Tag: fiction

Yecheilyah’s Book Reviews – I See You HBCU by Keyshawn McMiller

Title: I See You HBCU

Author: Keyshawn McMiller

Illustrator: Bryan McMiller

Publisher: Why Be I Publishing

Published: September 8, 2022

Pages: 31

The cutest black history children’s book, I See You HBCU is the ideal resource for parents who want to teach their young children about the importance and influence of historically black colleges and universities.

Beautifully illustrated and just 30 pages, little Ahman discovers a box marked “HBCU” while helping his parents carry boxes as they move into their new, larger home. He is bitten by the curiosity bug as he asks his mom and dad what the letters stand for.

He is in for an exciting lesson on Historically Black Colleges and Universities, from how they helped Black students to fit in when we couldn’t go to the same schools as whites to how Edward Waters College was the first HBCU in Florida.

The story centers on an adorable African American family, and the graphics are reminiscent of Boondocks by Aaron Mcgruder. As they respond to Ahman’s inquiries, the mother and father are kind and patient with him. You might feel like a young child on the sofa as your parents dance to the memories of their historically black institutions.

By the end of the book, the author adds an extensive list of HBCUs as a guide for readers!

This is an excellent book to start the conversation about higher education from an African American perspective if you have kids under 10. I think of this as the first of several books that will follow Ahman’s journey. Let’s hope the author feels the same way!

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Ratings:

Age Appropriate for Content: 5/5
Storyline: 5/5
Illustrations: 5/5
Child Self and Self-Identity: 5/5
Thought Provoking: 5/5
Overall Rating: 5 / 5 stars

Grab I See You HBCU for your little ones here!

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To have your book reviewed on this blog apply here. The registry is open for a limited time.

Stay tuned for our next dope read. Next up:

Lifeline of a Soul: The Life-Changing Perspective I Gained While Teaching Entrepreneurship to Prisoners

Yecheilyah’s Book Reviews is a reputable review service that features writers from all over the world, both traditionally and independently published. We are listed on Kindlepreneur as a top-tier book review blog and Reedsy as one of their vetted active book blogs that provide insightful, excellent book reviews.

*Books are read in the order they are received.

 

Yecheilyah’s Book Reviews – Pretty Privilege Book 1 by S.R. Graham

Title: Pretty Privilege
Author: S.R. Graham
Publisher: S.R. Graham
Published: April 14, 2023
Page: 137

Eighteen-year-old Zuri Natrice Hall is sick of being treated like a caged bird. Constantly complimented on her beauty, paraded across beauty pageant stages, commercial sets, and in the streets of Myrtle Beach, Zuri musters up the courage to accept her win as Miss High School USA, a victory she knew she had in the bag before the contest was over.

Cringing on the inside, Zuri fake smiles through the speech she is forced to give and conjures up the fake tears she is expected to produce. In real life, Zuri despises being paraded around like a trophy. She hates the pageants and yearns to pursue her own dream of being a movie director.

But her mother is not having it.

Dr. Delilah Elise and Mayor Stephen Hall are their town’s Michelle and Barrack Obama, and Zuri, their only daughter of four, is their beautiful princess. Having abandoned her dreams of becoming the first woman in her family to become a doctor, Mrs. Hall expects Zuri to carry on the family legacy of dominating pageants and becoming Miss USA.

Everything Zuri does not want.

Finally, she sets out for college, hoping to live on her own terms. She is finally out of the cage and allowed to embrace her full, authentic self while navigating college life.

When Zuri catches the eye of rich and spoiled Dexter Malone at a party, she has no idea how complicated things will get. She eventually falls in love with the nerdy boy Calvin, but Dexter is determined to make her his no matter the cost.

Books about Black families tend to surround the burden of poverty and racism in some capacity. Rarely do we get to witness the Black family simply living life. I appreciated that about this book. Zuri’s parents successfully contribute to their household and community, are financially stable, and are happily married while raising their four children.

However, Zuri still has to make her own decisions and live life outside of her parents. And like most of us at Zuri’s age, her lessons will be learned the hard way.

The only thing stopping this from being a five-star is it’s a bit erotic for a young adult novel. Not that these kids ain’t out here doing the nasty in real life, but the details seemed a bit much for this kind of book.

Nevertheless, Pretty Privilege is a wonderful coming-of-age story that fans of young adult novels will love. It introduces some critical topics for parents and young adults, such as allowing your children to become their own person. It is also an eye-opener for young people to be careful when they do leave the nest and go out into this loveless world. Everyone is not your friend or has your best interest.

Ratings:

Plot Movement / Strength: 4/5
Entertainment Factor: 4/5
Characterization: 4/5
Authenticity / Believable: 4/5
Thought Provoking: 4/5
Overall Rating: 4/ 5 stars

Grab Pretty Privilege From Amazon Here.

Pretty Privilege eBook Cover

To have your book reviewed on this blog apply here. The registry is open for a limited time.

Stay tuned for our next dope read. Next up:

I See You HBCU!

Yecheilyah’s Book Reviews is a reputable review service that features writers from all over the world, both traditionally and independently published. We are listed on Kindlepreneur as a top-tier book review blog and Reedsy as one of their vetted active book blogs that provide insightful, excellent book reviews.

*Books are read in the order they are received.

 

Yecheilyah’s Book Reviews – Hierarchy of Needs: The Sculptor Series Book II by Christa Wojciechowski

Title: Hierarchy of Needs: Sculptor Series Part II
Author: Christa Wojciechowski
Publisher: Christa Wojciechowski
Published: November 15, 2022
Page: 339

Part two of this wildly psychological series on the strength and depths of addiction continues Ona Price’s journey. She returns to the seedy underbelly of the drug scene due to the tragic event that closed book one. Her methadone will soon wear off while confined to the Plaza Hotel with Antoni, Oz, and Dr. Carver if she doesn’t do something fast. As the withdrawal symptoms take over, Ona fears everyone becoming aware of her addiction. She can’t have that and thus sneaks out of the hotel to meet Jojo, who will give her the much-needed dose to tide her over.

A woman who once celebrated Sonia Orlyk’s birthday gliding through her opulent house in a stunning gown soon finds herself hiding out at an apartment in Alphabet City with a group of Puerto Rican drug dealers. She currently shares a residence with four men—Jojo, Fatty, Lobo, Decoy—and Lobo’s mother who prepares the meals. Dazed most days and sleeping until eleven a.m., Ona returns to her toxic schedule.

Now Antoni is combing the streets of Manhattan in search of her.

We get a deeper glimpse into the internal darkness of drug usage from Ona’s and the other characters’ perspectives in book two, which is much more action-packed. Mr. Orlyk is also unhappy about what happened to his wife and intends to exact the most heinous retribution.

However, even though Ona’s circumstances are worse, it is refreshing to observe her in a world apart from the time she spends with Aunt Vee, the methadone clinic, the sculptor, and his estate.

Ona battles her addiction in Oblivion Black from a position of contentment. She believes she is cleaner than she actually is because of the methadone. She is enjoying her job, driving Aunt Vee’s lovely car, and developing feelings for Antoni. She is on the verge of becoming one of the “normies,” or non-drug users, and everything is flowing.

While this might seem like a good thing, it is the challenges we face that develop our character. So, Ona might have been doing well on the surface, but underneath, she was not really facing her addiction.

In Hierarchy of Needs, Ona is forced to confront both her own and other people’s demons when she descends to the bottom and must use all of her might to claw her way to the top. As the stakes rise and the threats multiply, more interesting characters are introduced.

While book two picks off where book one leaves (and it would be better to have read book one), book two is also a journey in itself. And while Ona and Antoni’s romance takes on a lesser role, I liked it because it highlighted the darkness that readers of dark literature may have been hoping for in the first book, which for most of the story, reads like a romance novel.

Once again, the author does a fantastic job illustrating withdrawal and the filthiness of life with addiction. It is poetic the way she weaves Ona’s words together.

“But if I accepted it as my god, if it was a sacrament to give and take of pleasure and pain, doing it would be an offering and getting sick would be sacrifice, and overdose martyrdom. Dealing would be the job of a missionary, to teach the ritual and spread its dichotomic communion. It was a way to worship any god.”

– Ona Price, Hierarchy of Needs

You’ll get chills down your spine and goosebumps on your skin after learning what happens to people who become addicted to the Russian Sleep Experiment.

It. is. wild.

Much of the specifics of book two are predicated on what happened at the end of book one, so I have to leave it here to not spoil it for you. But, if you liked book one, you haven’t seen anything yet. The second book is a wild ride.

(You can read my review for book one here!)

But it’s not over. Christa’s got a part three on the way!

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Ratings:

Plot Movement / Strength: 5/5
Entertainment Factor: 5/5
Characterization: 5/5
Authenticity / Believable: 4/5
Thought Provoking: 5/5
Overall Rating: 5 / 5 stars

Grab Part 2 from Amazon Here.

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To have your book reviewed on this blog apply here. The registry is open for a limited time.

Stay tuned for our next dope read!

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Yecheilyah’s Book Reviews is a reputable review service that features writers from all over the world, both traditionally and independently published. We are listed on Kindlepreneur as a top-tier book review blog and Reedsy as one of their vetted active book blogs that provide insightful, excellent book reviews.

*Books are read in the order they are received. Be sure to check the queue before booking.

 

Yecheilyah’s Book Reviews – Oblivion Black: The Sculptor Book 1 by Christa Wojciechowski

Title: Oblivion Black
Author: Christa Wojciechowski
Publisher: Christa Wojciechowski
Published: August 8, 2022
Page: 387

In this psychological romance, Ona Price nearly dies from a heroin overdose on the streets of Manhattan. As she shoots up in a McDonald’s where she and her Puerto Rican friend Jojo purchased the narcotics, this art school dropout almost kills herself. Fearful of losing her daughter to addiction, Ona’s mom Donna determines she should live with her aunt Vivian or aunt Vee in New Hope.

Ona is required to go there and attend weekly NA meetings in addition to taking daily dosages of the drug methadone to deal with the withdrawals. She gets into a flow but eventually finds her new life and routine mundane, so she looks for work. On her first attempt, she gets hired as the assistant to renowned Russian artist Antoni Azarov, also known as The Hands of God.

Immediately I sensed something was amiss. She got the job too easily, and there is something off about the boss. Azarov appears distant, arrogant, and unkind. A magnificent artist, he fashions clay into the bodies of beautiful women from the models sitting naked before him, creating a gorgeous statue. But, while Ona doesn’t like him at first, his coldness melts as the two soften to one another over cigarette breaks, and she becomes accustomed to working with him and Oz, the Black man who hired her and is like a father to Azarov. The physical link is evident between Antoni and Ona as she cuddles up against him on the back of his Ducati and sips bottles of wine at his affluent house, where she would spend many nights.

Yet, despite the growing tension, Antoni won’t touch her, and when she tries to touch him, he flings her across the room like a rag doll.

Either the man is gay or otherworldly.

This is the third book I’ve read from this author, and it is another psychological masterpiece. As someone who grew up around addicts, I can say the way Christa brings us into the world of addiction is strikingly accurate, from withdrawal symptoms to what addicts are willing to do for another hit. I also adored how diverse this novel is. Even though the author is not Black, she accurately captures the characteristics of the Puerto Rican youngster Jojo and the elder Black man Oz. Their identities didn’t come across as contrived or overly dramatic.

Speaking of characters, there is also the wealthy Panamanian from El Chorrillo. I enjoyed snobbish Sonia’s edge. Sure, she’s a harlot, but her story and character have depth. In my mind’s eye, she appears to be a real person with a past that has shaped who she is today. This story really starts to take off when she enters the picture. This wealthy wife purchases Antoni’s sculpture of Ona for ten million dollars. Determined to have The Hands of God put his hands on her body, Mrs. Sonia Orlyk is more than willing to pose naked in front of the extraordinary man in full glory.

Mr. Orlyk is a wealthy drunk his wife is no longer interested in.

But Sonia’s lust and seduction with Antoni Azarov go too far. Despite the fact that he is a brilliant artist, the tragedy that has characterized his life is beyond his control. Now Ona is about to be swept up in her boss’s drama while fighting her own demons. The dealer outside the clinic and Jojo, who is out of jail but back on drugs and wants to see her, are just two examples of the dangers of relapse lurking around every corner. She is already skipping meetings.

This book is not as dark as I thought it would be based on the description and cover, but the message is deep and layered. It is about the worst kind of darkness, the internal kind we cannot always see in others and even ourselves. It is what happens when our childhood traumas, unhealed and unchecked, follow us into adulthood. It is the study of the human mind and its addiction to drugs, lust, love, fame, and even art.

“Lovesickness. It was worse than dopesickness. Antoni was more dangerous than heroin.” – Ona Price

-Christa Wojciechowski

Oblivion Black is a lengthy read, but you won’t be able to put it down or forget about the characters.

Ratings:

Plot Movement / Strength: 4/5
Entertainment Factor: 4/5
Characterization: 5/5
Authenticity / Believable: 4/5
Thought Provoking: 5/5
Overall Rating: 4/ 5 stars

Grab It From Amazon Here.

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To have your book reviewed on this blog apply here. The registry is open for a limited time.

Stay tuned for our next dope read, part two in the Sculptor series.

Yecheilyah’s Book Reviews is a reputable review service that features writers from all over the world, both traditionally and independently published. We are listed on Kindlepreneur as a top-tier book review blog and Reedsy as one of their vetted active book blogs that provide insightful, excellent book reviews.

*Books are read in the order they are received.

 

Don’t Throw It Away: How Short Stories from My Teenage Years Became An Urban Fantasy Fiction Novel

Photo by Suzy Hazelwood

When I was about seventeen and eighteen, I wrote stories about my sisters and our friends in this red notebook. Then, we would all sit on the porch, and I would read it to the neighborhood. Everyone had nicknames but also knew who they were so it was hilarious, and they loved it.

When I moved out of my mother’s house a couple of years later, I carried that notebook. One day, while reading it, I decided I wanted to turn it into a play. There was only one problem:

I was not the teenager who wrote it.

By now, I was deeply biblical, had loc’d my hair, and changed my name. This hood tale didn’t fit the newer version of me.

I decided to keep the characters but change their names and give them more dignity. They were successful Black men and women instead of whores and hustlers. In the original story, Tina was a lawyer because when we were younger, that’s what my twin sister Tracey wanted to be when she grew up. In the red notebook, Tina was Tracey.

This dope cover for my first screenplay was designed by Black graphic artist Andre Hawkins of Kenosis Design Innovations

I published Pearls Before Swine in 2014, registered it with the Screen Writer’s Guild, and participated in my first book signing at the Doubletree Hilton Hotel in Chicago, which went well. 

And then, I started this blog!

I made the mistake* of naming this blog after the book hence why it’s called thepbsblog. Over time, I decided to keep the name for a few reasons. You can read about that here.

*I don’t recommend authors start blogs and name them after the title of their book any more than I would advise authors to create websites with the name of their books. You will write more books. Are you going to create a new website for every book? It is easier to brand yourself using your name.

Although it did okay when first released, and I love the cover, I better understood how to use my voice and messaging after The Stella Trilogy. I had grown again and vowed to be more relatable. The story was also not properly edited and the plot was confusing to people outside of my immediate circle.

But instead of throwing it away, I reworked the first chapter and shared it on this blog.

Then, I shared another chapter.

And another and another until I was ten chapters into this crazy fantasy world that, to my surprise, ya’ll loved!

And that’s when it hit me.

The story would evolve again.

Got Your Copy Yet?? Click Here.

I would turn Pearls Before Swine into The Men with Blue Eyes. And then, for the last change, I decided I wanted these angels to be women, which is how The Women with Blue Eyes was born. I used the backstory and characters of PBS with a fresh plot.

TWWBE is still heavily spiritual, but in a way where even if you are not religious, you could still relate to it. This was intentional.

I would love for this story to take on another evolution: for Shonda Rhimes to turn it into a TV series. (Somebody tell her people to call my people.)

I am also considering sharing more of the backstory of PBS in another installment of The Women with Blue Eyes. The details about Ronnie and Big Sam and how it all went down was in the first book. This is material I can still use.

When Tina’s nephew, Ronnie is killed, she is left to care for his siblings and to solve a series of mysterious murders involving only Black men. Investigating each murder thrusts her and her team into a world of deities, demons, and fallen angels, leading Tina to battle a serial killer beyond this realm.

The moral of this story is don’t throw anything away! Just repurpose it.

Yecheilyah’s Book Reviews: Starving the Wolf: The Journey of Freeing a King by Dr. Oliver T. Reid

Title: Starving the Wolf: The Journey of Freeing a King
Author: Dr. Oliver T. Reid
Publisher: Publishing Advantage Group
Published: Officially Releasing August 27, 2022 (Available for Preorder)
ASIN: B0B933ZZJQ
Pages: 80

Prince Amir was born into royalty, but his parents verbally abused him, and his father, Naz, took credit for his work. This haunted Amir, causing him sadness and affecting his relationships with women.

Perhaps the most profound aspect of this book surrounds the wolf, which the author calls Liar.

Liar represents Amir’s inner sadness, depression, and low self-worth. Whenever Amir’s parents talk down to him or anger rises within him, this negativity feeds the wolf inside of him. It is something we can all relate to, as we have each had to deal with the wolves in our own lives.

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These Love Jones bookmarks tho!! Designed by Inspire the Tribe.

Finally, the prince meets a woman that will help him overcome his inner wolf. Princess Khari comes into his life and pours goodness and kindness into his heart. Not only that, she also makes his parents aware that their words are hurting their son.

Discover how the love story between Amir and Khari unfolds and how the wolf gets starved out in this African-themed love story.

Although not marketed as a children’s book, Starving the Wolf: The Journey of Freeing a King is a quick read with some powerful concepts that are easy to digest.

The illustrator also did a wonderful job with the images, which are absolutely beautiful and illustrated throughout the book. The story is easy to follow, there is no profane language, and the pictures are a gorgeous representation of black beauty.

Ratings:

Plot Movement / Strength: 5/5

Entertainment Factor: 5/5

Characterization: 5/5

Authenticity / Believable: 4/5

Thought Provoking: 5/5

Overall: 5/5

Now available for preorder in digital, paperback, and hardcover.

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About the Author

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Dr. Oliver T. Reid is multi-best-selling author, motivational speaker, founder and president of I am a Solution Consulting Firm LLC. He is a Black Man Image Award Winner and 2016-2017 NAACP Image Award recipient and has been featured on Black Enterprise, CBS, Fox, iHeart Radio, NBC, Time Warner and much more.

Dr. Reid is most known as “The Writing Coach,” where he uses groundbreaking writing and coaching techniques to help entrepreneurs, speakers, and coaches to write their books.

If you need help writing your book, he’s the plug! But first, be sure to support him by preordering your copy of Starving the Wolf.

www.drolivertreid.com

Instagram + Twitter: @drolivertreid

To have your book reviewed by me on this blog apply here.

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Please read through the entire policy and note the books in the queue so you know how many books would be in front of yours. That will determine the turnaround time.

Space is very limited so don’t sleep. Apply right now.

(For more options, such as IG promo visit the services page of my website HERE.)

 

The Women with Blue Eyes 2: Chapter One

Chapter 1: And a Little Child Shall Deceive Them

The young woman smiled and waved at the jeep as it sped by, and her brown eyes turned blue.

Paschar twisted her neck, cracking it as it spun around on her shoulders. She looked down at her hands, stretching her fingers.

“Not bad,” she admired herself, ran her hands across the youthful body, and sat down on the bench. She stared down at her chest. The boobs weren’t much to speak of, but she couldn’t expect much in this form. She had heard stories of humans and puberty, a foreign thing to angels who could masquerade in adult bodies instantly.

Paschar watched the cars zoom by, the school busses pick up children, and the scores of humans rushing off to work. An elderly lady sat down on the bench next to her.

“How you?” she said, looking through her purse.

Pas nodded, afraid to speak. She had never had a body this young before.

Noticing the silence, the woman looked up and clutched her chest with one hand. “Your eyes,” she said in a breathless voice. “I ain’t never seen ‘em that bright before.”

Paschar blushed and smiled awkwardly, thankful to see the bus approaching.

The woman stood, swinging her purse over her shoulder, unable to take her eyes off the young woman with the majestic eyes.

“Go on, baby,” she said, letting Paschar in front of her as the bus came to a halt and opened its doors.

Pas coughed and cleared her throat. “Oh no, that’s okay. You can go.”

“No, it’s alright. And you’re gonna wanna do something about that cough. Put something around those skinny lil arms of yours.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

The woman nodded.

Portrait of Young Woman
Artwork for TWWBE by David Collin

Paschar dropped her coins into the machine and moved to the rear of the bus, and cuddled up to a window seat.

As the bus prepared to take off, it stopped to allow a car to pass and Paschar’s eyes flashed in that familiar way. Her senses heightened as she picked up the familiar scent. Every human had a signature smell to their blood. Like fingerprints, no one was alike.

Pas licked her lips. She didn’t need to turn to see Kayla sitting in the passenger’s seat of Miss Bernice’s car or Micheal sitting in the back. She could practically taste their essence—the purest of energy.

Her eyes twinkled, and her leg bounced up and down. She knew she had to calm herself before she growled. It was all so exciting. Pas could hardly contain herself thinking about seeing Janiyah’s Jeep just moments ago and now Micheal and Kayla. Why had she not thought about this before?

She had had it all wrong. No one cared about Black men. But people were extremely friendly to young humans, naïve even. There were no limits to how far her powers could stretch as a sixteen-year-old in Ethiopian skin.

She felt a coolness come over her as a low, deep throat growl threatened to spill from her mouth.

Paschar leaned back into her seat and exhaled. All was not lost. Her legion might have lost the battle, but she was going to make damn sure they did not lose the war.

She couldn’t wait to start her new job with Janiyah and Tabitha.

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This is a continuation of The Women with Blue Eyes series I turned into a novel.

To read sneak peeks of book one published to this blog click here.

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To buy me a cup of coffee, purchase the book by CLICKING HERE.