#Bookreview of Dragon Cartel

By: Carmen Amato

Publisher: Laurel & Croton

Publication Date: July 20, 2026

ISBN: 979-8-950864-01-8

Reviewed by: Alma Boucher

Review Date: October 1, 2026

Carmen Amato’s Dragon Cartel: A Detective Emilia Cruz Novel plunges readers into Acapulco's dangerous underworld, where corruption, organized crime, and international intrigue collide.

Detective Emilia Cruz is already stretched to her limits as she hunts El Barracuda, a ruthless cartel hitman, whose violent trail has left the city reeling. When a Customs inspector disappears from the port, his desperate wife turns to Emilia for help, forcing the detective into an investigation that quickly becomes more complicated than a simple missing-person case. Port officials resist her questions, the inspector’s colleagues remain suspiciously uncooperative, and the only tangible clue is a list of commercial shipping containers. Then Emilia discovers an identical list during an operation targeting El Barracuda. Could the missing inspector and the cartel assassin be connected? As the investigation deepens, the interrogation of a mysterious Chinese national introduces multiple passports, encrypted communications, and the unsettling possibility of international espionage. What begins as a local crime soon expands into a dangerous conspiracy reaching from Mexico and the United States to China.

Emilia Cruz is a compelling central character, and Amato gives her the determination and resilience expected of an experienced detective as readers can see the toll her work takes on her. Emilia is not simply chasing criminals; she is navigating institutional resistance, personal danger, and a city where powerful interests can make the truth difficult to uncover. The supporting characters add further layers of suspicion, particularly those connected to the port and the enigmatic Chinese national whose secrets broaden the investigation. The novel explores themes of corruption, loyalty, greed, justice, and the consequences of treating human lives as expendable commodities. One of its strongest underlying ideas is that criminal enterprises rarely operate in isolation. Seemingly unrelated crimes can connect through money, power, and international networks, and uncovering the truth requires persistence and courage.

Amato’s writing is crisp and atmospheric, effectively capturing the contrast between Acapulco’s beauty and the darker forces operating beneath its surface. The setting feels integral to the story rather than merely providing a backdrop, while the criminal and international elements create an increasingly tense atmosphere. The pacing is deliberately driven by investigation, discovery, and escalating danger, with new clues continually raising questions rather than providing easy answers. The shipping container lists provide an intriguing thread that gradually connects the strands of the mystery. The combination of police procedural, cartel thriller, and international conspiracy gives the novel a broad scope without losing sight of its detective at the center.

Quill says: Carmen Amato successfully combines a missing-person mystery with cartel violence and espionage, creating a story in which every clue seems capable of leading Emilia deeper into danger. With its determined heroine, atmospheric setting, and steadily mounting tension, Dragon Cartel offers a suspenseful crime thriller that keeps the question of who can be trusted at the forefront.

For more information about Dragon Cartel, please visit the author's website at: carmenamato.net/

 #Bookreview of Blackout

By: J. Luke Bennecke

Publisher: Jaytech Publishing

Publication Date: October 6, 2026

ISBN: 979-8990527362

Reviewed by: Rebecca Jane Johnson

Review Date: June 19, 2026

J. Luke Bennecke, #1 Amazon bestselling author of Civil Terror: Gridlock and Waterborne, delivers another thrilling, high-stakes crime novel that reveals the challenges humanity confronts when technological advancements outshine human kindness. Blackout: A Jake Bendel Thriller is a fast-paced tale full of mission-driven power brokers, hackers, smugglers, bikers, murderers, gangsters, and criminal masterminds.

The hero, civil engineer Jake Bendel, faces impossible odds. Every decision could save or destroy thousands of American lives. What’s more: the fabric of democracy seems tattered beyond repair. Terror threat levels exceed critical, and even AI algorithms and engineering prowess may not be enough to prevent the imminent doom.

After a coordinated drone bombing downs Air Force One, assassinating the president of the United States, the FBI needs Jake Bendel for his expertise in airport safety. He is entrusted with the impossible task of ensuring every single airport in the nation is impervious to further drone attacks. Can Jake anticipate whatever unimaginable attack these enemies may plot next? While trying to solve these problems, law enforcement ropes Jake into finding the assassin and fixing the electrical problems at the nation’s Capitol building, the Supreme Court, and the D.C. area power plants.

While Jake attempts to solve a mystery of a strange black brick that may be the cause of the electrical outage, FBI leaders pull him back into another investigation. The assassin turns out to be Tracy Ciacchella, a seasoned criminal mastermind who has successfully seated a puppet in the oval office. She is narrowly escaping FBI detainment while coordinating a coastal ambush with Russian and Chinese militants at the ready. She is also coordinating drones to take out the electrical grid that powers the nation. Meanwhile, the hero’s team gets a tip from a mental patient that Jake’s wife, who he believed to have died five years earlier in a fire, may still be alive. Told from multiple characters’ perspectives, the twists deliver unending suspense, and the plot complexity pins the characters into impossible predicaments.

Since Jake had earned hero status for building communications and water desalination systems that improved technological infrastructure for the United States, the new president offers him a cabinet position as Secretary of Transportation. Jake turns the position down, sensing something off about the leader. Jake starts to realize those who are in command may not be who he thought they were. Is he being protected by allies or being watched by the same criminal mastermind who coordinated the assassination? This antagonist has an even more sinister plans for Jake. Tracy’s motivation? She tells herself she wants the wealth of the world to be more evenly distributed and people treated fairly. Sure, this means destroying innocent lives in the process, but she thinks her motives are pure.

This novel presents moral dilemmas while also showing Jake Bendel at his best, facing the highest risks to combat cyberterrorism. This novel contains strong writing, believable characters, and plot twists to keep the reader turning the pages. But beyond that, it provokes thinking about our vulnerability when we rely on technology. How easy is it for hackers to control our handheld devices? What kinds of outside attacks can the nation’s electrical grid handle and combat?

Quill says: Blackout: A Jake Bendel Thriller will grip readers from the first scene and take them on an exciting cinematic adventure full of thrilling political intrigue, technological ingenuity, and provocative plot twists of high drama, while still honoring the emotional depth of humanity.

For more information about Blackout: A Jake Bendel Thriller, please visit the author's website at: jlukebennecke.com/

 #Bookreview of The Catchings Press

By: Robin McMillion

Publication Date: September 29, 2026

ISBN: 979-8-9924644-3-6

Reviewed by: Nellie Calanni

Review Date: September 1, 2026

Set against the turbulent backdrop of late 1960s America, Robin McMillion’s The Catchings Press offers a compelling, evocative coming-of-age narrative centered on fifteen-year-old Annette Calvert and her family as they relocate from Houston to the small town of Catchings, Texas. The novel follows Annette’s father, Sam, an ambitious journalist who purchases the town’s local newspaper, thrusting the Calvert family directly into the heart of small-town politics, entrenched traditions, and social friction.

Through Annette's perceptive viewpoint, the story delves deeply into the complexities of community dynamics, small-town power structures, and the broader socio-political upheavals of the era – including the Civil Rights Movement and anti-war sentiment. As her family fights to preserve the newspaper's journalistic integrity amid political pushback and advertising boycotts, Annette faces her own local battles against strict school codes and institutional hypocrisy.

McMillion skillfully balances personal coming-of-age struggles – first love, family tensions, and youth rebellion – with heavy historical realities. Themes of integrity, justice, and the quiet courage required to stand up against unfair authority ripple throughout the book. The narrative paints a vivid portrait of central Texas during a period of immense cultural transition, featuring authentic period details from hot-type printing presses to high school culture.

At its core, The Catchings Press is a moving story about moral courage, identity, and the price of seeking the truth. Readers are treated to a richly detailed historical drama that is both deeply personal and universally resonant.

Quill says: Robin McMillion’s The Catchings Press is an engaging, beautifully grounded novel that captures the spirit of small-town Texas during a transformative era, delivering heart, historical detail, and quiet triumph in equal measure. This novel is a fantastic pick for readers of coming-of-age and historical fiction.

For more information about The Catchings Press, please visit the author's website at: robinmcmillion.com/

 #Authorinterview with Susan Marie Chapman

Today, Feathered Quill reviewer Shrubaboti Bose is talking with Susan Marie Chapman, author of Growing Up Is Hard To Do Part 1 (A Grumpy the Iguana and Green Parrot Adventure).

FQ: Could you tell us a little about yourself, your background, hobbies and what drives you to write?

CHAPMAN: I was born and grew up in Pennsylvania. When I was twelve years old, my parents moved from the Philadelphia area which is a big city to a farm in rural Pennsylvania. It was there that I learned all about nature and animals that I would have never experienced in the city. We planted a huge garden every year and we planted each seed by hand. To give an example, we had over two hundred tomato plants, rows of corn, lima and string beans. We had cabbage, watermelon, cantaloupe and potatoes and lettuce. This garden was two acres wide. We also had animals, dogs, cats, over one hundred chickens, turkeys, pigs and geese. After we harvested all the fruits and vegetables, we canned them and stored them in our dry cellar for winter. I loved being around my neighbor’s horses and cows. It was fascinating to witness a birth or ride horses bareback through the fields or catch fireflies at night.

Being the oldest of eight children, I was always teaching my younger siblings things like when our momma cats gave birth and my brothers and sisters wanted to watch and to help. Children are like sponges, they soak up everything. So why not teach them something new while telling them a story.

FQ: In the series Growing Up Is Hard To Do, readers are introduced to several different characters, each with their own personalities and perspectives. How did you develop these characters, and was there a particular character or idea that came to you first?

CHAPMAN: Growing Up Is Hard To Do Part 1 and 2 (books 10 & 11) are part of a 17 book series called Grumpy the Iguana and Green Parrot Adventure series. Each character, starting with Grumpy and Green Parrot, are introduced into the series with their own book. These animals live in Flamingo Park in Miami, Florida until Grumpy and Green Parrot move to Naples, Florida. It is here that they meet the pelicans, grandpa and his grandson, the littlest pelican.

The series began with the Grumpy The Iguana book. This book is based on true events and I wrote the story in twenty minutes while walking home from Flamingo Park. I was very inspired by this iguana that lived in the park.

FQ: What motivated you to choose the themes of growing up, friendship, individuality and belonging as the core point of these books?

CHAPMAN: I think that most children want to fit in or blend in. They do not want to be singled out and called names because they are different. As children grow and become more confident, they do like to be unique and special. Self confidence comes from your parents encouraging you to be yourself and follow your dreams. It is in this frame of mind that you will find others that desire the same. You might call them your soul tribe because they feed your soul with positivity.

FQ: When you began writing the first book, did you already have ideas for the larger series and the kinds of adventures that the characters would experience together?

CHAPMAN: When I wrote the first book in the series, Grumpy the Iguana, I had no idea that this would become a series. I was just inspired by an iguana that I would see every time I visited the park. It was very organic and I never thought about more books. I actually thought this would be a one only book.

FQ: Baby’s mother tells her that being different can be a good thing and that she will eventually find her “soul tribe.” What do you hope young readers take away from Baby’s experience of feeling different and learning to appreciate who she is?

CHAPMAN: Being a child is tough. You want to be accepted but it does not always happen and it can be a painful experience. But you can not give up hope that you will find others that appreciate you for you. Every child is special and carries a special gift. It is in the journey of life that you discover exactly what that gift is. Some discover their gift early on while others might take a lifetime to figure it out like me. I did not become a writer until I was sixty years old. Now I cannot stop the books that are pouring out of me.

FQ: All the characters come from different parts of the animal world. What possibilities do you see in bringing them together, particularly when developing their friendships and individual personalities across the series?

CHAPMAN: Each animal, Grumpy the Iguana, Green Parrot, Mr. Squirrel, Little Mouse, the Screech Owl family, Grandpa Pelican and the Littlest Pelican, has a story and they all work together to help one another, even the sea animals, Mr. Sea Turtle and Baby the Manatee.

FQ: The book combines storytelling with information about manatees, including their behavior, eating habits, physical characteristics and their relationship with the environment. Why did you incorporate these educational elements into the story?

CHAPMAN: Children love to learn new things but it is much easier to learn if it is woven into an adventure. Then it does not feel like a lesson, it feels fun.

FQ: I’m sure you have been asked this question a lot, but could you share what inspired you to become a children’s author? What advice would you have for someone considering venturing into the art of writing stories for children?

CHAPMAN: I never really knew what I wanted to be when I grew up. I always loved reading and read every classic novel by the age of twelve. I read Jane Eyre, Gone With The Wind, Pride And Prejudice, all of Charles Dickens' novels, Vanity Fair, Wuthering Heights, etc. Later, I loved the Nancy Drew, Cherry Ames and The Hardy Boys series.

In sixth grade, I wrote a short story that was published in a Children’s Readers Digest magazine with the help of my English teacher. I still carry the award with me to this day, fifty years later. It is a small medal with an inscription of excellence. Teachers can be so inspiring and a great teacher can make a world of difference in a child’s life.

My father discouraged all of his eight children away from the arts, although he himself majored in English in college. I graduated from college with an Associates degree in Business and a Bachelors degree in Economics.

It was not until after I married, raised my two children, got divorced and moved to Florida, that I started to write. When other matters take precedence in your life, you do not stop to think about yourself and what you want. I put everything and everyone before me but I have no regrets. I have lived a very full life and now I am doing something that I was meant to do, write! It is my passion and I get excited just thinking about the possibilities.

For more information about Growing Up Is Hard To Do Part 1 (A Grumpy the Iguana and Green Parrot Adventure), please visit the author's website at: susanmariechapman.com

 #Bookreview of Growing Up is Hard To Do Part 1 (A Grumpy the Iguana and Green Parrot Adventure)

By: Susan Marie Chapman

Illustrated by: Natalia Loseva

Publisher: Gourmet Dog LLC

Publication Date: September 15, 2022

ISBN: 978-1736805657

Reviewed by: Shrubaboti Bose

Review Date: September 25, 2026

Growing Up Is Hard To Do Part I (A Grumpy the Iguana and Green Parrot Adventure) by Susan Marie Chapman revolves around a young manatee named Baby, who lives with her mother in the warm waters of Florida.

As time passes, Baby notices that she is quite different from the animals around her and begins worrying about finding friends who will accept her the way she is. Her mother reassures her that being unique is not something to be afraid of, that it can be a strength. One day while swimming close to the marina, Baby comes across four small creatures having a picnic together. Although curious, the young manatee keeps a safe distance, watching them with only her head peeping out above the water’s surface. Suddenly, Little Mouse spots her in the water and soon, all four creatures: Grumpy the Iguana, Green Parrot, Mr. Squirrel, along with Little Mouse, start talking to Baby. The group becomes new friends.

The book is full of beautiful illustrations that support the narrative visually while also ensuring the story remains accessible to younger readers. Information is presented in a manner that is both easy to follow and remember. It is particularly interesting how the author balanced the fictional aspect of the story with the factual details about the manatees. The core message about accepting one’s individuality rather than blindly trying to fit in with the given norms of a society is conveyed with affection and simplicity. This combination of emotional reassurance and natural-world education give the story a dual purpose. It encourages self-acceptance, while simultaneously nurturing a curiosity about wildlife.

As readers, we are told that Baby worries about growing up, being different and making friends, but describing her actual struggles would have helped the narrative stand its ground more firmly. The resolution seems too easy and thus fails to bring due satisfaction. Introducing a slightly stronger obstacle could have contributed to the story’s momentum while still preserving its gentle tone.

Nevertheless, as a children’s book, this narrative gives coming-of-age stories a new direction by blending storytelling with an educational point of view. It also effectively captures the attention of young readers and provides a subtle invitation to continue discovering Baby’s journey. The valuable educational explanations that were woven throughout the story are additional bonuses that parents and caregivers will appreciate.

Quill says: Growing Up Is Hard To Do Part I (A Grumpy the Iguana and Green Parrot Adventure) is the first book in a series of adventures that focus on a young manatee and serves as a delightful treat for young readers.

For more information about Growing Up Is Hard To Do Part I (A Grumpy the Iguana and Green Parrot Adventure), please visit the author's website at: susanmariechapman.com

 #Authorinterview with Som Phin, author of Threads of Jasmine: When Jasmine Blooms at Midnight

Today, Feathered Quill reviewer Lily Andrews is talking with Som Phin, author of Threads of Jasmine: When Jasmine Blooms at Midnight.

FQ: Thida's connection to Cambodia comes through dreams. Why dreams?

PHIN: Dreams felt like the perfect space because they sit between memory and imagination. You can wake up knowing something felt completely real even though you can't prove it happened. For Thida, that gave me a way to let Cambodia enter her life gradually, until she has to question whether she's dreaming about another life or actually living one.

FQ: The Author's Note mentions Buddhist ideas of reincarnation and past-life traces. What drew you to that framework?

PHIN: I grew up Cambodian and Buddhist, so reincarnation was never a completely foreign idea to me. I was fascinated by the possibility that we might carry traces of other lives without consciously remembering them—through familiarity, emotion, skills, dreams, or that strange feeling that you've known someone before. The book takes that idea and asks what would happen if those traces became impossible to ignore.

FQ: What made you want to ground the romance in a period of real political tension rather than just keeping it purely personal?

PHIN: I love history, and when I write historical fiction I never want history to function as wallpaper. The world should shape what the characters are allowed to want, what they're afraid of, and what choices are available to them. The political tension also matters because readers know history keeps moving even while these characters are falling in love, which gives the romance another layer of urgency.

FQ: Both main characters have to make choices about what they're willing to leave behind. Was there a moment in the writing where you found yourself wrestling with that question personally?

PHIN: Definitely. I think that's a very diaspora question: what do you carry forward, what gets left behind, and how much can you reclaim without losing the life you've built now? I don't experience anything as dramatic as Thida does, obviously, but I understand that feeling of belonging to more than one world and sometimes wondering what part of yourself belongs where.

FQ: How important was humor to you—which is evident in the manuscript—in balancing the heavier material?

PHIN: Very important. I didn't want Thida to walk around contemplating reincarnation and generational grief for three hundred pages. She's still a young woman with a best friend, an opinionated grandmother, awkward romantic situations, and a sense of humor. The funny moments make the heavier ones feel more human to me, because that's usually how life works—we can be carrying something painful and still laugh five minutes later.

FQ: Thida thinks in spreadsheets, protocols, and evidence fields. How did you get inside that kind of mind? Did you borrow from your experience?

PHIN: Yes, probably more than I realized. 😂 My undergraduate background was in biology, and I also studied business later, so I'm very comfortable with organizing information, looking for patterns, and trying to make something measurable. I liked giving that mindset to Thida because it's almost the worst possible personality to give someone experiencing something completely unquantifiable. Her instinct is basically, “Okay, reincarnation is happening. Where's my spreadsheet?”

FQ: Are there any real family or personal stories/experiences that made their way into the book?

PHIN: Not in the sense that Thida or her family are direct versions of mine. But emotionally, absolutely. I come from a Cambodian refugee family, and I've spent a lot of my life thinking about what survives when families move across countries and generations—language, food, beliefs, stories, things our grandparents knew that we realize too late we should have asked about. A lot of that emotional truth made its way into the book even though the characters and story are fictional.

FQ: What do you hope readers universally take from this book?

PHIN: That love and memory can outlive the forms we expect them to take. The book is very Cambodian in its history and cultural details, but I think the emotional question is universal: what do we inherit from the people who came before us, and what do we choose to carry forward? I hope readers finish thinking about their own families and the questions they still have time to ask.

FQ: What can readers expect from you next?

PHIN: More Cambodian stories, definitely. I write across historical fiction, fantasy, romance, and diaspora fiction, but the common thread is usually Cambodian history and culture, identity, family, and the things people carry across generations. I have several books and series in that space, so readers who connect with Threads of Jasmine will have plenty more worlds to step into.

For more information about Threads of Jasmine, please visit the author's website at: somphin.com

#Bookreview of Threads of Jasmine: When Jasmine Blooms at Midnight 

By: Som Phin

Publication Date: January 22, 2026

ISBN: 979-8245212739

Reviewed by: Lily Andrews

Review Date: September 24, 2026

"A river. A house on stilts, old wood, very warm. Jasmine nearby. A child laughing... And a woman in a doorway. She was about to turn around. She never did."

In Threads of Jasmine: When Jasmine Blooms at Midnight by Som Phin, this is a dream that precedes Thida Sovann's move to Cambodia.

Thida hasn't packed a single box or booked a flight when she experiences this dream. Her plan is to work for a modeling agency in Phnom Penh as well as heritage foundation, all while reconnecting with her heritage. She doesn't give us an answer because she doesn't yet understand the question herself. And neither does the reader, until the dream starts to repeat itself not only to Thida, but also to a second person, a man she's never met, who is being pulled towards something neither of them can name.

Thida’s parents, who died when she was 16, grew up inside stories of what their families had survived. What they survived, however, is not explicitly stated at first, which means Thida is moving towards something she doesn't understand. It is, however, that withholding that keeps the dream open and the reader leaning in, nodding as they read the history, and turning the pages like a handle to a door that leads to something they can't quite distinguish yet.

Romance loves resolution. Two people meet, obstacles arise, obstacles are overcome, love wins. This book doesn't do that. It gives you ancestors, karma, inherited memory, and unfinished obligations. It doesn't tell you which one to apply as you try to solve its mystery. The novel seems to say "You don't get it. Not yet. You have to circle and lean in first." That refusal is a method and a craft decision that creates a shared experience between the reader and the characters. Presence is what drives its engine, not plot. And that's why you feel like the chapters end with a sense of emotional openness, rather than with a tidy resolution.

"What if love could reach across lifetimes… even when memory could not?"

That's the question the author plants in the heart of the reader at the end of the book. It reads less like a conclusion and more like a door left open. There is something about such a question, especially when it appears at the end of a story. By the time you reach the end, it feels like something that you sensed you were circling, only to discover that you arrived at a different answer altogether.

Quill says: Threads of Jasmine: When Jasmine Blooms at Midnight rings authentic, because its characters' emotions are consistently honest. It never allows the reader to become confused about where they are, even when the chapters start to feel like someone left the room mid-sentence and never came back. Most people have a version of Thida's question but no words for it. This book hands them the words and in so doing, turns a private ache into a shared language. Anyone who grew up in two worlds, yet feels as though she never fully belongs to either one will find this book theirs in a way few books are. Additionally, those who read for atmosphere and not necessarily for answers will love how this book's presence lingers like a friend.

For more information about Threads of Jasmine: When Jasmine Blooms at Midnight, please visit the author's website at: somphin.com