Location: Canada
Member Since: Dec. 24, 2013

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Smashwords book reviews by 0utf0xZer0

  • It Really IS Rocket Science, A Rock'N'Roll Fantasy on Dec. 30, 2013

    It may not really be Rocket Science, but it's still an excellent book packing some great characters and which strikes a good balance between packing some drama and maintaining a light, fun mood. The greatest strength of this book is in its characters. The aspiring and/or returning rock stars that populate Branham's book are the kind that find their minor celebrity more odd than corrupting and maintain a fairly down to earth nature. My personal favourite would have to be Glycerin, a tall, timid beauty with showstopping talent. Those who have watched the anime K-On! might liken her to a more sophisticated and fully fleshed out version of Mio. She's joined by her two bandmates Tsika, a petite, Moscow born gothloli with a delightful tendency towards moodiness, and Kpau - who rounds out the three woman band in an energetic and extroverted way. The three of them make a great ensemble. They're joined by Blar, a living out of the limelight former rockstar whose very human flaws thankfully do not include a rockstar ego. He plays the three women quite nicely - I found the dialogue oddly reminiscent of Firefly, a series I adore - though he's not good at hiding his interest in Glycerin and especially Tsika. One of his former bandmates also makes an appearance but I won't spoil her. Branham says in his foreward that he did some research into the music industry before reading this, and it pays off in a believable world. The band's success is underpinned by a nice combination of talent, pounding the pavement - or stage as the case may be - and connections with interesting people. The pacing is pretty good too, with the backstories of the Lost Girls being revealed to Blar - and by extension the audience - at a fairly natural rate. There's clearly more to come - both in main story and back stories - as the book is to be continued. Thankfully Branham chooses a decent cutoff point for where to end the book. Some aspects of the story may not be to everyone's taste. Most notably, the Lost Girls themselves are a fairly broken bunch with quite a few issues, and I could see some audiences finding them grating even though I find them an enjoyable bunch. But on the whole I found the story a lot of fun and if you like what you've heard here, I would recommend giving it a shot.