PAID REVIEWS
FEBRUARY 2, 2026 BOOKLIFE 115
FICTION Color of Fire: A Sweeping Caribbean Saga Gina Giordano | Käferhaus Press 391p, e-book, $2.99, ASIN B0G6VH8XK2 Color of Fire , the final installment in Giordano’s Strange Eden series (following The Island King ), returns readers to a fractured Nassau, where Eliza Sharpe must con- front the collapse of the world she has fought to protect. With her husband Charles presumed dead after a violent confrontation, and creditors threatening to reduce Pleasant Hall and its enslaved community to financial inventory, Eliza faces growing hostility from Lord Dunmore, whose anger over Charles’s manumis-
Compelling blend of gothic thrills, maritime terror, and psychological dread.
of the novel’s most arresting moments, contrasted with scenes of pirate brutality that bring forth the violence at the core of Eliza’s world. Giordano’s attention to the moral and political stakes of abolition is striking, especially the hefty price Eliza and Charles pay in seeking freedom for the enslaved community, giving the novel crucial historical and ethical depth.
Great for fans of Rachel Rueckert’s If the Tide Turns , Tim Powers’s On Stranger Tides.
As a trilogy finale, Color of Fire is both harrowing and compelling, portraying Eliza’s resilience as she defies the forces tightening around her. Her refusal to submit to Bruin—“I can handle pain for far longer than you can imagine,” she informs him—anchors the novel’s exploration of autonomy and endurance. The brutality of pirate life and Bruin’s calculated manipulations can be difficult to stomach, but they are necessary to truly grasp the stakes of Eliza’s transformation—and the moral terrain of the colonial Caribbean world. Readers of gothic historical fiction, colonial narratives, and character-driven sagas will find this a powerful and resonant conclusion.
sion efforts fuels the island’s corruption. Into this crisis steps Hiram Bruin, a privateer whose calculated authority and shifting intentions soon dominate Eliza’s world, pulling her into a web of coercion, manipulation, and dark fascination that shapes the novel’s central tensions. Giordano’s writing is at its most atmospheric here, blending gothic unease, maritime terror, and psychological fragmentation with remarkable control. The dream and ritual sequences, where Obeah spirits, memory, and ancestral presence merge, create some
Cover: A | Design & typography: A | Illustrations: – Editing: A- | Marketing copy: A-
FICTION Fallout of War: Ukraine Year One H. Peter Alesso | AI HIVE 273p, e-book, $4.99, ASIN B0FYMSB7RY
consequences of his actions and the lives lost in operations he helped plan. Likewise, Alesso’s portrayal of Ukrainian resolve is one of the book’s strongest elements. Through characters like Major Kovalenko and drone operator Olena, the narrative captures the grit, innovation, and determi- nation of a nation fighting for its survival. The evolution of leadership, particularly President Zelensky’s transformation from a comedian to a wartime leader, is depicted with subtle nuance, emphasizing Zelensky’s ability to inspire resistance and embody national resilience. Tension between strategic clarity and political ambiguity is a recurring theme in Alesso’s writing, as James navigates the conflicting priorities of Washington against the stark realities on the ground. His character reveals the challenges of balancing military innovation with the risks of escalation in a proxy war, making this a thought- provoking exploration of modern warfare—as well as the human dimensions of conflict. Gripping narrative of military diplomacy and Ukrainian resilience. Great for fans of Manoj Naravane’s The Cantonment Conspiracy , James Rosone and Miranda Watson’s Battlefield Ukraine.
Alesso’s gripping fiction narrative blends military strategy, personal sacrifice, and geopolitical tension, through the lens of Lieutenant Commander James Fairbanks, an American naval attaché to Ukraine in 2021. As James arrives in Kyiv with his wife Lucy, he’s uncertain but hopeful that his submarine experience will lend expertise to America’s international interests. But the tensions between Russia and Ukraine quickly escalate, transforming James from observer to active
participant when he’s thrust into battle with Ukrainian forces. Through his perspec- tive—and that of Lucy, who’s forced to evacuate after she’s split from James—Alesso (author of Midshipman Henry Gallant in Space ) explores the complexities of war, Ukraine’s resilience, and the moral dilemmas faced by those caught in the crossfire. The novel excels in its treatment of military diplomacy, showcasing the delicate balance between providing support to an ally and avoiding direct combat involvement. James’s role highlights the blurred lines between advising and engaging in warfare, a shift that underscores the moral burden of foresight, as he grapples with the
Cover: B+ | Design & typography: B+ | Illustrations: – Editing: A- | Marketing copy: A
MYSTERY/THRILLER Power & Way Paul Locander | Christmas Lake Press 346p, hardcover, $24.95, ISBN 978-1-960-86536-6
Slow-burn portrait of father and son bound by duty and distance.
faces day after day—to reflect how the same routine and belonging that hold people together can just as easily keep them stuck in place. And while this focus occasionally sidelines narrative, it also gives readers a richer sense of the world these characters inhabit. More measured drama than outright
Locander’s debut follows longtime railroad worker Frank—who’s spent decades drinking away the grief from his wife’s early death—and his son Kevin, a rail union leader intent on carving out a life markedly dif- ferent from his father’s. Having fallen into a wary coexistence—minimal contact, repressed feelings—the two manage their distance well until a routine night run ends in a derailment that kills nine people and leaves several more injured. In the ensuing federal investiga- tion, Frank and Kevin find themselves thrust into uncomfortably close quarters, their futures suddenly intertwined. At its core, this is a story about what we owe—to our families, to our communities, and to the futures we want for ourselves—and what we are owed in return. Though Kevin has worked hard to build a steadier life, he can’t help returning to Frank out of both duty and longing: stepping in when tempers flare, chasing approval that never comes, and keeping the peace at a cost his marriage can scarcely bear. Frank, for his part, pushes his son away, almost reflexively, even when it hurts them both. Here, Locander draws on the textures of small-town life—the rail yard, the local bar, familiar
Great for fans of Attica Locke; Philipp Meyer’s American Rust.
mystery, the novel draws its strength from attention to character over plot. Locander resists easy answers or contrived resolutions, allowing his characters, and readers, to wrestle honestly with guilt, loyalty, and love. As the first installment in a planned series, this will appeal to those who favor slow-burn drama over thriller pacing–and leave them eager to see what comes next.
Cover: B | Design & typography: A | Illustrations: – Editing: A- | Marketing copy: A
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