Book Reviews
Explore thoughtfully curated book reviews that help you discover your next favorite read.
The Shadow of the Albatross, by Martin Fraser | Book Review
In the crowded landscape of modern spy thrillers, The Shadow of the Albatross by Martin Fraser announces itself as an unapologetic love letter to the genre’s golden age. This debut novel plunges readers into a world of corporate corruption, deadly conspiracies, and…
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Flintessa Flammabelle and the Glowroot Grove, by C. P Smith and J. C Mitchell | Book Review
Before joining Bookshelfie, I admit I never really read children’s books. But over the past year I’ve grown to love them and the escape they provide, and I’ve come to appreciate that it takes real skill to write a children’s book. It’s…
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Whisper Machine, by W.G. Mans | Book Review
We’ve had some terrifically creative sci-fi and dystopian submissions lately here at Bookshelfie, and today I’m reviewing another, this time with a horror twist. Let me start by saying what Whisper Machine: Volume 1 by W.G. Mans does exceptionally well: it understands…
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Editor's Pick
Not Finished Yet, by Tracie Adams | Book Review
Not Finished Yet: Essays on the Rhythmic Beauty of a Life in Flux (Good Heritage Press, 2025) is one of those rare memoirs that manages to be simultaneously intimate, engaging and creatively written. It reads less like a straightforward autobiography and more…
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Despite Desire, Pillow Talk with Nietzsche, by Angel L.G. | Book Review
Despite Desire: Pillow Talk with Nietzsche is a compact, yet ambitious philosophical play by Angel L.G.. It stages an imagined encounter between Friedrich Nietzsche and a sex worker named Rachel in 19th-century Switzerland. Combining the intimacy of chamber theatre with the rigour…
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A Friend for Hope, by Amie White—Book Review
Some children’s books these days are loud, begging for your attention with glitter, gimmicks and childish humor. A Friend for Hope isn’t one of those books. It doesn’t need to be. This is a story with a heartbeat, and you can feel…
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Editor's Pick
Dancing in the Purple Rain, by Judy L Mohr | Book Review
Dystopian fiction is one of the most popular genres in modern publishing, so standing out requires considerable originality. Thankfully, Judy L. Mohr’s Dancing in the Purple Rain is one of those rare books that does exactly that. It plunges readers into a…
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Talking with Intelligence, An AI-Human Dialogue, by Richard Blood | Book Review
There are few subjects more controversial in 2025 in the publishing world than the use of AI, which is why Richard Blood’s Talking with Intelligence: An AI–Human Dialogue comes at such an interesting moment. Embarrassing stories abound of authors accidentally leaving AI…
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The King of Ithaca, by Quinn Makenna | Book Review
Despite being set in Vietnam during the heights of the civil war, Quinn Makenna’s The King of Ithaca is inspired by relatively unexpected subject matter, The Odyssey. It offers a creative retelling of the classic tale. From the very first page, it…
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Editor's Pick
Operation Nightfall: The Web of Spies, by Karl Wegener | Book Review
This new spy novel by American author and former military intelligence professional, Karl Wegener, begins as all good spy stories should—with a whisper in the dark, a meeting already compromised, and danger sliding into view before the first word is spoken. Following…
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