Independent Book Reviews for Independent Readers.
James 
Mount Monadnock is a mountain in the state of New Hampshire, known for being featured in the writings of Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau. At 3,165 feet (965 m), Mount Monadnock is the most frequently climbed mountain in North America and the second most frequently climbed mountain in the world after Japan’s Mt.… Continue reading
Miramichi author Wayne Curtis has always been a prolific author (this is his eighteenth release) whether he is writing prose, poetry or non-ficton, but the past few years have been watershed ones for his faithful readers. And as Mr. Curtis gets older (much like the rest of us) each new release is more precious than the last one.… Continue reading
I love noir fiction (and film), so I was eager to read this book of criminal men with power, some in control, some out of control in the Prohibition Era of 1920-1933. On the back cover of The Carpenter from Montreal (2017, Linda Leith Publishing) it states to any curious reader that may pick up this novel: “In this cinematic and genre-bending novel, George Fetherling both honours the roots of serious noir fiction while also pushing its boundaries.” I’m not so sure about the “pushing the boundaries” part, but the “genre-bending” statement works for me.… Continue reading
Pratap Reddy is the author of two books, 2018’s Ramya’s Treasure and his 2016 collection of short stories Weather Permitting and Other Stories. Both books are published by Montreal’s Guernica Editions and were also longlisted here at The Miramichi Reader for “The Very Best!” Book Award for Fiction.… Continue reading
Melissa Barbeau is a founding member of the Port Authority Writing Group. She has been anthologized in Racket: New Writing Made in Newfoundland, The Cuffer Anthology, and Paragon. The Luminous Sea (2018, Breakwater Books) is her first book.… Continue reading
As with any university town, Kingston, Ontario has its fair share of writers that call the Limestone City home: Diane Schoemperlen, Merilyn Simonds, Steven Heighton and many more. Add Adrian Michael Kelly to the list. His newest book, The Ambassador of What (2018, ECW Press) is a collection of stories, some previously published, but many appearing in print for the first time.… Continue reading
At one point in Deli Meat (2018, Crooked Cat Books), Bree Arms tells her husband Todd that she is reading a book called, um, Deli Meat. She tells him it “is weird as hell and twice as strange,” which is a good summing up of the book itself.… Continue reading
There comes a point early on in the reading of Howard Mansfield’s newest book The Habit of Turning the World Upside Down (2018, Bauhan Publishing) when you realize that you thought you understood what “property” meant, but in actuality, you didn’t.… Continue reading