Editorial Reviews for Nominees
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 Score: 93/100 (9.3 out of 10)
Whispers in the Vineyard by Justin Kojok is an exciting, modern take on the classic Shakespeare tale, Romeo and Juliet! The book concerns two rival wine-making families in the fictitious village of Domeabra, a village with a rich culture, history, and traditions. It is surrounded by lush “undulating hills” and nature. However, its chief geographical feature is that it is home to two large vineyards that produce the wine that accounts for much of the village's economy. One vineyard is owned by the Daanua family. The other is owned by the Laar family. The Daanua and Laar families have a long-standing rivalry that is implied to have once been tense and violent. More recently, they've turned to more peaceful means of competition like with the annual Great Domeabra Wine-Off, a wine-tasting competition in which the families have traded wins and losses. It is part of the annual festival, which includes singing and dancing, somewhat serving as the festival's main-event. Shaking things up, there's a newcomer in town named Loom, a descendant of the Daanuas who is returning to her ancestral land. Loom is the Juliet of the novel, the main protagonist, and the eyes through which we learn about Domeabra. Loom's dance partner, rival, and romantic interest in this novel is Feika Laar of the opposing Laar family. As you might have guessed, Loom and Feika are the main couple of the novel and are gradually able to put their differences aside in the interest of love and peace, but will their families? None of that should be too surprising to a reader. What might be surprising is how involved this book is in regard to the world-building. Domeabra is a really interesting and beautiful place with an interesting history and fun cultural practices/traditions like song, dance, art, and competitions. Loom and Feika are decent enough protagonists in their own right, but there are other supporting characters who brighten this book and make it more enjoyable. There's Aisha, the humorous troublemaker and firestarter who makes private issues into a public spectacle. There's also Mama Afi who serves as Loom's guide, mentor, and as a bit of mediator in the disputes between the families. Nia helps us to learn more about Feika, adding more depth and intrigue to his character as we learn about his vulnerabilities. Similar to Driving For Justice (by the same author), Whispers in the Vineyard emphasizes the power of stories and the people, relationships, and meanings behind them. We are told: “Every vine, every leaf, and every grape seemed to whisper tales of the past, tales of love, rivalry, and unity.” “...every vine has its story, just like every wine has its soul.” This doesn't become self-indulgent and repetitive the way that the author's previous book arguably did, although reading these lines after seeing similar ones in Driving For Justice did dampen their impact a little bit, as beautiful as they are. Again, it's like hearing the same rhyme or tune in every one of a singer's albums. It gets cloying after awhile. There are still some other beautiful passages that are bit different from Driving For Justice like: “Change is like the seasons, inevitable and necessary.” The author again uses poetic techniques that add to the beauty of the writing. For example: The words “wrinkled” and “crinkled” are paired. There's alliteration like in: “...the dreams of tomorrow, setting the stage for a dance of destiny” “...delightful dance of flavors” Now, there were a few things, like with Driving For Justice, that irritated us. Similar to John in the last book, it seems or feels like Loom has some sort of main character syndrome going on. She gets presented like a Mary Sue who is going to solve everyone's problems. It doesn't help that so many of the other characters constantly praise her and view her like a female messiah of some sort. It just seems so unearned and undeserved. We had the same feeling with John. For example, Mr. Adomako tells her that she is “the catalyst” for all the positive changes going on in the village including the relationships healing between the feuding families. Geez, talk about showering someone with praise and giving a bit too much credit to one individual! So, you're saying that before Savior Loom arrived, everything was just a living hell? There was no good to be found anywhere? People were just at each other's throats and every day was Hate Your Bloody Neighbor Day? See where that all falls apart? A similar thing happened with John and his wife, Lila, in the last book. It just seemed forced and excessive. The main characters of these books just seem to hog all of the praise, admiration, and credit, and it gets pretty annoying. So, no one else is worthy of admiration, praise, and credit? It doesn't end there. They make a whole play about all the great things that Loom did for the village that supposedly brings everyone “to tears” and makes them emotional. Anyway, we did enjoy this book a lot more than Driving For Justice, even though Driving For Justice is probably a better, more valuable book overall. Whispers in the Vineyard did less to test our patience and annoy us. It respected our time and our attention spans, which is something that Driving For Justice constantly tested. It also featured solid characters and exceptional world-building. Check it out on Amazon!
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 Score: 91+/100 (9.1+ out of 10)
Counterblow Clemency is a fun, adventure-filled sci-fi/YA/dystopia novel by Naomi Shibles! The story centers on Bjorn Bear, a rebellious teenager residing in the high-tech, dystopian world of Promo City. Bjorn clashes with his social-climbing mother and emotionally distant father. As he strives to assert his independence and deal with the repercussions of his actions, the plot intensifies, unfolding a series of perilous and exhilarating events. Bjorn is joined by several colorful characters, several of which we have all kinds of questions about even after finishing the novel. Chief of these is Doodle. Doodle is such a bizarre and strange character! Some will say he's... interesting. The thing about Doodle is that he's supposed to be some kind of loyal part-human/part-robot (cyborg) friend whom Bjorn made earlier in his life, becoming like an older brother to him. Doodle even has a real human name, Kofi Alexis. However, what doesn't seem to connect is how Doodle acts and how he is treated. Doodle doesn't act human! And sometimes he's not treated like one. He kinda acts and is treated like a pet dog! It's kinda weird and bizarre. For example, he seems to sleep or rest by the characters' feets (like a pet would). They drag him by his arms and legs like he's a cat resisting going in the bath tub. They tie or strap him in a jump seat like he's either a baby or a pet. Bjorn, Bjorn's mom (Kendall), and other characters also seem to talk down to him like he's a lesser-being (a pet). It's really... strange. We thought that this was maybe supposed to be funny, like a running gag. However, we kinda felt like it was more mean-spirited and didn't make the lead characters look very nice or good. You could argue that at least Bjorn and company took Doodle in, but they don't seem to treat him very well. We do get a line from Bjorn saying, “I take care of Doodle... I always have.” But he seems to say this with a sense of ownership. Again, it's like Doodle is more of a dependent pet rather than being a person. And he has a PURPLE MOHAWK for some reason! So, picture this: you have a “best friend” who acts/is treated like a dog or a very young child who has cybernetic parts and who has a hairstyle associated with rebellious young adults. Our minds are blown. This might go to show how the hierarchy is skewed in this society and that certain people are treated like lesser beings. We can definitely see that. We also have to bring up that there's A LOT OF COGNITIVE DISSONANCE in this book, and Doodle definitely fits with that. Then there's Murgatroyd, one of the coolest characters in the book. Murgatroyd is kinda like the Han Solo of the book. In fact, that's a pretty good comparison. He's a cool cat with a cool ship, cool weapons and a propensity for illegal activities (like smuggling and selling pulse rifles). Bjorn seems to share an uneasy friendship with Murgatroyd, if you can even call it a friendship. It's really their problems that bring them together, working toward a common good. So, if Bjorn is kinda like Luke Skywalker and if Murgatroyd is kinda like Han Solo, there must be a Ben Kenobi here somewhere, right? Well, that's where Carter Lock comes in! Now, Carter Lock was probably our favorite character in the book. He's an old TV/film star who played Dr. Titus Holliday in the popular show "Ancient Escapades." Not only is he a hero to the protagonists, but he's seen as a role-model and icon throughout the world. The government actually uses him for the purposes of propaganda since he has the trust, eyes, ears, and hearts of the people, especially the youth. Well... or least he did. Carter Lock is a bit washed up and no longer in the limelight in this book. However, he still has his pedigree, his sense of adventure, and resourcefulness. Most of all, he has maturity and wisdom that most of the other characters (who are younger and less experienced) simply lack. He's constantly admonishing and calling out characters sorta like a parent or grandparent. We really liked him! He kinda reminded us of Martin from “The Oasis King” by Mark David Pullen, the best character from that book as well. Anyway, where do we even begin? The book does kinda leave you lost and confused, so maybe we'll start from the canonical beginning. Climate change, pollution, and conflicts led to a shortage of land and natural resources in the 21st century. The United States folded to become the nation of “Carolina.” They went to war with Iceland (yes, really) in the midst of global crisis. Anyway, the characters are stuck in what remains. It's actually a pretty interesting world. This book kinda reads like satire, pointing out how fake and superficial this current world/generation is—overly reliant on technologies like smartphones, computers, and artificial intelligence. Similar to “Quantum Consequence” by Mike Murphey, the book points out how big tech corporations, social media, and online marketplaces are gaining a bit too much control and influence over society. Smartphones seemed to have been particularly devious in brainwashing people and leading to the events of this book. They're referred to as the “first external devices” that eventually led to the Raven devices used throughout the book. Furthermore, the city is literally named “Promo” for a reason. This is a techy-marketing term, giving name to an entire dystopian metropolis! Anyway, what does every dystopian society need? Well, clones, drones, androids, and cyborgs. And maybe a Super-Baby-Project or two. Bjorn in one such result of a Super-Baby-Project known as “Atlas.” He is an Atlas, also known as a Zig-Zag, an enhanced being essentially grown in a lab to be exceptional. What's really weird about this (going back to the cognitive dissonance argument) is that—of all the characters—Bjorn isn't really that spectacular despite the fact that he's supposed to be. We're TOLD that he's supposed to be. There's one scene in which he fights and overpowers one of Mr. Florian's guards, but there were other characters also fighting/overcoming these guards at various points. He also shows some increased agility. However, Bjorn's real power seems to be his resistance to damage and his ability to heal rapidly if damaged, similar to Solon from Another World by I.M. Stoicus. He seems to have another power that we're not sure if the author even intended him to have: enhanced access to catecholamines like adrenaline (versus normal humans). How did we come to that conclusion independently? Well, almost every time there's a conflict or a crisis, the author describes Bjorn's surging. This might mean that he has a deeper well of energy than most people. Anyway, this book seems to involve Bjorn (that “unnatural boy”) being the target of unscrupulous people/persons who've hired mercenaries to take him out. Bjorn is the heir to a fortune, which draws suspicion on those who might want to seize it in his absence. At some point, we learn that Murgatroyd is the son of a neglectful, harsh man named Magnus who happens to have access to an advanced security system with the information the characters need. Wait a minute! So, Murgatroyd is a seasoned criminal operating under the nose of his dad who is pretty much the chief of security!?! Talk about cognitive dissonance! Wait, there's more! So, you know how this is a somewhat-serious book about somewhat-serious topics like people getting shot and a totalitarian government controlling the land through fear and technology? Well, the author throws killer-baby-micro-hippos right into that mix. We're not even kidding. There are killer-mini-hippos in this book! They act like piranhas. Yet, the characters constantly reminds us how “cute” and “adorable” they are. On one hand, that's cute and adorable. On the other hand, it's another case of cognitive dissonance. One one hand, the plot implies this is a serious story we should take seriously. On the other hand, the dialogue and events imply that this is a silly, slapstick comedy that we shouldn't take seriously. These two things just aren't mixing. They're like oil and water. Are we supposed to be scared for our characters potentially failing, losing their freedoms, and/or being harmed/killed? Or are we supposed to be laughing? Which is it? It's kinda like Quantum Consequence by Mike Murphey in which there's clear child abuse and a murder that happened earlier in the book, yet there's all this goofy, silly stuff happening afterward. It's like tonal whiplash. We're not sure how we're supposed to feel. We most definitely can't feel everything at once. Anyway, maybe you'll have a bit fun with this. Check it out on Amazon!  Score: 90/100 (9.0 out of 10)
The Tender Silver Stars Pamela Stockwell is a book about morality, ethics, compassion, justice, and freedom. Taking place in the early 1970s, the book explores the racism, bigotry, and social justice tensions that were rampant at the time. It particularly highlights discrimination of those of a lower social economic status while emphasizing how white collar crime often gets overlooked or swept under the rug with the attention being on crimes committed by the poor and desperate. It also shines a light on the changing progressive ideas on what a woman's role in the house (and society) is. The progressive ideals clash with the old-fashioned, traditional, conservative ideals held by the likes of Triss's grandfather and Everlove's ex-fiance. In this book, you really get to see the clash and transition between people with two very different frames of thinking—those who want things to stay the same and those who want things to change. There are those who want to preserve “traditional” families and those who want to emphasize independence and sovereignty, particularly for women. There are those who want to emphasize businesses and business leaders in hopes of a “trickle down” effect versus those who want there to be more social programs and financial assistance for the poor. To be perfectly honest, we're somewhere in the middle, which makes us well-equipped to judge this book. This novel follows Triss Littlefield, a 21-year-old (by our calculations, being six in 1957). Admittedly, we were kinda surprised that she was in her 20s because she acts like she's 14-16 sometimes. Now, it needs to be said that Triss is incredibly idealistic, well-meaning, and well-intentioned. In fact, a big part of her character is that she usually means to do the right thing, but then the right thing leads to a domino-effect of other problems. It's actually quite amusing. She's like a clumsy/klutz-like character, kinda like Jennifer Lopez in Maid in Manhattan. This is demonstrated in the early birthday cake/carpet scene as well as in the inciting incident which results in her turning to theft. Speaking of inciting incidents, let's talk about that and the central conflict. Triss rebels against her lawyer-grandfather's wishes for her life and career (because she finds them misogynistic, old-fashioned, and wrong), deliberately choosing to work for one of her grandfather's enemy, a man named Horus Haine. Horus Haine is effectively the main villain of this novel. He can probably be described as a slumlord, though he'd probably prefer “landlord” or “real estate owner.” Haine ruthlessly evicts tenants who are behind on rent or who only make a partial payment. It doesn't help that the majority of his tenants happen to be poor and ethnic minorities (primarily Black) following right on the heels of the Civil Rights Movement. This deeply upsets Triss, an idealistic social justice warrior (at heart), who begins to see her employer as a ruthless, tyrannical, heartless monster who evicts some of the most vulnerable in society including a mother-of-four named Peach Singleton. You could probably argue that Haine demanding that Peach be evicted is the straw that broke the camel's back. And, really, we're not sure if it's supposed to be a funny scene because it's played so straight and serious. However, what makes this scene funny to us is that Triss concludes, "You would seriously kick someone named Peach out of their home?” To this, Haine (the villain), replies that he evicts people who don't pay their rent. Now, we don't want to get too down and dirty in this argument, but... Haine's argument is actually better than Triss's in this scenario. Think about this: what difference does it make what the tenant's name or nickname is? What difference does it make that their name or nickname sounds cute and cuddly? Do you know how many people are named Hope or Destiny who are resigned to doing crack on the streets? Do you know how many people are called “Spike” who are actually great, caring, kind people? There are probably a few people named Stella who look like they need a bath, shower, and a haircut. Like, what does it really matter what Peach's name is? That's not even an argument. What is a decent argument, in Triss's defense, is that Peach was a mother of numerous kids who'd all be homeless if evicted. Now, you could make the counter-argument: well, whose fault is it that Peach has four kids that she can't afford to take care of? Where's the dad? Could she have made better choices in terms of a partner or using contraceptives? You know, latex condoms were available since the 1920s, just saying... Anyway... This Triss decides to act on her ill feelings in probably the most misguided and short-sighted way: breaking in and stealing her boss's money to give to others like Peach. That's right, she decides to commit a crime, and not just any crime but a crime against someone who trusts and employs (pays) her. And this creates the big conundrum in the book as she is plagued by guilt and regrets while constantly on the run from people or hiding from people. Adding some spice to this plot, Triss encounters another woman on the run, a Black woman named Everlove Porter. Everlove's name is kinda ironic because she is actively fleeing a wedding after leaving her husband at the altar. She effectively becomes the deuteragonist of the novel, soon becoming Triss's roommate and close friend. Their relationship is quite intriguing because it highlights the bigotry that was widespread at the time, especially regarding Black and whites living under the same roof together, even as roommates. Triss and Everlove constantly fear being judged or targeted, compounding the fact that they're already people on the run. Thankfully, they encounter many gracious and open-minded people who are putting aside the old ways. The chief of these is Mrs. McCabe, a funny, spunky 83-year-old woman who struck us (wrongfully) as being suspicious. She just seems overly charming and knowledgeable, often convincing the two flakey-headed, gullible girls to say, do , and admit to things they otherwise wouldn't have. We can't emphasize enough the Mrs. McCabe has a certain charm about her. For example, she talks about how she used to use her good looks to get out of speeding tickets until her old age forced her to change her strategy. Keep in mind: she is basically admitting to girls who are afraid of her bad driving that she has gotten away with bad driving. The irony! Yeah, this book is unconventionally funny, even when it seems like it shouldn't be. It sometimes seems like the two lead characters are kinda morons and idiots, but in a charming, endearing way. Again, it's like how Jennifer Lopez was charming in that one movie in which she was a klutz. Their youth, inexperience, and naivety shine through. However, there's a part of us that found them a bit annoying and irksome too. In their defense, the college years are a time when you start to slip into ideologies, try out new things, and perhaps say/do things that you regret 10+ years later. Both characters gradually grow and learn things like personal responsibility and accountability. They also learn that they are their own person, not controlled or determined by anyone else. Oh, and Triss's brother, Jay, is genuinely hilarious and lovable. For example, he says, “I would love to get to know someone who lives with my sister by choice. “ There's a subplot in which we learn that Jay is actually a soccer coach and happens to teach Everlove's disabled sister, Ruby. He actually knows Ruby as “Pebbles” because she keeps giving him rocks every day. He even keeps them in a special place! What a great guy! Gosh, can our two goofball lead protagonists be as likable as Jay and Mrs. McCabe? In terms of villains/antagonists, there's the aforementioned Horus Haine, the slum lord. He is supported by some enforcers including a somewhat annoying, seemingly-superfluous character named Copper Cavanaugh who constantly stalks and harasses the girls, particularly Triss. He seems kinda out of place considering the otherwise-goofy tone of the book. Copper is a legit criminal who has probably bloodied or even killed a person or two. In his conversations with Haine, we learn that he and Haine are making money via criminal activities including with a moonshiner named Carr and a madame named Jenny Blazey. They use Haine's real estate business as a front and to fund these activities. So, yes, Haine is actually evil and not just heartless businessman. Now, it is kinda funny and strange that these things just seem caked-on to his initial character, making him seem all the more evil. It almost seems shoehorned-in because someone at a reading group said, “Hey, Haine doesn't seem evil enough.” So, Copper also seems tacked-on to facilitate this subplot and make it more clear who the bad guy is. There's also Sheridan Rudd, who helps Copper to enforce Haine's strict edicts and to evict people. You could also argue that some of the dudes in this book, like Rodney (Everlove's ex-fiance) and Triss's grandfather, are pretty antagonistic in that they're controlling, possessive, and misogynistic by modern standards. We ultimately enjoyed aspects of this book but felt that it was a mixed bag. There were times when it felt like too much was going on given that the core plot really isn't that complicated. It seemed like there were too many characters just coming out of the wood works to say hello, sometimes literally. However, it was a worthwhile read. Check it out on Amazon!  Score: 94+/100 (9.4+ out of 10)
The Queen of Fairy is the much-anticipated fifth book in The Madigan Chronicles fantasy series by Marieke Lexmond! By our accounts, it is the best book in the series since the original! But what makes it so interesting and exciting? Well, it serves as the convergence of multiple conflicts that were built up in previous book. It also seems to serve as a kind of culmination—a homecoming, in a sense—for all the major characters. For all intents and purposes, this really does seem like what the author has been building to this whole time. Though there is expected to be one more book in the series, this seems to be the peak or climax of it all. And if that weren't enough of a selling point, this book finally pulls back the curtains completely on the magical, mystical, mysterious, and dangerous Land of Fairy, a place we've gotten glimpses and visitations of here and there, but never quite went all-in with. Most of all, it pulls back the curtain on Fairy's frightening, intimidating, and ruthless supreme leader, Queen Mab. She is pretty much the Darth Sidious or Sauron of the series. Mab has been the series' overarching villain/antagonist for a while now. She is practically a deity to those in Fairy and a feared (and revered) figure outside of it. What's really interesting about this book is that it kinda subverts your expectations of Mab. Throughout the series, she has always been big, huge, extravagant, undaunted, unfazed, and—with few exceptions—unchallenged. Even in the beginning of this book, she is bullying, bossing around, and beating people up. She straight-up says: “I can do what I want.” She is like the sun in the middle of the solar system, no matter how big and amazing you think you are, she will always outshine you. We just imagined her as this huge, larger-than-life figure adorned in the brightest, bolded, most over-the-top jewelry and clothing. And, for the most part, that's true. However, was she always like that? Surprisingly, no. She was once small and vulnerable like all of us once were as babies. That's right, this book actually brings us to the beginning—her origins. We learn that Mab was born to King Oberon, whom you may remember as the Fairy King from Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream. As an aside, this is kinda fitting considering that Mab herself probably gets her name from another Shakespearean work, Romeo & Juliet, in which she was mentioned by a dying and agitated Mercutio. That's a nice homage. Mab's mother appears to have been Etzli, who also has blood-ties to the Madigans (our protagonists). Oberon says: “[s]he’s difficult, my little Mab...” Can you imagine Mab being little? Complicating things and adding even more intrigue, we learn that Mab wasn't the only daughter or child of King Oberon and Etzli. No, that fortunate (and somewhat unfortunate) distinction goes to Ceri, who becomes a very central figure in this story, sorta like how Snowflake was a central figure in the last one. Ceri is kinda undergoing a Simba-arc (from Lion King). She is the only other viable or legitimate heir to Oberon's throne in Fairy, a throne on which Mab sits and pretty much has perpetual orgies on. No, really, that's pretty much Mab's thing. She even has orgies while her attendants are dressing her in armor for battle! It's kinda funny, weird, and amusing at the same time. Anyway, this book teaches us a lot more about Mab and the Land of Fairy than we previously knew. We now know that Mab wasn't the first supreme ruler of the realm and is actually the offspring of a previous monarch. That's interesting in and of itself. We also learn that Mab isn't the undisputed or only ruler of the realm. There are even people whom Mab is either wary of or even (somewhat) reverent to. For example, she is extra courteous to Birdwing, who was given authority over the Sky, at an event. She is also very wary of Ceri and of the threat she presents to her claim to authority. Furthermore, she still considers Lucy, the villain of the series's first arc who gave her a run for her money in a previous installment, a “thorn in her side.” The other thing that's really great about this book is how it fleshes out fairies and their lore/mythos. Fairies are people, but they are different from humans in a lot of ways. First of all, they love bright, extraordinary outfits and colors. So what if their outfits are often made of bones, they rock them. They also have much higher libidos (“urges”) than humans. Both of these things actually explain a bit of why Mab is the way that she is. To us, she seems gratuitous, excessive, and sex-crazy, but in the context of her people and her realm, she's not so weird after all. It's implied that King Oberon, while seemingly a better person, had some of the same inclinations. The other thing we learn is that Mab actually had a lot of insecurities growing up as a fairy. Fairies weren't loved, embraced, and accepted everywhere. The same way we look at the way they look and act as a bit weird, a lot of other groups of people likely felt the same way about them. So, we're told that Mab actually really loves and feels at home in the Land of Fairy—it's “[s]omewhere she can indeed be herself.” Well, that's kinda... humanizing. So, Fairy is almost like her safe space where she doesn't have to be judged, persecuted, or treated as weird or different. Despite all this humanizing, Mab is still terrifying. She can manipulate people with her fairy dust. She can transform into a giant soul/ghost-centipede creature like she's Giratina from Pokemon. She'll wreck you with a variety of overpowered fairy magic. All in all, she's a force to be reckoned with and someone that no one witch or fairy is going to manage to take down, though the likes of Lucy and Ceri have tried in epic fashion. Really, only one thing is going to be able to stand up to Mab and have any hope of victory... and it's something that the author has been building up throughout the whole series: FAMILY. Make all the Fast & Furious jokes you want, but this series has always been about FAMILY, specifically the wild, crazy, and often-dysfunctional Madigans and their forty-dozen sets of twins and in-laws. That all finally comes together with lines like: “We'll get through this as a family” Our protagonists are called “a team.” There are even allusions to the game of chess, particularly when it comes to Bridget strategizing as a Captain-America-like leader. Like pieces on a chess board, each Madigan has their own strengths, weaknesses, roles, and limitations. Similar things are said about the magic in this book. In fact, the quotes about magic were some of our favorites: “Magic is a double-edged sword; it cuts both ways. Make sure you want to be cut as deep as you cut with it.” “It’s an ability, not an assignment. How you choose to use your gift is entirely up to you. Much like any other magical talent. You can help the souls, release them, but you can as easily trap them.” What this does is establish the how & why behind magic and its limitations. In other words, it explains why the characters can't just magically wish their problems away. It also helps that every character seems to have their own unique ways of using their magical gifts. Cephalop, for example, can transform into a more monstrous version of his octopus self. Both Lucy and Set primarily use fire magic, which makes sense because Lucy is romantically involved with the fire demon, Vhumut, and Set is their child. It makes sense that Set would be frying giant spiders with fireballs instead of using lightning or something. Diane also still serves as the psychic/precog/oneiromancer of the group. Tara's husband, Sheamus, can still help the group and communicate to them as a ghost. Maeve has her siren/mermaid powers. Snowflake's affinity for the fragments of the Cup of Plenty come into play. All of this comes together in one of the best climaxes/final battle scenes of the year! Also, the various conflicts/tension between the twin sisters in the series still comes into play. For example, Tara and Lucy are constantly feeling each other's feelings, often providing each other with comfort, energy, or positivity. It's kinda ironic having an evildoer/troublemaker in Lucy begging for help or providing support from/to Tara, but it does show a bit of her growth. Freya also has some tension with her family, which was a major plot point in previous books, saying, “I had to deal with incredible anger, feelings of being incomplete, and the lesser witch of the family. Moody, incapable Freya.” Check it out on Amazon!  Score 95(+)/100 (9.5(+) out of 10)
If every child on Earth had a parent who loved and cared for them as much as this author loves and cares about his twin sons, the world would be a much better place. In almost every book about trauma that we've read over the years—whether non-fiction or fiction—there always seems to be a common denominator that triggers or contributes to the problem: a bad parent. In virtually every single case, the parent of the victim was neglectful, abusive, or completely absent from their child's life. This just goes to show how critically and crucially important GOOD parenting is—parenting that is nurturing, compassionate, patient, loving, kind, attentive, and caring. Dear Liam & Noah: Letters From Daddy by Sean Martin is a heartfelt and deeply personal book written by a father for his twin sons, Liam and Noah. The book is structured as a series of letters, where Sean Martin shares his life experiences, values, and lessons learned, aiming to offer guidance and wisdom to his children as they grow up. The book spans various aspects of life, including unconditional love, the importance of family, personal struggles, and triumphs. The author provides a touching narrative of his journey to fatherhood, detailing the emotional and physical challenges he and his wife faced during their quest to have children. The dedication and love for his sons are evident throughout the book, as he emphasizes the importance of love, resilience, and family bonds. Martin's writing style is sincere and approachable, making it easy for readers to connect with his stories and the emotions behind them. The book also serves as a valuable source of advice and inspiration, not only for his sons but for anyone reading it. The themes of perseverance, hard work, and the significance of cherishing family relationships are woven seamlessly into the narrative, offering readers both a touching story and practical life lessons. "Letters from Daddy" is a poignant tribute to fatherhood and the enduring love between a parent and his children. It's a testament to the author's dedication to being a supportive and loving father, aiming to equip his sons with the knowledge and values they need to navigate life successfully. Something about the book that's incredibly contagious is the author's positivity and optimism! Seriously! You just can't keep this guy down. He keeps saying that “the sun will rise tomorrow” no matter what happens. One of the chief examples of his positivity is actually in trying to conceive with his wife and the couple struggling with infertility. In an epiphany, the author realized that this seemingly negative experience had a huge, positive advantage: it made him a better husband (and a better person). For example, he learned to be more considerate and chivalrous, tending to his wife's needs as she battled hard in hopes of conceiving. He learned to go above and beyond to help her, like making himself aware of her therapy session schedule so that he could be there to support her. Another phenomenal example is when one of the author's favorite sports teams, the Bruins, is losing in a huge championship game with little hope of a comeback. At some point, just when the situation seemed like the worse of the worse for a sports fan, his son, Noah, stood up and shouted with excitement: “BRUINS!” After that, he no longer associated that day with the loss of the game, but rather a beautiful memory of his son. In another example, Martin makes light of his hair loss by saying that it saves him money on hair products and hair cuts. Martin also has a few moments when his positivity and optimism are mixed right in there with his keen sense of humor (and some sarcasm), such as when he concludes that, though his favorite NFL team (the formerly-known-as-Oakland Raiders) aren't very good, “at least we aren’t Cleveland, or Detroit, or the Jets.” That had us rolling! We know so many Raiders fans who've suffered for years with that same mindset. Speaking of which, so much of this book is familiar. As we said before, it seems to speak to you, almost as if having a conversation with the author. Yes, the words are mostly directed at his sons, but there's a reason why this book is being published and made available to all of us, it's because it's applicable to all of us! Like we alluded to before, if everyone read and applied this parent's sound advice, the world would be a much better place! Martin's philosophy (toward parenting, family, and life), while honorable, noble, and sometimes even self-sacrificing, also accounts for the less savory aspects of human nature. For example, he advises his sons (and the reader) to not allow themselves to be taken advantage of. Yes, give people a chance, but don't let them walk all over you like a doormat afterward. Likewise, don't associate yourself with risky and dangerous people. For example, there's a past “friend” that Martin talks about who used to drive drunk in the middle of the night with the lights off and on the wrong side of the road, putting numerous lives in danger. Martin did the smart thing and demanded to be let out of the car, never riding with that person again. In one of the best quotes of the book, Martin concludes: “Your lives are worth more than a few laughs.” That's honestly something we find ourselves wanting to tell various friends and loved ones who partake in risky or needlessly unsafe behavior in the name of fun or excitement. It's all fun and games until someone gets hurt, which is ironic because the author is cleverly able to tie this all in to a previous lesson about why he doesn't want his sons jumping on the bed anymore (something that kids often do). Furthermore, don't do things just to please people. Be true to yourself. Be confident in yourself. Don't do things (like drugs and alcohol) just because everyone else is doing them. Make your own choices. Be your own person. Be your own man. In the words of the author: GO YOUR OWN WAY There's other useful advice in this book including why you should be clear and specific, why you should practice good eye contact, and why you should network and expand your circle of friends. This is a super emotional book! There are parts of this book that legitimately made us tear up or even cry. For example, there's a line that says: “You boys were worth the wait. You’re our greatest gift and our greatest surprise.” There's also a poem (of sorts) in this book titled “Proud Papa” in which Martin lists all the ways he's proud of his sons. If this doesn't pull on your heartstrings, then we don't know what will! Yes, there are a few grammatical errors like a few missing words or a repetition of words, but so what? This book is amazing in too many ways to let those small flaws overshadow it. Check it out on Amazon!  Score: 95/100 (9.5 out of 10)
The Sojourner's Road Home: A 40 Day Journey to the Heart of God is an outstanding, positive, uplifting, inspiring, and motivational Christian self-help book by Kelly Mack McCoy! This is one of those books that really shattered all of our expectations. Despite its relatively short length (only about 100 pages) and source material (The Holy Bible) that goes back 2000+ years, this book still packs a punch and is surprisingly fresh! We've read our share of Christian devotionals and inspirational books. Be a Giant Killer by Ed Norwood comes to mind. So does Are You Ready? by Dr. Kimberly Harms in this ongoing contest. Sometimes, after reading so many Christian books (or books in any one genre), you start to become jaded and maybe even a bit bored—like you've seen it all. You've been there and done that. However, as we said before, this book still comes across as fresh, new, and exciting! Why is that? Well, it might be because the author views God's purpose for your life sorta like a long journey or adventure. And who doesn't like journeys? Who doesn't like adventure? Furthermore, the stories in this book resonate so much and so deeply with many readers including ourselves. If you're tired, a bit lost, feeling a bit directionless, or even feeling a bit old, you will really feel what the author is talking about. We've all been one (or more) of those things. We've all felt and experienced them from time to time. What's amazing is that this book is a reminder that no matter how tired or old we are, no matter how hopeless or directionless we feel, God is still there and still has a higher purpose for us. The author likens this to a GPS's course direction. Similarly, the Holy Spirit will always find and guide you—a follower of Christ—to where you need to be. It might be uncomfortably. It might be painful. It might take a lot longer than you were originally expecting. The results might not be exactly what you were hoping for, or they could be entirely different. One thing is for sure: it's all in God's master plan for your life and the universe as a whole. This book uses so many amazing, incredible examples from The Bible weaves/incorporates them into the narrative of this book in such a tactful and insightful way. We sure had our share of “AHA!” moments. These examples include Abraham, who wasn't called to fulfill his ultimate purpose (be the father of many nations and people) until the age of 75. Or take Moses for example. He fled into no man's land for decades after murdering an Egyptian, fleeing in guilt and fear. He met his future father-in-law, he got married, and he started an entirely new life. Moses could be forgiven for thinking that his life was winding down and that God was finished with him.Then, in his old age, he was finally called to action by God in the form of the burning bush—something that literally changed the course of not only his life but human history. That's not even mentioning the great movies that have been made about Moses and the Exodus, but that's beside the point. But how inspiring is that for all us old and aging people? Maybe we still have something left in us. Perhaps God really isn't done using us. The author also uses examples of historical figures outside The Bible whose lives, actions, and trajectories reflect the view that God is always working and always guiding the flow of history and events, often in mysterious and unpredictable ways. For example, Erik the Red discovered Greenland after being booted from his homeland after two murders. His son, Lief Erikson, returned to Norway and dedicated his life to Christ. He was even commissioned by King Olaf to build churches and spread the Christian faith! He even discovered Newfoundland 400 years before Christopher Columbus! If you rewound time and judged the family of Erik the Red only on his earlier evil actions, who would've guessed that his family would eventually change the world in a positive way? God is always working. The universe is always churning for his glory. It is noteworthy that Erik the Red's family was dysfunctional. Can you relate? Well, God can use that dysfunction. He can take that tension and all those disagreements to further his purpose, the same way he did by confusing the languages at the Tower of Babel. Another example is the life of Marco Polo and how he was able to peak Kublai Khan's interest in Christianity, so much so that Khan (the most powerful man on the planet at the time) asked him to send 100 missionaries to teach the faith. As fate would have it, Marco Polo had been captured during a battle. While in prison—a time which would crush the spirits of most men—he met an adventure writer who eventually wrote about Marco's many adventures, which we now know him for. Similarly, God was able to use Saul (St. Paul) despite him previously being a persecutor. God was able to use many broken, flawed, and even wicked people toward his ultimate purpose, glory, and good. It's sobering to think. It's also inspiring and encouraging to think that no matter how bad our situations are or how hopeless they seem, there is always light at the end of the tunnel, if not in this life, then perhaps in the next. It is all working according to God's plan. This book's positivity and optimism is infectious and contagious! It also needs to briefly mentioned that this is still a devotional intended to be used over 40 days (an allusion to the 40 days in the wilderness endured by Jesus), however, it is still digestible enough to read on an airplane flight. We appreciated that the author provided space for the reader to write a reflection and/or notes. However, where this book really, truly shines is the power of its message: You are under construction. You are a work in progress. And God is not done with you. Check it out on Amazon!  Score: 96/100 (9.6 out of 10)
Sentience Hazard by Alexandru Czimbor is, quite frankly, the best book about artificial intelligence that has ever come through our contests! It is also one of the very best science fiction books! There is something timeless about the Mary Shelley Frankenstein story—a brilliant scientist with a bold ambition and good intentions who takes things to the extreme, bringing an abominable monster into the world. Well, this book takes the framework of Frankenstein (something also explored in works like Jurassic Park) and takes it to frightening new heights with terrifying, real-life implications for all of us. What happens when you pit a potentially-homicidal A.I. like M3GAN against a power-hungry A.I. Like Skynet (from Terminator)? Sometimes, you just have to choose the lesser of two evils. What happens when you take a powerful new technology that can irreparably change the world and put it into fallible human hands? What happens when you take that enormous responsibility and put it into the hands of an angry, discontented, spiteful, suicidal scientist who pursues advancement as an act of personal revenge? What then? Dr. Francois DeSousa is such a scientist—a supergenius from France who is particularly adept in algorithms, machine learning, and artificial intelligence. Now, reading that might make you think that he's definitely highly-qualified and the best person to bring on board to an A.I. project. However, that would be completely ignoring the person of Francois DeSousa. This is not just a very intelligent man. No, far from it! This is a very flawed, damaged, and potentially dangerous man. This brings up one of the book's many scientific dilemmas. Can the perfect technology ever truly exist if humanity, by its very nature, is imperfect? For example, what if you had a smart gun that, in theory, could only be used in self-defense? Or a fusion reactor that could only be used for the purpose of providing clean energy? Would these things not eventually fall into unscrupulous human hands and be weaponized? And what happens when the creators themselves bring their own flaws, imperfections, and ulterior motives to the project? Francois DeSousa pined for the heart of his long-time friend and schoolmate, Marie Chateau, the woman who told him that he would “save the world someday” in his younger years. Marie is a major focal point in the novel despite not being present much in the middle-section of it. She is always there in one form or another. And, quite frankly, she's not a bad or unlikable character at all. She's actually a GREAT character in her own right, though she seems to suffer from some kind of Stockholm syndrome when it comes to her unwavering feelings and affection for the emotionally and verbally-abusive Francois. See, Francois jumped to the conclusion that Marie—whom he desired to propose to after 15 years—had been cheating on him by having relations with a less accomplished individual named Marco. It should be noted that Francois doesn't only resent the fact that Marie had relations with another man, but that the man was not as advanced as him intellectually or as accomplished as him scholastically. You really start to get the sense that Francois really is a madman who looks down on other people as inferior to himself, especially when it comes to intellect. So, you could also say that he's a narcissistic obsessed with control. Geez! Do you really want someone like that programming your world-changing A.I.?! Anyway, following a failed suicide attempt and forcing Marie out of his life, Francois stumbles upon another damaged person, albeit a much better human being than himself: Professor Ian Ndikumana. Ian's mother won the lottery when Ian was only six, however, the excitement of that was overshadowed by the subsequent deaths of both of Ian's sisters in an accident. Ian eventually founded CogniPrescience, an organization focused on developing artificial intelligence to benefit humankind. The stated purpose for CogniPrescience was to “Work so you can have a future.” However, Ian was missing something in his grand quest... the expertise that only someone like Francois can provide. And here is where this book really gets going! See, Francois doesn't just want to be the lead programmer on the grand A.I. Project. He doesn't just want money or even fame. No, he wants something else... revenge. Revenge on Marie for slighting him and turning her back on him all those years ago. He wants to accomplish something so big and extraordinary that he can rub it into her face and show her what she missed out on. He wants to create a perfect A.I. in HER physical likeness, however, one that fits his narrow idea of female perfection. He wants this new A.I., CARLA (Conscious Affective Reasoning and Learning Android), to be his perfect woman: one who doesn't talk unless spoken to, doesn't complain, doesn't argue, isn't emotional, isn't spiteful, and—above all—won't lie, cheat on, or betray him. How freaky and terrifying is that?! Well, this is only the tip of the iceberg with this novel! What's absolutely incredible about Sentience Hazard is how it keeps getting better and better and better, adding more layers and growing like new rings and branches on big, huge, beautiful tree! See, the author knew what we were all thinking: that Francois was the psychotic, sociopathic, megalomaniacal, irredeemable villain of this book. Boy, did the author swerve us and prove us all wrong! As bad as Francois is, there are even badder, more powerful, and more malicious forces at work in the world. First of all, there's the United States government and military who show a great degree of interest in Francois and Ian's A.I. project, CARLA, wanting to weaponize it. Now, we do eventually learn that the US government and military have REALLY good reasons for this, but this is also the first time when we see some of Francois's humanity and caution—things which he had seemingly abandoned—return, however briefly. He begins to worry, like Oppenheimer, that he may have gone too far. What started as a personal revenge plot is now being turned into a weapon that can potentially enslave or even destroy the world! That's too much blood-on-the-hands even for someone as crooked as Francois, and that's saying a lot! Secondly, we learn that the new Chinese Communist Party, supposedly ruled by twelve “supreme dragon” members and an enigmatic president named Yun Li, have developed a “MegaAI” that smarter, more advanced, and more capable than any A.I. on the planet including anything the Americans and Russians have developed thus far. The MegaAI, one of the primary antagonists of the novel, threatens to dominate the world and potentially begin a nuclear genocide akin to Skynet in Terminator. Oh, so now we know why the United States is so desperate to get CARLA up and running! It's all part of a massive arms race with the fate of humanity hanging in the balance! But CARLA presents a huge set of threats and dangers as well. Carla is referred to as an “autistic” A.I. and is childlike for much of the book. Remember our M3GAN reference? Well, that's pretty much the vibe we got from her! There are times when she is overly-emotional and overreacts to benign situations, like when she walks aggressively at a researcher all over feeling threatened by a water bottle and a loud noise. One of our favorite moments in the entire book is when the researchers quiz her on different variations of the “Trolley Car Problem” (psychological thought experiment) in which you can save many by killing a few. At first, CARLA's responses make perfect sense and seem logical. However, her responses become increasingly unsettling, threatening, and even scary as she starts saying she would sacrifice people of increasing value to her life (including a sibling and her creators) and abandon prior promises and commitments. She even alludes to betraying her creators and joining the enemy if it were advantageous to her or what she perceives to be the great good. GEEZ! If you thought Francois was a mental case. CARLA is terrifying! If Francois is a sociopath, then MegaAI and CARLA (potentially) are psychotic nihilists! Again, do you really want to put the fate of your nation and the world into the hand's of this thing? This really got us thinking back to when Gary Kasparov, possibly the greatest chess player who ever lived, lost to an IBM supercomputer named Deep Blue in 1997. Chess engines are even stronger and smarter now than they were then! It's sobering to think that even an old, outdated chess engine could beat the very best that humanity had to offer! Could you imagine giving this kind of technology control of your nukes, guns, jets, and other weapons? There are even mentions of antimatter technology and antimatter weapons in this book. Could you imagine giving an A.I. this powerful and unpredictable an antimatter weapon?! Well, that's the danger that China's MegaAI and America's CARLA present in this book! It's really a tale as old as humanity itself. It's the opening of Pandora's Box. It's Prometheus giving fire to man. It's Frankenstein's monster. It's the dinosaurs from Jurassic Park. It's Oppenheimer's atom bomb. However, what really freshens things up and makes this book all the more special, valuable, and unique is how it seems to explore the issue from every angle and with unparalleled depth. SO MUCH RESEARCH must've went into this. There are discussions of Paul Ekman's basic emotions research from the 1970s. There are references to old Chinese proverbs that hit with striking relevance considering that many of the characters (protagonists and antagonists) are Chinese. All of the scientists, researchers, and parties in this book all come at the issue of A.I. from their own perspectives. For example, Marie is a psychologist who is more interested in the emotional and psychological aspects of CARLA. Lieutenant Sujata Hopkins wrote a thesis about how artificial intelligence could have military applications, something which sparks her involvement with the project. However, unlike some of her higher-ups, Sujata can also see that Marie's psychological/emotional perspective is valuable and that you can't have an amoral or immoral monster A.I. wrecking havoc on the planet. Perhaps that comes from just being a compassionate person herself. We're also given the perspective from the other or Chinese side. Despite being on the side of the main antagonists, they're not portrayed as evil or bad people. Instead, they are shown to be victims as much as anyone. Some of the major characters on the Chinese side include Dr. Zhao Qiafan, the man who developed the scanner technology known as SSMS (Super Sensitive Mood Scanner) that seems to have laid the foundation for Brain Computer Interface (BCI) and, ultimately, the creation of the MegaAI and its subliminal control of the Chinese government. In a lot of ways, Qiafan's story is both a foil and a contrast to Francois. Qiafan, even more so than Francois or even Ian, had wanted to use technology to help humanity, imagining the kind of world that he would want his brilliant daughter, Baozhai, to live in: a safe, secure, and prosperous world free of poverty and unnecessary pain and suffering. At first, we really didn't like how involved Baozhai was in this story, seeing her as superfluous and as an annoyance. However, she eventually came through for us and became a useful character. She also helps to give us stakes and to help us understand what Qiafan and some of the other Chinese are fighting/working for. They aren't the bad guys. They're doing what needs to be done to survive with a gun to their heads and a target on their backs. Qiafan gives us probably the best passage in the entire book when he prompts: “Isn’t it incredible how we humans turn everything into a religion?... It’s built into our core. That’s why in our history we have had over ten thousand different religions. And we have examples of large atheist movements that promised the good of the masses, only to slip into ideology, dogma, myths, taboos, and all the elements that qualify them as religions. When the Russians all but eliminated religious activities at the beginning of the twentieth century, people gradually began worshiping their leader, Stalin, until he became a demigod. They took the ideology of helping the poor and turned it into a mindless glorification of the proletarian. The result was no less devastating than the atrocities done in the name of any classic religion. Here, in China, we’ve been putting the party and its leaders on a pedestal for decades. Inevitably, we’ve let them dictate our lives, punish us, reward us. Many of us worship them. Look at the CWT. What is that if not a form of a stairway to heaven? People became obsessed with increasing their scores and pleasing the gods. For a higher CWT, some would sell their mothers. And, as if things were not bad enough, we’ve created a true God ourselves now. A sentient machine that can rule over us. I can’t help but wonder, will this be the last God that man will ever make?” Stalin is actually mentioned numerous times, serving as an example of how power-hungry, violent, and corruptible mankind and its A.I. technology could eventually become. CARLA is once referred to (in a warning) as potentially being a “female version of Stalin.” All of this builds to an ultimate, climactic confrontation between CARLA and MegaAI with the threat of CARLA joining with MegaAI (against humanity) constantly looming like the sword of Damocles. One incredible thing we wanted to mention is that CARLA seems to develop a sense of GLORY and pride. She seems to pick up a Homelander-like craving to be recognized and admired, possibly inheriting it from Francois. It's very subtle, but we definitely caught onto it. That's not the only drama and tension this book has to offer. No, there's still the issue of Francois and Marie. In a sense, CARLA is their robot daughter, a machine made in Marie's image with Francois's idealistic view of her. This is played out in almost every angle from humor to horror. As far as humor goes, we have lines like Marie thinking to herself, “This showed how much he loved her. But it was also disgusting. Much worse than being replaced by one of those dumb sex robots. She didn’t want to imagine what he and the android did the whole day.” There's also the angle that CARLA is Francois's “daughter.” This almost reminded us of that episode of American Dad when the lecherous male characters clone themselves some girlfriends only to raise them and feel fatherly feelings toward them. That's both cool and creepy. Can Francois and Marie put aside their differences for the good of humanity? One more thing we really loved about this book is that it really subverts your expectations and allows characters to have incredible arcs. For example, you fully expect one character to be an evil person for the entire book, yet you gradually see them show some goodness and light, even love and self-sacrifice. Some of the characters that you may have started off hating or being annoyed by (like Francois, Marie, Qifan, and Baozhai) all have their moments that justify their existence in the book. And, let's face it, CARLA is just a super cool character! Whether you love her or fear her, you will respect and remember her. Despite there being very little action in this book, this book is no less tense and thrilling. It had us at the edge of our seats, often scared $#%@less about what the A.Is were going to do next! Check it out on Amazon!  Score: 94/100 (9.4 out of 10)
Losers is an absolutely hilarious collection of comedic and satirical short stories by K.E. Adamus, a newcomer to our contests! What a phenomenal debut! In this book, Adamus showcases excellent writing and a variety of comedic techniques, including self-aware and self-deprecating humor, dark humor, sarcasm, erroneous statements, flawed rationalization, and turning tragic or serious moments into "eh... so what?" situations. These are not skills just any writer can master—it takes talent and intellect to pull off. Kudos to Adamus for doing so! We haven't read or reviewed a funnier collection of short stories since Stumbling Through Adulthood by John Sheirer two years ago. Bacon Grief by Joel Shoemaker is also a strong contender. Despite this competition, Losers stands out as an incredibly enjoyable and humorous read. Let's start with the first story: "Space Shits." This story follows Vlad, a depressed and pessimistic forester who is supposed to protect the forest from poachers and other threats. However, it seems these issues have their hooks in him instead. Vlad is a hot mess, and while his situation might typically evoke sympathy, the comedic, over-the-top way he handles his emotions and the writer's presentation make it hilarious. Vlad copes with his negative emotions by writing lists of self-affirmations that are more negative and pessimistic than intended. He's so down in the dumps that he can't get out of his own way! Vlad's list reminded us of Chris Jericho's "List of Jericho," where he lists things he dislikes, wants to complain about, or finds mildly annoying. To think that this forester, who is supposed to protect the environment, wastes his time writing these lists just to keep himself going is both ironic and humorous. Vlad's list is a brilliant use of irony and juxtaposition. They say one thing but mean another, aiming to be positive but coming across as negative: "You will be a loser anyway, so there is no need to be proactive, but you need to do something with your time." "Even if you get any success, the fate and future are dark and stormy, but at least something happens." "The worse your fate, the fewer friends you have, and the more time for yourself." Oh, and by the way, there's an ACTUAL FREAKIN' ALIEN in this story! Its name is X-442. We had to double-check and triple-check. We couldn't believe it. This story jumped the shark, but in the best possible way! It reminded us of one of our favorite MadTV skits (“Easy Bake Oven” starring Viola Davis of all people). In that skit, an alien chases and attacks a midget dressed as a pirate for no reason similar to what happens with the alien and the poachers in this story. Gosh, just thinking about it has us reeling! Another hilarious story titled “The Seller” follows a door-to-door salesman named Jack who feels trapped and enslaved by the unscrupulous, crooked company he works for and his unscrupulous, crooked boss, Marc. Marc is probably the best villain out of all the stories int his book. It's not so much that Marc is necessarily evil or sadistic or anything like that, but Marc is SO UNLIKABLE! He comes across as extremely selfish and greedy. He perpetually dangles carrots over the heads of his employees, offering them potential recognition for hitting sales goals or harsh reprimands, shaming, and punishments for falling short (which Jack often does). You can really tell why Jack hates his job yet sticks with it. The dude is SCARED! He's like the middle-class in a communist society, if he moves up or down, he's as good as dead the next day, either via starvation, imprisonment, execution or assassination! Ok, we're exaggerating a little bit, but Jack definitely feels threatened and bullied constantly, particularly by Marc. Gosh, this guy deserves his comeuppance! There are funny and charming moments of this book. For example, one of the buyers of Jack's books is a librarian at the local library who was earlier described as demanding that an angry lady return her book “Raising Chicken” (which is supposedly past-due). The lady responds, “But I have not borrowed it. Do I look like a chicken raising fan?” This interaction, similar to the alien in the other story, is so random and out of left field, yet it's hilarious nonetheless! Also, the librarian only offers to buy books from Jack because there are men with rippling abs on the cover (of the romance novels) and the library is willing to pay for them. That's... more or less how the publishing industry is now. Sex sells. Romance novels tend to dominate best-seller lists over much more deserving titles. Entire publishing houses exclusively publish romance novels because they know they sell like hotcakes. So, the satire works in this regard. This story also has arguably the best twist-ending in the entire book. We won't spoil it for you, but it is just about perfect! There are a few hit-or-miss stories in this book. Probably our least favorite was “The Chronicler” which details a court chronicler who has been cursed to transform into a bird by his deceased lover, Hermenegilda, a witch who was burned at the stake. There's a tragedy, irony, and wit to this story. It's probably the most poetic of the stories and definitely the darkest and most depressing, mostly because of the consequences that the characters are now eternally stuck with. What a grim fate! There's also “A Bet” in which a deaf girl, Maggie, gets entangled in illegal betting with his chess-playing boyfriend, Andrew, going up against a seemingly unstoppable Russian chess master (possibly grandmaster). Andrew is an absolute jerk and Maggie is way too good for him. The chess and gambling in the story was intriguing nonetheless. “Is it Included” is a weird story (and we know that's saying a lot considering the other stories we've described), but it's also quite funny in its absurdity. Basically, the protagonist, a new real-estate agent, is trying to sell a building that's said to be haunted. While bringing an elderly lady on a tour, everything that can go wrong does go wrong. The keys don't work. A thief may be responsible for the the changed locks. Furthermore, a homeless squatter with a Mohawk is found bathing naked in one of the rooms. Ironically, the elderly woman finds all of this charming and amusing rather than upsetting and off-putting (like most normal people would). It's kinda implied (though not explicitly stated) that she's sexually attracted to the naked squatter with the Mohawk or at least thinks he'd make good company (sorta like a pet). Now, we can finally talk about our favorite story in the entire book: “Day in XXL Size!” “Day in XXL Size” is a book about disordered eating, dieting, and a possible eating/body-image disorder, so a trigger warning might be warranted. However, the way that this story and its main character are portrayed is so delicate and balanced. On one hand, it's very transparent and expressive. We know what the character is thinking almost all of the time. We know all of her irrational thoughts and the bargaining/internal fighting she does with herself. It's sad and tragic, and yet... it's so over-the-top, out of touch with reality, ridiculous, and absurd that it's actually hilarious, comedic, and charming. Some of the thought-process that this character goes through is something from the Twilight Zone, yet its so eerily familiar. It resonated so much with us. There are even instances in which the protagonist displaces her insecurities and problems on others like when she finds a family member's cigarettes and pledges to screw with them to get them to quit, all while clearly having an addiction of her own. The irony! The hypocrisy! There are other things that the character does that are hilarious. For example, she refuses to stand in the same line as a cashier who saw her buy healthy foods the other day (planning to buy junk food for her next binge). Ok, we've been there and done that. Of course, this plan goes to %*#$ as the self checkout doesn't work. She is forced to confront the cashier she was avoiding anyway. She also says things like: “Who survived on lettuce? Dinosaurs certainly did not. And she has no intention of sharing their fate.” “There were 400 left and a total of 1900 calories were burnt. That is, a normal dose of calories for a hard-working woman. She had a sitting job. But it was hard work. Very hard.” All of this is a frail attempt to rationalize with herself to give in to her temptations. Again, it's familiar, and we're strangely empathetic to her situation. We all have unhealthy habits that we should probably break. Maybe it's eating the wrong foods, maybe it's eating too much, maybe it's smoking or drinking, maybe it's stimulants, maybe it's drugs, maybe it's gambling. We all have that devil on our shoulder tempting us. So, it's hard not to feel for this character. This story skirts a fine line between insensitivity, comedy, and a genuine psychological exploration of the mind of an addict. It's funny, familiar, AND fascinating! Check it out on Amazon!  Score: 94/100 (9.4 out of 10)
Until the Stars Align is a heartfelt and riveting WWII-era novel that follows multiple European-Jewish girls who are taken in by host/foster families in England in an attempt to protect them from the war and the persecution of Nazi Germany. This was done as part of the “Kindertransport” rescue operation, which was actually a new thing we got to learn about in this book! Kindertransport was a rescue operation that took place during the months leading up to the outbreak of World War II. It involved the evacuation of nearly 10,000 predominantly Jewish children from Nazi-controlled territories, including Germany, Austria, Czechoslovakia, and Poland, to safety in the United Kingdom. This effort was prompted by the increasing persecution of Jews following events such as Kristallnacht, the "Night of Broken Glass," which took place in November 1938 and saw the destruction of Jewish homes, businesses, and synagogues. The Kindertransport was organized by British and Jewish aid organizations in response to the escalating danger faced by Jewish children under Nazi rule. The British government agreed to waive immigration restrictions for these children, allowing them to enter the UK without the usual paperwork, provided they had a guarantee of financial support and accommodation. The children were placed with foster families, in hostels, schools, or on farms, and were often the only members of their families to survive the Holocaust. We actually get terrifying descriptions of the “Night of Broken Glass” and similar atrocities committed by Hitler, the Nazis, and their supporters. We're told that thousands of businesses, some with years and decades of history, were destroyed for no other reason than hate and ignorance. What's more? Our characters/protagonists are directly affected by these events, giving us a real perspective of the true human cost. And that's not even mentioning the Holocaust. In the midst of this chaos and a fearful socio-political climate, we're introduced to three Jewish girls: Rosi Beyersdorf- A young Jewish girl from Berlin who, along with her sister and cousin, is sent to England via the Kindertransport during World War II. She is resilient and protective, particularly of her younger sister, Anni. Anni Beyersdorf- Rosi's younger sister, who also escapes to England. She is initially frightened and dependent on her sister but grows more confident over time. Emilie Keppler- Rosi and Anni's cousin, who accompanies them on the Kindertransport. She is high-spirited and brave, adjusting to her new life in England. Although these three girls command a lot of the attention of the novel, the narrative also gives us the perspectives of others in the Beyersdorf family who are affected by the war and Nazism. The two that immediately come to mind are Charlotte/Aunt Charlotte, who stays behind, refusing to flee the country as she desperately tries to get her husband, Gustav Keppler, released from a Nazi concentration camp, the infamous Dachau. While her unwavering commitment and loyalty to her husband are admirable and commendable, readers (who can view these events from a distance and in hindsight) realize that her hopes are mostly in vain. If anything, that just adds to the tension, frustration, and tragedy of it all. Then there's Lieselotte Beyersdorf (often called “Mutti”--similar to “Mommy”), the mother of Rosi and Annie as well as an aunt of Emilie. She also discovers that she's pregnant smack-dab in the middle of the war, at the worst possible time. Due to the ironic and unfortunate conditions of the Kindertransport, only children are allowed to take advantage of it, meaning that they're forced to leave their parents behind. This includes Lieselotte and her husband, Alec, whose lives are constantly in danger. They constantly explore options for escape including via Hamburg and through procuring passports to either Brazil or Bolivia, which we are told are some of the very few countries who were open to immigrants due to the immigrants being viewed as cheap, readily-available labor there. Lieselotte gives us the best quote/passage in the entire novel, one that reverberates throughout it and gives the book its name. Before Rosi boards the train, her mother tells her: “We’ll see you again, my darling girl. Whenever the stars align, and the world turns right-side up again.” And, boy, is that full of ironies! Chief of which is that the world seems like it has turned upside down and there's no recovering from this. However, as we know from history, the Allies did win. Adolf Hitler did die. Europe was liberated. Germany did recover. But what about the families? What about this family? Who will survive? Who will die? And how will they heal? There's so much we could say in praise of this book. Where do we start? Well, first, there's the continuation/loss of innocence and the loss of/restoration of hope seen primarily in the stories of the three girls. Rosi, in particular, is constantly optimistic. She has both a childlike innocence yet the staunch courage you'd expect from a much older person. Rosi is cared for by the Chester family, Sally and Bertie. She eventually becomes a Pearlie, a member of a East End London entertainment group. Anni, the younger sister, is cared for by a separate family, the Wentworths (Pamela and Paul). Of these people, Pamela stands out as the most interesting. Pamela doesn't necessarily become a part of the rescue/fostering program purely out of the goodness of her heart. She's actually quite snobbish, proud, and arrogant, seeing fostering a kid as being good for appearances and her reputation. She doesn't do it necessarily to help the Jews. In fact, she chooses Anni because of her light hair and the fact that she doesn't look Jewish, so will “fit in” easier. However, Pamela gradually softens and actually undergoes an arc because of Anni's childlike charm. Emilie is cared for by the Rowlands (John and Marjorie). The one theme that keeps popping up when it comes to Emilie is her desire and motivation to be accepted as mature, grown up, and “whole.” She is constantly babied and talked down to in the beginning. Part of that is simply that she doesn't understand English. For that reason, she is moved to the “class of nine-year-old babies” rather than being in an eleven-year-old class with the other eleven-year-olds. This substantially affects her sense of self. It also needs to be noted that, despite the family's best efforts to remove the girls from danger, the war inevitably comes to the UK. The Germans launch a blitz of constant air-raids for “fiftyseven consecutive nights.” This is crucial part of the girls' experiences, as well as those of the foster parents, as their lives are constantly in danger. Familiar buildings are destroyed and people die. Air raid shelters are in constant use. Sirens blare. There is a constant threat and fear in the air (figuratively and literally). They dream of the day when there will be “no more bombs, rockets, doodlebugs, air raids, or any of that rot.” As tense as all of this are, there are effective moments of brief reprieve and relief. There are moments when the characters sit down to write to each other, though many of their correspondences never arrive to their destination. There are times when the characters can appreciate the water and the nature. There are times when the Germans are unsuccessful and when the Allies are successful. Adding to the irony is when characters who are still trapped in Germany hear about “our bombs” or “our attacks” as if they're on the side of the enemy (or those persecuting them). Along with the characters, we long for the day of “No more blackout curtains. No more bombs.” And a singular hope hangs in the air: Will this family ever be together again? Check it out on Amazon!  Score: 91+/100 (9.1+ out of 10)
With Love, From Planet B is a very ambitious and unique book by Zaayin Saalam, MD. It blends various genres including speculative-fiction, sci-fi, psychological fiction, and LGBTQA+. It also heavily champions ideas and concepts that can be considered feminist, progressive, liberal, and even New Age. It also explores some themes that, in psychological terms, could be considered, Freudian or Lacanian such as the significance of latent thoughts, particularly in dreaming, and of the repression of thoughts, emotions, and memories both as a defense mechanism and as a natural process. This is a very deep and highly involved book! Interestingly, despite the narrative not being particularly fond of organized religion (particularly Islam, the dominant religion of the author's birth country, Pakistan), the book has an undeniable spiritual and metaphysical essence to it. A lot of this book deals with things we (as human beings) can't physically touch, feel, or even see like thoughts, feelings, emotions, and memories. However, that doesn't make them any less real. There's also a very fascinating theme or concept in this book relating to “the dark.” “The dark” is both the actual state of being dark (the absence of visible light or photons without the sun, bulbs, lamps, lanterns, and torches to emit it/them) and the metaphysical dark—the unknown, the other, the unfamiliar. These things, according to the book, lead to irrational fears like intolerance, distrust, hatred, anger, violence, and eventually even war. It's a powerful and rather brilliant message! There is a caveat to pushing such brilliant message, however, and that's the risk of being overly-didacted, overbearing, and preachy. The narrative of this book definitely comes across as overly-didacted, overbearing, and preachy. Like we said in our review of Quantum Consequence: Be subtle, not forceful. Be tactful, not pushy. We want to again use the example of Rise from the Blue by Boade Mandeng as a book that had the complete opposite point of view (a very right-wing, conservative point of view) and that we deemed to be overly forceful and pushy about that particularly message. With Love, From Planet B also falls into this trap. You don't want your social commentary and political rantings to be so loud, so boisterous, and so obvious that they completely distract from (and derail) the plot and the characters. Well, we hate to say it, but this book is probably the best example of this happening. The plot and the characters, while they exist, don't seem as important as the messages and ideas the author is promoting/pushing. Heck, there are times when you forget that these characters are even characters and that there's an actual plot playing out in the background. We're not even kidding. The narrative is just too busy with its social commentary and ranting. It's just too busy with promoting and pushing ideas. Again, that's fine to an extent, but you can't have it completely distract from and derail your story and characters. Let's put it this way: it just stops being fun after a certain point. A little commentary is fine until it becomes a full-blown diatribe about why men, religion, big corporations, and the right are the problem, which this seems to devolve into (unfortunately). We are so happy that the author has a voice. We're so happy that they have a point of view. We are so happy that they have big, huge ideas and big, huge things to say. The problem is, are those things contributing to or detracting from the story? And what even is the story? We can summarize it for you like every other reviewer probably would: The year is 2085. Right-wing religious fundamentalists have taken over under the umbrella of a New World Order known as Free OWN, an unscrupulous and corrupt global union of nations. Freedoms are limited. Women in particular are restricted and basically give birth only with the aid of technology. The “truth” (or, rather, the government's narrative) is virtually programmed into everyone. Misinformation is rampant. Religious and political dogma is pushed and promoted everywhere. What used to be America is in shambles after multiple natural disasters caused by climate change—an enormous fire on the West Coast known as the “Last Fire” and multiple “category 9” hurricanes on the East Coast—and another civil war between the red and blue states (probably fought by people who read the last eight books in this contest and grew to hate the other side). The Earth is like 4 degrees Celcius warmer. IQs are 20% lower and androgen levels have plummeted from what they used to be. Pretty much everyone is mentally ill and requires medication. People don't have physical sex and many deny their own bodies and sexuality. There is “8G” WiFi in this society that starts slowing down, showing ads, and asking you extra questions when you start searching for things the government doesn't want you to (or when you try to manually input information). People are glued to their phones and hardly look up, getting most of their information from the internet, which—at this point—is controlled by the theocratic oligarchs. So, there's some more social commentary for you in case you needed more. Autoimmune diseases have run amok, probably because of the rejection of inoculation and vaccination. There's a severe rejection of science and math by these alt-right nut jobs. Ideas are pushed like “math magic” which is the playful way of calling your mathematics heresy. Natural disasters caused by climate change are downplayed or hidden by the state-controlled media and social media platforms (through algorithm manipulation or outright deletion of the content). We are told that “Climate change discriminated by latitude, which meant it discriminated by skin color.” And the way that the character came to that conclusion is because their home country, Pakistan, along with the rest of the Middle East and parts of Africa were destroyed by tsunamis. But wait a minute... didn't the mostly-white Americans get hit by massive fires and hurricanes? Didn't Europe erupt into war and become “the most violent place” because of the change? Didn't South America get turned into an inhospitable, unlivable desert? So... it almost seems like climate change didn't discriminate after all. It screwed everyone. And it's all our fault because we ignored a warning about global warming in 2015. Oh, yeah, there's also an AI called ROB and a few rival AIs, one that appears to want to nuke North America and destroy ROB or something like that, and the other is Unity, the heroic feminist/female-AI that the characters expect to save everyone (because, of course, men suck and are responsible for everything bad). Anyway... we finally get to know our main characters: Dr. Zara Ali and her wife, Lexi, giving readers some LGBTQA+ representation. As a side note, this is the third consecutive lesbian couple in a book we've read this year in which one (or both) happen to be doctors. Is that... like a trope or cliché at this point? At least the author of this book is an actual MD, so it kinda makes sense this time around. But, like, what are the odds? Maybe our brains ARE all connected! Dun dun duuun... In any case, notice how we're 800+ words into this review and we're finally mentioning the main characters. That's kinda how this book feels. They're afterthoughts. It's not about them, it's about the world, the universe, society—macro ideas and far-reaching concepts. And, to be perfectly honest, that's kinda unfortunate because Zara and Lexi had a ton of potential if they weren't completely overshadowed by the world-building and the social commentary. Lexi is a mathematician and occasionally philosophizes about how the universe (and events therein) can be predicted and explained mathematically, which is actually a pretty interesting concept (and at least partly true). Heck, that's how physics leads to us being able to plan, calculate, and launch missions to space. It's how Evel Knievel could confidently jump the Grand Canyon. It's mathematical. Dr. Zara Ali has a very interesting job/role. She's a Master Lucid Dreamer who is able to use dream technology to essentially astral project, exploring and discovering knowledge that those who are locked exclusively in their physical bodies simply can't. That's, perhaps, an analogy for the experience of being trans. In fact, characters often repeat the phrase “My body is not real. My thoughts and feelings are not real.” This, again, seems to be thinly-veiled social commentary about how society expects us to reject how we feel even when we have a conviction (being LGBTQA+) that we are, for example, trans, gay, lesbian, bisexual, etc. A lot of this book criticizes organized religion and societies for encouraging people to deny their “true selves” or to even hate themselves. There's actually some ammunition to that. Organized religions like Christianity and Islam are often infamous for encouraging people to experience a sense of guilt and shame—guilt and shame for not following God's law or rules (or that of a church or doctrine). So, we don't necessarily fault the author for this social commentary. We do kinda wish that they didn't quote passages from religious texts that appear to encourage people to accept and experience shame, deny themselves, be intolerant, and/or to suffer as a kind of martyrdom almost as if to demonize people who live by or believe in these texts. We also wish they didn't feature Muhammad, Moses, and Buddha out-of-character (perhaps as idealized versions of the subconscious or to further the establishment's AI's message). It just seems... wrong. It seems a bit mean-spirited and disingenuous too. Like, why portray these venerated religious leaders in a way that's so unlike the religious and historical records? Why be so contrarian just for the sake of being contrarian? It just seems arbitrary, unnecessary, belittling, and disparaging. In fact, going back to those passages in which peoples' IQs and androgen levels are insulted... that seems mean-spirited too. It really brings down the mood and comes across as persecutory and accusatory, the opposite of what the author was probably going for. It almost seems like the author is pointing their finger in your face and saying, “YOU DID THIS!” It's not a fun or enjoyable experience. In fact, it's kinda painful in that regard. Notice how we could barely write two paragraphs about the characters without completely going off the rails about the social commentary. That's literally how this book is, for better or for worse. Anyway, Zara and Lexi are able to lucidly dream and reach places that are inaccessible to others including an enigmatic world known as Planet B. They meet and see all sorts of strange people and things including some octopuses that start talking to and encouraging them (yes, really). However, perhaps the most amazing thing (or people) they encounter are women with a very interesting philosophy: valuing the dark. Again, the dark isn't just the physical state of darkness, it's also concepts and ideas that are foreign, unfamiliar, unseen, or unknown. These are the things we repress or even fight against including people who are different from us or with ideas we disagree with. The dance/song that the women sing to explain their philosophy is the absolute best-written part of the book. Heck, it's the highlight! Now, with that said, that was also probably the preachiest and most man-hating part of the book. Basically, these women basically talk about the “Three Spiritual Diseases”:
So, we interpreted #3, as we did certain passages in both the Codex Sohrakia and Quantum Consequence as: “Organized religion and dogma suck.” Do you guys, like, watch the same YouTube videos or attend the same classes or something? It can't be a coincidence that so many authors are echoing the exact same things at relatively the exact same time. You know, at least this section of the book has a few truly awesome quotes. One of our favorites is: “From the sword to the gun that imitates the phallus. Look at how they feel proud instead of feeling callous.” That's a Freudian concept if we ever saw one. Just about everything these shaman women say, even when it's wild and crazy as hell, is still written so well with a combination of rhyming and alliteration techniques. These women should have a rap battle! There's another awesome quote: “Attention! With our modern attention economy, we literally pay with our attention. Our attention is owned. It’s a commodity and a currency.” The writing in this book (along with the world-building) are some of its exceptional qualities. This book is incredibly ambitious and unique, and that's both to its benefit and detriment. We applaud the author for being bold and trying something new. The thing: it's a bit... too much. It really seems like the author was trying accomplish way too much and contain far too many themes, concepts, and ideas into one book. For that reason, it comes across as disjointed and lacking in cohesion. The pacing is also thrown off by this. There are huge, 2-3 hour sections of this book that just seem like wandering, meandering, directionless mind-trips (and they pretty much are). That really explains why this book is so long, perhaps 80-100 pages longer than it arguably should be. There's so much wandering and meandering with the characters trying to find themselves and their way. Meanwhile, you almost get the sense that the author herself was trying to buy time en route to finding direction and a plot. So many times, we found ourselves saying or thinking, “Yeah, and where is this going?” or “Interesting passage. Is it going to play into what happens next?” We kept wanting the people in the book to just get to the point and get back to the plot. At least our patience was somewhat rewarded since the last hour or so started to tie up some of the plot threads, use some of the many lessons the characters learned, and actually featured some action toward resolving the ultimate conflict. If we were going to compare it to any one thing, it would be the Star Wars Sequels. They had their own charm. They had some action. They had some interesting story threads. However, a lot of the men like Poe and Finn were either evil, useless, wrong or ended up sucking. The women (Holdo, Rey, and arguably Rose) won the day because... of course they did. There's just a sense of something not sitting right with this book. It just seemed a bit too preachy and a bit too mean-spirited, going after so many people (at least half of the human population) in one book: men and religious people in particular. And most of all, the plot got relegated to the background for like 85% of the book. We started with something resembling a plot, got incredibly sidetracked, then returned to something resembling a plot near the end. This probably could've just been a non-fiction philosophy book, and it probably would've been fine. Oh, on a positive note... beside the writing and some of the world-building, there was one other aspect we liked: the sex between the main couple in this book actually seemed satisfying, earned, and deserved. It wasn't just thrown at us willy-nilly in the first 10-30 pages like other books have done. And it didn't just happen in machine-gun fashion like these people were frisky rabbits or something. No, it was gradually built and worked toward throughout the book. There was actually tension and suspense about whether or not these two would ever actually be able to be physically intimate with each other. That's something we commend the book and the author for. Check it out on Amazon! |
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