan Doyle is a screenwriter and novelist based in Los Angeles with his large collection of books and his trusty DVR. A native of Phoenix AZ, Jonathan grew up in Southern California and is a graduate of Loyola Marymount University with a degree in Psychology, but still can’t overcome his fear of freeway overpasses. When he’s not busy working on a new novel/poem/song/screenplay, he enjoys reading Virginia Woolf, lamenting a Lakers loss, or watching Siberian tiger videos online.”

Appraisal:

First, this is the story of William, an older man who has never been able to speak. He knows about the lives of the neighbors in his apartment complex in great detail. The neighbors may or may not be vaguely aware that he exists.

It’s also an adventure story. Or maybe it could be described as a road trip story where a couple of friends take a road trip and stuff happens. Except in this case the “friends” really aren’t. They are William and Maggie, a twenty-something neighbor of William. Yeah, one of those who barely knows him. The reason they’re taking the trip is that William has a van he has no use for and Maggie’s family in Mexico who she hasn’t seen in years really need a van.

If all this seems slightly strange and yet a bit intriguing, we’re in agreement. And just as in those road trip stories our intrepid travelers will encounter things that make you laugh and others that make you cringe and worry. In the process, William and Maggie learn a little more about the world and themselves. An entertaining, offbeat read.

Buy now from:            Amazon US        Amazon UK

Some adult language and mild adult content.

Format/Typo Issues:

Review is based on an unproofread pre-release version, so I can’t judge the final product in this area.

Rating: ***** Five Stars

Reviewed by: BigAl

Approximate word count: 55-60,000 words

Review: Invisible Threads by Sharon Heath

 Genre: Literary Fiction

Description:

“Evvie Kerr has always been a caretaker—of her self-absorbed younger sister Miriam; Miriam’s tender-hearted son Ben; and the sisters’ Russian-born father Michael, a successful screenwriter who bears the scars of a traumatic childhood. Evvie’s sudden diagnosis with the disease that killed her mother forces each of the Kerrs to re-examine their roles in their lively, tightly knit Jewish family, and beckons Evvie herself to stretch into a larger and riskier life than she’d ever imagined. A family love story, Invisible Threads explores the interwovenness of our individual fates with the strivings and sufferings of our ancestors, celebrating the sweet and sometimes disorienting grace of rebirth.”

Author:

“Sharon Heath writes fiction and non-fiction exploring the interplay of science and spirit, politics and pop culture. A certified Jungian Analyst in private practice and faculty member of the C.G. Jung Institute of Los Angeles, she served as Associate Editor of Psychological Perspectives and Guest Editor of the special issue The Child Within/The Child Without. She has published in Psychological Perspectives and Jung Journal: Culture & Psyche, and she has blogged for HuffPost.”

Appraisal:

Just like real life, I wasn’t sure where this story was going to go. In the process of finding out it caused a lot of thinking about family, both good and bad, as I compared the Kerr family in the book to my own family. I contrasted the things they were experiencing, both positive and not so great things, to my life and that of others I have known. A good book exercises the mind and gets the reader thinking and this story definitely did that.

Buy now from:            Amazon US        Amazon UK

FYI:

Some mildly adult content.

Format/Typo Issues:

No significant issues.

Rating: **** Four Stars

Reviewed by: BigAl

Approximate word count: 80-85,000 words

Review: Nameless River by Albert Crepet

 Genre: LGBT, Bildungsroman, Literary fiction, Historical fiction

Description:

An unfrocked Catholic monk looks back on his life as a lonely boy, teenager and young man, and makes up the life of his namesake great-granduncle whom he never knew.

Maurice returns to his childhood home (now derelict) in Normandy for most of December 1993. He squats in the old house, and writes this book. Maurice mines his memories deeply and the lives of the two Maurices become increasingly entwined. Both Maurices are gay. Neither found that easy, nor came to terms with their sexuality. But both find acceptance and peace within themselves as the younger Maurice recreates his own past and that of his imaginary, long-dead relative. I suspect there is a substantial element of autofiction in this book.

The novel is set in Normandy, Paris and Toronto during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, moving fluidly between times and places.

Author:

Amazon’s biography of Albert Crepet tells us he was “born in Normandy, France, then in 1978 made his home in Toronto. His first love was poetry. A number of his poems have been published in Compass Magazine and the New Times. Nameless River is a novel Albert carried in his heart and worked on for many years.”

When not working, Albert can be found gardening, or walking through a forest, or sitting by a lake.

Appraisal:

This is a fascinating book on a number of levels. And beautifully written. Perhaps oddly, it reminded me a little of Michael Carson’s ‘Benson’ trilogy. Set in the Sixties, written in the Eighties, those three books also deal with a catholic boy trying to make sense of his sexuality. This book is less pratfall funny than Carson’s work, but perhaps more empathetic.

I couldn’t put it down. I, a heterosexual woman born in Britain in the Fifties, nevertheless found many resonances with my own childhood in this book. Dear god – how did any of us turn out able to function at all?

It is set largely in France, but is not a translation. So there isn’t that clunkiness one often gets with work which started life in another language. Much of it is set in the French countryside and shows us the way of life there in the Fifties (when de Gaulle was in power, Communism was a real force in French politics, and to own a television was a mark of status). Plenty of French phrases are used, for colour, but each is translated (so you can practice your rusty French, secure in the knowledge that a proper translation is imminent). The placenames of the villages deep in la campagne are themselves a joy.

Women are not neglected in this book. Crepet draws the characters of Maurice’s sister, mother and grandmother deftly and with great tenderness. In the times in which the book is set, women had little conventional authority and had to make a niche for themselves however they could. I still shudder when I recall how little notice anyone took of women and girls in the Fifties and Sixties in Britain. It was no better in France.

At times the novel moves back further in time and to Paris, where the author draws a picture of gay life during the first decade of the Third Republic. In 1878, foreshadowing the younger Maurice’s exile from holy orders, great granduncle Maurice is sent away from his monastery at Saint-Benôit-sur-Orne and has to find a new place in the world. These searching sections become more frequent, longer and more intense as the book unfolds.

The book is profound in the questions it asks about gay men in the two time periods it switches between: how can, should, and must an individual conduct himself when society treats him as an outcast?

Towards the end the two threads (Maurice and great-granduncle Maurice) become so agitated and enmeshed that the only way to ride the flood to the end is to let go of one’s own sensibilities and just go with the flow.

Buy now from:            Amazon US        Amazon UK

FYI:

None. A beautifully written and presented book.

Format/Typo Issues:

No issues.

Rating: ***** Five Stars

Reviewed by: Judi Moore

Approximate word count: 65-70,000 words

Review: The Gigolo and the Princess by Adri Brewer

 

Genre: Short Story/Literary Fiction

Description:

“Princess Dymphna increasingly finds herself the target of tabloid criticism for her her choice of clothing, always buttoned up to her neck. She is labeled excessively prudish. Retreating from the public eye, she becomes somber and withdrawn.

In a bid to restore her joy for life, her father entrusts her to a gigolo. He gains her trust, and as she bares her upper body, she reveals her hidden secret. The gigolo uncovers the source of her shame and begins by teaching her to appreciate her own body. Through moments of physical intimacy and trust, he reaffirms her beauty.

With gentle corrections, minor imperfections are addressed. In the end, the tabloids are graced with photographs of a radiant princess, exuding an almost fairy-tale-like erotic allure.”

Author:

Information about Adri Brewer, the author of this and the rest of the Soul Journeys with the Gigolo series is limited. All I can say for sure is that he is Dutch. His stories are translated to English for publication on Amazon.

Appraisal:

If your first thought upon seeing a story (or a series of stories, currently there are seven of them) with a title starting “The Gigolo and …” and assume you’re going to find erotica or something that would get at least an R rating as a movie like I initially assumed, you’d be wrong. Sure, the main character in these stories is a Gigolo who does what is implied by that. But he does much more than that. When he leaves his partner and his two kids at home to go on a job he’s much more than a “professional lover.” His clients are always wealthy women. He’s hired to hang out with them at the location of their choice for 10 days. During that time he might do what you’d expect from a gigolo, but even more he’s acting as a psychologist, helping his client work through some personal issue that is holding them back and hopefully finding a solution, whether helping them view themselves differently, make a change, or possibly something else. Yes, physical intimacy is part of the arrangement, but it isn’t his main purpose.

This first story in the series involved a princess who had an issue that was holding her back in some ways. The Gigolo figured out the reason and helped her find a solution that worked for her. I suspect that buried in this story and the others in the series is a lesson for anyone who is unhappy with themselves and a potential way of looking at it differently to help get past those things holding them back.

Buy now from:            Amazon US        Amazon UK

FYI:

Although you might expect lots of notes here, the reality is that the story implies adult things happening a few times, but that’s about it. No adult language and nothing explicit.

Format/Typo Issues:

No significant issues.

Rating: **** Four Stars

Reviewed by: BigAl

Approximate word count: 9-10,000 words

Review: In the Joining of Souls by Jordan Gray

 

Genre: Literary Fiction

Description:

“Shattered trust. Buried secrets. A friendship on the brink.

In a small town where everyone knows everyone's business, Jordie and Hannah share an unbreakable bond—until tragedy rips their world apart. As grief consumes him, Jordie embarks on a desperate search for answers, uncovering a web of lies that shatter his understanding of the past and force him to question the people he trusts and the memories he once clung to.

With guilt, betrayal, and long-buried secrets rising to the surface, Jordie must confront a devastating truth: Can he ever truly move forward, or has the past already shaped his future beyond repair?

A gripping novel of love, dedication, and redemption, perfect for fans of emotional suspense and small-town mysteries.”

Author:

Jordan Gray says he’s always been a reader of a wide variety of books and a lifelong desire to write stories himself. The free time after retiring from the corporate world is finally allowing him to do this. This is his second book.

Appraisal:

I wasn’t sure what to expect from this book and now that I’ve finished it, I’m not sure how to describe it. You’ve got mystery, coming-of-age, and even a bit of paranormal thrown in to the story of two kids Jordie and Hannah, who are “soulmates.” That’s their term, not mine, but I agree, they are. They live in a small town and struggle with the difficulties of fitting in that many kids experience. Then disaster strikes. What that means and how it shakes out, I won’t say. What I will say is that once I got drawn into their story I couldn’t stop reading, having no idea where the story that turns out to be a fairly long one, was going to go, and never being quite sure, but definitely caring what the answer was.

If you like coming-of-age kinds of stories, you ought to like this one. If you’re a big fan of the classic novels “To Kill a Mockingbird” and “Catcher in the Rye” which are two of Hannah and Jordie’s favorite books, they’re your kind of people and you should be able to relate to them and their story too.

Buy now from:            Amazon US        Amazon UK

FYI:

From the information available it isn’t clear what country the author lives in or where the story takes place, but you’ll spot spelling conventions and word choices at least some of the time that appear to indicate the answer is the UK.

Format/Typo Issues:

Review is based on an ARC (advance review copy) so I can’t gauge the final product in this area.

Rating: ***** Five Stars

Reviewed by: BigAl

Approximate word count: 155-160,000 words

Review: Humdrum by Mitchell Brockman

 

Genre: Literary Fiction/Psychological Thriller

Description:

“How long can someone endure the silence? For David, the answer’s not long enough.

In the hum of an office filled with laughter and camaraderie, David Clark exists on the edges unseen, unheard, and trapped in a cycle of quiet isolation. Nights in his empty apartment feel endless, and the world outside his window moves on without him.

When a coworker’s kindness cracks open the walls he’s built, and a sudden tragedy shakes his fragile existence, David is forced to confront the silence he’s lived with for too long. As his carefully guarded life unravels, he must decide: will he take the risk to finally connect, or retreat further into the safety of solitude?”

Author:

“Mitchell Brockman is a storyteller at heart, diving into whatever genre sparks curiosity and creativity. With an adventurous approach to writing, his debut novel, Humdrum, captures readers with its unique blend of wit, depth, and unpredictability. When not writing, Mitchell enjoys exploring the world, whether through books, conversations, or the occasional daydream. Passionate about weaving tales that connect with readers on a personal level, he believes every story is an opportunity to discover something new. Humdrum is just the beginning, with plenty more stories waiting to be told.”

Appraisal:

I’m struggling with what to say about this book. If you’re wondering why, it’s hard to explain without giving away too much of what happens. I’m also struggling with what to think of it. Before I started reading I wasn’t sure what I expected from the story or where I thought it might go. For almost all of the book I had no idea where things were going or even, of the potential directions things could logically go, which path I was hoping for, as often none of the realistic choices were very enticing. However, odds of taking something positive from this story in the end are good. Hopefully it will get you wondering about the people around you that you often ignore. That could be good for both of you.

Buy now from:            Amazon US        Amazon UK

FYI:

Only one use of an adult word, but definitely aimed at older teens or adults based on other content.

Format/Typo Issues:

No significant issues.

Rating: **** Four Stars

Reviewed by: BigAl

Approximate word count: 45-50,000 words

Review: The Crew by Michael Mohr

 

Genre: Literary fiction

Description:

“When Jack Donnigan—a naïve, protected 16-year-old sophomore at St. Andy’s Prep in Southern California in 2000—jumps into The Crew, a renegade punk rock clique on campus led by the nefarious and intelligent Cannonball, he is thrilled. But he soon challenges Cannon’s leadership by starting a secret relationship with Cannon’s chosen girl, Sarah, and by jumping on stage at live punk shows, displaying more bravery to the rest of the members.

Jack’s relationship with mom and dad becomes increasingly strained. He stays out late and rebels for the first time, enjoying his freedom and wild experimentation. The faculty at St. Andy’s—wanting to dismantle the cult hero status of The Crew on campus—organize a coup. They plan to nail the perceived leader: Jack Donnigan, who’s been conned by Cannonball.

Meanwhile, Sarah and Jack decide to run away to Jack’s uncle’s in San Francisco, flee their small town and live “real life.” Jack’s mentor is his beloved but unconventional English teacher, Mr. Bryce. When the faculty nail Jack, Mr. Bryce does his best to save the floundering student. But when Jack is finally kicked out of his folks’ home, and Cannonball connives to drum up drama, stealing Sarah back by spreading a web of lies, who will save him from himself?”

Author:

“Michael Mohr is a Pushcart Prize-nominated writer, former literary agent’s assistant and freelance book editor.” For more, visit his website.

Appraisal:

I related to this story way more than I want to admit. I think anyone who had a rebellious streak in their teens (an extremely large percentage of the population I suspect) will react the same. Those who didn’t will at least see a high school friend or maybe enemy or at least someone they knew in their high school years in Jack Donnigan, the protagonist of this story.

Since I was able to relate to Jack, I was also concerned as to how things were going to work out for him. There were a lot of possibilities, some good, some very much not so, and plenty in between. I’ll leave it to you to decide where on this spectrum things end up for when you’re done reading, but will say that I wasn’t sure how things were going to end until they did. It was an intense tale that kept me engrossed to the very end.

One minor issue, but worth mentioning, is whoever did the copyediting or proofreading of this needs to research the phrase “all of the sudden” and discover that it should be “all of a sudden” according to all the experts. But even if you cringe the handful of times you read this, it is bearable and the rest of the editing and proofreading was great.

Buy now from:            Amazon US        Amazon UK

FYI:

A bit of adult language. They’re wild teenage punks, it wouldn’t be realistic without some.

Format/Typo Issues:

No significant issues other than a handful or more times where the book says “all of the sudden” instead of the correct “all of a sudden” which grates on me way more than it probably should.

Rating: **** Four Stars

Reviewed by: BigAl

Approximate word count: 75-80,000 words

Review: Eddie & Alan by Anthony O. Amiewalan

 

Genre: Literary Fiction/LGBTQ

Description:

“Eddie and Alan is a novel that follows two men who reflect on the end of their three-year relationship. They come from different walks of life; Eddie is a black queer man, and Alan is a cis white, mostly straight man. They were introduced to each other at work and quickly connected. Eddie and Alan's friendship morphed into something more intimate, coming to a head during their four-day beach vacation. At its heart, this story seeks to shed light on the complexities of relationships between men, the fluidity of sexuality, and what happens when the lines are blurred.”

Author:

Born in the southern US, Anthony Amiewalan describes himself as a first-generation Nigerian American. He mostly grew up in the Midwest, then lived on the west coast for a short time before landing in Brooklyn, NY where he lives with his longtime partner. This is his first novel although he also wrote a memoir that was released in November, 2022. For more, visit his website.

Appraisal:

Years ago I read a memoir written by a then new author that told the story of a high school romance the author had. He and the girl he was involved with were doing great until her parents put an end to it, forbidding them to see each other. Years later, as adults, they ran into each other and things took off again with them eventually getting married. The author’s next book was the same story, told from the perspective of his girlfriend and eventual wife. It turns out that while the big picture was often the same, the way they viewed and interpreted events was often much different. The contrast between the two viewpoints for an outsider was interesting because as an outside observer, a reader who read about events from both sides could understand how both parties came to see things the way they did and it was a reasonable viewpoint, at least based on the information each had.

That’s a lot of words to tell you about a different book, but in the preface of this book the author explains that this novel is going to tell the story of two friends in a first-person narrative style from the viewpoint of both of the main characters, which I’m sure you could guess are named Eddie and Alan. Seeing this explanation upfront I immediately flashed on that set of books above and saw how this approach could work. And it did. That Eddie and Alan are very different from each other in many ways, from the obvious characteristics of race and sexuality, to the different approaches to life, the way they deal with difficult situations, and many other ways only adds to the story with the contrasts helping the reader to understand how people who might be different than the reader might view things. I’ve long thought that one of the things gained by reading is that it puts the reader into the minds and lives of people who are often much different than themself and helps them understand others better as a side-effect. With these two main characters you’re guaranteed at least one of them is going to be much different than you, quite possibly both of them will be, at least in some ways. The result was an interesting and enlightening read.

Buy now from:            Amazon US        Amazon UK

FYI:

A small amount of adult language. There are also some adult situations depicted although they are relatively mild as such things go.

Format/Typo Issues:

Review is based on an advance reviewer copy, so I can’t gauge the final product in this area.

Rating: **** Four Stars

Reviewed by: BigAl

Approximate word count: 35-40,000 words

Review: Chasing Sevens by Liberty Lane

 Genre: Literary Fiction/Contemporary Fiction/Coming of Age

Description:

“Good-natured yet naïve Tobi Stone has always been dealt an unfair hand.

Tobi dreams of becoming a successful musician but finds creative spirits are silenced in forgotten ‘fly-over’ towns. When his closest friend goes missing, a streak of luck leads him on a journey to find her.”

Author:

It appears that Liberty Lane grew up in a town in rural Ohio and her bio indicates that “Liberty’s main goal is to evoke emotion in her readers. She aims to craft characters and worlds that are realistic, tangible, thought-provoking, and sometimes controversial. Taking readers on a journey of love and loss, she explores gray areas of the modern world that typically fly under the radar.”

Appraisal:

This story drew me in with characters that I cared about and wanted to see how things turned out for them. Some readers might see the obvious flaws that Tobi, the protagonist, has and think poorly of him. However, as you get to know him better you come to realize that all things considered he is doing pretty good and that in those areas where he falls short (school work being the obvious one) it might be due to factors that cause that to be a lower priority. Tobi also has some dreams. This story of Tobi reaching for his dreams, learning and adapting his goals as he learns from life, is a good coming-of-age story with lessons to be learned for all of us buried in there.

Buy now from:            Amazon US        Amazon UK

FYI:

The author includes a trigger warning that this book at times touches on some topics that some readers may find troubling “including but not limited to drug and alcohol usage/abuse, childhood trauma, previous loss of a family member, sexual assault, various mental health topics, bullying, and domestic violence.” She recommends those who might find any of these topics to be an issue to “proceed with caution.”

Format/Typo Issues:

This review is based on an advance reviewer copy of the book, so I can’t gauge the final product in this area.

Rating: **** Four Stars

Reviewed by: BigAl

Approximate word count: 105-110,000 words

Review: Until September by Harker Jones

Genre: LGBTQ/Coming of Age/Literary Fiction

Description:

“In the lull between the conservative ’50s and the turbulent ’60s, Kyle Ryan Quinn, an introspective, sentimental boy, leads a golden life. He’s rich, beautiful and smart, and he vacations each year on the same island with the same circle of friends: entitled Adonis Trent; acerbic Claudia; practical Dana; and frivolous Carly. Haunted by the ghosts of a tragedy that took place in his youth, Kyle is more sensitive than his privileged friends. He understands loss, and secrets.

When he meets Jack Averill, a quiet, bookish boy, his fateful 18th summer on the island, Kyle falls hopelessly, heedlessly in love. As he befriends and attempts to woo Jack — and tries to integrate him into his tight-knit yet troubled circle — he’s pursued himself by another summer boy, Trey, who will stop at nothing to win Kyle’s love, all while Trent toys with the affections of an island girl. Amid mounting familial, sexual and peer pressures, all four young men make heartbreaking decisions that will steal their innocence, destroy lives and consume them forever.”

Author:

Harker Jones grew up in Michigan where he writes movie scripts and is the book reviews editor for a literary journal. For more check out his Facebook page.

Appraisal:

I find that reading books that allow me to vicariously experience what it would be like to live in someone else’s shoes, specifically someone that is not like me, helps me to understand others better which should help make me a better person. I’ve never gone through the main struggle that Kyle, the protagonist of this book did. I imagine someone who has experienced that struggle would benefit from reading this, both understanding that others have the same struggle and also contrasting how much worse I imagine it would have been during the time this book takes place.

Curiously I did struggle to believe or accept one part of Kyle’s story. As the book’s description makes clear, Kyle comes from an extremely well-to-do family. That they have a “summer home” on a relatively remote island where they summer every year and that Kyle is able to afford some of the things he does in the last part of the book really drove that home and was one aspect that I sometimes struggled to suspend my disbelief. Looking back, I realize that it just shows that money helps, but doesn’t cure every issue. On balance this was an enjoyable and enlightening read.

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FYI:

Some adult language and some adult situations.

Format/Typo Issues:

No significant issues

Rating: **** Four Stars

Reviewed by: BigAl

Approximate word count: 95-100,000 words

Reprise Review: Atlas, Broken by Jeremy Tyrrell

 Genre: Literary Fiction

Description:

Henry Ludlow’s existence erodes as modern life takes its toll in the torture of a thousand cuts.

Author:

Jeremy Tyrrell is a software developer by day and writer in his off time. He has worked in a variety of fields; from retail hardware to burger boy, from store maintenance to tutoring, from janitor to programmer.

Appraisal:

Atlas, Broken is told in a powerful voice that reminds at once of Ogden Nash and Franz Kafka. Walter Mitty meets the bug of The Metamorphsis. The fact that it is self-published is condemnation of the current state of letters.

The author himself called Atlas, Broken a depressing tale and some early reviews praised it for dealing with depression. I didn’t see it that way, but rather as a story of Every Man, even the giants among us. Sam Houston, the hero of the Texas revolution and a Unionist who was unable to prevent the state from joining the Confederacy, considered his life a failure. George Eastman, founder of Eastman Kodak, famously wrote “My work is done, why wait?” before he killed himself.

Tyrrell uses humor expertly, not to take the edge off his stark look at the human condition, but to hone the edge to razor sharpness. Highly recommended.

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FYI:

Original review published April 18, 2017

Format/Typo Issues:

None worth noting

Rating: ***** Five Stars

Reviewed by: Sam Waite

Approximate word count: 20-25,000 words

Review: The Melancholy Strumpet Master by Zeb Beck

Genre: Dark Humor/Literary Fiction

Description:

“Will Gilmore Crowell's humble member cross the line separating academic integrity from disgrace? Only if by doing so it can help others.

Every weekend, Gilmore Crowell crosses the border into Tijuana’s redlight district. He’s not there for sex; he’s there to save his failing academic career.

Gil's anthropological study of Tijuana streetwalkers had his dissertation advisor cheering him on. But that was years ago, before his best sources up and vanished. Now, with no connection to the sex worker community, his research has stalled and the faculty elders are about to kick him out of the grad program. Plus, he’s broke.

He takes a job teaching at a juvenile detention center. The steady income gives him the means to keep making his weekly trips across the border. Now he’s paying the girls to speak with him. In a sudden moment of insight, he realizes that giving them something besides cold hard cash might help him forge a new inroad to the community. But do they want what he's offering?”

Author:

“Zeb Beck lives in Los Angeles with his lovely wife and difficult pets.”

Appraisal:

This book was described to me as a “darkly humorous work of literary fiction.” That’s definitely a good description. The definition of literary fiction is one of a few genre labels that indicate the story is more character driven than plot driven. Of course, there is a plot. Things are happening around Gilmore Crowell, our protagonist. But ultimately those things are less important to the story and what I think a reader should be getting out of it than what Gilmore does (or doesn’t do) and what is going on in his head. While there are certainly people and events beyond Gilmore that figure into the story and influence what happens to him over the course of this tale, the lessons that a reader might take away from this story are more a matter of observing and questioning what goes on in Gilmore’s head. Yes, he is his own worst enemy.

As for the humor, definitely lots of humor in this book. Some of it will be the reader shaking their head at Gilmore, wondering what the heck he is thinking, and other will be events beyond him, but dark is a good description of both. If dark humor isn’t your thing, this might not be the book for you. For me, it was one of the draws.

Buy now from:            Amazon US        Amazon UK

FYI:

Some adult language and content.

Format/Typo Issues:

No significant issues

Rating: **** Four Stars

Reviewed by: BigAl

Approximate word count: 75-80,000 words