Latest Reviews

Home/Latest Reviews

You Have Been Chosen

Title: You Have Been Chosen: The Identity of an Adopted Child
Author: Mary Nyambura Muchiri
Publisher: Toplink Publishing
Pages: 128
Genre: Memoir/ Christian
ISBN: 978-1946801395
Reviewed by: Ella Vincent

Hollywood Book Reviews

Awarded to books of excellent Merit

You Have Been Chosen: The Identity of an Adopted Child is an inspiring and heartfelt look at adoption through the eyes

For Beau

Title: For Beau: The Sarah Ashdown Story
Author: Simon Gandossi
Publisher: Xlibris
ISBN: 9781524519889
Pages: 435
Genre: Historical Fiction
Reviewed By: Anita Lock

Pacific Book Review

It is September 7, 2009, sixty-nine years since the Blitz—Hitler’s sustained aerial bombing campaign against Britain during the Battle of Britain (WWII). The date may seem inconsequential to many, except to those who lived through that horrific period. One person who remembers is Sarah Ashdown. Now elderly and fragile, Sarah meets with journalist Daniel Warwick

Poor No More – An American Dream

Title: Poor No More: An American Dream
Author: Steven Bentley, MD
Publisher: iUniverse
ISBN: 978-1-5320-1161-1
Pages: 196
Genre: Memoir
Reviewed by: Barbara Bamberger Scott

 

Hollywood Book Reviews

Despite a deprived, dysfunctional upbringing, author Steven Bentley realized his dream to rise to personal and professional fulfillment as chromized in Poor No More – An American Dream. One of Bentley’s early memories is of his alcoholic mother, divorced and desperate, taking her five children to church, getting “saved,” appealing for assistance for her

Trail of the Sasquatch, a shaman’s journey

Title: Trail of the Sasquatch, a shaman’s journey
Author: Donald B. Young, Jr.
Publisher: AuthorHouse
ISBN: 978-1504986151
Pages: 370
Genre: Non-Fiction
Reviewed By: Susan Milan

Hollywood Book Reviews

Awarded to books of excellent Merit

In Trail of the Sasquatch, a shaman’s journey, Donald B. Young, Jr. chronicles his quest to fulfill his destiny as a holy man. In addition,

Let’s Make Our World Better

Title: Let’s Make Our World Better: How Politics and Religion Stand in the Way
Author: Warren William Luce
Publisher: Green Ivy Publishing
ISBN: 979-1-946043-92-4
Pages: 253
Genre: Politics /Philosophy/Religion
Reviewed by: Ella Vincent

Hollywood Book Reviews

“Let’s Make Our World Better” is a thought-provoking look at how to improve politics. Warren William Luce offers some common sense solutions to bring together a divided nation.

Luce is a World War II veteran who has years of experience in world affairs. His

How Smoking Quit Me

Title: How Smoking Quit Me
Author: James J. McGill
Publisher: Venture Publishing LLC
ISBN: 978-1-946955-94-4
Pages: 52
Genre: Non-Fiction / Education
Reviewed by: Lisa Brown-Gilbert

Hollywood Book Reviews

Breaking the addiction to smoking is never an easy task. There are so many excuses for not quitting while conversely, there are just as many justifications to quit. However, whereas some may quit successfully boasting of awe-inspiring feats of willpower others may find that they remain stuck in a continual fluctuation struggling to

The Noble Rebellion

Title: The Noble Rebellion
Author: Joshua G. Fensterstock
Publisher: Outskirts Press
ISBN: 978-1-4327-7661-9
Pages: 432
Genre: Thriller

Reviewed by: John Murray

Hollywood Book Reviews

As Shakespeare once wrote, “Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them.” For those that are born great or achieve greatness, their future is fairly clear. They’ve worked hard or have been prepared for that path. The most interesting one is the person whom greatness is thrust upon. What do they

The Other La Bohème

Title: The Other La Bohème
Author: Yorker Keith
Publisher: Bookbaby
ISBN: 9781483591995
Pages: 366
Genre: Literary Fiction

Reviewed by: Susan Brown

Hollywood Book Reviews

Awarded to books of excellent Merit

Sing on! That’s the rallying cry of four friends, all of whom are struggling opera singers trying to make a living in the competitive environment

Nightmare in the Limbo of Halloween

Title: Nightmare in the Limbo of Halloween
Author: Behzad Almasi
Publisher: Authorhouse
ISBN: 978-1-50493-484-8
Pages: 246
Genre: Fiction

Reviewed by: Dan MacIntosh

Hollywood Book Review

Behzad Almasi’s fantastic book, Nightmare in the Limbo of Halloween, was said to have taken eight years to write. It certainly does have an epic feel to the book. It’s much like an Albert Camus philosophical story, in that our main character is thrown into a world where much does not make sense

To Never Know

Title: To Never Know
Author: Thomas Duffy
Publisher: CreateSpace
ISBN: 9781536898385
Pages: 206
Genre: Fiction

Reviewed by: Barbara Bamberger Scott

Hollywood Book Reviews

To Never Know by author Thomas Duffy is the story of love lost, found and lost again, as a young man is trying to break free from his troubled past.

When we first encounter Steve Lewis, he is a senior in high school in New York City. He is a bit shy, lacking in confidence even though

Wall Street Kitchen

Title: Wall Street Kitchen: The Recipe Behind a Housewife’s 1000% Stock Return
Author: Victor Chiu
Publisher: TBA
ISBN: 9780994911506
Pages: 244
Genre: Business – Investing /Self Help

Reviewed by: Lisa Brown-Gilbert

Hollywood Book Reviews

Awarded to books of excellent Merit

Ordinarily, success investing in the stock market, for the average person may seem to be well out of reach. Moreover, many people foster the belief that without a cache of

Heartbreaker

Title: Heartbreaker
Author:  Thomas Duffy
Publisher: CreateSpace
ISBN: 978-1517416539
Pages: 183
Genre: Fiction-Thriller

Reviewed by: CC Thomas

Hollywood Book Reviews

Amber Robertson is one red-hot mess, from beginning to end. Amber is a 19-year-old who has just moved to New York City in order to make more out of her life. Without much of a plan, she moves in with a friend and then scrambles wildly trying to make the rent money. The Big Apple is too much of a big

Deborah Rising

Title: Deborah Rising
Author: Avraham Azrieli
ISBN: 978-0062563552
Publisher: Harper Legend
Pages: 269
Genre: Historical Fiction

Reviewed by: Michelle Robertson

  Author’s Website

Hollywood Book Reviews

Deborah, from the young age of 13, was no stranger to hardship and remorse. She was an orphan and witnessed a great injustice done to her own sister; by the very man who decided to betrothal her. The very same man who once married her own sister had her put to death by stoning. She

The Count of Monte Cristo as Retold by Sherlock Holmes

Title: The Count of Monte Cristo as Retold by Sherlock Holmes
Author: Holy Ghost Writer
Publisher: Illuminated Publications
ISBN: 1490927301
Pages: 564
Genre: Fiction

Reviewed by: Russell D. James Author’s Website

Hollywood Book Reviews

The Count of Monte Cristo Retold by Sherlock Holmes is a long book that offers a good story in a new
voice with some clever dialogue interjected. As the title suggests, Sherlock Holmes re-tells a story
made famous by Alexander Dumas. The book hints at more than just

Bodybuilding for Weight Loss

Title: Bodybuilding for Weight Loss: Facts About Weight Loss Through Body Building That You Did Not Know About
Author: James Eaton
Publisher: CreateSpace
ASIN: B00T3ETMIU
Pages:  56
Genre: Health and Fitness
Reviewed by: Roger Kirk

Hollywood Book Reviews

James Eaton eliminated any “fat” in his book by just concentrating on the facts of diet and exercise. No descriptive fluff about counting reps or psychology about the Zen of exercise, nor theories about the addiction to junk food – like so

Stop The Diet, I Want To Get Off!

Title: Stop The Diet, I Want To Get Off!
Author: Lisa Tillinger Johansen, MS, RD
Publisher: J. Murray Press
ISBN: 978-0996310208
Pages: 291
Genre: Health/Nutrition/Education

Reviewed by: Carol Davala Author’s Website

Hollywood Book Reviews

As a registered dietician with a master’s degree in nutritional science and years of clinical and health education experience, Lisa Tillinger Johansen is all too familiar with diets, weight loss, and fads that fuel a multi-billion dollar industry. While the word “diet” often references losing weight,

Scuba Zak Meets Thaddeus the Barracuda

Title: Scuba Zak Meets Thaddeus the Barracuda
Author: Alice Cypress
Illustrator: Blueberry Illustrations
Publisher: The Peppertree Press
ISBN: 978-1614933465
Pages: 33
Genre: Children’s Books

Reviewed by: Gary Sorkin Author’s Website

Hollywood Book Reviews

Alice Cypress teaches a wonderful moral in her story Scuba Zak Meets Thaddeus the Barracuda, an illustrated children’s book catering to the 8 year old and younger genre.

Having successfully published previous children’s books, Alice has sharpened her messaging by having her galley text bounce around with a whimsical

The Company of Magic

Title: The Company of Magic
Author: P.J. Milton
Publisher: Victoria & Company Books
ISBN:
Pages: 88,000 words
Genre: YA Fantasy/Thriller

Reviewed by: Carol Davala

 Hollywood Book Reviews

In a creative blend of modern and ancient, magic and mystery, murder and mayhem, author P.J. Milton draws readers into a fantastical literary realm where adventures play out around the globe. At the heart of the tale we see a younger generation looking to the future of a more peaceable world.

The story behind

Bonds of Love and Blood

Title: Bonds of Love and Blood
Author: Marylee MacDonald
Publisher:  Summertime Publications
ISBN: 9781940333093
Pages: 250, Paperback
Genre: Short Stories Author’s Website

Hollywood Book Reviews

Bonds of Love and Blood is a stunning collection of MacDonald’s previously published and award-winning short stories. More than half her compilation have either received high recognition or won titles. Among a list of accolades, MacDonald’s awards include the Barry Hannah Prize, Jeanne Leiby Award, the Ron Rash Award, the Matt Clark Prize, and

Rented Silence

Title: Rented Silence
Author: Lucia Mann
Publisher: Grassroots Publishing Group
ISBN: 978-0-9794805-9-1
Pages: 360
Genre: Historical Fiction

Reviewed by: Barbara Bamberger Scott

  Author’s Website

Hollywood Book Reviews

The horrors of slavery are vividly laid bare in Rented Silence, a tale that spans more than fifty years of African and international history.The novel, by humanitarian and activist Lucia Mann, begins in South Africa in 1945, on a large, prosperous plantation. The owner, Lord Hallworthy, is an arrogant and utterly wicked “gentleman”

Vital Temptations

Title: Vital Temptations: A Heart’s Betrayal
Author: K.L. Lewis
Publisher: BookBaby
IBSN: B01B6SJ56Y
Pages: 216
Genre: Light Adult Romance

Reviewed by: Kathleen Logan-Taylor

Hollywood Book Reviews

Dr. Bethany McNeal is a Pediatric resident at one of the top children’s hospitals in Seattle. She is utterly focused on her career and is no longer interested in dating after the heartbreak of her previous relationship. On a rare night out with her best friend, Danielle, she meets a handsome frat boy named Brent.

On Top of the World

Title: On Top of the World (Until the Bell Chimes)
Author: David Lamb
Publisher: Woolly Mammoth Books
ISBN: 978-0986445309
Pages: 246
Genre: Fiction/Romance

Reviewed by: Ella Vincent Author’s Website

Hollywood Book Reviews

It’s Good to Be King is a witty and charming romantic novel by David Lamb that readers will love. The unconventional story combines a modern urban take on A Christmas Carol with a romantic story about true love.

The novel centers on Scrooje Ebonyzer, a Kanye West-like rap mogul with

You and I: The Kate and Robert Chronicles

Title: You and I: The Kate and Robert Chronicles
Author: Suzanne Eglington
Publisher: 2016, Xlibris
ISBN: 9781514472767
Pages: 500, Paperback
Genre: Erotic Romance

Reviewed by: Anita Lock Author’s Website

Hollywood Book Reviews

In the second book of Suzanne Eglington’s steamy series, You and I: The Kate and Robert Chronicles, The Beckhams enter full throttle in nearly non-stop seductive episodes during their four-day honeymoon in San Diego. Settling into the novelty of married life on their return home, there are other

Beckham 101

Title: Beckham 101: The Kate and Robert Chronicles
Author: Suzanne Eglington
Publisher: 2016, Xlibris
ISBN: 9781524302232
Pages: 280, Paperback
Genre: Erotic Romance

Reviewed by: Anita Lock Author’s Website

Hollywood Book Reviews

The Beckham saga continues with Beckham 101, the third book in The Kate and Robert Chronicles. In this sequel to the second book, You and I, Kate and Robert are two months into their marriage. Kate learns a bit more about Robert’s past, particularly his involvement with women. The

Inspired by Paris

Title: Inspired by Paris: Why Borrowing from the French Is Better Than Being French
Author: Jordan Phillips
ISBN: 978-0-692-69929-4
Publisher: Lure of Luxe LLC
Pages: 245
Genre: Travel / Memoir / Lifestyle

Reviewed by: John Murray Author’s Website

 Hollywood Book Reviews

Paris stands on a unique pedestal. Unlike the majority of other beloved travel destinations, the rest of world holds Paris to an unattainable, romantic, and artistic standard that is at odds with its true nature. So awesome is its