Category Archives: Four Stars
Have You Heard This One Before
Have You Heard This One Before is a lively mix of short stories. Each tale jumps into a different mood, scene, or style, and the collection opens by proudly admitting that nothing links these stories except the author himself. You move from haunted lighthouses and eerie déjà vu to strange pumpkins with suspicious personalities and even a falling piano that changes a gambler’s life. The stories swing between mystery, humor, horror, sentiment, and quiet reflection, and they do it with a kind of carefree confidence that feels refreshing in a world obsessed with strict genres.
Reading it, I kept finding myself surprised at how quickly the tone could shift. One moment, I was following a family heading toward an old lighthouse in The Loop, and the next, I was inside a gambler’s mind as he dodged two thugs moments before a piano drops out of the sky in Surprise. The writing has a steady clarity, and the ideas land fast. Sometimes the twists feel sharp enough to make me sit back for a second. Other times, I felt a simple warmth, like the narrator in Surprise looking back on a messy young life with equal parts regret and humor.
I enjoyed the way the book leans into its own freedom. The author admits right in the foreword that he wasn’t sure who would read a genre-free collection, which almost made me root for the book before I even hit page one. That honesty softened me. Then the stories did the rest. Some ideas feel whimsical. Others dig into darker corners. A few made me laugh out loud because of how strange and blunt they were. I liked the looseness of it all. I liked that every story seemed to shrug at the idea of rules. Even when a moment made me uncomfortable or confused, I felt like the book wanted me to just ride the wave and trust it.
If you like stories that pick you up, spin you around, and drop you somewhere unexpected, this book will treat you well. Readers who crave strict genres might feel lost, yet readers who enjoy surprises, playful ideas, and quick bursts of emotion will have a good time. I’d recommend it to anyone who enjoys short stories that don’t mind being weird, heartfelt, eerie, or funny, sometimes all in the same breath.
Pages: 165 | ASIN : B0FXCKZB4W
Scams are the World’s Fastest-Growing Crime
Scams Are the World’s Fastest-Growing Crime is a straight-talking field guide to modern scams. Author Ken Ray walks through how scams evolved, why they work, and how they hit regular people in every channel of life, from phone and email to social media, crypto, fake stores, and in-person tricks. He starts with history and psychology, then gives a simple four-step model of every scam: setup, lure, attack, hook. After that, he moves into detailed profiles of common schemes, global impact, why victims stay silent, and how scammers pick their targets. He wraps it all up with danger scales, checklists, legal context, a glossary, and a very raw victim story, all tied to Scam Watchdogs’ mission to protect, educate, and expose.
What I liked most was the human focus. Ray keeps reminding me that scams are not about clever tech. They are about emotions and habits. He lays out trust, fear, greed, love, guilt, and overconfidence as levers that scammers pull, then shows how those levers show up in real situations like “grandparent” calls, romance cons, and fake tax threats. I felt angry reading the sections on shame and silence, and how victims stay quiet because they blame themselves or worry no one will listen. The chapters on the snowball effect and the global scale of the problem hit pretty hard too. They show how a tiny “test payment” can snowball into life-changing loss and how those losses add up across families, small businesses, and even trust in basic institutions. Reading that, I felt a mix of frustration and urgency, like this is not just sad stories; this is a public safety issue.
I liked how practical and plain the book feels. The tone is warm and professional but still sounds like a real person talking, not a legal brief. The early chapters give clear frameworks, then the scam profiles repeat the same structure each time with “setup, lure, attack, hook” and a danger rating. That rhythm made it easy for me to skim to what I needed. I also appreciated the checklists, the “Stay Safe” section, and the simple definitions at the back, since those are easy to share with less tech-savvy family members. The author’s note about using AI tools like ChatGPT as a helper, while taking responsibility for the facts, felt transparent and current, which I liked.
I came away feeling both rattled and oddly reassured. Rattled, because the examples show how easy it is for smart, cautious people to get pulled in, especially through investment and romance scams that mix money with emotion. Reassured, because the book keeps coming back to simple habits that anyone can build: pause, verify, talk to someone, report what happened. There is a steady compassion for victims that cuts through the usual blame, especially in the dedication and the closing message that every report turns a private loss into a public shield.
I would recommend this book to everyday readers who want to protect themselves and their families, especially people who do not live in the world of cybersecurity but still live on their phones and laptops all day. It is a strong choice for parents, caregivers, community leaders, and small business owners who need something they can hand to others without translation. People looking for a clear, empathetic starter guide and a reference you can dip into whenever a weird text or email pops up, it does the job very well.
Pages: 175 | ASIN : B0G35VCVP1
Drinking from the Stream
Drinking from the Stream follows two young men on the run from themselves. Jake, a Nebraska kid turned Louisiana roughneck, flees the guilt of a killing on an oil rig. Karl, a disillusioned American student at Oxford, escapes the wreckage of the sixties and a painful relationship. Their paths cross, and they drift through Ethiopia, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and Tanzania in the early seventies, bumping into coups, massacres and love affairs as they go. The book stretches from the Gulf of Mexico to the Great Lakes region of Africa and on to Chile, and it ties private coming-of-age stories to state violence and postcolonial chaos.
I felt like the writing landed with real weight. The prose has muscle and rhythm, and it keeps a steady pace through long stretches of travel and talk. Scenes on the road, in trucks, on ferries, and in cheap guesthouses felt vivid to me. Dialogues carry a lot of the load. Characters argue about politics, race, faith, and guilt, and the conversations feel relaxed on the surface but tense underneath. I could sense the author’s years in Africa in the way a village lane or a border crossing appears in a few sharp strokes. The flip side is density. Historical detail piles up. I stayed invested in Jake and Karl, and in Beatrice, Bridget and the others, because the book lets them be flawed, funny and sometimes selfish, not just mouthpieces for a lesson.
The novel looks at racism and antisemitism inside Jake’s own story, then places him in countries where mass killing happens out in the open and on a terrifying scale. It plays with the dream of revolution and tears it apart. Young Westerners arrive full of ideals, then watch soldiers and militias burn those ideals along with villages. The book keeps asking who gets to walk away and who does not. Jake carries private guilt from the rig into places where guilt comes in rivers. Karl drags his Vietnam-era anger into a world where America is almost irrelevant. I felt anger, shame, and sadness while I read, and also a stubborn hope, because the story keeps circling back to friendship, loyalty, and small acts of courage. The novel does not pretend to solve anything. It simply puts you close to the fire and forces you to look.
I would recommend Drinking from the Stream to readers who enjoy historical fiction with grit, to people curious about East Africa in the early seventies, and to anyone who likes character-driven travel stories with real moral stakes. The book asks for patience and a strong stomach. It pays that back with a rich sense of place, big emotions, and a set of memorable characters.
Pages: 377 | ASIN : B0DXLQTN5M
Quests & Queries
Quests & Queries follows Query, a young Devil leaving her home in Hell for the Dalton Adventuring Academy for Monsters. The story blends coming-of-age nerves, queer self-discovery, explicit desire, and creeping supernatural dread as Query wrestles with a seductive aura she can’t control and a nightmare creature that seems to have followed her into the mortal world. The book mixes cozy moments, raw vulnerability, messy hookups, strange magic, and a big, warm cast of monsters who fill every scene with energy and charm.
I was pulled in by the tone most of all. The writing swings between funny, tender, anxious, and sensual. It feels alive in a way that made me grin one moment and wince the next. The voice is confident and conversational. It jumps from casual jokes to heavy emotional beats without losing its footing. Some scenes ran hot enough to fog up my glasses, and others punched me right in the gut. I liked how boldly it sat with uncomfortable feelings, especially Query’s mix of shame, desire, and fear. The pacing is quick most of the time. I enjoyed being tossed around by it.
Query’s aura, which makes nearly everyone want her, could have stayed a simple erotic device. Instead, it carries weight. It shapes her loneliness, her guilt, her longing for connection that isn’t warped by magic. The book leans into that ache, and it made me care about her. I also felt something real in the way the academy welcomes her with open arms and sudden chaos. The crush of new people, the confusing attention, the tiny disasters piling up. It reminded me of how starting college feels. Big and scary and exciting. The worldbuilding is vibrant and wild, but the emotional heart is surprisingly grounded.
By the last pages, I realized how much the book aims to blend comfort with danger. Cute friendships sit right next to unsettling hauntings. Steamy encounters overlap with moments of deep insecurity. It’s a mix that works.
I’d recommend Quests & Queries to readers who enjoy queer fantasy with spice, humor, and a lot of emotional honesty. It’s perfect for anyone who likes character-driven stories packed with magic and heat and who doesn’t mind things getting messy. If you want a book that feels playful and cozy and sometimes downright chaotic, this one will hit the spot.
Pages: 337 | ASIN : B0G1D4BHNY
Amongst Embers and Ashes
Amongst Embers and Ashes tells the story of Scarlet, a girl raised on an isolated farm who learns she is a pyro elemental. Her quiet life collapses as secrets spill open. She is taken from the only home she has known and thrown into a kingdom where politics, power, and fear swirl around her. The book follows her as she meets the other elementals, discovers the truth behind her past, and feels the weight of a world that both wants and fears her. The tale blends magic, trauma, and coming-of-age moments into a journey that keeps tilting between warm hope and sharp dread.
I felt swept up right away. The writing has this fast pulse to it, almost like Scarlet’s own nerves buzzing under the surface. Scenes crackle with emotion. Little moments hit hard, such as Scarlet lighting her fingertips so she can see in the dark, or the tight, bitter silence that fills the farmhouse during dinner. The dialogue feels natural and messy. People talk over each other. They misunderstand each other. I found that refreshing. The story leans into the confusion of being young and scared, and the author does not tidy it up. Sometimes Scarlet’s thoughts spiral in a way that feels raw and very emotional.
I liked the theme of being labeled dangerous before you even understand who you are. Scarlet’s guilt sits like a stone in her chest, and I could feel its weight while reading. The contrast between her rough farm life and the polished castle made me think about how power works and who gets to feel safe. I also enjoyed the mix of elemental magic with political tension. It gave the world a lot of texture, even in quiet scenes. The pacing is fast, and the energy of the story pulled me along, and I found myself caring more about the characters than the neatness of the plot. That says a lot about how well the emotional core is written.
This book would be great for readers who love character-driven fantasy, especially those who enjoy stories about teens pushed into roles they never asked for. If you like magic mixed with messy feelings, or if you want a tale that hits close to the heart, then Amongst Embers and Ashes is an easy recommendation.
Pages: 362 | ASIN : B0F2ZFDN9W
The Alchemical Grail: Unraveling the Hermetic Mysteries of the Templars & Cosmic Unity
The book dives into a sweeping mix of mysticism, history, and personal exploration, stitching together the Templars, the Holy Grail, ancient myth, and futuristic tech into one long thread. The prologue sets the tone at once. A Templar kneels in the shadow of Chartres Cathedral, guarding a secret of cosmic fire, and this becomes the spark for a journey through symbols, consciousness, and something the author calls the AetherForge, a device meant to unite energy and mind in a single pulse at 432 Hz. The book spreads out from there, touching Rosicrucians, Freemasonry, brain-computer interfaces, and the search for a universal pattern that ties everything together. It is part memoir and part esoteric treatise. All of it sits on the author’s belief that the Grail was never a cup. The Grail is a transformation of the self.
The author writes with a great deal of conviction. I liked the raw personal fire behind the ideas. The passages on destiny and fate, for example, use the image of a spider web to describe how our choices narrow as we move through life until we meet the center where the spider waits. It is simple and poetic. It worked for me. The shifts between medieval geometry, cosmic consciousness, and Neuralink-powered star gates left me thinking. Yet I kept reading. I felt the author’s passion and stubborn curiosity. I could tell he wanted me to feel it too.
I also found myself reacting to the emotional center of the book. The small autobiographical moments, the tough humor, the lived pain, and the sense that the quest is not just intellectual but personal gave the wilder ideas some grounding. The language can get grand at times, but the message came through clearly. Find the truth inside yourself. Accept your scars. Step toward the unknown anyway. It is an intimate kind of instruction wrapped inside a huge tapestry of history and speculation.
By the time I reached the sections on the AetherForge and the call to evolve through consciousness and technology, I could feel the author closing the circle. He writes that this device is not just tech. It is a bridge to tomorrow, a way for humanity to grow into something new if we can meet the challenge with unity and wisdom. Whether or not I believe in the device is beside the point. I understood the spirit behind it. The book is really about seeking a better version of ourselves and daring to imagine beyond the boundaries we accept without question.
I would recommend this book to readers who enjoy bold ideas, sprawling esoteric systems, and a voice that never tones itself down. If you like mixing mysticism with science, or if you enjoy authors who write with raw intensity and personal grit, you will get something out of this. If you are willing to follow a wild path and see where it leads, this book will open a door.
Handsome Dark Stranger
Handsome Dark Stranger tells the story of Beth, a young woman living with her grandfather in a quiet coastal village, where grief, devotion, and the supernatural wrap themselves around the rhythms of daily life. The book follows her encounters with a mysterious figure who moves between light and shadow, showing himself in dreams, graveyards, and even burned fields. The line between the ordinary and the otherworldly blurs as Beth navigates her family’s past, her grandfather’s fading strength, and the strange force that seems to answer her unspoken longing. The story folds together gothic atmosphere, spiritual imagery, and the steady beat of village life to build a world where presence and absence feel almost the same.
The descriptions pulled me in with their quiet intensity. Some scenes made me pause just to take in the mood. I found myself caught between wonder and unease, which I loved because it made the world feel alive, even when nothing dramatic was happening on the surface. The pacing moved gently, almost deliberately, and at times I wished it would hurry, but the slow burn worked for me. It let the emotions simmer. The supernatural figure felt both beautiful and unnerving, and I liked how the author never rushed to explain him.
There were moments when the emotional weight of the story was surprisingly deep. Beth’s memories of her parents and grandparents felt tender and raw. I could feel the love in them. I could also feel the exhaustion that comes from carrying someone else’s grief while trying not to lose yourself. The gothic elements added another layer. The dreams, the howling, the flicker of stained glass coming alive, all of it made the story feel thick with something hidden just under the surface. At times, I wanted clearer answers, but part of me enjoyed the uncertainty. It kept me reaching forward, curious and slightly on edge.
I think that this book would speak most deeply to readers who like stories filled with atmosphere and emotion rather than fast action. It suits anyone who enjoys quiet supernatural tales, introspective characters, and a slow, thoughtful unraveling of mystery. If you like your fiction moody, poetic, and touched with both comfort and fear, you’ll enjoy this book.
Pages: 104 | ASIN : B0FTGFVZBB
Rose Dhu
Rose Dhu follows the disappearance of Dr. Janie O’Connor, a brilliant surgeon whose sudden vanishing rattles Savannah. Detective Frank Winger takes the case, and his search uncovers secrets that coil through old money, family loyalty, and violence hidden in plain sight. The story widens from a missing person case into something heavier. It becomes a portrait of power and the people crushed or remade by it. The final revelation, in which Janie reemerges alive under a new identity as Alice Tubman, lands like a quiet shock and changes the emotional color of everything that came before.
Scenes move quickly and often hit with surprising force. I felt pulled in by the atmosphere of Savannah. The place feels damp, shadowed, and tangled with history. Some chapters made me slow down because the emotional weight crept up on me. I found the depictions of trauma raw, but never careless. The book wants you to sit with pain, not look away. That kind of blunt honesty made me connect with Frank more than I expected. His flaws feel lived in. His memories of Afghanistan haunted me in ways I did not anticipate.
There were moments when the story’s intensity nearly overwhelmed its subtler pieces. Still, the ideas underneath the plot stayed with me. What people will sacrifice for those they love. What power looks like when twisted by entitlement. How a life can fracture and rebuild itself into something new. The book is bold about those questions. It pokes at uncomfortable truths, and I appreciate that kind of nerve. By the final pages, I caught myself rooting fiercely for Alice and for Frank.
Rose Dhu reads like a blend of Sharp Objects and Where the Crawdads Sing, only with a darker pulse and a tighter grip on the shadowy power games that shape a Southern town. I would recommend Rose Dhu to readers who enjoy mystery that leans into emotional depth, stories about moral gray zones, or Southern gothic settings with teeth.
Pages: 384 | ISBN : 1967510709
LITERARY TITAN 