Blog Archives
Chasing Moonflowers
Pauline Chow’s Chasing Moonflowers is a vivid and haunting novel that weaves together historical fiction, supernatural horror, and coming-of-age themes. Set in 1920s colonial Hong Kong, the story follows Ling, a young woman caught between her family’s traditions and the turbulent sociopolitical currents of the time. As Ling uncovers strange disappearances tied to mythic horrors and colonial oppression, her journey through the Kowloon Walled City and the surrounding marshlands becomes a fight for truth, identity, and survival. The story is steeped in Chinese folklore, political tension, and eerie mystery, creating a rich and unsettling atmosphere.
From the first few pages, I was hooked. The prose is crisp, full of sensory detail, and never afraid to get gritty. Chow doesn’t just describe Hong Kong, she drags you into its alleys, lets you feel the damp walls of Kowloon, and hear the eerie lullabies whispered to children. I felt a real emotional attachment to Ling, a clever and fiercely curious young woman who manages to be brave even while terrified. Her relationship with her family, especially her younger brothers, grounded the novel in a warmth that balanced the story’s darker turns. And make no mistake, the horror elements here are chilling. The supernatural is strange, grotesque, and soaked in myth. Think Lovecraft meets The Monkey King.
Some chapters fly by in a haze of thrilling discoveries and shocking twists, while others linger long on introspection or minor characters’ subplots. That said, I appreciated how Chow dared to explore trauma without giving neat resolutions. Her portrayal of colonialism’s reach, how it deforms not just cities, but psyches, is brutal and honest. There’s a weight to this story that sticks with you.
Chasing Moonflowers is a powerful story that blends historical fiction and horror in a way that feels timeless. If you’re someone who enjoys complex female leads, folklore-laced thrillers, or tales of rebellion against monstrous systems—literal and figurative—this book’s for you. It shook me, entertained me, and made me think.
Pages: 298 | ASIN : B0F1G51FWX
The Alternate World
The Alternate World is a coming-of-age story that follows Eve, a thoughtful and quietly bold teenager, as she transitions from junior high to a prestigious New England boarding school. What begins as a classic high school journey soon spirals into something much more surreal: Eve is recruited into a mystical realm called the “alternate world,” a place reserved for people who have stayed true to themselves despite societal pressures. Through friendships, first love, personal boundaries, and identity, the book delves into what it really means to follow your own path, even when it hurts.
I didn’t expect this book to get under my skin the way it did. The writing is deceptively simple. It reads like a diary, a direct, honest voice that made me feel like I was sitting across from Eve at a coffee shop, hearing everything firsthand. The author nails the teen voice without making it whiny or dramatic. The opening chapter that describes the ninth-grade dance was spot on. The little details, like the boutonnieres, the whispered gossip, and that tense moment when Rachel ends up ditching the afterparty plan to hang out with the wrong guy, those parts felt painfully real. Starke has a gift for showing how a single night can change everything for a teenager.
When Eve meets Gina, a mysterious woman in a pastel pink dress who basically ushers her into a parallel life, it hit me hard. There’s something powerful about being seen and celebrated not for what you’ve achieved, but for the quiet moments when you choose yourself. The scene where Eve tells her boyfriend Matt she’s not ready to sleep with him, and then gets initiated into this hidden society for staying true to her boundaries, gave me goosebumps. It’s not a preachy moment. Instead, it’s empowering. This book doesn’t shame teenage choices, but it celebrates agency in a way that feels fresh and affirming.
One of the things I found interesting was how the story kept a quick pace, even with significant events like Jennifer’s unexpected pregnancy. The plot didn’t linger too long, which gave the book a snappy, forward-moving rhythm that kept me turning pages. Even in the more dramatic moments, the focus stayed on Eve’s journey and growth, which I really liked. And while some conversations, especially between Matt and the girls, had a slightly polished feel, they still helped move the story along and kept the tone consistent with the book’s style. That said, the central friend group, Erin, Ellie, Maggie, and Annie, was portrayed with a striking sense of realism. Their dynamic captured the emotional complexity of adolescence, complete with the bittersweet drift that often accompanies growing up. The winter break dinner scene especially stood out; beneath the laughter and familiar exchanges, there was an unmistakable undercurrent of change.
By the end, I didn’t want to leave either of Eve’s worlds. I wanted more of Gina, more of the portraits in the mansion, more glimpses of what’s possible when we live our purpose. If you’re someone who’s ever felt torn between who you are and who people want you to be, The Alternate World is for you. Teen readers will relate. Adults will remember. And anyone who’s ever made a hard choice and wondered if it was worth it, this story gently says, yes. Yes, it is.
Pages: 240 | ASIN : B0DL8D41ZS
Kundu: Prince of Riverton City
Kundu: The Prince of Riverton City is a powerful coming-of-age story set against the brutal, lively backdrop of Riverton City, Jamaica. Courtney Ffrench paints a vivid world where survival is a daily fight and childhood innocence is a fragile, flickering thing. We follow young Kundu, a pale-skinned, purple-eyed boy navigating a garbage-laden, violence-soaked community, all while trying to find his place, his people, and maybe a little hope. From the first scene at Shotta’s Ball, where gunshots and ghost stories blur together to desperate kite-flying sessions by the dump, the story pulls you into the grime, the beauty, and the heartache of a forgotten place.
Ffrench doesn’t sugarcoat a single thing. The author’s writing style is raw, sentences clipped, observations sharp. When Kundu, Lorraine, and Leon sneak past men firing AK-47s into the air, I could feel the gravel digging into my knees. It wasn’t just described; it grabbed me by the collar and shoved me down in the mud with them. That rough, close-to-the-ground style made the world feel dangerous, loud, and alive. The scene where they run from the ghost-like woman in white gave me goosebumps, not because it was supernatural, but because it was too real.
Then there’s Kundu himself. I loved him, and my heart broke for him. His albinism isolates him in a brutal society where being different is dangerous. The way kids casually call him “Ghost” and how even grown-ups view him with suspicion is gutting. There’s a scene later, when Lorraine sings “Hill and Gully Rider” while they search the Sandy Gully for their missing friend, and Kundu just trails behind, silent, it crushed me. Ffrench nails the quiet loneliness of being an outsider without ever turning Kundu into a sob story. He’s stubborn, he’s brave, he’s a kid trying to build a kite out of trash in a world falling apart.
Ffrench weaves in these small, bright stitches of humanity: the fierce loyalty between Kundu, Lorraine, and Leon; Madda Tee’s patient, practical love (especially when she stirs that cornmeal porridge while talking about missing kids like it’s just another part of the day); the slapstick panic of dodging Jomo the mad dog. There’s something magical in how people in Riverton City find ways to laugh, to dance, to live, even with death sitting next door. When Kundu and Lorraine find a dead baby hidden in a freezer, it’s brutal, but the fact that they care says so much about the scraps of decency they’re fighting to keep.
I loved this book. It’s rough and sometimes painful, but it’s also full of fight and beauty. Courtney Ffrench doesn’t waste words or pretend things are prettier than they are. Kundu: Prince of Riverton City would be a great read for anyone who loves coming-of-age stories that don’t flinch, or readers who want to see life through a lens they might never have dared to look through before. It’s perfect for people who aren’t afraid to get a little mud on their shoes and maybe a little blood on their hearts.
Pages: 243 | ASIN : B0DJHGWM6H
Fate vs Free Will
The Lost Dragonrider of Lamar follows a mysterious young woman with no memory of who she is or her past, who possesses a glowing pendant that turns out to be the relic at the heart of the ongoing war between dragonriders. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?
The inspiration for setting up this story first started with a conversation I had with a close friend. We were talking about how a kingdom would look like if the economy was based on having heroes for hire and setting these heroes up with a celebrity status. From there the plot unfurled, I developed characters, added my magic system and it was off to the races.
What were some driving ideals behind your character’s development?
The driving ideas behind the character’s development are predominantly fate vs free will. I also play with self-discovery and try to highlight how Lark’s instinctual moral code drives her into action.
What were some themes that were important for you to explore in this book?
The main theme is good vs evil. That gets mottled up with loyalty and betrayal, power and responsibility, and the interplay of the character’s fate vs free will.
Can you tell us where the book goes, and where we’ll see the characters in the next book?
With the next book, I continue the adventure where I’ve left off at the end of book one. We explore more of Lark’s past, how it plays a role in her future, and the fate of the kingdom. I introduce a new major threat to the world as they know it and dive deeper into wielding magic. There are more dragons, dragonriders, and action that you won’t want to miss.
Author Links: GoodReads | Amazon
When Lamar’s greatest dragonrider falls in battle, the kingdom’s last hope seems lost… Until a woman is found wandering the edge of the Everburning Forest with no memory of who she is, how she got there, or why she carries the very object the dragonriders have been warring over—a Hyalite.
The Hyalite, an artifact containing the power to forge a new dragonrider and tip the scales of the conflict, has been declared stolen by the enemy. Now, with the relic in her possession, Lark—an amnesiac with no clue about her connection to the war—finds herself thrust into the center of a world poised to unravel.
Humans, elves, and dwarves clash with orcs and mythical beasts as Lark uncovers truths too dangerous to ignore. Her fighting skills rival even the most seasoned warriors, but it’s the cryptic visions haunting her dreams that continue to expose her checkered past. As the stolen Hyalite’s power stirs, kingdoms send ruthless assassins to claim it, each step pulling Lark deeper into a destiny she never wanted—and cannot outrun.
The fate of the realms hangs by a thread. Will Lark embrace the storm—or be swept away by it? Start reading The Lost Dragonrider of Lamar today!
Daughter of Starlight
Daughter of Starlight follows Luma, a fierce, guarded young woman aging out of foster care, who stumbles across a hidden cave in the Colorado mountains and ends up transported to the magical world of Edira. There, she learns she’s no ordinary girl; she’s the one marked by the stars, the key to healing the ancient Sacred Stones and stopping a dark tide of invading wizards. With a mix of gritty real-world struggles and rich fantasy adventure, Molly M. Hammond spins a story that feels both deeply personal and sweepingly epic.
Hammond’s writing made a profound impact on me from the very first chapter. She sets up Luma’s pain, the blood on her knuckles, the loneliness, the worn kindness of her social worker Frank, with such realness that I was immediately hooked. That opening scene, where Luma picks at the scars on her palms while waiting to be lectured, felt so heartbreakingly tangible. Hammond doesn’t waste words but paints her world with quick, sharp brushstrokes that sink in deep. Even later, when Luma first hears her name whispered in the mountains during the storm, I could feel the same eerie pull she did. It’s hard to find YA fantasy that captures both grounded reality and wonder so seamlessly, but this book pulls it off.
While the middle of the book took a slightly more deliberate pace, I appreciated the deeper look into Luma’s early interactions with Corr, the gruff yet oddly endearing elf guide. Their spirited exchanges added texture to their relationship and highlighted Hammond’s talent for character dynamics. Moments like Luma’s stumbles and Corr’s teasing remarks provided a playful contrast to the story’s more intense scenes. And when the raptera attack burst onto the page, chaotic, brutal, and utterly thrilling, the story’s momentum surged, and I found myself completely engrossed once again. Hammond’s prose truly shines during these breathtaking moments of magic and mystery.
The themes explored in the novel, particularly those concerning destiny, loneliness, and belonging, resonated with me more deeply than I had anticipated. Luma’s reluctance to embrace the role of a hero and her belief that she is not inherently special felt especially poignant, reflecting sentiments with which I could personally identify.That deep reluctance, that aching disbelief in her own worth, felt incredibly real. When she finally unleashes her starlight powers to save Corr from the monstrous bird (and then immediately pukes afterward, because of course she would), I found myself grinning like an idiot. Hammond doesn’t write magic as something clean or effortless; it’s messy, painful, and exhausting. That choice made Luma’s journey feel earned instead of just fated.
I came away from Daughter of Starlight deeply moved by its heart and emotional resonance. It is a beautifully crafted fantasy that offers real emotional depth, a stubborn and relatable heroine, and a story that intertwines everyday struggles with dazzling magic. It is the kind of book that keeps you reading late into the night and leaves you sitting quietly afterward, feeling both a little wrung out and a little more hopeful as you linger over the final page.
Pages: 289 | ASIN : B0DHWBV71Q
Miscreant
Miscreant tells the story of Nova Darkov, a young woman trapped in a world that demands perfection—and punishes anything less. Born into a prestigious family, Nova hides a dangerous secret: she cannot use the sacred power of memory syphoning, a cornerstone of her society. When her secret is exposed, Nova faces exile to a brutal island where misfits are discarded. Alongside her devoted brother Denali, who risks everything for her, Nova must find the strength to survive in a world that was never made for her. It’s a heart-wrenching story about family, betrayal, and resilience set against a vivid, cruel world where flaws are a death sentence.
Reading Miscreant absolutely tore me up in the best way. Kynsie Cole’s writing is gripping and raw. You feel the panic clawing up Nova’s throat, the sting of betrayal, the bone-deep loneliness. The prose is beautifully straightforward without ever being plain. Short bursts of action are followed by aching, introspective moments that hit harder because they’re not dressed up with fancy words. Cole isn’t afraid to break the reader’s heart, and she does it with a kind of ruthless honesty that left me stunned more than once. The world-building is subtle but solid, and the relationships, especially between Nova and Denali, feel heartbreakingly real.
Parts of the book were emotionally exhausting. And that’s not a bad thing, exactly—it’s just that Miscreant doesn’t offer much room to breathe. Nova’s world is claustrophobic and brutal, and sometimes I found myself desperate for a little more hope or a moment of lightness to balance the pain. But maybe that’s the point. In a society like Ghandria, kindness is a rebellion in itself. I also loved how Cole handled Nova’s anxiety and sensory struggles without making them a “problem” to fix. They just are part of her, woven into the story like threads in a tapestry. That felt honest and real in a way that a lot of books miss.
Miscreant is an emotional and thrilling novel. If you’ve ever felt like you had to hide who you were just to survive, Nova’s story will hit you square in the chest. I’d recommend this book to anyone who loves deeply emotional fantasy, stories about resilience, or characters who fight even when the world tells them not to.
Pages: 318 | ASIN: B0DZJ6FFXB
Home
The Dragon Way Home follows a lonely Australian boy who meets a sand sculpture of a dragon that comes to life, takes him on a wild adventure, and teaches him some valuable lessons. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?
I used to live on the Gold Coast and often watched sand artists making dragon sculptures. When I moved to China, I always loved visiting the Dragon Temples. Those were my two main influences.
In many coming-of-age fiction novels, authors often add their own life experiences to the story. Are there any bits of you in this story?
The settings are definitely part of my story, but a broken family and flying dragons are pure fiction.
What were some themes that were important for you to explore in this book?
I wanted to explore the idea of “home” through the eyes of a child. I also wanted him to come from an imperfect family–not a bad family–just one that didn’t fit the fairytale version of perfection.
What is the next book that you are working on, and when can your fans expect it to be out?
I have just finished “Yowie Dreaming: A Tale of Friendship and Adventure”. It is about a teenage girl who discovers a baby Yowie (Australia’s Bigfoot) in her backyard.
Author Links: GoodReads | Website
He must deal with four eccentric dragons. Also, he must survive a hot air balloon crash, a cyclone and getting lost in Shanghai. And that’s just the beginning!
Will he find his dad? Will he ever feel that he is truly home?
A book that will delight emerging readers and keep them engaged to the last page.
Also suitable for dragon lovers of any age.
The Fire Within
The Fire Within, the first installment in The Ashen Legacy series by Sean Kennedy, follows the story of Finn Camlock, a teen outcast living in a harsh desert compound protected from elemental fire beings known as the Ignavari. Set in a distant future shaped by a post-nova catastrophe, the novel blends sci-fi and fantasy with coming-of-age drama as Finn navigates an oppressive society, survival trials, and his unique sensory gift that could either save or doom his people. With intense action sequences, layered world-building, and a brisk pace, Kennedy spins a tale that’s equal parts adventure and emotional reckoning.
What struck me most about Kennedy’s writing is how cinematic it feels. The action sequences sizzle—whether it’s hoverbike races across burning dunes, clashes with monstrous flame creatures, or desperate skirmishes against brutal pirate clans, the pacing rarely lets up. I was fully immersed in the grit and danger of Dawnford compound. The dialogue felt sharp and natural, especially between Finn and his rivals or friends. It’s raw in a way that made me care. I also appreciated that the stakes weren’t cheap—people die, mistakes have consequences, and Kennedy doesn’t shy away from hard emotional beats. That said, I do feel the early exposition was a bit dense. There were times I had to re-read passages to get a grip on the world’s rules, especially regarding nova flux and its impact. But once I got my bearings, I couldn’t stop turning pages.
Emotionally, the book hit harder than I expected. Finn’s isolation, his desperate need to prove himself, his guilt after his first kill—it all felt relatable. I admired how the story didn’t romanticize being “different” or powerful. The pain of being overlooked, of losing innocence, of making impossible choices—that stuff stayed with me. And Kennedy doesn’t waste characters. Even side figures like Patrice, Arken, or the stoic Duskers had their moment to shine. I also liked how the magic system wasn’t just for flash—it had rules, consequences, and a slow burn to its revelations. The tension between technological advancement and raw elemental danger created a fascinating backdrop. The book ends mid-momentum. It sets up so many mysteries—what’s the wax, what’s really going on with Iron Mike—that I felt a bit stranded. But maybe that’s the point. It definitely left me wanting more.
The Fire Within is a bold and engaging start to a series with real promise. It’s perfect for readers who love coming-of-age stories with teeth—fans of Dune, The Maze Runner, or Scythe will feel right at home. If you enjoy fast-paced sci-fi with heart, sharp dialogue, and characters who bleed, flinch, and fight back, this one’s for you. I’m hooked—and already waiting for book two.
Pages: 173 | ASIN : B0F3JV4TV3
LITERARY TITAN 