Reviews in Brief

A deeply vulnerable and inspiring account of personal healing through “transcendent kinetics,” Soul Can You: How Expanded Consciousness Cultivates Spiritual Awakening, Trauma Healing, and Creative Breakthroughs by Lisa Gilbert, MD is a stirring testament to our capacity for recovery and renewal. Detailing the author’s spiritual journey through deeply rooted trauma and emotional dysregulation, the text outlines a range of therapeutic modalities, from holotropic breathwork and mystical meditation to revolutionary techniques for consciousness expansion and essential shadow work. Narratively rich and relevant for any stormy season of life, this compelling guide to psychospiritual knowledge is balanced neatly between ancient wisdom and the cutting edge of “innerfaith” therapy, for a manual that is esoteric without being too far-reaching, and discerningly pragmatic.

The unflinching and fearless story of a dopamine-driven wanderer finding his feet in the wild world, The Traveller by Chuck Thompson is a gonzo-like novel exploring the mind of a philosophic hustler. From sleepless binges during his university days in London and conning conductors in Amsterdam to dangerous debauchery in Tokyo spice shops and life-or-death knife fights in the Saudi desert, the reckless protagonist’s diatribe feels feral and polished at once. Both a deep-dive history lesson into drug culture and a tense travelogue across Europe, this nation-leaping novel crackles with cutting observation, for a whip-smart crash course in slinging and surviving as a twenty-something vagabond.

A white-knuckle spiral down the darkest corners of addiction, dealing, and dangerous bedfellows, Back in Business: A Neo-Noir Return to Drugs, Violence, and Lunacy (The Business Trilogy Book 2) by Simon Pearce is a gleefully unapologetic spree of dope-slinging drama. A year after the explosive end of Mark’s relationship with hard drugs—and with his French girlfriend—he finds himself back in the saddle with his mysteriously discharged partner in crime. Still cooking for a killer to pay their debts and avoid an early grave, King and Casper may be off the wagon and out of their minds, but survival while getting impossibly high is what this hopped-up pair of deviant dealers does best. A second rollicking piece of unrepentant madness, this is a clever binge of seamy entertainment, and an unhinged glimpse at survival in the UK’s underbelly of vice and violence.

Sex Bytes: The F*cked-Up Truth About Tech & Sex by TechChick is a bold, blisteringly honest revival of a 2003 cult classic. Originally penned by a porn actress turned digital icon, the book mixes explicit advice, hilarious reader confessions, and raw sex commentary into a no-holds-barred manifesto. In 2025’s updated digital edition, TechChick sharpens the voice for a new generation, weaving in cultural shifts, while preserving the unapologetic candor that rattled the early internet – think Sex and the City meets Fight Club, but much dirtier. This fierce, filthy, and fearless compendium is not just erotica, it’s digital-age sexual anthropology told with humor and a whole lot of truth, which is classic and essential reading.

Dramatically examining the haunting experiences of survivors, accomplices, and casualties of the Third Reich, The Madness Locker by Eddie Russell is a powerful narrative exploration of the grim past and its ominous echoes today. Forty years after being rescued from the clutches of the Gestapo, a dormant messenger of evil reappears in Ruth’s life with an unexpected purpose. Moving smoothly between two different timelines and tales, this novel takes readers from the visceral horrors of a concentration camp to the xenophobic struggles of an immigrant, and the mystifying trauma responses of a nearly broken soul. Though there are occasional issues with narrative flow and consistency in the storytelling, this is an unpredictable drama of survival at all costs that is both touching and timely.

A powerful argument for returning to the sacred roots of Christianity and the Catholic Church, Because It’s True.: From Confusion to Communion: An Honest Search for the Church Founded by Jesus Christ by Kristie Lilley is a deeply researched and reverent testament to the origins of belief. Fearlessly sharing her own journey and exposing the dark side of modern religion where unchallenged power and dogma intersect, Lilley’s treatise is revelatory and at times radical, but also clearly grounded in hope and a commitment to Jesus’ genuine teachings. From key Scriptural passages and theological writing to a historical review of Christianity’s evolution and the unfortunate co-opting of religion in the public sphere, Lilley presents a thorough and compelling take on biblical foundations, the authentic path to salvation, and the future of faith in modern life.