Category: Book Review

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#BookReview: The Unwritten Rules of Magic by Harper Ross

Strong Tale of Multi-Generational Grief Marred By Preachiness On Certain Topics. First off, let’s clear the air about one thing: Harper Ross isn’t a debut author. This is “Ross” debut *under that pseudonym* and *in this specific genre* of magical realism, but Ross is actually a well established author that I’ve read and reviewed many books from over the years and we actually know each other through that level of communication and speaking about book related topics on social media a few times.

Because I know Ross, I can tell you that while those who believe her to be a debut author could think that perhaps the seriousness of certain sections of this book was new to her, I actually know that these types of discussions were actually where she had been already heading, and indeed she had had similar types of discussions in other books I had read from her.

And honestly, I thoroughly enjoy what she was attempting to pull off here and much of what she did in fact pull off. As a whole tale, this book is an *extremely* powerful look at loss and regret and parents trying to do what is best for their kids and adults seeking to navigate all of their complex relationships as best they can. Seriously, on all of these notes, this is quite likely the most depth and emotion Ross has ever achieved – which is saying quite a bit, because if I remember correctly, some of those prior books involved a few dusty rooms.

One thing that sets this book apart – beyond the obvious – is that in not having some of the guard rails and prerequisites Ross once had, she was more free to plumb real emotional depth and not be hogtied on some levels by previous requirements, and this freedom combined with Ross’ apparently innate storytelling strength really allows her to excel here in areas she wasn’t really allowed to go into before, certainly not to this level or for this long. Yes, there were some *moments* of such depth in prior works, but here the entire tale is more rich and full within these spaces than Ross has ever done before. Which was truly awesome, and knowing some of the prior books, it really does go to show just how great a storyteller she is that she can navigate from one to the other.

Where this book falls is in its heavy handed preachiness on a couple of key topics in particular. As both are spoilers since they are not in the description – and one is absolutely a spoiler since it is *the very secret the description says is in the story*, I’ll not reveal here what they are. Instead I’ll add a postscript after the ultimate recommendation with the spoilers but with several lines of warning before I speak to them for people who do not wish to see them. I will also enclose them in spoiler tags on platforms where this review appears that support such tags. That way you, the reader of my review, can choose to look for them or not. Now, Ross has gone perhaps a touch heavy on similar ish issues before – but it was never to this level. Perhaps a downside of not having those guardrails and prerequisites she was bound by in earlier efforts, or perhaps just a genuine misstep in these even more contentious times. Ross has her views on these subjects and I have mine and let’s just say that we learned long ago neither is going to change the other. Unfortunately for this tale, she just goes *so very hard* within the book for several pages on one of them in particular, and the book ultimately suffers for it. Yes, this is specifically about the secret in the description, which is revealed in the story at around the 90% ish mark.

Ultimately, I’m truly elated to see Ross writing again. I truly love her style and what she is able to do, and I think this particular tale is actually *on its whole* a great new evolution of her capabilities. I genuinely hope St. Martin’s agrees and keeps her on for quite a while, but if something every happens and she finds she must, I hope Ross is never afraid to perhaps go the Independent route to get her stories out. The world would be lesser without them. Truly. But Ross, you know I’m not going to bullshit you: Find a way to get your message across without being so heavy handed about it. Please. You can integrate those exact same topics into the story and have them not be so preachy, and you’re good enough to figure out how to do that.

Very much recommended.

And now for the spoilers.

I’m adding several lines here so that people can stop reading and not see what I’m about to write.

Or at least that is my intention.

Seriously, if you don’t want to see spoilers, STOP READING NOW.

Don’t make me warn you again. SPOILERS AHEAD.

THIS IS YOUR LAST CHANCE TO AVOID SPOILERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The two topics that Ross is heavy handed on:
1) alcoholism and treatment. For most of the tale, this is actually handled *really* well. Even through most of the fallout of some of the alcoholic’s actions, Ross still does quite well with showing an emotional and powerful tale. It is specifically during the treatment section and its fallout that Ross gets particularly preachy, and it does come across as just too much. Add in that Ross highlights an unconventional (for many) path/ doesn’t highlight the most well known path (or at minimum have a throw away line about how problematic it can be itself and thus the character doesn’t want to go that route), and you’ve got something that is both preachy and contentious, and it doesn’t actually add much to the story to be this preachy and contentious here – if anything.
2) Abortion. This is the secret from the description, and pretty well everything about the entire discussion here is heavy handed and preachy. It comes across more as a semi-moderate 2020s feminist lecture about the topic (in that at least one character thinks the boyfriend should have been at least informed about the pregnancy before the abortion, while still emphasizing that it was entirely the girl’s decision) than a real heartfelt emotional scene the way Ross was clearly intending. It is also something that by its presence and in particular the way Ross chose to handle it will turn at least some segment of readers completely away. Which is a business level decision rather than a storytelling one, at least to this reviewer. I know from prior works that Ross *can* be at least slightly more balanced on contentious issues, but that prior restraint/ balance doesn’t really come through here *at all* except for the one line (ish) about wishing the boyfriend had been informed first.

This review of The Unwritten Rules of Magic by Harper Ross was originally written on January 23, 2026.

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#BookReview: Country Life In Georgia In The Days Of My Youth by Rebecca Latimer Felton

Fascinating Look Into A Bygone Era From A Truly Remarkable Woman. Rebecca Latimer Felton was born in 1935 in DeKalb County, GA. She died in Cartersville, Ga – my own hometown – in 1930, just 53 years before my own birth. Her grandparents witnessed the American Revolution. Mine were children when she died – one of them a small child when Felton became the first female US Senator – and, in the same moment, the last formerly slave owning US Senator – in 1922.

This book is both a memoir of her early years through the Civil War and just beyond and also a collection of several of her writings and speeches as she became politically active in the last decades of her life, becoming a leader in both (white) women’s suffrage and the temperance movement that eventually lead to Prohibition – and its repeal – in her final years.

Margaret Mitchell’s Gone With The Wind has become a legend in American lore of the antebellum and Civil War periods. Meanwhile, Felton’s *real* story of those same periods has largely been forgotten. Even in Cartersville, where a home still stood on her plantation land *this Millennium* (as an abandoned lot, according to my memory of living just a mile or so away) until it was destroyed by arsonists in 2001, Felton’s name appears on a couple of shopping centers and a couple of roads near where her plantation once was.

This story, *her* story, deserves to be read and understood far more than it currently is. Felton was absolutely a person of her time and era, and this book shows it. She does not hide that she owned slaves. She is quite clear that she believes the white race superior to the black – or any other. Yes, that even means that she uses a certain word beginning with “N” that is virtually *never* used by anyone other than the most hardcore avowed racists of the 2020s. Even with these views however, Felton makes great effort to explicitly state – and devote a decent section of this book to conclusively proving in her own way – that the Civil War was explicitly because rich Southerners wanted to defend slavery specifically. Though in one of the more prescient statements that many today should take heed of, she also explicitly states that at least the politicians of Georgia had wished – and genuinely believed – that they could peaceably secede from the Union without bloodshed.

*And yet*, Felton also speaks highly of the society the Cherokee Nation built. She shows herself, particularly in the speeches and writings that form the back end of the book, to be a strong and stirring leader in pushing for women’s rights – not just to vote, but to be free from spousal and societal abuse. Indeed, it is clear that one large reason she was so passionate in her views of temperance was due to how drunk men treated the women around them – reasons that some of my own grandparents would see play out in their own lives after both of my grandfathers served in WWII and both survived the meat grinder of the Battle of the Bulge only to both be there to directly see the concentration camps liberated by them and their fellow American soldiers.

I’m not going to bullshit y’all. Felton is truly a fascinating and complex woman, and by 2000s standards, particularly 2020s standards, yes, she can be quite problematic indeed.

*And yet*, by the standards of her own era, she was more progressive than Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez or even Bernie Sanders are considered today.

Read this book. Learn about an era that so many today have so many strong and passionate views on *from someone who was actively there*. Even as someone who grew up separated by just a few decades in time and barely a mile in distance from Felton, who went to elementary school literally down the road from the last home Felton lived in, even *I* learned many things about this era that *I* had previously never known, and it opened even my own eyes in several ways. Thus, I have every confidence that anyone not both from Cartersville and at least as knowledgeable of its history as I am will absolutely learn a great deal here, even if this is admittedly a difficult read almost a century after Felton’s death.

Very much recommended.

Download this book from the Internet Archive here.

This review of Country Life In Georgia In The Days Of My Youth by Rebecca Latimer Felton was originally written on January 21, 2026.

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#BlogTour: The Secret Twins Of Paris by Suzanne Kelman

For this blog tour, we’re looking at very solid penultimate book in its series. For this blog tour, we’re looking at The Secret Twins Of Paris by Suzanne Kelman.

First, the review I posted to the book sites (BookBub.com / BookHype.com / Goodreads.com / TheStoryGraph.com), Substack, and YouTube:

Solid Penultimate Book In Series. This is one of those entire series where you’re going to want to read the entire series before this point – including the short story prequel that sets everything up – before you get here. Even though this one stands alone (*ish*), you really need that deep understanding of all that is going on here to fully appreciate this story, and really those prior books are just as strong as this one, so if you see this one first and are interested in it at all, you’ll be glad you read them first anyway.

For what this book – and its predecessors – actually is though, it really is quite good. We get a dual timeline with both women’s fiction and romance elements in both timelines – enough that yes, this book technically satisfies all known RWA/ RNA requirements to be “officially” classified as a romance novel – and all elements here are done remarkably well. Considering that some other authors struggle at times with one timeline or genre and Kelman here is not only juggling, but excelling in, a combined four different genre/ timeline combinations is really quite astounding, and an absolute testament to her storytelling abilities.

If you enjoy dusty rooms or cutting onions, you’re going to love this book. (To be clear here, men don’t cry. The room is either very dusty or we’re cutting a lot of onions. We. Never. Cry. (And yes, this is a joke, but a joke explaining the other joke. 😉 )) If you enjoy books that both transport you to another place *and* make you *feel* something within it, you’re going to enjoy this book. If you enjoy books that are close enough to reality that you can more easily switch your brain off and accept the one presented in front of you, you’re going to enjoy this book.

And when you get done with this book… well, you’ll be glad to know that apparently we can expect the conclusion to this series later in 2026. I’m not sure *how* public the release date of Book 5 here is -I asked the publisher directly and have a longstanding working relationship with them across dozens of reviews every few months for several years now – but I feel reasonably confident that no one will get too upset with me for saying simply “by the end of this year”. 😀 And seriously, I can’t wait. Definitely going to be one hell of a back-end-of-2026 read, just as this book was one hell of a Book 5 of 2026 read for me.

Very much recommended.

After the jump, the “publisher details” – book info, description, author bio, social links, and buy links.
Continue reading “#BlogTour: The Secret Twins Of Paris by Suzanne Kelman”

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#BookReview: The Price Of Mercy by Emily Galvin Almanza

Leftist Language Will Annoy Some Readers. Read This Anyway. Straight up, Galvin Almanza is absolutely a product of her time – in this case, “her time” being 2010s Harvard and Stanford and then abolitionist activism. So the words she chooses – “latinx”, apologizing for being white, etc – are going to annoy at least some readers.

From my view (see postscript for a brief bio relevant to this discussion)… this book is right up there among the ones those new to the field should consider. Those in and around criminal justice will likely know most everything Galvin Almanza presents here – or at bare minimum have largely similar stories of people they did know more directly. Her writing style is engaging – far from the academic speak one might expect from a Stanford Law lecturer and much closer to the dynamism one would expect from a tenacious advocate of the accused during a trial. While this is far from a John Grisham or Randy Singer courtroom drama, Galvin Almanza’s overall style bends more in that direction than a desert dry academic treatise.

One weakness here was her framing of the “racist” origins of policing, but again, that’s the culture Galvin Almanza comes from. It is unclear at this time if she’s ever even heard of Radley Balko’s excellent history of policing The Rise Of The Warrior Cop, released between The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander (who blurbed this book, in case you, the reader of my review, missed that) and the 2013 execution of Michael Brown. Balko has a much more even handed look at the rise of policing in the American tradition, tracing it back even beyond the first “Shire Reefs” in feudal England and up through 2010 or so (with a 2020s update I’ve yet to go back and read). Even here, however, Galvin Almanza’s incorrect history of policing comes across more as a cultural/ worldview thing than an attempt to mislead the reader – she appears to genuinely not know the actual history at hand and genuinely (and uncritically) believes the constant leftist refrain.

That particular weakness aside, however, this is a particularly well documented book, clocking in at about 28% documentation on even the Advance Review Copy edition of the text I’ve had for several weeks before finally reading roughly a month before release. It is quite clear that on most of her points, Galvin Almanza both knows exactly what she’s arguing and is more than willing to show you her work – which is always appreciated (and, yes, frankly expected) in any nonfiction work.

Ultimately Galvin Almanza’s proposals – because all books of this type must end with proposals in nearly as ironclad a genre rule as RWA/ RNA types try to insist that any romance novel end in a happily ever after – all come down to variations on “more funding” and for the most part are things most that are familiar with the field have already heard of before, but Galvin Almanza does put at least enough of her own specific vision in here that the text is still worth reading to see exactly what her own brand of reasoning comes out as.

Overall this was a strong book of its type, just not an overly novel one other than in Galvin Almanza’s own particular experiences.

Very much recommended.

Brief bio of me: Hi, I’m Jeff, and I used to work for a District Attorney for a bit as their office tech guy. Even got sworn in as a witness in one particular trial, in addition to helping my bosses with an “everyman” look at the case he had in a couple of cases. Even then, I was *also* a Libertarian Party official and an anti-police-brutality activist working with an org that has long went by the wayside (at least relative to what it was) and which particularly after Michael Brown’s execution in 2013 was rarely heard from again as more prominent orgs rose up. I even, at some of the very times Galvin Almanza was being recognized as one of the most promising young lawyers in America, had a database that virtually no one knew of, but which made me *the* world’s leading expert in mass shooting, school shooting, and killed by police events – at least in terms of the data I had and was actively both collecting and analyzing.

Which is a particularly long winded way of saying that I’ve been around the block more than a few times as it relates to the subject of this book. Frequently around it, rarely directly in it, but very much close enough to know much of what was happening… from most every side.

This review of The Price Of Mercy by Emily Galvin Almanza was originally written on January 19, 2026.

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#BookReview: The Great Shadow by Susan Wise Bauer

Interesting Take On The Subject With Writing Reminiscent of Rachel Held Evans. I suspect Bauer would have admired much about the late great Evans, even if they didn’t agree on every particular. Here, Bauer approaches the history of sickness the same way Evans, particularly in the last few books before her death, did various Biblical topics – with a fair amount of creativity to give examples of a particular point followed by reasonably well reasoned analysis based on the available authoritative texts – whether those be the Bible (and Torah) in Evans’ case or what we consider to be more “objective” science and histories for Bauer.

Bauer does a truly great job here with the scenarios she creates usually at the beginning of each chapter, showing both how a “modern” (21st century ish) approach to the next topic looks – usually in a way most current readers will readily identify with or at least have heard of – and a more historical perspective would look on that same topic, with “historical perspective” here ranging from pre-history through roughly the WWII period. With these, Bauer shows herself to have almost a novelist eye for storytelling, and a fairly good novelist eye for *compelling* storytelling.

The actual histories she presents here are fairly solid and mostly reasonably known or at minimum in line with things that are reasonably known, so I don’t necessarily feel the Sagan Standard applies for this text as it exists. Which allows the 15% documentation to suffice without a star deduction, even though it *is* around the lower bound of what I expect to see from a nonfiction text.

In Bauer’s message of trying to reach those skeptical of modern medicine – which should be most anyone who actually understands its history and where it actually currently is – she actually had one particular line that stuck out to me as particularly well said:

“If you’re going to try to convince people of something that is going to deprive them of something vital (freedom, agency, control, their livelihood), anything less than an ironclad case isn’t going to do the trick.”

While this line, if I remember correctly, was specifically about trying to get docs to adopt more stringent standards in line with more current thinking, it really does apply equally well to anyone seeking any change from any other person for any reason at all. Thus, it is both quite wise and quite well spoken – and gives you a pretty solid idea of what to expect from the overall tone of the book here to boot.

Very much recommended.

This review of The Great Shadow by Susan Wise Bauer was originally written on January 18, 2026.

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#BookReview: Without A Clue by Melissa Ferguson

More Mystery Than Romance, Still Technically Works As Both. This is one of those types of mysteries where the author tries to tap in to Agatha Christie or perhaps even the board game Clue… and hits that kind of tone relatively well, while still also playing into her cruise setting particularly well at the same time. For me, I think the absolute funniest scene was actually the introduction, but there was a decent amount of comedy throughout the book, and it very well could be one of those where another reader would find more humor in a different scene.

The romance here satisfies all known RWA/ RNA rules and is about as spicy as a warm glass of milk or so, but also feels a fair amount more told than shown – we’re *told* these characters really like each other and are falling for each other much more than we *see* it happening. It also absolutely felt, to this reader at least, like the romance element was here mostly because that is what Ferguson has made her name writing, but what she *really* wanted to write here was a cozy mystery set on a cruise ship, so she made it work reasonably well enough for both sides so that maybe she could appease existing fans and perhaps reach a few more new ones. And again, it absolutely works so far as it goes… it just isn’t one of those epic romances you’re going to remember decades from now either. (And to be fair, *few* tales are ever of that level, and for the most part romcoms are never *meant* to be that level.)

Still, as a fun, breezy, cozy mystery/ romance mashup kind of tale, this book really does work remarkably well. You’re going to be entertained for a few hours and you’re going to be able to invest so much of your attention here that you’ll be able to ignore the so-called “real” world for a while, and that, ultimately, is a sign of a solid book doing its job well.

Very much recommended.

This review of Without A Clue by Melissa Ferguson was originally written on January 18, 2026.

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#BookReview: The Naysayers by Liz Fenton and Lisa Steinke

Moralistic Romance Goes Nearly As Heavy On Preaching As Romance. Maybe Moreso. First, there are a lot of similarities here to scifi that runs the gamut from literal child stories to ultra violent (depending on incarnation) scifi. Just the base set up here, you’ve got something that at times feels like the DIVERGENT world (particularly by the time of ALLEGIANT) / Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs / the storyline setup for Walt Disney World’s Guardians of The Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind ride at Epcot / one of my favorite lines in any scifi story ever in the Sylvester Stallone version of Judge Dredd.

All of this, in a fucking *romance* book. Y’all, that takes innovation within the genre to levels I’ve rarely if ever seen, and I’ve read over 1800 books within the last decade alone.

This is also a different kind of “dual timeline” type tale in that it is more “dual reality”. Still two different sequences of events, still two different overall plotlines to follow – meaning those who dislike dual timelines for whatever reason will still likely have similar issues with this book – but instead of a historical (or future) and a current timeline, you have two simultaneous realities… with at least one romance (and possibly more…) going on between them.

So again, innovative to the extreme here. Seriously, kudos to Fenton and Steinke for being this imaginative while remaining squarely within the romance genre. (And yes, this is more “romance with scifi elements” than “scifi romance”… or at least I think so. Read the book for yourself and write your own review and feel free to call me out in it (and even tag me, where possible) if you think I’m an idiot here.)

Perhaps the issue many will have with this book is that it is not even that arguably even *more* heavy handed with its political messaging than even Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged – a book that literally has an 80 page philosophical tome baked into its 1,000+ page story “disguised” as a speech its ultimate hero is giving. Yes, you read that right. In my view, this book is *even more heavy handed with its politics* than one of *the* examples most people give when asked for a book that is heavy handed with its politics. (And again, *please* read the book yourself, write your own review, and feel free to call me an idiot here if you think it warranted.)

Now, like Atlas Shrugged, I happen to largely-ish agree with the ultimate message of the heavy handed political speech within this book. I think Fenton and Steinke ultimately have a message that a lot of people in a lot of (wildly) different situations need to understand and help re-orient their worldview around. But it *is* absolutely Thanos throwing an entire fucking planet at Iron Man level heavy handed, and for at least some readers it may well take away from the overall story of the romance at the core of the story here.

Still, for all that it is, this really is one of the most innovative romance stories I’ve ever come across, and that alone makes it…

Very much recommended.

This review of The Naysayers by Liz Fenton and Lisa Steinke was originally written on January 10, 2026.

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#BookReview: The Hunted by Steven Max Russo

Solid Thriller Uses Guns Both Effectively And Not So Effectively. Seriously, this is one book that uses one particular gun *phenomenally* – one of the best uses I’ve ever seen of this particular gun, easily. But revealing that particular gun gets into spoiler territory.

Most of the rest of this tale is a really solid cat and mouse type thriller where danger lurks nearly behind every word and the action is of a sufficiently frenetic pace that fans of masters of balls to the wall action like Matthew Reilly and Jeremy Robinson will likely enjoy quite well. From the prologue through the epilogue, danger and intrigue is always *right there*, and we get several very satisfying action sequences and payoffs throughout. For the pure adrenaline action book this is, it really is quite a fun one.

But then we get to the issues where guns *aren’t* used as effectively, and to be fair this is a touch of nitpicking where those “less familiar” with guns than I am likely wouldn’t notice anything wrong at all… but readers anywhere near the level of proficiency with guns that these characters are supposed to have – all private military contractors of some form, many of them former special forces – are known to howl quite loudly about when they see these exact errors. Yes, I’m talking about Spec Ops/ PMC type characters referring to “magazines” as “clips”. Every. Damn. Time. Once, hey, maybe Russo mistyped and simply missed it in editing. Every time? Seems Russo, who clearly thought out and perhaps even researched *so much else* from a tactical and even practical perspective about so very many of the action sequences here – up to and including specifying several different types of guns in several different situations and using them quite effectively and realistically… *kept referring to magazines as clips*. GAH! So yes, this was bad enough from these specific types of characters that I ultimately felt I didn’t have a choice but to deduct a star for this reason. I always seek to be both as objective as possible and 100% honest in my reviews, and this was absolutely something that stuck out to me every time it happened. And yes, *for me*, it took me out of the scene every time. As noted earlier, for someone less familiar with guns – say non-American audiences, or maybe readers in the Northeast or Left Coast – some of the areas in even the US with the tightest gun regulations and thus far less general public familiarity with guns – hey, this particular thing may not be an issue for those readers. But for anyone even moderately familiar with a gun, yes, this will absolutely be an issue.

Another gun related issue – that only happened a couple of times, to be clear – is suppressors. Yes, Russo used the correct term here, which was great. But he also described them as taking the sound of a gunshot from an M40 sniper rifle down to “a bit louder than a pellet gun”. No. Just no. The *best* suppressors currently on the market in 2026 reduce a shot by *maybe* 40 decibels – and I’m being generous there. They take it from standing beside the action end of a jet engine to standing beside the speakers at a Metallica concert. At best. Which, to be fair, *is* QUITE “a bit louder than a pellet gun”. The way I typically describe it is that it takes the shot from being heard from 5 miles away (ish) to one mile away (ish), particularly in the relatively open fields of that particular scene. Yet again though, familiarity with guns. If you only know guns from entertainment and not from some form of actually having fired them, Hollywood in particular is *horrendous* about the suppressor issue specifically… but you wouldn’t know any better as you read this book. But those with more familiarity and experience with guns… again, this is a significant issue for at least those readers.

But again, overall – outside of the “magazine” vs “clip” issue and the suppressor issue – this really was a very solidly written, very fun action thriller with balls to the wall action sequences and fairly realistic tactics based on the settings as described – up to and including a few critical mistakes made by both heroes and villains. Truly a fun read that a lot of guys in particular are going to love.

Very much recommended.

This review of The Hunted by Steven Max Russo was originally written on January 7, 2026.

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#BookReview: The Memory Thief by Kayla Eaden

Phenomenal Story. Absolutely HORRID Storytelling. In the hands of someone with the skills of a Roth (DIVERGENT) or a Collins (HUNGER GAMES) or a Rowling (HARRY POTTER) or a Dashner (MAZE RUNNER) or a Robinson (THE LAST HUNTER) or a Phillips (RHO AGENDA) or a Harrison (INFINITY) or or or or or… this could have been an absolutely PHENOMENAL story that would keep you on the edge of your seat for at least a trilogy of trilogies, if not a near-mid-double-digits long series of all 300+ or even 600+ page books. There is *that much* material covered here, and it truly sounds PHENOMENAL.

Unfortunately, Eaden isn’t one of those authors, or even anywhere near that – at least right now. In this form as presented in this book, the story reads far more like Eaden had a decently detailed outline… and for some weird reason thought she had a cohesive book. No ma’am. You have a pretty solid outline to do at minimum that trilogy of trilogies I mentioned above or even that far longer series I mentioned above. I’m dead serious that such an expansion, along with better editing and admittedly more advanced and refined writing and storytelling skills could truly be one for the ages. This simply isn’t that, and it is a true shame, because the potential is absolutely there.

Also, I can’t leave this particular review without a note about how this book came to my attention and why I chose to buy it – and even redeem a Kindle Reward certificate to do so – and read it. On Threads yesterday, Ms. Eaden was getting absolutely slammed for the AI art on the cover and her defense thereof. She wasn’t holding her own very well, and I’m one that when I see an author or book getting just absolutely destroyed by a mob like that, I can’t help but at least step in and try to call the mob off, if not actively defend the person they are attacking so vociferously (if I happen to agree with the person). Thus, I *needed* to read the book. Maybe the AI cover was just some dirt on a filet mignon – a travesty, but otherwise a great piece of meat. Yeah, this wasn’t that. At best, it was more akin to dirt on beef tongue. Still a travesty if you’re truly dirt poor and this is the best you have, but something to just be tossed into the trash can if you have even enough money to replace it with instant ramen or some such. Yes, this story in this form truly was that bad.

Not recommended. Not in this form.

This review of The Memory Thief by Kaya Eaden was originally written on January 6, 2026.

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#BlogTour: She Took My Baby by Steena Holmes

For this blog tour, we’re looking at a twisty mind bending thriller that will be tough for some readers. For this blog tour, we’re looking at She Took My Baby by Steena Holmes.

First, the review I posted to the book sites (BookHype.com / Goodreads.com / TheStoryGraph.com) and YouTube:

Twisty Mind Bender Will Put You In The Minds Of Its Main Characters. This is one of those books that works best when you don’t try to fight it. Take yourself out of the story and just flow with what is presented here and what you get is one hell of a trippy mind bender where not everything is as it seems… and yet some things may be *exactly* as they seem.

Now, for the child free and particularly the childless… well, the title of the damn book has the word “Baby” in it. Yes, this is focused on post-partum issues and, well, babies and motherhood. So just to make it explicitly clear: this book may not be the best thing for you, for any number of reasons. And to be even more clear: I myself am childfree and proud of this. Thus, I readily admit that this book is not one I would normally pick up myself if I did not already know and trust the author from previous books (and, admittedly, working with her in her (along with a few colleagues) Readers Coffeehouse group on Facebook).

AND YET… again, this book for what it actually is really is so good that *even for the childfree/ childless*… you should maybe at least consider it. I totally get if someone – maybe even a new mother herself, not just someone in the CF crowd – just finds the topic in general too difficult for their current situation. Take care of yourself and do what you need to do. Always. But when you’re in a space that maybe you can handle a book like this… Holmes really does do a great job here. It is one of those that will have you reading deep into the night and have your pulse pounding almost until literally the last word.

But if you want to build some trust in Holmes before you come to this book, I get it. I very much recommend literally every other book I’ve read from her, and I’ve read most of them at this point. So go into her back catalog, build that level of trust in her skills as a storyteller, then come here. You won’t be disappointed.

Very much recommended.

After the jump, the “publisher details” – book info, description, author bio, social links, and buy links.
Continue reading “#BlogTour: She Took My Baby by Steena Holmes”