Reviewed by Michelle Randall for Readers' Favorite

Eilida is planning to meet up with friends at the local bar, but instead something draws her to the neighbors' house. As she slow sneaks over and looks in, what she sees is so horrific and terrifying that she takes off running. It has started storming hard, but she just keeps running until she slides down a hillside, landing in a heap against a rock. Sunshine is a receptionist at the Lyden Times Newspaper and she loves her neat and orderly world, only this day nothing is neat and orderly. A young woman was found in the woods with no identification and no memory, and the strange thing is that she looks just like Sunshine only with a different color hair. Eye of The Storm: Eilida's Tragedy (Ruthless Storm Trilogy) (Volume 1) follows Sunshine as she turns reporter and tries to discover what sent this woman running and ending up in her town.

Eye of The Storm centers around Eilida's fear of storms. She hates them, and as the story progresses we slowly learn the reasoning. Sunshine, on the other hand, can never remember a day of rain, but as she investigates this case, she is suddenly plagued by storms. Author Elle Klass creates a compelling story using tragedy, survival, guilt, repressed memories, visual triggers and storms to create a tale that encompasses so much more than you expect. The tragedy of three families is told in this one story. It is a well written and compelling tale with an amazing concept that is worth the read. Great for young adults and adults as well.

Reviewed by Kayti Nika Raet for Readers' Favorite

The Man I Love by Suanne Laqueur is a beautiful romance that explores love, sexuality, and the blossoming of a new relationship, as well as the trauma and anguish in the wake of a school shooting. College freshman Erik Fiskare is drawn into the world of theater where he helps craft the backdrop for the dancers taking center stage. He's drawn into a romance with Daisy Bianco, a beautiful, accomplished dancer, and their love blossoms. It's something that seems as if it will last a lifetime, but when a fellow dancer and student brings a gun into a theater, their lives are forever changed. With some friends dead and others gravely injured, Daisy and Erik try their best not to let the trauma affect their relationship, but in the end a shocking act of betrayal threatens to tear it apart. As the years pass, Erik must battle the demons that have haunted him since the shooting, and learn that he must tackle them head on instead of avoiding them if he ever hopes for any sort of reconciliation.

The Man I Love by Suanne Laqueur joins the handful of truly spectacular books I've read this year. The writing is gorgeous, each passage has a sort of rhythm that flows beautifully, drawing you deeper and deeper into Daisy and Erik's story. I loved how, though it was a romance, the readers weren't trapped in the vacuum of their relationship. We got to see and learn about their friends and families, and how their presence influenced them. It made for a richer, meatier story, and I'm thoroughly satisfied. When I first picked up The Man I Love, I hadn't read the blurb or any of the reviews, even though I'd heard a lot of good things about it. It made each scene and moment new, fresh, and shocking, and made for the perfect reading experience. I can't recommend this book highly enough!

Reviewed by Cheryl Schopen for Readers' Favorite

In The Never Hero, the first book in the Chronicles of Jonathan Tibbs series by T. Ellery Hodges, Jonathan is attacked in his home and wakes up in his kitchen, his blood everywhere. Just when he thinks he can start moving past this seemingly random attack, a vicious creature is seen killing many people in the streets not far from his home. This unknown being is screaming for a challenger, but Jonathan is the only one who can understand it. After that night, Jonathan’s life changes more than he ever expected. Being called to defend mankind in a war that no one will remember or know about will prove to have many obstacles that Jonathan may not be prepared to face.

The title and the concept of this book really intrigued me, and I just had to read it. The idea of an ordinary man forced to defend the existence of mankind without anyone ever knowing about his sacrifice just sounded like an amazing story, and it really was. I couldn’t put the book down. I really admired Jonathan throughout the book. Even though he was a regular guy with a regular life, he had these values and morals that made him capable of becoming this hero that the world didn’t know it needed. In my mind, he makes the perfect protagonist, and he made me want to root for him, no matter what. I also enjoyed Jonathan’s roommates/friends. If this was a superhero story, they would be his sidekicks. They stuck by him even when they thought he was losing it. The friendships Jonathan had with these people made the story for me. While the story could have been a little more fast-paced at some points, T. Ellery Hodges’ The Never Hero was an entertaining, suspenseful, unpredictable read that surely did not disappoint.

Reviewed by Michelle Robertson for Readers' Favorite

Scientist Dan Adams accidentally falls into a portal he had no idea existed. While working on a project to develop a better energy source for mankind, he disrupted Apep, an entity from ancient Egypt, or Nubia, from 2,500 years ago and now has to pay the price. Will Dan be able to find his way out of the portal and back home? Will faith in God help him through it all, or will the power of his own mind, or both?

The Death Maze by Richard Parnes is an amazing science fiction novel introducing readers to an ancient Nubian or Egyptian entity, spirituality, and science. The character and plot building within are both creatively and skillfully developed. The author keeps readers on the edge of their seats throughout as the plot thickens, and more character qualities, personalities, and histories are revealed. Author Richard Parnes does an amazing job intertwining romantic scenes, spiritual statements, and scientific elements thought impossible that will leave readers with not a moment of down time.

The Death Maze is a book that will "rattle your brain", so to speak. Once you finally think you know what the main characters are going to do next, you are hit with a surprise. The author has a unique and entertaining way of introducing details of a character and scene into the book. Each chapter has a transition between both the character and the plot. Each character has flash back monologues throughout the chapter. With its very vivid and descriptive text, amazing story line and characters, The Death Maze is a book that will make your mind run wild with thoughts of parallel universes, different time dimensions, scientific theories, spiritual entities, and much more. I would recommend this book to all readers who like science fiction.

Reviewed by Lex Allen for Readers' Favorite

Dr. Don Ellis is a brilliant quantum physics scientist and widower. After losing his wife and child in the South Tower, he spends the next ten years building a time machine. His intent is apparent — to change the course of history and reanimate his family. That alone would be a fascinating story. Greg Enslen, however, takes that tale to an entirely new level in his Sci-Fi/Fantasy/Alternative History novel, The 9/11 Machine.

Although I was unable to connect with any of the primary characters, particularly Dr. Ellis, I was amazed and pleasantly surprised at the inventive characterizations of many well-known, actual personages. People such as G.W. Bush, Cheney, Gore, Clinton, et al. I realize, too, that not everyone will share my discomfort with Dr. Ellis. It’s the story that really counts, anyway, and this one is a winner. I’m certain that a great deal of research went into this tale. I was beguiled by the manner in which Enslen introduced and treated the attempts to alter each of the several timelines. Future readers will certainly appreciate Enslen’s deft hand in avoiding several of the emotional ‘hotspots’ connected to this historical tragedy. I’m talking about his avoidance of any of the several conspiracy theories and, at least in the case of Iraq, the fact that they didn’t actually have WMDs. After all, this is a tale of alternative history, of time machines, and the effects — often disastrous — that changing a timeline can induce.

All critiques, every why-not-this or that, what-about-these questions, and prompts, are left in the dust of this fascinating and highly entertaining story. The 9/11 Machine is a great read for all fans of any of the genres I mentioned at the beginning of this review. I, for one, will be reading more of Greg Enslen’s work.

Reviewed by Jack Magnus for Readers' Favorite

Riding the Dog is a short story collection written by Sybil Rosen. The title refers to the Greyhound Bus Lines which is, for many people, the means by which they travel across the country. In one story, the dog is how mothers, sisters, girlfriends and wives visit their imprisoned loved ones. In another, a somewhat naive woman travels to Nashville to attend a beauty school. A widow, whose plans to drive to her school reunion in a rented Cadillac convertible are shattered, mounts the steps of the bus with fear and a bit of confusion as to the strangers she'll be travelling with. Throughout the stories, there's a common theme of strangers travelling together, spending hours with elbows and legs sometimes touching and occasionally a sleeping head nestling on a neighbor's shoulder.

Sybil Rosen's short story collection, Riding the Dog, is a lyrical tribute to the people who travel by bus. Each story carries within its theme the varying emotions, hopes and dreams of the passengers, but by far the most striking thing found is the kindness of strangers and the need for some sort of human bonding that goes on within the cramped confines of the bus. The bus drivers sometimes seem almost godlike in their announcements and authoritarian deliberations, though there are a few tales where the driver seems to know and care for each of the souls within his bus. Rosen's prose commands attention. Her characters are finely drawn with all their quirks and oddities, and the reader can't help but get involved in their tale, no matter how short and fleeting. There's romance in the chance for a new start and nostalgia in the trips that head home, but mostly there is kindness, and it's a marvelous thing indeed. Riding the Dog is an accomplished and compelling work that is most highly recommended.

Reviewed by Brenda Casto for Readers' Favorite

"The Ice Cream Vendor's Song" is a collection of forty-six mini stories that became totally addicting for me; I really couldn't stop reading after just one story. Although the stories are totally unrelated, one story led to another because I was curious to see who I might meet or where I might go next in the telling of these stories! Sometimes the characters seem perfectly normal, at other times they do not. While I found some of the stories as really funny, a few were touchingly sad. Each one is like unwrapping a gift because you are never sure what you might find inside each story. These are a few of my favorites:
'Still There': A woman's son is tired of his mother's lack of motivation to move out of her chair, so he decides to take the cat and move out. When he slams the door on the way out a card falls into his mother's lap and is still there two weeks later. What's going on? The twist the author provides grabbed me, and was totally unexpected. 'She Could Decide': Aggie and her husband Bill had plans to take a trip after he has routine surgery which winds up being anything but routine leaving Aggie to decide the outcome! 'Her Love Returns': An odd relationship between a fifteen year old girl and a python. This one was really strange and more than a little creepy!

These are mini fiction stories, rich in detail, filled with nuggets of insight, and characters whose stories just jump off the page. I found myself pondering the plights of some characters and shaking my head and wondering about the stories of others. A book that you will zoom through, but then find yourself rereading just to make sure you didn't miss anything.

Reviewed by Jackie Timmons for Readers' Favorite

Things are looking bleak for both Kate and "the kid" at the start of Anne Rothman-Hicks and Kenneth Hicks' novel, Kate and the Kid. Kate lost her editorial job at a NYC publishing company and had a huge, possibly relationship ending, fight with her lawyer boyfriend. The kid, Jenny, fell asleep one night with her mother and awoke the next morning to find she'd been abandoned and left to stay with her mom's friend, Sally, who refers to Jenny only as "creep-head." Jenny's previous six years likely hadn't been much better since she's so scared and shy that she only speaks through her one armed Barbie named Miranda. Both girls desperately need a break and a friend when they are thrust together. Despite her lack of motherly instincts and her issues with her own mother, Kate connects quickly with Jenny. Kate seems to understand Jenny and treats her like a real person instead of some annoying burden. Jenny latches onto her and the two end up spending more and more time together while Kate unwillingly takes on more and more parental responsibility. As Kate tries to reconnect Jenny with her mother, she ends up getting seriously involved in a world she knows nothing about. A world of drug dealers, attempted murder, and family court. Through everything, Kate wants only to help Jenny and do what is best for the sweet little girl. But with so many factors involved, from Jenny's mother to her alleged father to social workers, Kate has a big challenge ahead.

Warning: reading Kate and the Kid might cause you to lose all track of time and anything going on around you. This novel was completely engrossing. Anne Rothman-Hicks and Kenneth Hicks created characters who were completely relatable but still surprising. I loved Kate and Jenny and really wanted everything to work out for both of them - to the point that they were on my mind even when I wasn't reading the book. Kate's boyfriend, Jenny's mother, Sally and the rest of the characters were so well developed, I felt like I knew them. Even Kate's mother, who we never meet, felt real to me. The descriptions of all the NYC parks, playgrounds and other places Kate and Jenny visited were vivid and beautiful. There are stretches of the novel when everything was going great and I ended up totally stressed out wondering when and what would happen to interrupt the bliss. This is one of those books that you don't want to ever end!

Reviewed by Cheryl E. Rodriguez for Readers' Favorite

Although distressing, painful and despairing, Amita Trasi's writing portrays the resilient power of hope and the unbreakable bond of friendship in The Color of Our Sky: A Novel Set in India. Two young girls, with very different backgrounds and personalities, form an everlasting alliance. Mukta, born into a generational curse, is bound by the tradition of prostitution. Like her mother and grandmother before her, Mukta’s destiny is to be a slave to the Hindu goddess, Yellamma. Tara, born into prominence, is free to choose who and what she will become. Tara’s kind-hearted father rescues Mukta and brings her home to live. The two young girls forge a unique childhood kinship, believing they would always be together. Then one night Mukta is kidnapped. Their lives are ripped apart. Days turn into years, and there is no reason to believe they could one day be reunited. But, “Hope always outweighs reason.”

The Color of Our Sky is a story of monumental courage. I admire the eloquence of Amita Trasi. Through her exceptional gift of storytelling, she genuinely expresses the horror of sex trafficking without being repulsively horrific, and describes the profane without using profanity. She pens profound images of India, revealing the life, traditions and religious rituals of her native homeland. Through poetic metaphors and sensory descriptions, the reader becomes a part of the unfolding story. In this novel written in first person, you experience first hand what the characters see, hear and feel. You see the stars in the sky through hopeful eyes, you smell the despair and grief of the brothel, and you hear the cries of the enslaved victims. You cannot help but be touched by the inspirational story of The Color of Our Sky. This beautiful quote from the novel sums up this poignant story: “When you bind one’s thoughts with words that touch the soul, they call it inspiration.”

Reviewed by Samantha Rivera for Readers' Favorite

Elizabeth is a woman whose sole purpose in life is to be a good wife and mother. She has no care in the world but to accomplish these goals and she works hard at them despite the treatment she is given at the hands of her husband. When Elizabeth falls ill suddenly during her pregnancy with their last child, her husband determines to have nothing to do with her. Unfortunately that means her children (including her newborn son) will also have nothing to do with her. It’s almost a year before Elizabeth is finally able to see her young children again, but even then things are not what they might seem in Cracks in the Sidewalk.

Cracks in the Sidewalk is the type of book that you can’t stop thinking about long after you put it down. Elizabeth is a woman that any woman would be proud to be. She is able to roll with the punches and even when people behave in a reprehensible way towards her she is incapable of truly hating them and can only feel sorry for the love they don’t have. Her plight is one no mother would ever want to find herself in, but at the same time it is one that will draw you in. This is a heart-wrenching story but it is also a beautiful one of love and devotion and forgiveness. For Elizabeth’s children and her mother it is also a story of miracles and of overcoming any obstacle life may put in your way. An excellent book by Bette Lee Crosby.