Rosh's Reviews

AUTHOR & NARRATOR: Ron Marasco GENRE: Historical Fiction PUBLICATION DATE: January 31, 2017 RATING: 3.5 stars. In a Nutshell: A historical fiction set against the background of Jesus’ final days. Narrated from a dog’s perspective. The dog is adorable; the secondary characters are good. The story is easy in flow and not overly preachy. The writing is anachronous, so the historical feel gets diluted. Jesus doesn’t have an active role in this story, so don’t expect a story focussing on Him. Recommended as long as you can ignore the modernisms. Plot Preview: Seven-year-old Barley is a happy dog, enjoying life with his caring owners – a woodcarver Duv and his wife Ada. However, after life changes in a shocking way, Barley finds himself with a new master – Samid, a homeless man who indulges in petty crimes. From both owners and from the events unfurling around him connected to someone called the teacher, Barley learns the meaning of true love and forgiveness. The story comes to us in Bar...

AUTHOR: Katya Balen GENRE: Contemporary Literary Fiction PUBLICATION DATE: February 17, 2026 RATING: 3.75 stars. In a Nutshell: A contemporary literary fiction. Children's author Katya Balen's first adult fiction novel. Beautiful lyrical prose, melancholic plot, morbid lead character. Not an easy read as it's raw in its pain. A good option for those who like dark emotional stories and poetic writing. Major triggers for personal loss. Plot Preview: Anna, an author in her late thirties, has struggled to pen her second novel after a tragedy. Pressured by her deadline, she leaves London and goes to a remote cottage in rural England with no connectivity, hoping to find some inspiration. But in the marshes, an old secret resurfaces. Anna finds herself irresistibly drawn to that site, almost to the point of obsession. Can the past help Anna heal her present? The story comes to us in Anna's first-person perspective. PSA: Go in blind. The blurb is really accurate and tight-lipp...

AUTHOR: Erica Bauermeister GENRE: Contemporary Fiction. PUBLICATION DATE: May 2, 2023 RATING: 4.5 stars. In a Nutshell: A contemporary composite novel. One plot comprising multiple short stories. Character-oriented. Poignant, mellow, touching. An ode to books and everything bookish. After a long time, I had a soul-satisfying read. Definitely recommended. Plot Preview: 2010. Maine. Twenty-five-year-old Alice has always wanted to be a writer. But as she is inching towards her dream, a family tragedy throws her off her charted course. Her college professor encourages her to pour her emotions into writing. The result is a book that ends up finding its way to multiple people, and in many cases, altering at least a part of their lives directly or indirectly. This is a composite novel, where each chapter comes to us from a specific character’s point of view. We thus get nine stories written in the third-person perspective of various individuals, with the epilogue coming a full circle. One of ...

AUTHOR: Neil Sharpson ILLUSTRATOR: Dan Santat GENRE: Children's Picture Book PUBLICATION DATE: April 8, 2025 RATING: 4.25 stars. In a Nutshell: A hilarious picture book that comes with a strong warning: DON’T TRUST FISH! Comic and absurd all the way. Very clever too, though this might be appreciated more by adults. Not a book for those who want messages or morals but for those who want to laugh out loud. Much recommended. This is the debut picture book of Irish playwright and blogger Neil Sharpson. He seems to have made great use of his experience with theatre to amp up the drama in this humorous book. There’s no plot as such. The book has a bland start akin to a nature guide: offering information on how to recognise animals. It was so matter-of-fact that I wondered what its connection was with the title. And then came the fish and the vehement warnings! 😂 With several well-reasoned arguments, the narrator aims to convince us that we should NOT trust fish. I don’t want to get into...

AUTHOR: Vashti Harrison GENRE: Children's Picture Book PUBLICATION DATE: May 2, 2023 RATING: 4.5 stars In a Nutshell: An amazing picture book about the impact of words and the importance of self-acceptance. Amazing story, outstanding message, fabulous illustrations. Simple words but extraordinary impact. Much recommended. Plot Preview: A little girl was always praised for being big, but as she grows older, she realises ‘big’ isn't always a compliment. Having the bigger built affects many things in her life, and the constant comments from others about her bigness affects her mental health. But one day, after many tears, she understands how she can tackle the hurt. I absolutely loved this book! From the cover art, I could guess that it was a story about a plus-sized little girl, but I sure didn’t expect the topic to be handled so beautifully. Her journey from confidence to reluctance to dismay to action is penned so well! My favourite part of the story is that she never considers...

AUTHOR & NARRATOR: Bonnie Solomon SERIES: Pearly Gates, #2 GENRE: Fantasy PUBLICATION DATE: March 24, 2026 RATING: 3.5 stars. In a Nutshell: A contemporary fantasy combining the spirit world with the human world. Several returning characters, several new ones. Similar to the earlier book in plot structure, but somehow not as dramatic. The social commentary is a bit heavyhanded. The second book in the Pearly Gates series, and better if read in series order. Recommended to Pearly fans. Plot Preview: Pearly is now set in her role as a spirit guide, even though her new supervisor Mildreth disagrees. She has three new charges to take care of: sixty-five-year-old Lillian – a retired lawyer who's perennially grumpy after life dealt her a hard blow, seventy-year-old George – a friendly man who's worried about his closeted grandson, and twenty-five-year-old Raina – a product manager who can't figure out why she isn't inclined towards love and romance the way others are. In ...

AUTHOR: Lucy Barker GENRE: Historical Fiction PUBLICATION DATE: June 13, 2023 RATING: 3.5 stars In a Nutshell: A historical fiction about the rivalry between two mediums. Interesting characters. Excellent look at the prevalent obsession with spiritualism and seances in 1870s England. Great atmosphere. Slow pacing. Somewhat predictable plot. Goes a bit downhill in the second half. Inspired by real events. A good debut that could have been better but still entertains. Plot Preview: 1873. England. Mrs. Violet Wood, who is in her late thirties, is the most successful medium in London at present. Ambitious and diligent, she does her best to ensure that her patrons get the complete experience from her seances. She is aware of the fickleness of their nature, always wanting something newer and more exciting. Moreover, a newspaperman who specialises in spiritualist content is out to expose all fake mediums in order to retain the sanctity of spiritualism. This, combined with her increasing age ...

AUTHOR: Jared Chapman GENRE: Children's Picture Book PUBLICATION DATE: September 5, 2023 RATING: 3.5 stars. In a Nutshell: A picture book explaining the food cycle in the wild to kids. Clever and funny, though obviously farfetched in its premise and a bit flawed in some aspects. Will work better with adult discussion. Recommended. Plot Preview: Little Lorelei loves seals and all facts about them, but her favourite fact is that seals and penguins are BFFs. She loves imagining the wonderful things the besties might do together. But while making a presentation on this topic in class, a new exchange student, who happens to be a penguin, declares, “Seals are jerks!” Lorelei obviously gets angry at her favourite animals being called jerks, but Penguin refuses to budge from his stance. He says that seals eat penguins, but Lorelei knows he is lying. To check the truth, they fly all the way to Antarctica so that Lorelei can prove Penguin wrong. But the confrontation doesn’t go as Lorelei e...

AUTHOR: Audrey Perrott ILLUSTRATOR: Ross Burach GENRE: Children's Picture Book PUBLICATION DATE: April 16, 2024 RATING: 3.75 stars. A funny picture book about true friendship and acceptance. Milton the bull cannot help but bawl. Whether he is happy or sad or frustrated or angry, tears stream out from his eyes and he goes “Moo Hoo Hoo”, because of which all the other animals call him Moo Hoo. Milton tries changing but nothing works. Until a sheep named Wanda enters his life and teaches him the valuable lesson: it is okay to be yourself. This is a silly yet sweet story. Given the exaggerated crying, it is obviously not one to be read from the head. There’s no depth to the story, but it offers plenty of entertainment. I wasn’t happy with one particular decision taken by Milton, but thankfully, he came to his senses soon enough. What I liked better than the plot are the myriad puns scattered in the text as well as the illustrations! Some puns might be a bit too difficult for young rea...

AUTHOR: Kallie George ILLUSTRATOR: Geneviève Godbout GENRE: Children's Picture Book PUBLICATION DATE: May 12, 2020 RATING: 2.5 stars. In a Nutshell: A picture book about the Anne most readers know. Might work better for adults than kids. This is a story about a little girl with a big imagination, who wonders what she would do if she weren’t Anne, i.e. Anne with an E. As a picture book, it shows little readers a young girl who soars as high as she can in her imaginary world, but comes to the eventual conclusion that some things are better in reality. But to adult readers, it shows Anne Shirley from Anne of Green Gables. Those familiar with L.M.M. Montgomery’s classic will catch many Easter eggs in this version, such as the reference to Cordelia or the comparison between green hair and red hair or even the oft-repeated phrase ‘Anne with an E’. I appreciate how this story stays true to the original characterisation of Anne. At the same time, I am confused about its intent behind usin...

AUTHOR: Dennis Lehane GENRE: Historical Fiction PUBLICATION DATE: April 25, 2023 RATING: 4.25 stars. In a Nutshell: A historical fiction novel showing the interplay of race and revenge. Set against true events. Flawed characters, somewhat offbeat writing style, steady pacing. Thought-provoking. A stark, true-to-life portrayal of racism. Definitely recommended. Go in blind. Plot Preview: 1974. Mary Pat Fenessey has always lived in “Southie”, the Irish-American enclave in Boston that sticks to traditions. Things are currently heated up in the locality, not just because of the unusually hot summer but also because of the city’s decision to desegregate its public schools. One night, Mary Pat’s teenaged daughter Jules doesn’t return home. The same night, a young Black man is found dead, struck by the subway train. Two events that are unconnected, and yet change Mary Pat’s life forever. The story comes to us in the third-person perspective of Mary Pat and a couple of other key characters. A...

AUTHOR: Daven McQueen GENRE: YA Historical Fiction PUBLICATION DATE: June 16, 2020 RATING: 4.75 stars. In a Nutshell: A coming-of-age Historical fiction with the themes of friendship and racism. Excellent depiction of historical attitudes, great setting, fabulous characters, amazing plot. I can't believe this was originally a Wattpad story! What a marvellous debut! One of my top favourite reads of 2026. Much recommended. Plot Preview: 1955. After fourteen-year-old Ethan, a biracial boy raised mostly by his white father, gets into a fight at school, his father decides to send him to Ellison (Alabama) to spend the summer with his aunt and uncle. However, as the only Black person in Ellison, Ethan’s race stands out much strongly in the conservative town, whose residents make it clear that Ethan isn't welcome. The only exception is Juniper Jones, a young white girl with a free spirit. She welcomes Ethan as her friend, and together, begins to plan an “invincible summer”. As Ethan ex...

AUTHOR: Ashley Elston GENRE: Mystery-Thriller PUBLICATION DATE: January 13, 2026 RATING: 3.5 stars In a Nutshell: A mystery-thriller built around what comprises an alibi. Fast-paced but convoluted plot, plenty of twists, somewhat flat characters. Gripping enough for the most part but the final resolution is a disappointment. Recommended to thriller fans. Plot Preview: Camille Bayliss lives a charmed life at least on the surface. But she is desperate to find proof that will help her become free of her marriage to Ben. She believes she has made the perfect plan when she ropes in Aubrey Price to dress up as Camille and roam around town for twelve hours while Camille focusses on her agenda of finding the truth about Ben. Except that Ben turns up murdered the next morning. Both Camille and Aubrey need a good alibi, but only one of them has it. The story comes to us mostly in the first-person perspectives of Aubrey, Camille, and Hank – Ben’s business partner at his law firm. I had enjoyed th...

AUTHOR: Patrick Horvath SERIES: Beneath the Trees Compilation #2 GENRE: Horror Graphic Novel PUBLICATION DATE: July 21, 2026 RATING: 4 stars. In a Nutshell: A sequel to the acclaimed horror graphic comic series. Excellent plot and character development, though both might be difficult to gauge for readers who pick up this book without reading the earlier one. Even darker than the first, but thankfully, not more gory. A great continuation, but not for those looking for justifications or closure. Has potential for a sequel. Must be read in series order. Recommended! Plot Preview: Many years after the horrifying events that plagued the small town of Woodbrook, Samantha Strong, now popular as the local hero who saved the townsfolk from a serial killer, still runs her shop. In the nearby city, Monica Brewer has spent the same period looking for information about her missing brother who vanished eight years ago without a trace. When she receives an anonymous tip with his possible location, sh...

AUTHOR: Ben Reeves GENRE: Literary Fiction, Magical Realism. PUBLICATION DATE: July 7, 2026 RATING: 4.5 stars. In a Nutshell: A literary fiction work focusing on life and death and all in between. Everything in the book is beautiful, but also hurts. Interesting variety of characters, plenty of wisdom and quotable quotes, lyrical writing. The shifts in grammatical voice can get disconcerting at times. But the mellow, introspective narrative is great for the right mood. A commendable debut. Definitely recommended! Plot Preview: Death’s current identity is ‘Travis’. He lives as a modern young man in a small town, and does his job well: the job of offering some solace to the dying in their final hours on Earth. He always stays detached from the living humans around him so that he can do his job without being affected. But when his next-door neighbours – midwife Dalia and her daughters eight-year-old Layla and infant Neda – become more frequent in his *life*, Travis gets a taste of the bond...