Bert Murray
Auteur de Colin Preston Rocked and Rolled
A propos de l'auteur
Crédit image: personal photo of the author
Séries
Œuvres de Bert Murray
Still One More Chance For Love 3 exemplaires
The NYC Werewolf Tales, Book One: A Magical, Coming-Of-Age, Werewolf Fantasy Adventure (2017) 2 exemplaires
The NYC Werewolf In Camelot And The Holy Grail: A Magical, Coming-Of-Age, Werewolf Fantasy Adventure (NYC Werewolf… (2021) 1 exemplaire
James and Lucy (A NYC Werewolf, #1) 1 exemplaire
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Statistiques
- Œuvres
- 16
- Membres
- 102
- Popularité
- #187,251
- Évaluation
- 3.5
- Critiques
- 18
- ISBN
- 8
Colin himself is a typical nice guy who is obsessed with classic rock. He meets Jasmine, a girl who he falls head over heels for and believes she is his soul mate, despite being warned by several friends that she is going to be trouble. Of course, he doesn't listen since there would not be much of a plot to the novel if he did. When the trouble starts, Colin is baffled and unable to handle or even understand the situation as it sends ripples throughout is life like an emotional and social tsunami. Will Colin be able to deal with his sophomore slump and its causes?
The novel is a decent freshman effort, but not without its flaws. In general, the characters are recognizable and identifiable. It is something many have gone through or seen someone close to them go through, that being the story of a first love and not understanding or knowing how to deal with it or the foibles that come along with it. Among the cast of characters, aside from Colin, are Jasmine (his new age hippy girlfriend), Karl (his football-playing, womanizing best friend), Big Ty (the gentle giant), Chester (the basement-dwelling stoner, and my personal favorite among the characters), and Mrs. Vesquez (the wise but somewhat strange Spanish Literature professor who seems to have a secret of her own). There are other significant characters, but it would be difficult to describe them without spoilers. It is very easy to feel sorry for Colin, and frustrated at the situations others put him in, or to feel anger at those who betray him. Colin is a very likable character whose inexperience and misunderstanding of life and love are his biggest flaws. As the story unfolds, the reader can very easily imagine the novel unfolding on the screen, and can hear the soundtrack as well with all the musical references peppered throughout.
As I said, however, the novel is not without problems. To start, sometimes Colin wallows a little too much in self-pity and seems more like a passenger in the story rather than an active participant. In the end, that becomes part of the novel's point, but it does not make for a great story, and can ultimately lead to more frustration with the main character than is really a good idea to have. Secondly, Colin sometimes has these bursts of insight that seem out of character, especially when waxing philosophical about music and how it relates to life, especially near the end. This might have been more believable if the novel felt like it was being told by an older Colin Preston looking back on his sophomore year with the benefit of hindsight, but seems to be told from the perspective of having just gone through it. It was a minor irritation, but noticeable. The ending was mostly well done. Things are not necessarily wrapped up in a neat little package with everything resolved. As stated previously, the novel is more like a slice of life, with life continuing after and the overarching story of Colin's life not necessarily done, just this part of his life. However, the final line in the epilogue felt like a cliched and tacky ending to what could have been much better and left the reader truly thinking about it. Instead, it elicited an audible groan.
I know it seems like I'm ragging on the novel a lot, but these were basic flaws to what was overall an enjoyable read. These flaws put the novel in a category that could probably be called “I wanted to like it more.” Please note that this is NOT a young adult novel. There is a lot of drinking, drugs, and sex throughout the novel. Reader be warned. While [a:Bert Murray|4519512|Bert Murray|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1302547266p2/4519512.jpg] has recommended the novel for those 18 years old and over because of this, I would actually recommend it for those 25 years and over, because those are the ones who have probably been through those years and the characters' situations, including a first love, and have the benefit of hindsight to look back, identify with them, and say, “Yep, I've been there; I can understand this thinking and remember how inexperienced I was during that time.” While good, the novel has enough flaws to prevent it from truly being great. Still, [a:Bert Murray|4519512|Bert Murray|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1302547266p2/4519512.jpg] has a very easy writing style that makes Colin Preston Rocked and Rolled a breeze to read through and definitely shows strong talent, and I would be very interested in reading his next novel.
3.5 out of 5 stars (since we can't give half stars, Colin Preston Rocked and Rolled gets the benefit of the doubt and get 4 stars; however, the real review score is 3.5).
Note: A free copy of this novel was provided to this reviewer by the author. This in no way affected the review.… (plus d'informations)