IndieReader Discovery Awards 2025 Entrants
Added as our reviewers read them, find the latest verdicts for the 2025 IndieReader Discovery Award entrants, leading up to the big winner announcement in June!
A haunting tale of desperation, Alaric Cabiling’s BELOW brings an intriguing twist to zombie tales when a young boy defies odds by escaping the gruesome deterioration of his home county, only to find himself battling to avoid falling prey to the evils he’s fought so hard to escape.
Jenna Tico’s memoir, CANCER MOON, delves into her intimate and honest journey of love, heartbreak, and self-discovery. Tico portrays the upheaval of her twenties with vivid storytelling and unvarnished emotional honesty, provoking readers to consider their own weaknesses. This book is engaging and relatable due to the author’s distinctive combination of humor and reflection.
Ceclia Valetti’s latest novel, THE TRUTH, is the first book in her new “Mysteries at Anna’s Trattoria” series. The book is set in a fictional coastal town in New Brunswick, Canada, where–Anna, who emigrated to Canada from Italy forty years ago–runs the restaurant with her daughter Silvia. Three weeks after Anna’s son Luca, a priest, dies in a car accident, Neil McKinley begins his new job as the chief inspector. McKinley is a much-revered lawman from Vancouver, and immediately dives into community life, including taking over as a basketball coach and involving himself in the local orphanage, where one of the young girls may have a connection to his past. He also becomes embroiled in a series of murders, which he believes are connected. The sense of place is strong in the book, with a location rarely seen in books, but well rendered. The meals and cooking lessons are lovingly detailed, along with the positive connection between food lovingly prepared and building community. THE TRUTH launches a new mystery series juxtaposing tight community with the perils of human shortcomings.
FOREVER BOY by Michael J. Bowler offers readers a unique blend of coming-of-age challenges and supernatural intrigue, making it an engaging journey into both the struggles of adolescence and the mysteries of eternal youth. The intriguing character dynamics and Bowler’s rich storytelling create a captivating atmosphere, making this book an excellent pick for fans of both drama and fantasy.
BE THERE is Linsey Willis’s raw, hard-hitting, and comprehensive account of living and coping with her elder sister, Betsy’s bipolar disorder. Willis writes with a harrowing density and incredible honesty as she explores the profound, life-changing effects of Betsy’s illness and her struggles to access adequate care and support. While offering coping strategies, resources, and reassurance, Willis also shares personal correspondence and insight as Betsy’s caregiver and her sister. BE THERE is not only an invaluable companion to any reader in a similar position but is also an engrossing, well-written memoir that merits a broad audience.
MAHINA RISES by John Blossom is a captivating mix of magical realism and young adult fiction following the courageous Mahina as she defies her grandmother’s fears, embracing her mysterious dreams to uncover her family’s past and rebuild her hurricane-destroyed school. Set against the backdrop of Hawaiian lore, the story weaves a thrilling journey of self-discovery, blending magic with a call to protect the planet. Blossom’s richly layered narrative explores the tension between fear and hope, delivering a poignant message about the power of action and the dreams that inspire it.
NOT DOWN IN ANY MAP by P.A. Callaro is a poignant collection of twelve stories that beautifully captures the resilience and complexity of urban life. Through rich symbolism and lyrical prose, Callaro brings to life characters who confront their pasts and navigate profound themes of hope, compassion, and transformation. This collection offers a deeply introspective and emotionally resonant experience for readers who appreciate the intricacies of human relationships and the subtle power of literary fiction.
Peggy Jo Henry’s book, WARNING: I PUBLISHED WITH A SCAM PUBLISHING COMPANY!, explores the author’s own experiences with a dishonest publishing company in an open and enlightening manner. The book shares the financial and emotional costs of going through such an experience, but it also provides insightful analysis of the publishing industry’s problems, along with the author’s personal experiences including a suicide attempt and mental illness and thoughts on the environment and addictions. A must-read for anyone thinking about self-publishing!
Understanding our own behaviors and how to control them are ways to lead a less stressful and more balanced life. In MENTAL FREEDOM by Kim Olver, lessons of responsibility, transformations, and trust are among the elements of life’s moments we can manipulate for our own well-being. This concise “self-help” book ultimately brings the reader a simple-yet-practical “how to” manual.
Does COVET THE CHAOS mirror real life – or is it truly fiction? Judging from author Caleb Shawn Sully’s bio, it’s probably the former. In a split screen between the Iraqi war and a Ukraine Peace Corps assignment, the foreigner (also known as I) takes the reader on a journey behind and in battle in Kirkuk and within the classroom in a small town outside Kviv. Cyrillic characters pepper the narrator’s experience in the Ukraine, with enough English to understand the meaning. Yet, in spite of the foreign intrigue, it speaks of loneliness, just enough to ensure that the violence is tempered and the story, retain its appeal.
GOODE VIBRATIONS OF THE WRESTING PLACE by Amy Safford offers a deeply personal narrative intertwined with historical tragedy. Through rich storytelling, the novel sheds light on the untold history of Malaga Island, bringing together themes of loss, trauma, and reconciliation with the land. This evocative blend of personal reflection and historical depth makes the book a compelling read, particularly for those interested in the healing process between people and place.
THE ASSAYS OF ATA by K. I. S. offers a richly woven narrative set in the intriguing world of Áitarbith, where deception and espionage take center stage. The protagonist, Ata, is a compelling character whose depth and complexity drive the story forward, making this a captivating read for fans of intricate plots and strong, multifaceted heroines.
Dedicated to a group of soldiers killed in the Vietnam war, MY CEMETERY FRIENDS by Vincent J. Tomeo is a collection of poems and stories written for life, as well as death. With inspiration from the generations of those whose final resting places honors people from all walks of life, readers will visit the past in a unique way, reminding readers of the value of their own mortality, bringing together elements of human connection, history, nature, and ultimate peace.
BROKEN MIRROR, Book 1 in the author Cody Sisco’s is a gripping and thought-provoking novel that delves into the complexities of mental health and societal stigma. The book offers a compelling exploration of the human condition, with well-developed characters and a richly detailed world that draws the reader in. Sisco’s ability to create a fully realized world and characters that feel both familiar and alien is a testament to his skill as a writer.
Christopher Dainton, an emergency room physician and author of THE EVIDENCE-BASED MEDICAL MISSION, THE SALSA PROJECT, and the novel DEEP RAPTURE, tries something a little different in MOVE OVER, VIOLA, about his mother’s discrimination battle with Bell Canada which ended up in front of the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal in 1987. Dainton calls it a “fanciful hybrid of fiction and memoir” stylistically inspired by Kurt Vonnegut’s CAT’S CRADLE. Told in short chapters in sections alternating from his point of view, a bi-racial man in modern Canada, and his mother’s point of view, a Black woman whose brains got her out of Trinidad and away from a difficult father, to Prince Edward Island, and later Toronto, it explores both their journeys, remembrances, and questions with nuance and detail. Dainton’s writing is strong, and the detail and exploration of the conflicting positions compelling, engaging, and thought-provoking. Trial arguments are re-created into scenes from the transcripts into scenes, embellished by Dainton’s imagination. The ending is abrupt, reminding the reader that life doesn’t tie up in neat little bows the way fiction often does, providing no easy conclusions.
Dee Knight’s A REALISTIC PATH TO PEACE is a well-researched and passionate plea for action against world warfare and US imperialism. Knight offers a perceptive commentary of US foreign policy, focusing on its conflicts with China, Russia, and the Middle East, drawing on his many years of experience in the peace movement. This book is a riveting read for anybody looking to understand the causes of war and the pressing need for peace because of the author’s ability to tie contemporary international tensions to a larger historical framework.
THE DEMON by Victory Witherkeigh offers a unique twist on possession by delving into the demon’s struggle with human experiences and identity. The well-developed characters and the creative concept of feeding on portions of a person’s lifetime add depth to the narrative, making it a captivating read for fans of supernatural fiction.
An impeccably detailed fantasy, Ben Spencer’s THE PROPHECY OF THE YUBRIY TREE delivers adventure in a well-constructed mystical world on the brink of political upheaval where unlikely characters are brought together by the guiding whispers of universal forces.