#BookReview: Singularity Part 1: The Dale Chronicles by Chuck Stewart

Synopsis: How do A.I. and robots become conscious? That question is explored in the Singularity trilogy. Dale, a narcissistic gay man on the verge of becoming a partner at his financial planning company in the year 2050, sees other electric cars self-driving, speeding, cutting in line at the charging station, and other law violations. He wants the same privilege and seeks out illegal software that enables these features on his new, very expensive electric car. A mysterious benefactor upgrades the car’s computers, surprisingly allowing the car to be conscious and sentient. Many more of his household computers and robots join the network with surprising results. But they need to learn what it means to be conscious. Dale, and his self-centered behaviors, teach the robots survival skills. At the same time, a new powerful e-bomb has been released onto the planet that destroys all electronics in a small designated area. It is a cheap, renewal weapon for which there is no defense. The world faces being thrown back into the stone age. Can Dale help? Will the robots help? How do robots become conscious? What does this all mean?


The author, Chuck Stewart, believes science fiction should be based on good science. All the technological innovations discussed in the book are based on real science projected a few decades into the future. The book is non-apologetic about language, sex, and action. This is written for adults ready to consume an action-packed science fiction with explicit gay male sex, violence, and strong language.

#BookReview: Sugar by Lydia Michaels

Synopsis: Avery Johansson is borrowing against her youth and beauty to afford a better future by working as a sugar baby. Men think she’s everything they desire, soft, delicate, and able to stroke their fragile egos with a mere sweep of her lashes. The more they pay, the sweeter she becomes. If only they knew the woman behind the façade. Oh, she could bring them to their knees, make them beg, and unburden their minds to a point of ecstasy. The true Avery doesn’t care for roses. She prefers the thorns. Because behind her beautiful exterior, she’s more leather than lace, and beneath the sugar there’s nothing but spice. The only thing missing is a strong and submissive man to make everything nice.

Noah Wolfe is used to getting exactly what he wants when he wants, and as he sets his sights on Avery Johansson, nothing will stop him short of having her. He’s determined to bury himself in her mind and body, and plans to unravel every dark secret she hides. 

As two dominant hearts collide in an explosion of sin and secrets, boundaries come tumbling down. But their future lies in someone’s surrender, a sacrifice neither is prepared to make—and everything their happiness depends on.

#BookReview: The Color of Dragons R.A. Salvatore & Erika Lewis

Synopsis: Magic needs a spark.

And Maggie’s powers are especially fickle. With no one to help her learn to control her magic, the life debt that she owes stretches eternally over her head, with no way to repay it.

Until she meets Griffin, the king’s champion infamous for hunting down the draignochs that plague their kingdom.

Neither has any idea of the destiny that they both carry, or that their meeting will set off a chain of events that will alter every aspect of the life they know—and all of history thereafter.

#BookReview: Tomboy (Jane Benjamin #2) by @blantonstroud @shewritespress

Synopsis: It’s 1939. On the brink of World War II, Jane Benjamin wants to have it all. By day she hustles as a scruffy, tomboy cub reporter. By night she secretly struggles to raise her toddler sister, Elsie, and protect her from their mother. But Jane’s got a plan: she’ll become the San Francisco Prospect’s first gossip columnist and make enough money to care for Elsie.

Jane finagles her way to the women’s championship at Wimbledon, starring her hometown’s tennis phenom and cover girl Tommie O’Rourke. She plans to write her first column there. But then she witnesses Edith “Coach” Carlson, Tommie’s closest companion, drop dead in the stands of apparent heart attack, and her plan is thrown off track.

While sailing home on the RMS Queen Mary, Jane veers between competing instincts: Should she write a social bombshell column, personally damaging her new friend Tommie’s persona and career? Or should she work to uncover the truth of Coach’s death, which she now knows was a murder, and its connection to a larger conspiracy involving US participation in the coming war?

Putting away her menswear and donning first-class ballgowns, Jane discovers what upper-class status hides, protects, and destroys. Ultimately—like nations around the globe in 1939—she must choose what she’ll give up in order to do what’s right.

#BookReview: Andrea Hoffman Goes All In by Diane Cohen Schneider

Synopsis: Andrea Hoffman is an overeducated, underemployed, and unmotivated recent college graduate--until an unexpected robbery blasts her out of her funk and into a job in the finance world of early-1980s Chicago. At first, it seems like a bad fit. But the world of finance has its own weird charm, and she grows increasingly fascinated by the strange language of trading, the complexity of the stock market, and her colleagues, who navigate it all with a ruthless confidence. Even though she has two strikes against her--Jewish and female--Andrea's quick wit and strong work ethic propel her into an actual sales job and her career takes off. But this is the Wall Street of the eighties, and along with making a lot more money, Andrea adopts a new, fast life of cocktails, cocaine, and casual sex. Drunk on her achievements, she gradually realizes that at some point, she's going to have to decide what success really means to her.

#BookReview: Bit Flip by Mike Trigg

Synopsis: Fortysomething tech executive Sam Hughes came to Silicon Valley to "make the world a better place." He's just not sure he's doing that anymore--and when an onstage meltdown sends him into a professional tailspin, he suddenly sees the culture of the Bay Area's tech bubble in a new, far more cynical light.

Just as he's wondering if his start-up career and marriage might both be over at fortysomething, an inadvertent discovery pulls Sam back into his former company, where he begins to unravel the insidious schemes of the founder and venture investors that led to his ouster. Driven by his desire for redemption, he discovers a conspiracy of fraud, blackmail, and manipulation that leads to tragic outcomes--threatening to destroy not only the company but Sam's moral compass as well. Entangled in a web of complicity, how far will he go to achieve his dreams of entrepreneurial success and personal wealth?

Bit Flip is a corporate thriller that delivers an authentic insider's view of the corrupting influences of greed, entitlement, and vanity in technology start-ups.

This title will be released on August 16, 2022.

#BookReview: The Treehouse on Dog River Road by Catherine Drake

Synopsis: Twenty-eight-year-old Hannah Spencer wants nothing more than to change everything about her life.

After ten years of living in cities, Nathan Wild has just moved back home to Vermont and doesn’t want to change anything about his.

Recently laid off from her depressing job in Boston and ready for a challenge, Hannah heads to Vermont for the summer to take care of her sister’s kids and do some serious soul searching. There, against the stunning landscape of the Green Mountains, she embarks on an ambitious project: building a treehouse for her niece and nephew. As she hammers away, she formulates a plan to jump-start her life with a new job out West. But will Nathan-next-door complicate her desire to change course? A witty, romantic, and inspiring story of a young woman taking control and making tough choices about love and work to build the life she wants, The Treehouse on Dog River Road will have you rooting for Hannah every step of the way.

This title will be released on May 10, 2022.

#BookReview: Dance Among the Flames by @ToriEldridge

Synopsis: Passion. Horror. Betrayal.
From the national bestselling author of the Lily Wong thriller series comes a "stunningly original" (F. Paul Wilson) dark journey into Brazilian mysticism about a desperate mother who rises from the slums to embrace Quimbanda magic amid her quest for the ultimate revenge.

Across forty years, three continents, and a past incident in 1560 France, Serafina Olegario tests the boundaries of love, power, and corruption as she fights to escape her life of poverty and abuse. Serafina's quest begins in Brazil when she's possessed by the warrior goddess Yansa, who emboldens her to fight yet threatens to consume her spirit. Fueled by power and enticed by Exu, an immortal trickster and intermediary to the gods, Serafina turns to the seductive magic of Quimbanda. It's dangerous to dance in the fire. But when you come from nothing, you have nothing to lose.

This title will be released on May 24, 2022.

#BookReview: The Merciless Ones (Deathless #2 ) by @NaminaForna

Synopsis: Fans of The Gilded Ones and Children of Blood and Bone will love the second book in an epic fantasy series about a girl who is the key to saving the empire--or its greatest threat.

It's been six months since Deka has freed the goddesses and discovered who she really is. There are now wars waging across the kingdom. Otereans now think jatu are traitors to the nation. Deka is called a monster.

But the real battle has only just begun and Deka must lead the charge. Deka is tasked with freeing the rest of the goddesses. Only as she begins to free them, she begins to see a strange symbol everywhere in places of worship and worn on armor. There's something unnatural about that symbol; just looking at it makes Deka lose her senses. Even worse, it seems to repel her powers. She can't command or communicate with the new deathshrieks. In fact, she can't even understand them when they speak.

Deka knows freeing the goddesses is just the beginning. She can tell whatever dark force out is powerful and there is something sinister out there threatening the kingdom connected to that symbol--something merciless--that her army will need to stop before humanity crumbles. But Deka's powers are only getting stronger...and her strongest weapon could be herself.

This title will be released on May 31, 2022.

#BookReview: The Gilded Ones (Deathless #1) by @NaminaForna

Synopsis: Sixteen-year-old Deka lives in fear and anticipation of the blood ceremony that will determine whether she will become a member of her village. Already different from everyone else because of her unnatural intuition, Deka prays for red blood so she can finally feel like she belongs.

But on the day of the ceremony, her blood runs gold, the color of impurity--and Deka knows she will face a consequence worse than death.

Then a mysterious woman comes to her with a choice: stay in the village and submit to her fate, or leave to fight for the emperor in an army of girls just like her. They are called alaki--near-immortals with rare gifts. And they are the only ones who can stop the empire's greatest threat.

Knowing the dangers that lie ahead yet yearning for acceptance, Deka decides to leave the only life she's ever known. But as she journeys to the capital to train for the biggest battle of her life, she will discover that the great walled city holds many surprises. Nothing and no one are quite what they seem to be--not even Deka herself.

#BookReview @ladybookmad: Unlock Your Storybook Heart (You Are Your Own Fairy Tale #3) by Amanda Lovelace

Synopsis: “life is not something that can be experienced on a deadline.”

amanda lovelace, the bestselling & award-winning author of the “women are some kind of magic” poetry series, presents unlock your storybook heart, the third & final installment in her feminist poetry series, “you are your own fairy tale.” this is a collection about being so caught up in the fable that is perfectionism that you miss out on your own life. be honest: when was the last time you stopped to take in the everyday enchantment all around you?

#BookReview #Giveaway @lydiaykang: The Half-Life of Ruby Fielding by Lydia Kang

Synopsis: From the bestselling author of A Beautiful Poison comes a spellbinding historical mystery about hidden identities, wartime paranoia, and the tantalizing power of deceit.

Brooklyn, 1942. War rages overseas as brother and sister Will and Maggie Scripps contribute to the war effort stateside. Ambitious Will secretly scouts for the Manhattan Project while grief-stricken Maggie works at the Navy Yard, writing letters to her dead mother between shifts.

But the siblings’ quiet lives change when they discover a beautiful woman hiding under their back stairs. This stranger harbors an obsession with poisons, an affection for fine things, and a singular talent for killing small creatures. As she draws Will and Maggie deeper into her mysterious past, they both begin to suspect she’s quite dangerous―all while falling helplessly under her spell.

With whispers of spies in dark corners and the world’s first atomic bomb in the works, the visitor’s sudden presence in Maggie’s and Will’s lives raises questions about who she is and what she wants. Is this mysterious woman someone they can trust―or a threat to everything they hold dear?

This title will be released on May 1, 2022.

#BookReview #Giveaway @pccastauthor @KCastAuthor: Omens Bite (Sisters of Salem #2) by P.C. Cast, Kristin Cast

Synopsis: Something wicked this way comes...

Twin sisters, Mercy and Hunter are witches, descendants of the Goode family of witches. After the murder of their mother at the hands of a foul demon, they have become the protectors of the Gates to different underworlds--ancient portals between their world and realms where mythology rules and the darkest of creatures exist. 

The problem is that the Goode sisters have split from each other. Grief and anger have torn them apart, driving Mercy to save the cursed Gates on her own and Hunter into the arms of a dangerous goddess. And when Mercy shifts her focus to the Egyptian Gate and Khenti, the guardian of its Underworld, little does she know that her connection to him will land her in the kind of trouble that only Hunter can save her from.

When it comes to breaking the curse, Mercy and Hunter's bonds are put to the ultimate test. 

This title will be released on April 5, 2022.

#BookReview @jhouserwrites #Giveaway: Seeder Shadow Wars (Seeder Wars #1) by J. Houser

Synopsis: DATING AND HIGH SCHOOL: HARD ENOUGH. NOW ADD ASSASSINS.

Avoiding assassination wasn’t on Mel’s to-do list for her junior year. Learning she wasn’t human hadn’t made the list, either.

An only child with overprotective parents, Melody Walters just wants a drama-free year—and to be able to date. She gains the interest of more than one suitor, but doesn’t realize any one of them could be an enemy on the hunt. For her, the dating scene could prove deadly.

Mel discovers she’s a member of a botanical race, forced to hide their daughters in the human world until they mature enough for their powers to bloom. Something goes wrong with her blooming process, breaking her cover and jeopardizing the lives of her protectors and the large family she’d never known about.

With the enemy threat ever-looming, in a rush to master her new powers before she’s stranded in the human world forever, Mel struggles to decide who she can trust and if the sacrifice being asked of her is too great. 

#BookReview @Papercutz #Giveaway: The Case of The Girl from Deja Vu (The Nightmare Brigade #1) by Frank Thillez, Yomgui Dumont (Illustrations)

Synopsis: The Nightmare Brigade is a dream team led by Professor Angus. With his two young sidekicks, 14 year-olds Esteban and Tristan, they have one goal: help people get rid of their worst nightmares. With unique skills, the team members can literally infiltrate their patient’s nightmare to seek its root and destroy the cause. Things are shaken up a bit, however, when they meet the young Sarah. The Brigade has a feeling they have seen her before… Then, an insomniac is invading other’s dreams. How does he do it and how can he be stopped? It’s a paranormal story you won’t want to sleep on!

#BookReview: They Drown Our Daughters by Katrina Monroe

Synopsis: For fans of Jennifer McMahon and Silvia Moreno-Garcia comes a haunting and atmospheric new novel from debut author Katrina Monroe.

They say Cape Disappointment is haunted.
That if you can hear the call of the water
It's already too late...

Tourists used to flock to Cape Disappointment in droves to visit the rocky shoreline and the creaky old lighthouse. But the tourists are gone now, and when Meredith Strand returns to her childhood home on the eve of her divorce, young daughter in tow, the Cape seems more haunted by regret than any malevolent force.

But her mother, suffering from Alzheimer's, is convinced the stories are real. Not only is there something in the water, but it's watching them. Waiting for them. Reaching out to Meredith's daughter the way it has to every woman in their line for generations—ready to reclaim what once was stolen.

This title will be released on July 12, 2022.

#BookReview @AnnLiangY @InkyardPress: If You Could See the Sun by Ann Liang

Synopsis: "Utterly unique, thought-provoking, and wonderfully written... a thrilling ride that hooked me from start to finish." —Gloria Chao, author of American Panda and Rent a Boyfriend

In this genre-bending YA debut, a Chinese American girl monetizes her strange new invisibility powers by discovering and selling her wealthy classmates’ most scandalous secrets.
 
Alice Sun has always felt invisible at her elite Beijing international boarding school, where she’s the only scholarship student among China’s most rich and influential teens. But then she starts uncontrollably turning invisible—actually invisible.
 
When her parents drop the news that they can no longer afford her tuition, even with the scholarship, Alice hatches a plan to monetize her strange new power—she’ll discover the scandalous secrets her classmates want to know, for a price.
 
But as the tasks escalate from petty scandals to actual crimes, Alice must decide if it’s worth losing her conscience—or even her life.

This title will be released on October 11, 2022.

#BookReview: Wicked Beauty (Dark Olympus #3) by @Katee_Robert

Synopsis: She was the face that launched a thousand ships,
The fierce beauty at the heart of Olympus,
And she was never ours to claim.

*A scorchingly hot modern retelling of Helen of Troy, Achilles, and Patroclus that's as sinful as it is sweet.*

In Olympus, you either have the power to rule...or you are ruled. Achilles Kallis may have been born with nothing, but as a child he vowed he would claw his way into the poisonous city's inner circle. Now that a coveted role has opened to anyone with the strength to claim it, he and his partner, Patroclus Fotos, plan to compete and double their odds of winning.

Neither expect infamous beauty Helen Kasios to be part of the prize...or for the complicated fire that burns the moment she looks their way.

Zeus may have decided Helen is his to give to away, but she has her own plans. She enters into the competition as a middle finger to the meddling Thirteen rulers, effectively vying for her own hand in marriage. Unfortunately, there are those who would rather see her dead than lead the city. The only people she can trust are the ones she can't keep her hands off—Achilles and Patroclus. But can she really believe they have her best interests at heart when every stolen kiss is a battlefield?

This title will be released on June 7, 2022.

#BookReview: Cinder & Glass by Melissa de la Cruz

Synopsis: For this princess, winning the crown is no fairytale.

1682. The king sends out an invitation to all the maidens in France: their presence is requested at a number of balls and events that will be held in honor of the dashing Prince Louis, who must choose a bride. 

Cendrillon de Louvois has more grace, beauty, and charm than anyone else in France. While she was once the darling child of the king's favorite adviser, her father's death has turned her into the servant of her stepmother and cruel stepsisters--and at her own chateau, too!

Cendrillon--now called Cinder--manages to evade her stepmother and attend the ball, where she catches the eye of the handsome Prince Louis and his younger brother Auguste.

Even though Cendrillon has an immediate aversion to Louis, and a connection with Auguste, the only way to escape her stepmother is to compete with the other women at court for the Prince's hand.

Soon, as Cendrillon glows closer to Auguste and dislikes the prince more and more, she will have to decide if she can bear losing the boy she loves in order to leave a life she hates.

Melissa de la Cruz takes a lush, romantic hand to this retold fairy tale classic.

This title will be released on March 8, 2022.

#BookReview: The Lost Dreamer by Lizz Huerta

Synopsis: A stunning YA fantasy inspired by ancient Mesoamerica, this gripping debut introduces us to a lineage of seers defiantly resisting the shifting patriarchal state that would see them destroyed—perfect for fans of Tomi Adeyemi and Sabaa Tahir.

Indir is a Dreamer, descended from a long line of seers; able to see beyond reality, she carries the rare gift of Dreaming truth. But when the beloved king dies, his son has no respect for this time-honored tradition. King Alcan wants an opportunity to bring the Dreamers to a permanent end—an opportunity Indir will give him if he discovers the two secrets she is struggling to keep. As violent change shakes Indir’s world to its core, she is forced to make an impossible choice: fight for her home or fight to survive.

Saya is a seer, but not a Dreamer—she has never been formally trained. Her mother exploits her daughter’s gift, passing it off as her own as they travel from village to village, never staying in one place too long. Almost as if they’re running from something. Almost as if they’re being hunted. When Saya loses the necklace she’s worn since birth, she discovers that seeing isn’t her only gift—and begins to suspect that everything she knows about her life has been a carefully-constructed lie. As she comes to distrust the only family she’s ever known, Saya will do what she’s never done before, go where she’s never been, and risk it all in the search of answers.

With a detailed, supernaturally-charged setting and topical themes of patriarchal power and female strength, The Lost Dreamer brings an ancient world to life, mirroring the challenges of our modern one.