What is Ikala? A person, a place, a thing…or something else entirely? In Ikala: The Frozen Pond, Joe Trabocco describes it as “the hands of the soul that come to collect you.” This haunting, poetic journey begins with the wonder of childhood and the glow...

Paintings: Love by Joe Trabocco is a moving exploration of the many forms love takes throughout a lifetime. Through a series of interconnected stories, Trabocco captures the quiet, often unspoken moments that define relationships, those fleeting instances of connection, longing, and endurance that linger long...

Queer as Folk Tales by James Penha has interconnected and standalone stories that rewrite global folk tales, myths, and original narratives through a queer lens. Spanning Indonesia, China, Norse mythology, and European fairy tales, the book follows characters who move between everyday life and magic...

It is 1935, and Josie, narrator of Acres of Bitterness, has suffered the death of her beloved husband, Allen. She decides to travel from where she now lives in North Dakota back to Riggins, Idaho, and her old home on Allison Creek. Josie's mother is...

In "A Mage Is Born," we meet Garig the lead character. Garig was orphaned when he was a mere two weeks old. His mother handed him to her sister in order to protect him from the evil Mage that attacked the castle. His Uncle Charles...

"ZAFTAN MISCREANTS" is a science fiction novel that pits the Zaftans and the Gundies against one another. Ensign Sam is an android, who was created by the navy. Sam is sent on mission aboard the Gundy flagship Tiger. Sam is an android, though she is...

At this time of political ups and downs, "Mockery" deserves a starring role as a book people who care about politics should read. The narrator is Sam Walker who was just a struggling writer as he began looking into the miraculous election of Third Party...

Bo (Beauregard) Kelso is an old man, a wealthy Texas rancher who has outlived his beloved wife, Mary Beth, by three years. Seventy-three years have passed since Bo's intolerant, hateful father Leroy nearly hanged his black ranch hand, Calvin Mercer, for attempting to steal what...

Elena Stowell's "Flowing with the Go" is a heartrending and inspiring read about one woman's journey towards overcoming her grief by immersing herself in martial arts. This wonderful gem of a book chronicles the author's struggle to move on after her daughter's sudden death. She...

I was asked to review this book because of the way we Americans are killing ourselves with our intake of fast food, soda, and the amount of meat and diary we eat. The doctors and nutritionists on my radio show, Oprah and now Dr.Oz, have...

In the book “Time Warped Travelers” by Robert Westfall, the drama unfolds when Thomas Evans, a self-professed con artist, sees a newspaper ad about a pretty lady, Miss Elizabeth Howard, a cosmetics manager at Woolworth’s. So, the 20 something closes his eyes and pops up...

If you are looking for an inspirational book about gracefully coping with the less than appealing aspects of aging, Andrea Partee's "Aging with Humor and Grace" isn't that tale. Instead Partee provides hilarious insight into the pitfalls of aging in a self-deprecating way to which...

Memoirs of a Technical Consultant by Prasad Ram is an autobiography where the author speaks about his travels; and shares the wonderful moments he experienced, the interesting people he met, and the beautiful places he visited that changed his perspective forever. I enjoyed the book. Autobiographies...

In her memoir Love For Our Afflictions, author Arianna Carruth explains how she has attempted to manage emotional pain following several miscarriages and the infidelity of her husband. The couple has one child but is having difficulty carrying another child to term. When they again...

Journey Within a Story by Giovanni Venturi is a short tale about a little boy who is trapped inside a library and is struggling with the real and the imaginary. The story starts by painting the image of the little boy reading a book inside...

Birdbrain by Virginia Arthur is a sweeping semi-autobiographical chronicle (the author states in the foreword that many of the book’s events actually happened) of the life of a birder biologist/conservationist whose journey takes her to some of America’s most biologically diverse and unspoiled places. Protagonist...

Birds of a feather… or perhaps cougars of a feather come together in Terms of Temptation, a continuation of the lives of the Cantrell family by Lorrie Farrelly. Kinley Cantrell has a heart for taking on wild animals which are injured or sick, but she...

C.H. MacLean's One is Come is an engaging and often riveting fantasy novel that mixes the modern with magic. Haylwen doesn’t care who actually blew up the wall of the school library. With a chance to finally have real friends, all she cares about is...

Hit the Knee and Other Sage Advice is a humorous look at a serious subject. Dennis Gwin has suffered a few heart problems in his life and has had stents fitted on more than one occasion. Unfortunately, his problem becomes too serious for stents and...

Hacking Kickstarter, Indiegogo: How to Raise Big Bucks in 30 Days by Patrice Williams Marks comes with a warning: Do not launch your crowd-funding project before reading this book. No one should entertain the notion of funding a project with any crowd-funding group before they...