reviews

Going Viral, Apocalypse Style Author: Ling Ma Ma’s self-focused, oblivious heroine, Candance Chen, a second-generation Chinese immigrant, is vaguely aware of Shen Fever. She is mostly focused on her day job in publishing though, specifically in getting the Gem Stone Bible off the presses and into the store. But, as Chinese factories (read sweatshops) start closing, it becomes increasingly more difficult to make production deadlines. The upwardly mobile Candace wants to move out of the Bible department with its demanding producers, cheap paper, and lack of originality. She wants the art department, yet her conscious twinges during her visits to [...]

Twice Cursed Author: Sue Dent Throughout the Thirsting For Blood series redemption is the key. At first it’s the redemption of a brother and sister, trapped in eternal curses, transformed to soulless monsters of the night (vampire and werewolf respectively). The legends say one selfless act will set them free, and together with a steadily growing crowd of empathetic friends and family, beset by a fierce contingent of selfish enemies who want immortality at any cost, Ceese and Richard overcome and lose their curses only to remain shattered and confused. It turns out that centuries of evil, centuries of guess [...]

The Secret Lives of Surrogates Author: Joanne Ramos How far would you go for your future? What would you do to save your child? What if the solution seems like luxury but the costs are ethically dubious? What if, ultimately, you have no choice? These are the types of questions, intermixed with discourses on race and wealth that The Farm covers. Jane is a young immigrant from the Philippines, left alone and pregnant by her cheating husband, living in communal houses with her elderly cousin, Ate, who is renowned for her luxury nanny services. Ate, with her legendary infant care and ability to compartmentalize everything to create the ultimate service, attempts to be [...]