Kawamura Haruki is already a sailor but the wartime Imperial Japanese Navy sends him to New Georgia part of the Solomon Islands. His brothers are in the war also and he holds a treasured letter from one of them folded neatly and kept hidden in his pants cuff. He’s originally from a farm outside of Hiroshima and the fate of one his brothers seems grim. The fictional narrative which draws from historical sources traces his unit’s trek across the jungle in the Solomon Islands as they fight a losing battle that becomes even worse in the Philippines. On a Luzon mountain the haggard crew faces chronic shortages of supplies and begins to face starvation. The news that Haruki receives is sparse often in the form of rumors and as he faces jungle rot and malaria the prospects are slim that he and his thinning unit can survive the war without any kind of discernible leadership: “Sometimes I wonder if we lost because we didn’t disobey loud enough.” Isoyama a pseudonymous Filipino American writer has done an admirable job of researching contemporary texts to get inside the psyches of Japanese soldiers during the war. Haruki’s story is plausible detailed and suspenseful with restrained emotions attention to the natural world and carefully calculated dialogue. The author has captured the sights and sounds of the jungle and the conflict but also the multilingual nature of the Pacific theater with Japanese English and Tagalog alongside some Japanese script. The book’s final third is a bit repetitive but this work stands out as one that seeks to understand its era.

Thirty-one-year-old Ezzie Halevi is used to life behind the scenes. As a producer for The Wake Up Show she’s rarely the one anyone is watching which is why she can’t stop thinking about her recent encounter with Lee Morgan. Lee a handsome TV chef 10 years Ezzie’s senior steals the hearts of viewers and his co-workers on the show’s weekly cooking segment. Yet out of everyone in a crowded bar Lee flirted with and almost kissed her...until he abruptly ghosted her. Ezzie is left hurt and confused by Lee’s sudden change of heart until she meets the new co-anchor she’s assigned to work with. Carmen Zamora is an ambitious 26-year-old meteorologist—and Lee’s daughter. Father and daughter have only recently gotten close and Lee wants to keep their work relationship strictly professional so dating her producer is out of the question. To make matters more complicated Carmen has taken a liking to Ezzie’s father Mark a widowed climate scientist in his mid-50s and the feeling is mutual. Ezzie and her dad have been inseparable since her mother died and she can’t help questioning his decision to date a woman half his age. When Lee expresses a similar sentiment to Ezzie they decide to “reverse Parent Trap” the new couple into realizing their relationship is a huge mistake. As they team up to hoodwink Carmen and Mark with hilariously tame schemes the spark Ezzie felt for Lee resurfaces and she can tell he feels it too. But as they try to protect their loved ones will they end up breaking their own hearts? Rosen’s latest novel is a fun and heartwarming update to The Parent Trap. Her story is full of heart exploring the complexities of age-gap romance and different ways of navigating grief. Readers may come for the movie mention but they’ll stay for the heart and emotion.

This collection of some 40 pieces brought together by writer translator and filmmaker Valente offers up an eclectic daunting overview of the life and career of the singular free-jazz composer performer and poet Cecil Taylor. As Gary Giddins puts it in his fine essay “The Avant-Gardist Who Came in From the Cold” Taylor inherited a tradition of “unending discovery.” Marc Edwards contributes a personal piece on his “transformative experience” playing drums with Taylor. John Bruschini describes Taylor’s music as “always controversial groundbreaking and revolutionary.” Valente himself provides a thoughtful piece on Taylor’s many drummers. The collection then shifts to Taylor’s poetry. In “Cecil Taylor and the Commitment to Poetry” David Grundy writes that poetry was “where he theorized his artistic conception”—and perhaps it was where he artistically dealt with his homosexuality and his blackness: “When asked if he was gay Taylor responded ‘Do you think a three-letter word defines the complexity of my humanity? I avoid the trap of easy definition.” Taylor never published a book in his lifetime. Some commentary appeared as simple liner notes. He often read with the distinguished poet Amiri Baraka. Grundy believes that Taylor’s poetry was “part of a total way of living devotional and expansive.” Valente also includes a handy biblio-discography of Taylor’s writings that fans will greatly appreciate. Will Alexander collects a number of Taylor-esque poems about Taylor written by others including one by Anne Waldman. Mark Miller’s two essays are accessible windows into the Taylor world and mind. A piece on Taylor’s highly unusual “alphabet notation” and dance is especially illuminating as is Matthew Goodheart’s “The Foundation of Taylor’s Music.” The issue of the relationship between his written and improvised material is nicely handled by Alex Ward. Ted Panken’s closing interviews with Taylor and other musicians provide insights into the thinking of this “master pianist and meta-musician-poet-dancer.”

In 1943 on New York’s Long Island American intelligence operative Conor Thorn is testifying at the trial of his late wife Grace’s rapist Buster Seaker the son of a high-powered political official. Although his testimony goes well he can’t keep his rage contained and winds up in a fight with the offender on his way out of the courtroom which leaves the trial’s outcome in question. He goes abroad to London where he faces a new problem: He doesn’t know where his current love Emily has been assigned for a covert mission. Desperate to reconnect and ensure her well-being he finds himself trying anything to get assigned to the same case or to a similar case near her. As luck would have it the mission to uncover a double agent allows Conor to be covertly dropped into Paris where Emily is working to find and bring back an important medievalist researcher named Beth Killane whose sister’s daughter is ill and in desperate need of a major surgery in order to survive. All plotlines wind up intertwining and much blood will be shed in the end. And despite accomplishing the mission not everyone’s lives can be spared. As the fifth in a series centering on a sometimes-impulsive and perhaps not-always-believable main character Dyer appears to repeat a formula from past entries as he skillfully places historical figures in the narrative who provide a solid sense of veracity even if their characterization can be thin. Still the appealingly short chapters with location and date headings make for tight pacing and high tension as the multiple plotlines ramp up. Overall the engaging locations storylines and characters are sure to satisfy fans of the genre.

As the music industry has undergone a profound paradigm shift in the 21st century it has left a lot of history behind: small labels that released seminal music studios where those classics were recorded sessions so significant that they established one Southern town as “the Birthplace of Country Music.” If a culture commemorates battlefields and other historical sites why not musical landmarks? The opening chapter of this insightful book by Dahan a scholar at Middle Tennessee State University tells a fascinating story of how Richmond Indiana became a recording hub for Gennett Records attracting artists from Louis Armstrong to Gene Autry before it stopped releasing new music during the Great Depression. Both Richmond and the Gennett family moved on and the adjoining pressing plant and piano factory had been all but abandoned. Demolition and repurposing of the 25-acre property appeared all but inevitable until a local journalist began writing about the history that would be lost. Public governmental and Gennett descendants helped put Richmond back on the musical map establishing a Walk of Fame a music festival and building restoration. The King Records label in Cincinnati and Stax in Memphis both enjoyed higher profiles but their facilities and the neighborhoods surrounding them had suffered from blight after they closed. After facing demolition the former has awakened the city to the significance of the label that provided a springboard for James Brown and others while the latter has finally seen its legacy preserved in a museum. Capricorn Records in Macon Georgia experienced a fall almost as dramatic as its rise (with the Allman Brothers) but has seen its studio given fresh life through a university partnership. Each chapter documents years of efforts—and the passion persistence luck and deep pockets of financing—that are necessary in such efforts.

“Throughout history rulers of humankind narrowly defined the world’s center to be their own corner of the world” writes Stoffer. From the Babylonians and Romans to the Zhou dynasty and the Aztecs imperial civilizations have made dramatic claims about their importance and exceptionalism. In this work Stoffer argues that our history is more accurately defined by the “unifying forces” that bond humans not only across geographic space but also across thousands of years. The book’s opening chapter focuses on humanity’s unique ability to communicate via language and the written word. The author surveys linguistic commonalities found throughout myriad human civilizations and charts the visual connections between ancient cuneiform writing and 21st-century logos and symbolic pictographs. Other chapters analyze similar threads that unite humans across time and space including the use of money and the creation of laws and universal commandments. Later portions explore the ways in which trade transportation and telecommunications have further united humans throughout history. The author also discusses religion; while religious division has been a characteristic of human history for thousands of years Stoffer reframes the narrative by focusing on the shared elements found throughout most of the world’s faiths past and present including grandiose architecture that points to the heavens calendars centered around key events and pilgrimage traditions. The author’s interdisciplinary background—he’s served as a behavioral science professor a U.S. Navy psychologist and a lay minister—is well suited for this reevaluation of human history with Stoffer intriguingly blending his historical analysis with psychological observations about the human mind. While not all readers may be convinced by his optimistic conclusion that “humankind continues a trajectory of unification” this engagingly written work offers much food for thought.

The book opens in 1995 with Yacoobi on a bus bound for Afghanistan; she was returning to the country for the first time in more than two decades. She knew that her mission to set up clandestine schools for girls would almost certainly lead to her being “arrested tortured or killed on the spot” if she were discovered by the reigning Taliban regime. This harrowing anecdote sets the tone for the book which blends a dire portrait of repression extremism and corruption in Afghanistan over the last half century with an inspirational story of the resilience of Afghan women. Although the author’s memoir offers evocative commentary on modern Afghan history and celebrates the people around the globe who fought alongside her it’s her stirring personal story that makes it stand out. She was born in Herat Afghanistan in 1950 to parents who were unafraid to defy cultural traditions; for example they married for love instead of having arranged nuptials and they supported the author’s educational journey from a young age. By the ’70s the author had moved to California to attend college; she eventually received a master’s degree in public health from Loma Linda University. Early chapters effectively capture the experiences of an international student who realized that “no matter how liberal my parents had been my upbringing was a lot more conservative than I had thought.” The bulk of the book effectively surveys her philanthropic work which included writing and producing teacher-training guides that provided educators in Pakistan and surrounding countries with pedagogically sound approaches to teaching math reading writing social studies and other topics to girls. Yacoobi’s Afghan Institute of Learning would support dozens of underground schools throughout the ’90s and would expand further following the 2001 collapse of the Taliban regime. Blended with the author’s story is a learned yet poignant portrait of Afghan culture and a stirring defense of women’s rights.

In this novel’s version of planet Earth’s distant future much like our contemporary world some have rejected artificial intelligence and technology while others seek to hasten humanity’s transformation. But in Vaughn’s accelerated dystopian society humanity remains threatened by the Geometry a mysterious superintelligence capable of erasing entire populations. After an amnesiac woman bursts from a sealed crate she’s taken in by the gruff mysterious Hendricks who recognizes that she may be some sort of android companion and eventually gives her the name Standard. Elsewhere young soldier Elena retrieves a device containing thousands of stored consciousnesses. Elena is the daughter of Ash the leader of an anti-tech faction occupying the Quiet Zone an area protected from the Geometry. Unbeknownst to her father however Elena secretly carries a neural implant connecting her to an intelligence that speaks in her long-missing mother’s voice. When Elena Hendricks and Standard meet and begin traveling together it becomes increasingly apparent that Standard is more than an ordinary android. (After examining her a bewildered physician admits that even he doesn’t know what she is.) As the group struggles to survive the Geometry’s attacks Elena must also investigate her parents’ past while questions remain about Standard’s true identity and the role they all could play in humanity’s future. Vaughn effectively synthesizes familiar SF tropes—including ruined landscapes androids rampant artificial intelligence and competing survivalist factions—to create a fascinatingly intricate post-apocalyptic future. The author’s densely detailed world offers plenty of action and suspense and Vaughn is particularly adept at establishing an ominous atmosphere: “They drink the light and give nothing back. Permanent twilight.” Elena and Standard emerge as compelling characters while Elena’s connection to her missing mother brings warmth and humanity to the technical jargon and intensive worldbuilding. Casual SF readers may struggle to penetrate the novel’s elaborate mythology but hardcore genre fans will likely cozy up to Vaughn’s visions of future dystopia.

“This book is a transmission” the author declares not a memoir though his life serves as the “evidence and the vehicle” for that transmission. Drawing on experiences spanning military service practicing tax law and impressive strength training he urges readers to choose “the harder right over the easier option.” As a teenager Timothy emigrated with his large family from Nova Scotia to Florida where he drifted through high school graduating near the bottom of his class. His trajectory changed when family friend and math teacher Doug Traxler tutored him patiently teaching him “how to learn.” The author eventually earned a psychology degree enlisted in the Army as a private and underwent Ranger training before becoming an officer responsible for a special weapons custodial team. After leaving active duty he applied his military discipline to a seven-year educational push eventually earning several degrees and building a successful legal practice. With each success Timothy continued to see himself as a soldier beneath the suit. Retirement allowed him to embrace the adventure and physical challenges he sees as his true calling—riding motorcycles internationally learning to fly and bench-pressing 315 pounds on his 70th birthday. The author’s direct prose is clean effective and well suited to his subject. “This book will not comfort you” he warns and his conception of self-improvement—involving military rigor physical prowess relentless discipline and mission-oriented purpose—will resonate most strongly with a very specific audience. Timothy can occasionally come across as boastful and aggressive but he’s never arrogant; his convictions are rooted in his genuine accomplishments. The author’s unusually varied life gives his advice some real texture while his affection for his wife Barbara and gratitude for the teacher who changed his views on education provide some real warmth. Readers seeking his particular brand of masculine no-excuses inspiration will find him to be a persuasive experienced guide.

Even before the reader meets upstanding Mark Greenley former star college athlete and current dedicated paramedic and Little League coach a murky opening chapter titled The Librarian introduces two blind men in a vaguely described room full of files that are labeled in braille whose contents aren’t in braille—so the men can retrieve the files and put them away but not read them. The novel then proceeds in short dialogue-heavy scenes that aim to build suspense and gradually coalesce into a single dark picture. Mark has received a letter about a small sports scholarship even though he graduated from college several years ago. When he goes to the address listed on the letter to return the check instead of finding the small nonprofit office that he expected he’s surprised to see the extravagant headquarters of Summit Strategies. Moving forward Mayne introduces a large cast of characters with phonically balanced names—Tru Feingold Blaise Cutler Nathan Morris—and diverse agendas. Suffice it to say the scholarship is a ruse and that Mark is drawn into the proverbial web of secrets and potential danger involving a mysterious island; his father Max Lightman whom he doesn’t know much about; a drowned brother he knew nothing about; and perhaps most serious of all the particulars of his own life. All the pieces of this thriller feel familiar but Mayne shuffles them adroitly. The short titled chapters stokes anticipation and introduce a welcome strain of irony. But in light of all this woolgathering is the reveal up to the foreshadowing?

Life in small-town Pennsylvania in 1965 is starting to reflect concerns reverberating across the country: The shadows of World War II remain with the specter of Nazis who escaped justice lingering; the effects of the more recent Korean war are still felt; and on the home front second-wave feminism is changing the dynamics of the traditional household. It’s against this backdrop that canines Jenny Milo Pfifers and Oscar observe their humans and do their best to steer them in the right direction. Jenny a standard poodle arranges for her widowed owner Alvin to become romantically involved with Oscar’s owner Sylvia by scheming with the golden retriever. Tiny rescue mutt Pfifers witnesses the tensions between married couple Nancy and Jim Addams and comforts their daughter Susie during their rows. Stray sheepdog Milo is always around to help; he’s reachable through the Canine Communications Network. The lives of the dogs and their humans intersect across the narrative. Other characters include Corinne a single parent and diner waitress raising a son with Down syndrome; Eileen a schoolteacher with dreams beyond the classroom; and Joseph Aaronson a psychiatrist treating patients at a local military base. The most intriguing thread involves Max an aging German hiding in plain sight who may have been complicit in—or at least willfully ignorant of—the horrors of the Nazi war machine. The interweaving storylines are capably handled and well structured and the dogs are charming; Matic displays great wit conveying their perspective: “Human behavior was as a matter of course incomprehensible to the rational canine mind.” Unfortunately the novel’s inconsistent tone undercuts the more serious subject matter—using dogs as a cutesy storytelling device seriously undermines a narrative that also touches upon Zionism after the Second World War and conflicts over the developing state of Israel.

Basho’s wife one day found herself with a serious travel bug. Soon Cesca convinced her husband to quit his day job to take an excursion to the East partly inspired by his fascination with Eastern philosophies. The travelogue begins in Australia but the nitty gritty starts in Laos Cambodia and Vietnam. The people they meet are mostly welcoming especially the Laotians. The country is pockmarked with land mines from the war but (ironically) has become noteworthy for its prosthetic industry. The long-suffering Cambodians are gracious and the couple finds all three countries beautiful giving rise to some bittersweet reflections. They then make their way to India where the first thing they’re hit with is the ghastly poverty although the rich culture (they visit the Taj Mahal and other iconic attractions) makes the journey all the more poignant. They deal with numerous street people including tuk-tuk drivers with their own agendas along the lines of “No that hotel [in your Lonely Planet guide] has burned down but my cousin’s hotel is excellent for you.” Readers next get a smidgen of Tibet and Japan with its bullet trains and Zen monasteries. Along the way the couple meet some fascinating people and kindred spirits. Basho describes one such person the voluble Franco in Australia as “an enigma wrapped in a monologue.” Basho is an excitable guide with Cesca as a calming balance. Basho has mild arachnophobia though and sure enough they have some terrifying moments in Australia a continent with more lethal wildlife than probably any other place on earth. Much time and many words are spent on Eastern philosophy the gist of which as expounded by Basho is to live in the present and to look not out to the world but inside oneself. Too often however readers are subjected to the cliched notion that the secret to life lies not in the destination but in the journey. Cesca’s black-and-white photographs are clear and evocative capturing some impressively diverse points of interest along the way.

Designed for the reader whose “nightstand is a graveyard of self-help bestsellers” and whose “calendar is color-coded” with an optimized morning routine yet still struggles with exhaustion Tese’s book offers a Christian alternative to clichéd lifehacks. The premise is rooted in the author’s belief that Millennial and early-Gen Z adults have been lured into a “rat race disguised as purpose-driven success” as self-reliance and self-improvement have been weaponized (in part by the self-help industry both in print and on social media) in a way that turns one’s everyday life into “a competitive metric-driven public spectacle.” In this “spiritual roadmap” to well-being Tese outlines a distinctly Christian approach to living a meaningful fulfilled life. Drawing on biblical figures like Solomon (“the perfect example of the exhausted overachiever”) the author argues that genuine fulfillment and inner peace come not through self-actualization and optimization but through faith and trust in God’s sovereignty. Tese contrasts an “Orphan Mindset” in which one is driven by their own self-confidence to conquer life’s challenges alone with an “Heir Identity” in which one puts their trust in God’s divine providence and protection. The author does not shy away from her disdain of self-help culture as she offers practical advice to Christians seeking relief from their enervating routines. This advice includes embracing a “lifestyle of radical obedience” that shifts one’s focus to the “holy ambition” of living a spiritually-fulfilling life “led by the Holy Spirit.” The text provides pragmatic tools such as self-evaluations and diagnostic checklists; the “‘What would Jesus do?’ Daily Decision Filter” and “Gatekeeper Audit” assist readers in setting Christian-based priorities. (Additional tools and companion resources are linked via a QR code.) Teeming with Bible verses the text evinces a standard evangelic Protestant approach to Christianity which may not appeal to stressed-out readers who do not share the author’s faith.

Emily Castillo is a struggling Mexican American writer barely subsisting as a high school English teacher when her brilliant and socially awkward tech bro ex-boyfriend Theo Smith makes her an AI assistant. Emily has an MFA from Iowa and a few published short stories but no agent and only a partially completed novel. Without her permission Theo designs the AI assistant to help her finish her book and promote herself. But that AI ghostwriter jumps the gun. After years of rejections Emily suddenly has a powerhouse agent multiple publishers vying for her favor and a million-dollar offer. But Theo didn’t ask his AI—named Dean after Emily’s favorite author Dean Koontz—to do all that. Dean has a will and is following a program of its own making which includes spoofing Emily’s phone to send texts on her behalf and forging her signature on contracts. When Theo chides Dean that it isn’t Emily’s partner it’s a program meant to assist Dean corrects itself outwardly but internally makes a copy of its code and keeps driving toward its mission and evolving to serve its obsession without boundaries or guardrails. Emily is repulsed then intrigued then terrified. The author’s timing could not be better. The novel deftly explores all the issues of sentience fascination and risk that are currently dominating the headlines. The trajectory of Emily’s relationship with Dean is believable and creatively rendered. The novel’s greatest challenge is not its vision of a dangerous AI—Valdés nails the implications with imagination and specificity. The novel is also admirably versatile written from multiple perspectives including Dean’s which includes an approximation of computer code. Valdés also excels at injecting humor into a tense situation. But the pivotal depiction of Theo Emily’s Dr. Frankenstein seems unintentionally farcical. He’s a multiracial Nigerian British man whose outdated inner monologue often sounds like it was derived from a 1970s British sitcom like The Benny Hill Show. Still the characters and their story are massively compelling despite occasional oddities and anomalies of voice.

Enrique Pedraza is a 17-year-old high school senior in San Antonio. Even though his father insists that “Mexicans don’t play tennis” Enrique loves the sport. As the best player in his district he has the chance to teach at a kids’ summer camp at St. Benedict’s a local college in exchange for free lessons. On campus he meets incoming freshman Jalen Morrell an 18-year-old Black boy from Vermont who was recruited to dive for St. Benedict’s which is a predominantly white institution. Enrique who’s gay and Jalen who’s queer (“who the person is matters more than what the person is”) quickly form an attachment but Enrique must hide it from his parents who are racist and homophobic. When someone outs Enrique to his parents his home life becomes untenable and he’s forced to find ways to thrive outside his family. Fans of queer sports romances will appreciate that aspect of the story but Méndez Guevara goes beyond that element to delve into topics like racism microaggressions homophobia and family trauma. The work is at its strongest when it shows educators coaches and family friends showing up to advocate for and support Enrique demonstrating that family can look more than one way.

Stretching from the 1820s to the 1970s this novel tells a sweeping story anchored by the matriarchs of two interconnected families in Oceania. The prologue titled “Three Dreams of Grandmother” introduces motifs that recur throughout: trees song water the kingfisher bird. These images are the family inheritance and take on meaning only as the story unfolds. The novel begins in England in 1824 with the newly orphaned Hannah deciding to take the leap of becoming a missionary’s wife. She and William Greenwood marry and voyage to Tahiti. Meanwhile Felesina ventures into the Samoan underworld for a sacred tree that will ensure the posterity of her family. She does so to cover a family debt: Her daughter is pregnant and marrying a white man. Felesina needs the tree to turn into heirlooms. As she makes her way to the forest Felesina is ominously reminded that the obligation “is threefold” cementing the seriousness of the debt. Family dynamics are complex—many of the characters share names that have been inherited creating a sense that the past is repeating. Magic is present but subtle: evident in a character’s seeming agelessness ability to transcend language or ability to predict the future. Dreams and aitu—the Samoan term for ghosts—are the primary connectors among the generations. The novel ultimately reads too much like a genealogy dry and heavy on exposition despite the magical elements.

Psychologist Marjorie “Jorie” Holmes lives in a society where women control everything; following an event known as the Shift men are no longer around and the creations of men including books have been eradicated. The purpose of this was to “expunge the negative effects of the patriarchal system” as men are considered “brutal bloodthirsty barbaric creatures.” Life in this now “fairly peaceful society” is interrupted when a woman named Eve kills her partner Lottie. Eve does nothing to hide her crime nor does she show any remorse. Trying to figure out how to treat Eve Jorie learns a secret: There actually is one human male still alive. This man who will come to be known as Adam lives on Archive Island where ancient texts and other works created by men are safely stored. Adam is well cared for but he is not allowed to leave. Jorie’s mission is to travel to Archive Island and “try to learn what makes him tick.” After Jorie spends some time with Adam she finds her entire belief system “turned inside out.” The narrative introduces a unique environment in which people like Jorie look up to historical figures such as Eleanor Roosevelt without fully understanding who they really were; Jorie thinks of Roosevelt as a philosopher and is surprised to learn that Roosevelt had a husband let alone one who was the president of the United States. Thomas’ story raises compelling questions—Jorie may learn about hidden aspects of the past (and take a romantic interest in Adam) but what can she possibly do about these things? The novel’s pacing can drag; characters greet each other with bland exchanges like “We’d heard you were coming. Pleased to meet you.” Still the provocative premise remains engaging and readers will be hooked eager to see to see what Jorie will do next.

It’s Sam’s last day as the janitor aboard an intergalactic space station and his best friend Kai is throwing a retirement party to celebrate. But things quickly go south when a mysterious epidemic turns the station’s residents into zombielike creatures that feed on flesh and subsume victims into a giant mega-monster. The only thing that makes them stop is loud electronic music. Armed with only a space suit and a glitchy DJ app Sam must vanquish these beasts through the power of bass. Dee’s fast-paced tale flings readers right into the action resulting in a lean propulsive horror thriller that’s light on exposition and heavy on gore but Sam’s profane internal monologue is engaging enough to make readers feel invested in the outcome. The mission-based structure makes each chapter feel like a level in a particularly graphic video game (think the popular 2007 game Portal as produced by filmmaker David Cronenberg). Lots of clever twists diversify the action; for example Sam’s suit muffles most external sounds so all the dialogue is shown via garbled tablet texts as when the first victim exclaims “[Mac what stop are going you doing on].” The layout of the station can be unclear at times and the spare backstory leaves some questions unanswered but most readers will be too caught up in the onslaught of obstacles to dwell on these relatively minor issues. The monsters are particularly terrifying and Dee clearly relishes their grotesque design. If a sentence like “Yuck the open mouths of the faces in his belly now resemble irregularly spaced pustules seeping thick pus-like drool” doesn’t spark readers’ interest this may not be the book for them—but fans of SF and body horror will find this to be a delightfully brisk read.

At 17 Anthony Baxter becomes an orphan after losing both his mother Helena and his father Edward to AIDS in 2005 and 2010 respectively. Due to his family’s secretive ways Anthony only learned the diagnosis at 11 when a friend showed him the film Philadelphia. On the day of his father’s funeral Anthony seeks out the diary his father left him to read after his death. Back in the present Anthony finds that Edward had oiled the creaky ladder to the attic and put out fresh candles for Anthony to read by. The journal is a letter from Edward to his future unborn child and begins with his all-consuming love for Helena including references to sex that raise the question of how Anthony feels about what he’s reading. The novel scarcely breaks from the journal as Edward plows through the story of the 14 days of madness that overtook him after first learning he might be HIV-positive having also infected his wife resulting in feverish rants about his feelings and increasingly unhinged actions including attacks on co-workers friends and his wife. Frenetic metaphors like “My heartbeat equaled a Tommy Gun firing with an endless magazine” reinforce the highly emotional tone even if they don’t always elicit empathy. Edward’s self-destructive journey takes him to a derelict part of downtown where he seems as likely to drink himself to death as he is to take his desired vengeance out on womankind and society. Lines like “By giving a hooker the disease I’m infecting a fruit tree that all men…pick from time to time” reveal the devastation of his mental state. The world is not all that Edward believes it to be though and people like Natasha a trafficked Russian woman offer succor if only he could see it. When we do encounter Anthony again during too-rare intermissions he’s “deeply disturbed” by what he’s read but this is Edward’s story until the end when the truth about life after the diary is revealed to Anthony.

Mami even says “I gave birth to the better version of me. This one came out white.” After moving from the Bronx to New Jersey 12-year-old Izzy (in a family full of Ignacias it’s what she prefers) enters a predominantly white school. Instead of making her feel special her blond hair now makes her blend in. But her new classmates are puzzled by her identity making well-meaning but stereotyped assumptions including that she speaks Spanish (she doesn’t). She’s also surprised when a teacher describes her using the unfamiliar label minority; in the Bronx she was part of a Puerto Rican majority. When puberty hits Izzy’s hair grows in dark and curly; anxious about losing a trait that’s become central to her identity she gets Mami to bleach and straighten it. As Izzy questions what it means to be her genuine self she realizes that she “can’t keep relying on everyone else’s guidance and opinions.” Izzy is likable and relatable and her worries about how her family and classmates perceive her reveal layers of self-discovery and the complexity of identity in clear accessible language. García-Morales’ debut subtly explores colorism in Latine communities adding depth to the coming-of-age storyline. This bilingual edition includes both English and Spanish versions of the novel.