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14 Hours of Saturn
14 Hours of Saturn is a slice-of-life story told through the eyes of Saturn O Syres, a 24-year-old woman spending what seems like an ordinary Saturday that slowly becomes anything but. The book unfolds in real time, each chapter named after the hour, moving from morning to evening as Saturn’s day reveals her past, her regrets, her humor, and her heart. She speaks straight to the reader like an old friend over coffee, weaving stories about family, faith, and self-discovery while the rain taps outside her apartment window. It’s a quiet, thoughtful narrative about being alone but not lonely, about making peace with who you’ve been and who you still want to become.
Kizman’s writing is plainspoken and unpretentious, which makes Saturn feel real. She rambles sometimes, circles back, drifts into childhood memories, then lands hard on a feeling that hits home. I liked that her voice wasn’t polished or filtered. It’s messy, but that’s how real people sound when they’re figuring themselves out. The pacing surprised me. Nothing explodes or catches fire, yet I couldn’t stop turning the pages. The small moments like a dream, a broken yolk, or a memory of a sister, pile up into something relatable. The humor sneaks in when you least expect it, softening the heavier reflections about family and faith.
Kizman writes like someone who isn’t afraid of detail. A scene about breakfast can stretch into pages, but then I’d catch myself smiling at a line or nodding at a truth tucked inside all that talk. There’s a rhythm to it, like spending a rainy day indoors when you’ve got nowhere else to be. The emotional honesty makes up for the slower pace. It’s warm, a bit awkward, and completely sincere. You can tell the author loves his characters, flaws and all.
By the end, I felt like I’d spent those fourteen hours with Saturn myself. The story leaves you calm but thoughtful, the way a good talk with a friend can. I’d recommend 14 Hours of Saturn to readers who appreciate character-driven stories more than action-packed ones. If you like books that make you feel seen in small, ordinary ways, and honest writing that sounds like conversation, this one’s for you. It’s gentle, a little quirky, and full of heart.
Pages: 332 | ASIN : B0FRB8589W
The Song of Hadariah
The Song of Hadariah follows Carrie Eisen, a seventeen-year-old caught between the ordinary pressures of finishing high school and the extraordinary call of magic. When she encounters a talking fox named Adom, her world is turned upside down. Alongside her two best friends, she’s drawn into Hadariah, a realm where music and spirit are one, and darkness has silenced its heart. Together, the girls set out to retrieve enchanted violin strings stolen by the demon king Asmodeus, hoping to restore harmony to a dying world. What starts as a whimsical fantasy quickly becomes a story about friendship, belief, and courage.
Reading this book felt like stepping back into the kind of story I would’ve loved as a teenager. The writing is vivid and heartfelt, full of warmth and charm. Goldenberg’s voice has this nostalgic rhythm to it. It moves like a bedtime story told by someone who truly believes in the power of magic. Sometimes the pacing slows a little, especially in the early chapters, but once the girls enter Hadariah, the world blossoms with texture and wonder. I liked how the author blended Jewish folklore with classic fantasy elements; it made the story feel both familiar and fresh. The dialogue among the girls felt genuine too, full of the easy banter and affection that comes from years of friendship. Their bond grounded the magic, made it feel real.
There were moments when I wanted to see a little more from the story’s darker side. Asmodeus, for instance, comes across as more symbolic than menacing, and the conflict feels gentler than I expected. But the real struggle isn’t only against a demon, it’s about growing up and finding the courage to believe when the world makes it hard to do so. I loved how Carrie wrestled with doubt and faith, logic and wonder. It reminded me that magic isn’t always about spells or creatures, it’s about trust, bravery, and the invisible threads between people. And that hit home for me.
The Song of Hadariah is a lovely, thoughtful fantasy that captures the ache of adolescence and the pull of imagination. It’s ideal for readers who miss the sincerity of early young adult fantasy, those who grew up on Narnia, Inkheart, or His Dark Materials, and still look at the world hoping to find a hidden doorway somewhere.
Pages: 212 | ASIN : B0FR2MLTMR
Sitnalta
Sitnalta tells the story of a young princess trapped in a kingdom ruled by cruelty and fear. From her birth, Sitnalta’s life is shadowed by her father’s tyranny and the tragic death of her mother. As she grows up, she becomes restless, yearning for freedom beyond the walls of her father’s cold castle. The novel follows her journey from captivity to self-discovery, blending elements of fairy tale, adventure, and moral reflection. The book opens with heartbreak and ends with a quiet defiance that feels earned. It’s a story about courage, kindness, and the stubbornness it takes to be yourself when the world insists otherwise.
Reading Sitnalta pulled me in more deeply than I expected. The writing is vivid and easy to fall into. The author paints scenes with the kind of care that makes the air in the story feel real. The story moves between light and dark with an unhurried rhythm. I found myself frustrated at times, mostly because I cared so much. Sitnalta’s innocence, her stubborn streak, her quiet bravery, they resonated with me. Some of the dialogue feels old-fashioned, but that suits the fairy-tale tone. What surprised me most was how layered the “villain” felt. King Supmylo is monstrous, yes, but there’s something broken beneath his cruelty. That complexity made the story more relatable than I expected.
There’s sadness in nearly every chapter, but it’s the kind that lingers gently instead of crushing you. Sitnalta’s world feels unfair, and yet she carries herself with grace and wit. Her friendship with Najort, the kind-hearted troll, was my favorite part. It’s strange and tender, filled with quiet understanding. The writing in those scenes feels softer, almost glowing. I caught myself smiling at moments that shouldn’t have been happy but somehow were. The author doesn’t overcomplicate things. The prose feels clean and honest. You can sense that it was written with love, not just for the story but for what stories can do, for how they let us hope.
I’d recommend Sitnalta to anyone who loves stories about courage, compassion, and freedom. It’s not just a tale for young readers; it’s for anyone who’s ever felt trapped by the life they were born into. It’s a book that made me think about kindness in a world that often rewards cruelty, and about how sometimes, the bravest thing we can do is walk away and begin again.
Pages: 204 | ASIN : B0FWFBQMG3
Wing Haven
Wing Haven, by Naomi Shibles, is a beautifully imagined fairy tale that feels both timeless and new. It tells the story of Almond Nettlesworth, a reluctant fairy who doesn’t quite fit into her messy, mossy world. After being outshone and betrayed by her younger sister, who suddenly becomes queen, Almond is thrust into an adventure that forces her to confront danger, friendship, and her own sense of belonging. Alongside unlikely allies like a chipmunk named Nutsie, she journeys through the wild forest in search of purpose and freedom, discovering a forgotten dollhouse that becomes a kind of refuge. Beneath the fantasy, the story hums with ideas about independence, family, and what it means to find beauty in imperfection.
What I liked most was how the book blended the charm of childhood imagination with the weight of adult emotion. The writing is lush and cinematic, full of textures like glittering wings, sticky sap, and the smell of damp moss. Shibles has a gift for description that makes even tiny moments feel alive. Still, it’s the heart of the story that got to me. Almond’s frustration with her world, her yearning for cleanliness and order in a place ruled by chaos, hit closer to home than I expected. I found myself rooting for her even when she stumbled, even when her pride made her prickly. The relationship between Almond and Pepper, sisters bound by rivalry and love, felt raw and real. Their clash mirrors the kind of quiet wars siblings fight when one grows up too fast and the other gets left behind.
I felt the pacing sometimes slows under the weight of its detail. The world-building is rich, like a garden that needs a little pruning. Yet, I didn’t mind walking through that garden. The story invites you to pause and notice the small wonders that are hiding. I also admired how the author used the natural world not just as a setting, but as a character. The forest breathes and sighs, both nurturing and cruel. It reminded me of how nature holds contradictions, beauty and decay, danger and shelter, and how those same tensions live inside us.
Wing Haven left me with a quiet ache and a deep sense of wonder. It’s a story for readers who still believe that magic exists just out of sight, for dreamers who feel out of place in the noise of the world. I’d recommend it to anyone who loved The Secret Garden as a child and now wants something more grown, more tangled, and more tender.
Pages: 219 | ASIN : B0FQBXFWPQ
Terra Tamers: Alpha
Terra Tamers: Alpha is a sprawling young adult sci-fi adventure set in a post-apocalyptic future where humanity clings to life aboard floating cities after a cataclysm known as “the Hollowing.” The story follows Matthew Wong, a teenager under house arrest in Sojourn, a massive city adrift at sea. Alongside his younger brother and a group of friends, he ventures into a dangerous world filled with sentient machines called Holos and mysterious remnants of the old world. The book is a blend of futuristic technology, human resilience, and the kind of awkward hope that only a young hero can carry. It’s part survival story, part coming-of-age tale, and part philosophical dive into what it means to remain human when the world has been remade by its own creations.
Reading this book felt like watching a vivid dream unfold. There’s an undercurrent of pain and perseverance that runs beneath the action, a quiet heartbeat that says, “keep going.” The writing isn’t always clean or polished. But it feels alive. I found myself drawn in by the rhythm of the dialogue and the scrappy, sarcastic charm of the narrator. The world-building is detailed without becoming overwhelming, and the emotional core, this bond between siblings trying to find their place in a crumbling world, hit me harder than I expected.
What really stood out to me were the quieter moments, the human ones tucked between the chaos of combat and survival. The book isn’t afraid to be sentimental, and I kind of loved that. It wears its heart right on its sleeve. There are bits where the pacing slows, or a joke lands flat, but the sincerity never does. You can tell Petrilli poured himself into these pages, and that makes the story resonate in a way that feels more honest than many perfectly edited novels.
I’d recommend Terra Tamers: Alpha to readers who love stories about grit and heart more than perfection. Fans of Percy Jackson or The Maze Runner will feel at home here, though this book carries a quieter, more introspective tone beneath the adventure. If you’re looking for a story that blends science fiction with emotion, or if you simply want to be reminded why hope still matters even when the world feels broken, this one’s worth your time.
Pages: 524 | ASIN : B0F9DBXR8H
Washington
The book Washington tells a gripping, slow-burning story of Evan, a ninth-grader navigating the chaos of high school life while a darker tragedy brews beneath the surface. It’s a novel that moves between ordinary teenage moments like awkward conversations, new friendships, and lunchtime hierarchies, and shocking violence that tears through that fragile normalcy. The shifts in time and tone build a picture of youth that feels raw and real. It’s part coming-of-age story, part psychological drama, and part social warning. Through quiet, honest scenes, the author shows how loneliness, cruelty, and silence can twist into something explosive.
Reading this book hit me hard. The writing feels unfiltered and close, like you’re sitting in Evan’s head, watching him sink and resurface with every scene. Author Thomas J. Gebhardt III’s prose is simple but charged, almost cinematic. He writes with an eye for small, human details, the twitch of a hand, the blur of light across a hallway, the weight of a single choice. That’s what makes it so effective. You can almost feel the tightness in Evan’s chest, and remember what it was like to be young and lost. At times I wanted to shake the characters, to stop what I knew was coming, but the story keeps you trapped in its slow inevitability. It’s haunting. It’s frustrating. It’s heartbreakingly believable.
I found myself angry, sad, and quiet all at once after finishing it. The book doesn’t offer neat answers, and I respect that. Gebhardt doesn’t preach or dramatize; he just lays it all out and lets the horror of it unfold through real people. The tension builds so naturally that when the violence erupts, it feels both shocking and inevitable. It’s the kind of story that stays with you, not because of the event itself, but because of the way it makes you look at all the moments that led up to it like the ignored signs, and the missed chances for kindness.
Washington is not a light read, but it’s an important one. I’d recommend it to anyone who wants a story that makes them feel something real and uncomfortable, especially teachers, parents, or anyone who’s ever felt out of place in their own life. It’s for readers who want truth over polish, emotion over perfection. It’s a book that reminds you that people are complicated, that pain hides in plain sight, and that silence can sometimes be the loudest sound of all.
Pages: 354 | ASIN : B09VN18DDF
The Concept of a Chimera
Split is the story of a boy born with genetic chimerism who faces bullying, identity crises, and the fear of following in his father’s footsteps. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?
In early 2019, while at the pediatric cardiology office, I learned about a patient who was a fetal chimera. The patient learned about her diagnosis from an astute clinician who observed slight left vs. right-sided physical differences. I had read about chimera patients within the medical literature, but had never read about a protagonist with a chimera diagnosis. However, the scenario seemed perfect for a nature vs. nurture coming-of-age story.
I imagined my protagonist, a chimera, with left vs. right-sided physical differences, but most importantly, those differences aligned with traits he observed within his parents. Families often discuss the physical features of children, such as eye color, a pointed or rounded chin, or hair color, that are passed down through each generation. In my own family, my son is a near replica of when I was a child, and my daughter looks nearly identical to my wife. Those physical traits could serve as a constant reminder of the genetic differences between his left and right sides, creating the feeling that he had two different identities. Whenever he looked in the mirror, his two different colored eyes would stare back. If his mother were passive and his father was violent, it would give the protagonist reason to worry about which side might dominate their identity.
I began searching the literature, reading about various case reports, and watching an episode of CSI and All My Children, where each utilized a chimera as a character. I even discovered that the singer, Taylor Muhl, had recently told the world she was a chimera. The more I read, the more I decided to leverage the chimera diagnosis to highlight a nature vs. nurture theme. I then built the story around the concept of a chimera. I created Ethan, the protagonist in SPLIT, with heterochromia, or different colored eyes. Most physical differences in a chimera are subtle, but two different colored eyes would undoubtedly cause Ethan to be ostracized in school and bullied.
Is there anything from your own life included in the characters in Split?
There isn’t much from my own life that is included in the characters for Split. However, I did grow up on a beef farm outside of Saratoga, New York, and would often get lost playing in the corn fields!
What is it that draws you to write Teen and Young Adult fiction?
I think exploring how adolescents develop into adults is fascinating. There are so many influences between friends, family, genetics, and environment, that all have some impact on the development of who a person will become. Split explores this idea in a new and different way with the use of a chimera.
What is the next book you are working on, and when will it be available?
I am currently working on a story about action vs indifference. When confronted with a dangerous situation, the historical adage was always fight or flight. However, I think there is a growing cohort who no longer flee but watch and record the event on a phone or mobile device. I’m not sure when this will be finished, as I am currently only half way through a first draft.
Author Links: Goodreads | Website
Understanding and Solidarity
Well, Mama, This is It (it’s Now Or Never) is part confession, part storytelling, and part letter-writing, all stitched together with raw honesty and a strong emotional pulse with reflections on love, faith, and the messy business of being human. Why was this an important book for you to write?
This book was important for me to write because it allowed me to explore different characters and express what I had imagined. It was a way for me to connect with readers who may be going through similar struggles and offer them a sense of understanding and solidarity. This book is a testament to the power of vulnerability and the beauty of embracing our imperfections.
What were some ideas that were important for you to share in this book?
There were key ideas that I found important to share. Some of these ideas include the importance of self-love, unapologetically being yourself, and the value of perseverance in the face of challenges.
How has writing this book changed you as a writer, or what did you learn about yourself through writing it?
Writing this book has changed me as a writer, and it’s all thanks to amazing readers like yourself and everyone who has been a part of this journey. I have learned that I am capable of overcoming challenges and self-doubt to produce a work that I am truly proud of. This experience has not only improved my writing skills but also boosted my confidence in my abilities as a storyteller. Writing this book has shown me that with dedication and passion, I can achieve my writing goals and continue to grow as an author. Once again, thanks to everyone!
What do you hope is one thing readers take away from Well, Mama, This is It (it’s Now Or Never)?
I hope that readers take away a sense of empowerment and inspiration.
Author Links: GoodReads | Snapchat
We don’t have to fight
We do not have to cry for the rest of our lives
Cause Boys
Girls
And Everyone we know
Seems to drift away just a little bit
That’s life”
Step into a world where love knows no bounds and equality reigns supreme. In this gripping tale, a group of men and women defy the odds and fight for their right to be themselves. As they navigate the twists and turns of their lives, they discover that the greatest strength comes from within.
Meanwhile, teenagers grapple with their own struggles, trying to find their place in a world that often seems to be against them. But as the characters’ stories intertwine, they learn the power of love, the importance of equality, and the beauty of being true to oneself. This is a story that will inspire young women and men in our community to embrace their uniqueness and strive for greatness. So come along on this unforgettable journey of self-discovery and empowerment, and discover the power of love and equality in a world that often seems to be lacking in both.
LITERARY TITAN 