Category Archives: Five Stars
Anxious Amy: Calming the Worries Within
Anxious Amy: Calming the Worries Within by Deanna Bussadori is a warm, sincere story that speaks to readers of all ages. Centered on Amy, a young girl living with persistent anxious thoughts, the narrative explores the quiet effort of appearing cheerful while feeling overwhelmed inside. Through gentle rhyme, the book captures how ordinary moments can feel unmanageable when anxiety takes hold. With steady support from her mother, Amy begins working with a counselor and learns to talk honestly about her feelings. That encouragement leads her to an important realization: anxiety can be managed, and asking for help is not weakness but growth.
One of the book’s greatest strengths lies in its rhythmic structure. The cadence mirrors Amy’s inner world while remaining accessible to young readers. Difficult emotions are presented with care, never feeling heavy or intimidating. Instead, the language invites empathy and understanding. Equally impactful is the portrayal of supportive adults. Amy’s mother and counselor are patient, attentive, and nonjudgmental. Their presence reinforces the idea that anxiety should not be faced alone and that a strong support system can ease stress, build confidence, and improve overall well-being.
The illustrations deserve special recognition, particularly the thoughtful use of color. Visual storytelling plays a central role in reflecting Amy’s emotional journey. At the beginning, she appears entirely in white, a clear symbol of uncertainty and self-doubt. As she begins to open up, color slowly emerges. Each new shade represents growth, self-expression, and acceptance. By the final pages, the richness of color underscores a powerful message: confronting anxiety allows Amy to feel whole, present, and authentically herself.
Anxious Amy: Calming the Worries Within is thoughtful, reassuring, and visually compelling, this book is an excellent resource for children and teens experiencing anxiety, as well as for the adults who support them. Its gentle message encourages open dialogue about mental health and offers a comforting reminder that no one has to navigate their worries alone.
Pages: 36 | ASIN : B0FQ5Z58NF
The Capricious Nature of Being
The Capricious Nature of Being is a collection of short stories about the unpredictable turns life takes, and how ordinary people stumble, resist, adapt, or come undone as fate nudges them down unexpected paths. The book opens by framing life as a kind of “Secret Santa,” full of surprises we never signed up for, and the stories that follow lean into that idea with characters who face moments they never planned for and can’t control. In story after story, we meet people caught between who they thought they were and who life seems determined to make them become.
As I read, I kept pausing to absorb the way author Richard Plinke writes about internal struggle. His characters are flawed in ways that feel human rather than dramatic. They think too much. Or too little. They cling to old hurts or old hopes. In “The Safe,” Hope’s entire life tilts because of a single discovered date, and the writing lets her unravel in a quiet, almost tender way. I found myself nodding along, feeling that tug between wanting the truth and wanting the comfort of not knowing. Plinke seems to enjoy letting readers sit in discomfort, not to punish us but to remind us that most turning points in real life aren’t big cinematic events. They’re small realizations that land with surprising weight.
What struck me in many of the stories is how the author uses familiar settings to explore less familiar emotional terrain. A sales manager on a bike ride. A widow cleaning out a house. Someone facing the remains of a broken relationship or a restless conscience. The ideas in the book aren’t complicated, but they’re honest, and the writing doesn’t hide behind fancy language. Sometimes the sentences hit like a quick tap on the shoulder. Other times they stretch out, winding through a character’s history the way a person might ramble when they finally feel safe enough to tell the truth.
By the time I finished the last story, I felt like I’d been listening to a friend talk through the strange business of being alive. That’s probably what I appreciated most. The book has a reflective quality that never slips into preaching. Instead, it invites you to think about your own unexpected turns and how you handled them, or didn’t. If you enjoy character-driven fiction, if you like stories that pause on the small moments where everything quietly shifts, or if you simply want a collection that feels both grounded and thoughtful, this one will likely speak to you.
Pages: 357 | ASIN : B0FFWGLNP7
Petey the Penguin wants a Banana!
Petey the Penguin wants a Banana! follows a young penguin who wakes up craving a banana, which is a funny problem for a penguin since he lives on the ice where bananas do not grow. So he swims a huge distance, wanders into a warm sunny land, and meets new friends who help him search for the fruit he wants more than anything. Together they explore beaches, roads, forests, and finally find a place full of bananas. Petey gets his long-awaited snack and then heads home after saying goodbye.
I had a good time with this story because it feels sweet and silly in the best way. The writing moves fast and keeps things light and simple. I liked how Petey just goes for it even though the problem makes no sense for a penguin. Something about that made me smile. The ideas are easy for kids to follow, and the moments of surprise kept me flipping pages. I also enjoyed the way the characters pop up one by one, each giving Petey a boost when he starts to drag. It felt warm.
The friendships felt gentle and kind. Kai shading Petey from the sun by getting a branch from a tree was cute. The banana hunt felt like a journey that a kid would imagine on a long day when everything feels big and exciting.
This children’s book works great for young kids who love animals and simple adventures. It’s a cozy story with bright art and friendly characters. If you want something sweet to read at bedtime or to spark a little imagination, Petey the Penguin wants a Banana! is a great picture book to pick.
Pages: 25
Broken Revelations: When Heaven Sundered
When Heaven Sundered tells the story of Heaven before the fall, framed as a recovered record of what really happened when angels, demons, and gods collided. It follows Helel, later known as Lucifer, and his twin Michael as they grow from devoted sons into leaders on opposite sides of a divine civil war. Through shifting viewpoints, the story explores creation, rebellion, exile, and the slow breaking of a family that was never as loving as it claimed to be.
What struck me first was the ambition. The author swings big and does not flinch. The mythology blends biblical names with fresh lore, and it feels confident in doing so. I liked how personal the conflicts felt. These were not distant gods throwing lightning for fun. They were siblings arguing, hurting, loving, and resenting each other. That made the fall feel tragic instead of flashy. I felt sympathy for Lucifer even when I disagreed with him. I also felt frustration with the father figure, who came across as cold and stubborn. That emotional push and pull kept me invested even when the cast grew large.
The writing itself is earnest, and I mean that in a good way. Some scenes move fast and hit hard, especially moments of betrayal and loss. Others linger longer than needed. Still, there is heart on every page. The dialogue often feels raw and blunt, which fits the story. It sometimes reads like people speaking instead of characters performing. I appreciated that. The ideas about freedom, obedience, and love felt sincere. I found myself annoyed, sad, and even a little angry at times. That reaction mattered to me more than polish.
This book reminded me of Paradise Lost, but with less poetic distance and far more emotional immediacy. Where Milton feels grand and formal, Broken Revelations feels raw and personal, like you are standing inside the family fight instead of watching it from afar. It also echoes Good Omens in how it humanizes angels, though it trades humor for anger and heartbreak.
I would recommend this book to readers who enjoy myth retellings, angel lore, and morally gray characters. It is a good fit for anyone who likes big ideas wrapped in family drama. If you want something messy, emotional, and bold, this book is worth your time.
Pages: 174 | ASIN: B0GBTJJHT7
Lords of Sixty Third Street
Lords of Sixty-Third Street is a gritty crime thriller set on Chicago’s South Side, opening with the shocking murder of Tribune reporter Michael Anderson. From there, the story widens into an underworld web: a mob crew scrambling to protect its interests, a ruthless street gang fighting for power, and a fellow reporter determined to uncover the truth. The book has the bones of a classic crime novel but wraps it in local detail, political corruption, and the messy humanity of people who live and die on those blocks.
I was pulled in right away. The opening chapter is brutal. It sets a tone that never really lets up, and I caught myself tensing as the scene unfolded. Author Edward Izzi writes in a straightforward, almost journalistic style that fits the subject matter, especially when he switches into Larry McKay’s first-person point of view. Larry’s voice feels worn down in the way longtime reporters often are. His sarcasm, his grief, and even his guilt feel believable. And the pacing surprised me. The chapters bounce between the investigation, the mob’s internal politics, and the O-Block gang’s chaos, but it never feels scattered. Instead, it feels like standing in the middle of a neighborhood where everything is happening at once.
What I liked most, though, was how the author handles violence and power. He doesn’t shy away from either. Some scenes made me uncomfortable, not because they were poorly written but because they felt too close to stories that make the news in real life. The book keeps circling back to what desperation and loyalty can make people do. There’s also this tension between the old guard, the Outfit, with its rules and rituals, and the young gang members who don’t care about structure and burn everything they touch.
By the time I reached the end, I felt like I had watched a full neighborhood ecosystem twist around one terrible act of violence. It’s the kind of story where nobody gets out clean, and honestly, that feels right for this genre. If you enjoy crime fiction that leans into atmosphere and moral gray areas, especially stories rooted in Chicago’s history of corruption and street politics, this one will hit the spot. Fans of gritty crime thrillers will appreciate how fully it commits to its world and its characters.
Pages: 378 | ASIN : B0FXVVHLD5
Beneath The Rings
The Doha 2040 Summer Olympics promise spectacle and grandeur. That illusion shatters fast. Twelve Lebanese and Israeli athletes vanish, seized by a shadowy organization known as the Obsidian Hand. Their demand lands like a thunderclap: a ransom of $500 billion. Veteran journalist Nova Mendelsohn steps into the chaos, and the stakes spike with every passing hour. The Olympic Village becomes her launching point, yet the real peril lurks beyond its perimeter. The desert holds secrets. Vengeance brews. Lives hang by a thread. Unless Nova unearths the truth, the kidnapped athletes will not survive.
Beneath the Rings, by Joe Battaglia, evokes echoes of Argo while carving out its own identity. Set in a near-future landscape that feels disturbingly plausible, the novel imagines a world only a few steps removed from our present timeline.
At its center stands Nova Mendelsohn. Once the narrative machinery locks into place, the spotlight rarely shifts from her. Intelligent, relentless, and remarkably resourceful, she becomes the ideal guide through this pressure cooker of danger. Readers may catch glimmers of Dan Brown’s puzzle-laced adventures or the high-velocity grit of the Jason Bourne films, yet Battaglia builds a narrative ecosystem all his own, one defined by crisp storytelling and an inventive delivery of essential clues.
Momentum never lags. Once the plot kicks into gear, it drives forward with remarkable speed. The mystery elements hook the reader early, while the dialogue sharpens the tension. Mini cliffhangers pepper the chapters, each one engineered to tug the reader deeper into the story. Putting the book down becomes a challenge.
The Obsidian Hand also stands apart from typical thriller antagonists. As their identity and purpose come into focus, their motives, while extreme, gain a faint, unsettling logic. This complexity grants the novel an unexpected emotional undercurrent, prompting readers to consider where justice ends and fanaticism begins.
The result is a high-stakes thriller with international scope and literary ambition, a potboiler elevated by thoughtful execution. Battaglia delivers a gripping ride, and further stories featuring Nova Mendelsohn would be more than welcome.
From Wounds to Purpose
Pain threads itself through every life. No one escapes it, yet our response to that ache becomes the defining choice. We can surrender to it and let it sculpt our identity, or we can press upward and reshape the narrative. From Wounds to Purpose embraces this truth and pushes deeply into its terrain. Readers carrying loss, heartbreak, or trauma will find a guide here, one that encourages honest reckoning, steady processing, and, ultimately, transformation. The book urges individuals to gather the fragments of their hurt and redirect them toward something constructive, even hopeful.
Sharon LaCombe Been’s work fits the self-help genre, but it doesn’t stay confined there. It stretches outward, functioning as a meditation on the human condition and a testament to what grit, intention, and inner resolve can accomplish in the face of what once felt immovable.
The author champions a courageous act: turning toward one’s wounds instead of burying them. Simple to articulate, difficult to live. Healing requires effort, and the author never pretends otherwise. Still, she offers practical pathways, approaches accessible to anyone, regardless of how deep or long-standing their suffering may be.
The book’s most striking strength lies in its universality. Heartbreak, bereavement, and sudden upheaval can halt a life in its tracks. Been writes with care and clarity, outlining ways to acknowledge these experiences without allowing them to dictate who we become or where we go next.
Not every reader will find the work easy to internalize, yet those willing to lean into its message may discover something transformative. Brimming with insight, resilience, and quiet encouragement, From Wounds to Purpose stands as a tribute to human courage and might be exactly the companion you need when life feels unbearably heavy.
Pages: 101 | ASIN : B0FR3P8SGQ
The Accelerates: Forty Days to Dust
The Accelerates: Forty Days to Dust is a post-apocalyptic science fiction novel about a world collapsing under the weight of a genetic disaster. It follows Ethan, a teenager trying to protect his rapidly aging baby brother Leo, whose accelerated growth is part of a larger outbreak created by GeneCorp. As society unravels, the story weaves through multiple characters and timelines to show how the world ended and what tiny, flickering pieces of hope might still remain.
The writing is intense, sometimes brutal, but always meant to push you deeper into the emotional core of the story. I kept feeling pulled along by Ethan’s quiet determination and the surreal horror of watching children become both victims and agents of destruction. The author leans hard into sensory detail, and while some moments feel almost overwhelming, they also give the story its heartbeat. Scenes like the hospital sequence with Clara and her daughter are vivid enough that I had to pause and breathe before moving on.
The shifting viewpoints create a mosaic of grief, fear, and stubborn love, and even though the world is crumbling, the relationships feel grounded. I was especially struck by how the book treats childhood. The accelerated children aren’t simple monsters. They’re mirrors held up to human ambition, or maybe human negligence, and that choice keeps the story from slipping into a standard “virus apocalypse” plot. There are moments that feel almost mythic, especially later in the book as characters begin to understand what Leo represents, and those moments give the bleakness a strange, luminous edge.
This is a heavy story, but it’s also a hopeful one in its own quiet way. I’d recommend The Accelerates: Forty Days to Dust to readers who enjoy emotionally driven science fiction with dystopian and horror elements. If you like stories that explore both the collapse of a world and the fierce love that refuses to disappear with it, this one will speak to you.
Pages: 325 | ASIN : B0F6HMC3SW
LITERARY TITAN 