This novel’s protagonist may not be the most relatable, but his story offers an informative take on modern political madness.
A roaring political novel about an unlikely U.S. Senate candidate in Nevada.
Debut author Avrashow presents the story of rock singer Tyler Sloan’s quest to become a politician. Sloan, the son of a former governor of California, is world-famous for his music, and although he may not be able to hit the high notes like he used to, he still commands quite an audience. Following the death of one of Nevada’s senators, there’s a special election with two major candidates: a Republican who flails whenever she has to go off-script, and a Democrat who puts people to sleep with his long-winded speeches. If there were ever room for an independent in American politics, it’s in this race. But why would Sloan bother to get involved? Because, as he says, “Washington is poisoned with hyper-partisan B.S. Nothing gets done. Nothing.” But the question driving the novel isn’t whether Sloan can do away with the “hyper-partisan B.S.”—it’s whether he can convince voters that he’s the man for the job. Hurdles arise as his campaign progresses, not the least of which is the existence of a sex tape featuring Sloan and a political opponent. Readers may find, though, that rooting for Sloan isn’t particularly satisfying. As a wealthy, famous entertainer who’d “met three presidents before his twenty-first birthday,” he’s hardly an everyman—nor does it seem likely that he could relate to one. What instead gives the book its intrigue are the many details that candidates must face in such a campaign. Sloan gets a primer on handshaking, for example, and how the pasts of his own staff members can sometimes prove to be more hindrance than help. However, the political tough guy speak can feel clichéd (“You knew that enviro whack job would demand further studies in Congress on our gaming bill!”), and the final outcome of the book is somewhat predictable. That said, the journey there will force readers to take a hard look at what it takes to get elected.
This novel’s protagonist may not be the most relatable, but his story offers an informative take on modern political madness.Pub Date: Nov. 28, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-946143-32-7
Page Count: 330
Publisher: Fiery Seas
Review Posted Online: Nov. 9, 2017
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
Briskly written soap with down-to-earth types, mostly without the lachrymose contrivances of Hannah’s previous titles...
Sisters in and out of love.
Meghann Dontess is a high-powered matrimonial lawyer in Seattle who prefers sex with strangers to emotional intimacy: a strategy bound to backfire sooner or later, warns her tough-talking shrink. It’s advice Meghann decides to ignore, along with the memories of her difficult childhood, neglectful mother, and younger sister. Though she managed to reunite Claire with Sam Cavenaugh (her father but not Meghann’s) when her mother abandoned both girls long ago, Meghann still feels guilty that her sister’s life doesn’t measure up, at least on her terms. Never married, Claire ekes out a living running a country campground with her dad and is raising her six-year-old daughter on her own. When she falls in love for the first time with an up-and-coming country musician, Meghann is appalled: Bobby Austin is a three-time loser at marriage—how on earth can Claire be so blind? Bobby’s blunt explanation doesn’t exactly satisfy the concerned big sister, who busies herself planning Claire’s dream wedding anyway. And, to relieve the stress, she beds various guys she picks up in bars, including Dr. Joe Wyatt, a neurosurgeon turned homeless drifter after the demise of his beloved wife Diane (whom he euthanized). When Claire’s awful headache turns out to be a kind of brain tumor known among neurologists as a “terminator,” Joe rallies. Turns out that Claire had befriended his wife on her deathbed, and now in turn he must try to save her. Is it too late? Will Meghann find true love at last?
Briskly written soap with down-to-earth types, mostly without the lachrymose contrivances of Hannah’s previous titles (Distant Shores, 2002, etc.). Kudos for skipping the snifflefest this time around.Pub Date: May 1, 2003
ISBN: 0-345-45073-6
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Ballantine
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2003
Coelho's placebo has racked up impressive sales in Brazil and Europe. Americans should flock to it like gulls.
Coelho is a Brazilian writer with four books to his credit. Following Diary of a Magus (1992—not reviewed) came this book, published in Brazil in 1988: it's an interdenominational, transcendental, inspirational fable—in other words, a bag of wind.
The story is about a youth empowered to follow his dream. Santiago is an Andalusian shepherd boy who learns through a dream of a treasure in the Egyptian pyramids. An old man, the king of Salem, the first of various spiritual guides, tells the boy that he has discovered his destiny: "to realize one's destiny is a person's only real obligation." So Santiago sells his sheep, sails to Tangier, is tricked out of his money, regains it through hard work, crosses the desert with a caravan, stops at an oasis long enough to fall in love, escapes from warring tribesmen by performing a miracle, reaches the pyramids, and eventually gets both the gold and the girl. Along the way he meets an Englishman who describes the Soul of the World; the desert woman Fatima, who teaches him the Language of the World; and an alchemist who says, "Listen to your heart" A message clings like ivy to every encounter; everyone, but everyone, has to put in their two cents' worth, from the crystal merchant to the camel driver ("concentrate always on the present, you'll be a happy man"). The absence of characterization and overall blandness suggest authorship by a committee of self-improvement pundits—a far cry from Saint- Exupery's The Little Prince: that flagship of the genre was a genuine charmer because it clearly derived from a quirky, individual sensibility.
Coelho's placebo has racked up impressive sales in Brazil and Europe. Americans should flock to it like gulls.Pub Date: July 1, 1993
ISBN: 0-06-250217-4
Page Count: 192
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1993
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
BOOK TO SCREEN
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