Review: Extra Grumpy Trumpy by Stacey Russo

 Genre: Politics/Humor/Parody

Description:

“Extra Grumpy Trumpy is the sequel to Grumpy Trumpy no one asked for, but everyone deserves—and let’s just say, the material kept coming. Inspired by more recent events and the ever-growing absurdity of the political landscape, this book practically wrote itself. The hardest part? Deciding what not to include.

Built on the playful repetition and escalating silliness of The Wonky Donkey (but not written by or endorsed by its authors), this sing-songy satire turns chaos into catharsis. It’s packed with clever wordplay and poetic protest for grown-ups who laugh through the madness and rhyme through the rage.

It’s for readers who believe storytelling can be silly, sharp, and subversive all at once. It’s also a playful stand for free expression, a reminder that the First Amendment still matters—and we’re using it with heart, wit, and a healthy dose of rhyme.”

Author:

“Stacey is a mom, business owner, travel enthusiast, and unapologetic beach lover who turned her pet peeves into punchlines. Her writing journey began with parody—sing-songy, satirical books that helped her laugh through the chaos and find humor in the things that bothered her most.”

Appraisal:

If you’re a fan of Trump, this book is definitely not for you. If you’re not a fan this book should give you a good laugh while discussing several reasons why your lack of fandom makes sense. This parodies the style of the Wonky Donkey series of kids picture books in a way that even a pre-school kid could understand. Unfortunately those fans of Trump are unlikely to get it, but you’ll get a good laugh. I’d have never guessed that an adult picture book that looks just like something I’d read to a grandkid would have appeal to me, but I was wrong.

Buy now from:            Amazon US        Amazon UK

Format/Typo Issues:

No significant issues.

Rating: **** Four Stars

Reviewed by: BigAl

Approximate word count: 24 pages

Reprise Review: Bad Book by K.S. Brooks, Stephen Hise, JD Mader

 

Genre: Satire/Parody

Description:

“The name’s Case. No first name. He is a man among men and therefore only one name is sufficient. Women want to smack him – men want to smack him, too, just harder. Join Case on his epic travels through multiple literary genres as he ruins horror, space-adventure, noir detective, spy-thriller, westerns, classics of literature, pop culture icons and more with his own unique panache.”

Authors:

Three people who write a bunch. Want more?

K.S. Brooks has written everything from thrillers to children’s books (I count eleven, not including those where she was a coauthor or contributing author, which adds another handful – the number of fingers on Honey Boo Boo’s hand if you count this book). Ms. Brooks is also the administrator of the website Indies Unlimited.

Stephen Hise is the author of the suspense novel Upgrade and has contributed to several others including Creepier by the Dozen, a short story anthology written by Hise, his son, and his daughter. He’s also the founder of the Indies Unlimited website.

JD Mader has two novels to his credit, a short story collection, and a collection of essays to scare any dad-to-be, You Hate Me Because I’m Pregnant (a survival guide for expectant dads). He’s also contributed to and co-written several others.

For more, visit the individual websites for Brooks, Hise, and Mader.

Appraisal:

Humor may be dependent on the reader, but if you can’t laugh at this book, you must have had a funny-bone-ectomy as a child. The laughs started with a disclaimer that begins …

Bad Book meets or exceeds the recommended daily allowance of vowels and consonants, and is safe and effective when used as directed. Use of Bad Book in any manner inconsistent with its intended purpose nullifies its warranty, which is neither expressed nor implied.

… and finishes with, “If you experience an erection that lasts more than four hours, congratulations.” It only gets better from there. As the hero (villain, idiot, or at least protagonist) Chase bounces from genre to genre the authors poke fun at every one with references to the wild (or is it mild) old west and even the books J.K. Rowling wrote before The Casual Vacancy.

I felt a tap on my shoulder and tottered around to see some geezer dressed in a long gown and a pointy hat like that old dude in that book about that weird little kid that goes off to some magical school to find a ring. What’s the name of that thing again – “Hobbits Take Manhattan,” or something like that.

How could you go wrong for less than a dollar to get your own copy of the Kindle Edition. (Hurry, they may try to cash in on the critical acclaim and bump the price up to three digits. Even split three ways, they’ll be hundredaires in no time.)

Buy now from:    Amazon US        Amazon UK

FYI:

Added for Reprise Review: Bad Book by K.S. Brooks, Stephen Hise, JD Mader was a nominee in the Humor category for B&P 2014 Readers' Choice Awards. Original review ran June 25, 2013.

Format/Typo Issues:

No significant issues.

Rating: ***** Five Stars

Reviewed by: BigAl

Approximate word count: 50-55,000 words

Reprise Review: Bad Book by K.S. Brooks, Stephen Hise, JD Mader

Genre: Satire/Parody

Description:

“The name’s Case. No first name. He is a man among men and therefore only one name is sufficient. Women want to smack him – men want to smack him, too, just harder. Join Case on his epic travels through multiple literary genres as he ruins horror, space-adventure, noir detective, spy-thriller, westerns, classics of literature, pop culture icons and more with his own unique panache.”

Author:

Three people who write a bunch. Want more?

K.S. Brooks has written everything from thrillers to children’s books (I count eleven, not including those where she was a coauthor or contributing author, which adds another handful – the number of fingers on Honey Boo Boo’s hand if you count this book).

Stephen Hise is the author of the suspense novel Upgrade and has contributed to several others including Creepier by the Dozen, a short story anthology written by Hise, his son, and his daughter. He’s also the founder and (with Brooks) the co-administrator of the Indies Unlimited website.

JD Mader has two novels to his credit, a short story collection, and a collection of essays to scare any dad-to-be, You Hate Me Because I’m Pregnant (a survival guide for expectant dads). He’s also contributed to and co-written several others.

For more, visit the individual websites for Brooks, Hise, and Mader.

Appraisal:

Humor may be dependent on the reader, but if you can’t laugh at this book, you must have had a funny-bone-ectomy as a child. The laughs started with a disclaimer that begins …

Bad Book meets or exceeds the recommended daily allowance of vowels and consonants, and is safe and effective when used as directed. Use of Bad Book in any manner inconsistent with its intended purpose nullifies its warranty, which is neither expressed nor implied.

… and finishes with, “If you experience an erection that lasts more than four hours, congratulations.” It only gets better from there. As the hero (villain, idiot, or at least protagonist) Chase bounces from genre to genre the authors poke fun at every one with references to the wild (or is it mild) old west and even the books J.K. Rowling wrote before The Casual Vacancy.

I felt a tap on my shoulder and tottered around to see some geezer dressed in a long gown and a pointy hat like that old dude in that book about that weird little kid that goes off to some magical school to find a ring. What’s the name of that thing again – “Hobbits Take Manhattan,” or something like that.

How could you go wrong for less than a dollar to get your own copy of the Kindle Edition. (Hurry, they may try to cash in on the critical acclaim and bump the price up to three digits. Even split three ways, they’ll be hundredaires in no time.)

Buy now from:    Amazon US        Amazon UK

FYI:

Added for Reprise Review: Bad Book was a nominee in the Humor category for B&P 2014 Readers' Choice Awards. Original review ran June 25, 2013.

Format/Typo Issues:

No significant issues

Rating: ***** Five Stars

Reviewed by: BigAl

Approximate word count: 50-55,000 words

Reprise Review: Bad Book by @AuthorKSBrooks @StephenHise & @JD_Mader

Genre: Satire/Parody

Description:

“The name’s Case. No first name. He is a man among men and therefore only one name is sufficient. Women want to smack him – men want to smack him, too, just harder. Join Case on his epic travels through multiple literary genres as he ruins horror, space-adventure, noir detective, spy-thriller, westerns, classics of literature, pop culture icons and more with his own unique panache.”

Authors:

Three people who write a bunch. Want more?

K.S. Brooks has written everything from thrillers to children’s books (I count eleven, not including those where she was a coauthor or contributing author, which adds another handful – the number of fingers on Honey Boo Boo’s hand if you count this book).

Stephen Hise is the author of the suspense novel Upgrade and has contributed to several others including Creepier by the Dozen, a short story anthology written by Hise, his son, and his daughter. He’s also the founder and (with Brooks) the co-administrator of the Indies Unlimited website.

JD Mader has two novels to his credit, a short story collection, and a collection of essays to scare any dad-to-be, You Hate Me Because I’m Pregnant (a survival guide for expectant dads). He’s also contributed to and co-written several others.

For more, visit the individual websites for Brooks, Hise, and Mader.

Appraisal:

Humor may be dependent on the reader, but if you can’t laugh at this book, you must have had a funny-bone-ectomy as a child. The laughs started with a disclaimer that begins …

Bad Book meets or exceeds the recommended daily allowance of vowels and consonants, and is safe and effective when used as directed. Use of Bad Book in any manner inconsistent with its intended purpose nullifies its warranty, which is neither expressed nor implied.

… and finishes with, “If you experience an erection that lasts more than four hours, congratulations.” It only gets better from there. As the hero (villain, idiot, or at least protagonist) Chase bounces from genre to genre the authors poke fun at every one with references to the wild (or is it mild) old west and even the books J.K. Rowling wrote before The Casual Vacancy.

I felt a tap on my shoulder and tottered around to see some geezer dressed in a long gown and a pointy hat like that old dude in that book about that weird little kid that goes off to some magical school to find a ring. What’s the name of that thing again – “Hobbits Take Manhattan,” or something like that.

How could you go wrong for less than a dollar to get your own copy of the Kindle Edition. (Hurry, they may try to cash in on the critical acclaim and bump the price up to three digits. Even split three ways, they’ll be hundredaires in no time.)

Buy now from:    Kindle US    Kindle UK     Paperback

FYI: Added for Reprise Review: Bad Book was a nominee in the Humor category for B&P 2014 Readers' Choice Awards. Original review ran June 25, 2013.

Approximate word count: 50-55,000 words

Format/Typo Issues:

No significant issues

Rating: ***** Five stars

Reviewed by: BigAl

Review: Incontinence Man by K.S. Brooks with Nicholas Forristal (illustrator/art effects)

Genre: Graphic Novel/Humor/Superhero/Parody 

Description: 

“Real people turned into comic book drawings! An aging crime fighter who can’t control his intestines! A sexy nurse, a dangerous foe, and a loyal servant. Our hero must fight danger at every turn, and not a bathroom in sight!

Out on the big hill overlooking Gothingham, trouble brews in the bowels of Payne Manor. Luke Payne, a once-effective crime fighter, has become a recluse — a toilet never far away. His trusty servant, Alfreda, makes him an offer he can’t refuse: see a doctor about his incontinence issues, and she’ll fashion him a new crime-fighting suit out of stylish brown tones to, you know, conceal his shortcomings.

Will Luke go to the doctor? Will he be able to defeat a new arch-rival who’s come to town? Will he get his superpowers back? Did he actually ever have any superpowers? Why are we asking so many questions? Some of the answers may or may not be inside this spoof comic book, with images derived from real people in staged scenes.”

Author:

“K.S. Brooks has been writing for over thirty years. An award-winning author and photographer, she has written more than 20 titles, is currently the co-administrator for the superb blog Indies Unlimited and is founder of "Authors for Hurricane Sandy Library Recovery" and the "Liberty Library" for soldiers and veterans.” Learn more about her at her website.

“Nicholas Forristal has a B.S. in Psychology (aka a B.S. in BS). With his "free" time, he regularly dislikes house work, remodeling his home, and a sordid list of other lousy tasks. When no one is looking, Nicholas works on The Chronicles of M, an ever growing series of fantasy books that range from Historical fiction, to modern day wackiness. He's published some other stuff in the past. For example, a psychological paper on perception, but no one cares about such things. That's for nerds.” Learn more about him at his blog.

Appraisal:

This is the first graphic novel I have ever read for a review. I was embarrassed for Luke Payne; however, I snorted and laughed so hard I peed a little all while reading this spoof of a superhero suffering from a bout of incontinence. Sure he could have worn Depends, but one doesn’t connect those dots unless you are an elderly person. I remember when I was once taking a certain medication that caused sudden bouts of explosive diarrhea and I never thought about using adult diapers. (I wish I had and so do the people I was with!) Incontinence is a real problem people! Someone has to talk about it and I am glad Ms. Brooks is brave enough to tackle the subject with this fun parody on a superhero. 

I have to wonder how often Mr. Forristal lost control of his sphincter while illustrating and adding art effects to this pile of sh… words, words! Words is the word I was looking for here. Honest! The fact that Ms. Brook’s own photos were used and artistically manipulated by Mr. Forristal was creative brilliance. 

At any rate, everyone needs a copy of this short graphic novel in their throne room. Who doesn’t keep reading material in there? You will find common sense, as well as the beginning of a romance, misunderstandings, a revengeful nurse, inconsiderate men, and some super powerful toilet paper. All while reclusive Luke Payne strives to make the world a nicer place, despite not having access to clean public restrooms. 

Buy now from:            Amazon US        Amazon UK

FYI:

Expect lots of toilet humor. 

Format/Typo Issues:

I ran across no issues and I was able to read this on my Kindle Paperwhite; however, the pictures were gray tones. Reading the book on my computer offered a more colorful and more enjoyable experience. A color eReader, although not necessary, is recommended.

Rating: **** Four stars

Reviewed by: ?wazithinkin

Approximate page count: 26 pages

A Princess of Fae / Bob Craton

Reviewed by: ?wazithinkin

Genre: Comedic Fiction/ Fantasy/ Parody

Approximate word count: Words: 25-30,000 words

Availability    

Kindle  US: YES  UK: YES  Nook: YES  Smashwords: YES  Paper: NO

Click on a YES above to go to appropriate page in Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or Smashwords store

Author:

“When he was a child, Bob Craton's teachers often remarked (not always favorably) about his day-dreaming. He spent much of his time lost in his own imagination, often creating elaborate elementary school tall-tales, and the habit never went away as he grew up.

At age fifty-seven, he retired early (a euphemism for 'got laid off') and had time to put his tales on 'paper' (an ancient product now replaced by digital electronics)... Many people think he is bonkers for believing that fictional characters talk to him, but he calls it creativity and remains unrepentant.”

Description:

In this novella a bitchy faery Princess recruits a motley crew to assist her on a journey back home to Faëoria. A famous warrior-hero Aretino Searle, who is now a drunk; an unlucky wizard, they call Pinkie; and a clever thief named Mausi (not pronounced mousy) who is on the lam. This small troupe is joined by a stable boy, who turns out to be an educated goblin named George, and a cowardly ogre named Loudt (not pronounced Lout).

“Along the way they tame a dragon, steal a Magic Sword, evade Imperial soldiers, fight demons, fire their author and banish a pompous narrator. Being a bitchy little brat, she doesn't tell them what . . .uh oh, she's looking at me. Did I mention that her icy blue eyes can freeze a man's bloo . . . ”

Appraisal:

This is a unique fun story. When the narrator and the author started bickering at each other and arguing with the characters I had to laugh. Of course then the editor had to get his two cents in.. The characters don't mind telling any of them to get off their backs and let them get on with their scripts. Until they reached the point where they threw the scripts out and proceeded the way they thought best.

Each of these off-beat characters are well developed and had their own endearing qualities. Well except for the Princess, there wasn't much about her that was endearing but she was entertaining. My two favorites were George, he was a bit of a nerd (who doesn't love nerds?) and Loudt, the kind-hearted ogre. They had a true friendship that will last forever and I enjoyed their dialogue. I also think Mr. Craton did a great job handling the other character's banter, they all played off each other well.

The plot was creative and had a good pace. There was action, adventure, and drama galore as this small band of misfits traveled the countryside and mountain terrain. My only complaint is there was not a climatic ending, perhaps if Queen Mab and the Princess had matched wits at the end I would have felt more satisfied. Coming back home is never as easy as this homecoming was. Someone should have had to eat crow, don't you think? Then perhaps the others could have headed back home feeling like the Princess got her just desserts. Or am I just being mean and showing my true colors?

Bob Craton makes many references to other epic fantasies, fairy tales, pop-culture, and famous works of literature throughout the story. There were few stones left unturned and I found it very entertaining. I have read very few satirical parodies and I found this one a nice change of pace.

FYI:

The author warns at the beginning that “this text contains Naughty Words not suitable for children, puppies, and other gentle beings.”  While there was a lot of swearing there were no F-bombs dropped at all.

Format/Typo Issues:

I only found a small number of proofing errors. Most were minor, except near the end Loudt was mistakenly called George.

Rating: **** Four stars

Vampires are from Venus, Werewolves are from Mars / Vera Nazarian

Reviewed by: ?wazithinkin

Genre: Parody / Humor / Paranormal

Approximate word count: 10-15,000 words

Availability    

Kindle  US: YES  UK: YES  Nook: YES  Smashwords: NO  Paper: YES

Click on a YES above to go to appropriate page in Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or Smashwords store

Author:

“Vera Nazarian immigrated to the USA from the former USSR as a kid, sold her first story at the age of 17, and since then has published numerous works in anthologies and magazines, and has seen her fiction translated into eight languages... Vera lives in Los Angeles and is working on a number of book-length projects... She uses her Armenian sense of humor and her Russian sense of suffering to bake conflicted pirozhki and make art. In addition to being a writer and award-winning artist, she is also the publisher of Norilana Books.”

To learn more about Ms. Nazarian and check out her other published books, please visit her website.

Description:

This novelette is a “Comprehensive Guide to Attracting Supernatural Love.”

“Admit it, you've secretly dreamed of dating a sexy brooding vampire or an alpha werewolf... But what about dating zombies, mummies, angels, fairies, demons, ghosts, random spotted aliens with tentacles, or other random metaphysical impossibilities? Furthermore, what if those paranormal beings in turn dreamed of dating each other -- each one in search of their own supernatural soul mates?

The answer lies, as usual, in the planets, and the entire solar system of planetary harmonic alignment. Take the supernatural compatibility test and discover your own soul planet. Discover what planet rules which supernatural species, and which paranormal personality combinations offer the most compatibility to each other -- and to you. And then, be matched with the supernatural soul mate of your wildest dreams! It's all in here!”

Appraisal:

This is indeed a comprehensive study!  Ms. Navarian knows her topic well. This guide full of humor, it also contains practical self-help advice as an added bonus. As in “Do not, under any circumstances, leave a Venusian and a Martian in the same room unsupervised, unless you plan a remodel and want to save on demolition expenses.”

It includes all around sage advice:

Yes, it's a scary big universal dating pool. We all have to get along, so we are all naturally attracted to people with whom we must learn to get along. Because, at the end of the cosmic day (and just before cosmic happy hour), we kind of need them. And they need us. So that the world does not fall apart as a result of our infantile unresolved conflict.

There is also educational information included!

Venus is the second planet from the sun, boiling-hot and roiling with primeval gases, especially methane (think, auto exhaust and farts). Naturally, it is the planet of Love...

...the Moon is tiny in the greater scheme of planet things, but it's huge and devastating in our poetic imagination--deceptively cool and stately-slow, sailing in the night heavens--and it controls the tides. And Mercury is also tiny, scalding-hot on one side only (like your toast), and super-fast, and closest to the sun and far from us--and yet it has that damned Retrograde every few months that causes our mail to get lost, our pants to shrink in the dryer, and ruins our travel plans. How is that not sneaky and impressive?

All of this is just the tip of the iceberg. This book includes a test to help you determine which paranormal you are best suited for a love relationship with and follows it up with an analysis of your results. All in all this is an entertaining read. I really enjoyed the writing style utilized in this novelette.

Format/Typo Issues:

I found no significant editing or formatting errors.

Rating: **** Four stars

Bad Book / K.S. Brooks, Stephen Hise, & JD Mader

Reviewed by: BigAl

Genre: Satire/Parody

Approximate word count: 50-55,000 words

Availability    

Kindle  US: YES  UK: YES  Nook: YES  Smashwords: YES  Paper: YES

Click on a YES above to go to appropriate page in Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or Smashwords store

Author:

Three people who write a bunch. Want more?

K.S. Brooks has written everything from thrillers to children’s books (I count eleven , not including those where she was a coauthor or contributing author, which adds another handful – the number of fingers on Honey Boo Boo’s hand if you count this book).

Stephen Hise is the author of the suspense novel Upgrade and has contributed to several others including Creepier by the Dozen, a short story anthology written by Hise, his son, and his daughter. He’s also the founder and (with Brooks) the co-administrator of the Indies Unlimited website.

JD Mader has two novels to his credit, a short story collection, and a collection of essays to scare any dad-to-be, You Hate Me Because I’m Pregnant (a survival guide for expectant dads). He’s also contributed to and co-written several others.

For more, visit the individual websites for Brooks, Hise, and Mader.

Description:

“The name’s Case. No first name. He is a man among men and therefore only one name is sufficient. Women want to smack him – men want to smack him, too, just harder. Join Case on his epic travels through multiple literary genres as he ruins horror, space-adventure, noir detective, spy-thriller, westerns, classics of literature, pop culture icons and more with his own unique panache.”

Appraisal:

Humor may be dependent on the reader, but if you can’t laugh at this book, you must have had a funny-bone-ectomy as a child. The laughs started with a disclaimer that begins …

Bad Book meets or exceeds the recommended daily allowance of vowels and consonants, and is safe and effective when used as directed. Use of Bad Book in any manner inconsistent with its intended purpose nullifies its warranty, which is neither expressed nor implied.

… and finishes with, “If you experience an erection that lasts more than four hours, congratulations.” It only gets better from there. As the hero (villain, idiot, or at least protagonist) Chase bounces from genre to genre the authors poke fun at every one with references to the wild (or is it mild) old west and even the books J.K. Rowling wrote before The Casual Vacancy.

I felt a tap on my shoulder and tottered around to see some geezer dressed in a long gown and a pointy hat like that old dude in that book about that weird little kid that goes off to some magical school to find a ring. What’s the name of that thing again – “Hobbits Take Manhattan,” or something like that.

How could you go wrong for less than a dollar to get your own copy of the Kindle Edition. (Hurry, they may try to cash in on the critical acclaim and bump the price up to three digits. Even split three ways, they’ll be hundredaires in no time.)

Format/Typo Issues:

No significant issues

Rating: ***** Five stars

Mason-Dixon Despot / Christopher Jones

Reviewed by: BigAl

Genre: Mystery/Parody

Approximate word count: 15-20,000

Availability
Kindle US: YES UK: YES Nook: NO Smashwords: NO Paper: NO
Click on a YES above to go to appropriate page in Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or Smashwords store

Author:

If we’re to believe the “other books by” listing at the beginning of this book (we aren’t), then if I counted correctly (possibly not, since I ran out of fingers) Christopher Jones aka Woody Stewedfarts has previously written an even dozen books, with this volume making a baker’s dozen. The reality appears to be that this is his only book and that listing (which includes such titles as It Depends, My Love: U.S. Travel Guide for the Incontinent) is part of the parody.

Description:

Subtitled A Bear Stonington Mystery (The Woody Stewedfarts Books), this book parodies the Stone Barrington mystery series authored by Stuart Woods.

Appraisal:

Is it possible to have a reaction to a book that is bipolar? If so, I did to this one.

We’ll start with the beginning. We’ve all heard the old saw that you can’t judge a book by its cover. It would be more correct to say you can’t always accurately judge a book by its cover. Regardless of the claim, most readers do. Certain kinds of covers attract our attention in the bookstore. Different color schemes, fonts, and the look and feel in general provide clues as to genre and the story within. You’d think that a cover would be inconsequential in an eBook, but it turns out the opposite is true. Not only is the cover what makes a book jump out from many on a page in an internet bookstore, but the cover has to work at drawing a potential reader’s attention even when compressed to thumbnail size.

I won’t review a book based on its cover and had already made the equivalent of the buying decision before I saw this one, but seeing the generic cover created certain expectations as to what I would find. It told me the author hadn’t done his homework by finding out what it takes if you want your book to have the best chance of success. Successful Indie author Joe Konrath, who blogs on what it takes for Indie success, continually harps on the same things. He says a book must not only be well written, but also have a good product description, be priced low (relative to your legacy published competitors), and look professional (which includes the cover, formatting, and editing). I fully expected to crack the virtual cover to discover a plethora of other problems.

In this case, not meeting my expectations is a good thing. I expected to find all the typical issues indicating lack of adequate copyediting: typos, spelling errors, grammar, issues with homonyms, etc. I found none. As in zero. That almost never happens, regardless of who the author is or how their work made it to publication. That doesn’t mean I didn’t miss something, but no one is going to reject this book as being unreadable due to copyediting issues unless Jones has a big problem with something that is a blind spot for me.

This review is getting long and it is past time I actually talked about the book, where my bipolar reaction continues. It has been a few years since I last read one of Stuart Wood’s Stone Barrington books, but from what I remember (with a little help refreshing my memory by scanning book descriptions of those I have read) I think Jones’ Bear Stonington is a well formed character who parodies Woods’ character well. While there were times it felt as if the caricature was going over the top slightly, each reader’s reaction is likely to be different, and it is much better for a parody to go a little too far than not far enough.

Where I have an issue with this book is with the actual story. While we know the mystery (or at least what Bear’s mission is for this case) relatively early, it isn’t until the halfway point that Bear takes any concrete action toward accomplishing his mission. Up to that point, he is spinning his wheels while his character is getting established. Once we get to the case, there isn’t a lot of meat there (although laughs remain plentiful). What conflict the story has is not with the theoretical antagonist in the story, but with Bear’s ennui as he delays working on the case. Possibly this is parodying something I’m not getting in Wood’s books, but for me, an exercise in parody isn’t enough if the story doesn’t work too.

FYI:

Some minor adult language and situations.

Format/Typo Issues:

No significant typo or proofing issues. The formatting was okay with the exception of the font, which changed back and forth between two different looks at random intervals. It appeared to have a specific font defined rather than using the default, which is preferable in most cases (and also helps prevent this kind of issue).

Rating: *** Three stars

Cold! Steel! Justice! / Alexander O’Hara

Reviewed by: BigAl

Genre: Comic Crime/Satire/Parody

Approximate word count: 60-65,000 words

Availability
Kindle US: YES UK: YES Nook: YES Smashwords: YES Paper: NO
Click on a YES above to go to appropriate page in Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or Smashwords store

Author:

Alexander O’Hara is the pen name of Irish journalist, author, and playwright Darragh McManus. He has two other novels available – GAA Confidential, as Darragh McManus, and Terminating Hollywood using his O’Hara pen name.

Description:

Kicked off the Dice City Police Force for being too violent, Christian Beretta teams up with his old partner to keep the evil Irish Mayor from taking over the city’s illegal drug trade.

Appraisal:

When I think of comic crime novels, I immediately think of Donald Westlake’s Dortmunder series, which have entertained me for years. If you’re the same, don’t expect Cold! Steel! Justice! to meet that expectation. O’Hara describes it on Amazon this way:

Like all the great straight-to-video cop movies you remember from the 1980s, it's packed with suspense, violence, incident, smart quips, daring deeds, racial stereotypes, gratuitous nudity, men wearing bandanas in flagrant contravention of all rules of taste, and at least one scene where a Mexican druglord is incinerated in his own car. As convention dictates.

Great literature it isn’t, any more than the movies it parodies are examples of great filmmaking. But it is great at what O’Hara intended it to be. I laughed and shook my head at Christian Beretta’s antics, just like with those 1980s cop movies. O’Hara’s twisted descriptions were spot-on, and laugh inducing as well, such as when he described someone as, “feeling as low as a dachshund spelunker suffering from depression” or “feeling like the biggest jerk this side of Lindsay Lohan’s dad.” If you’re in the mood for a read that is neither politically correct nor serious, and feel the need to cut loose with a few guffaws, Cold! Steel! Justice! is the book you’re looking for.

FYI:

This book contains language and sexual situations that might not be considered appropriate for younger readers. The book uses some UK spelling and slang.

Format/Typo Issues:

No significant issues.

Rating: ***** Five stars

Rotten Apple / Simon Dunn

Reviewed by: BigAl

Genre: Noir/Thriller/Parody

Approximate word count: 35-40,000 words

Availability
Kindle US: YES UK: YES Nook: NO Smashwords: NO Paper: NO
Click on a YES above to go to appropriate page in Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or Smashwords store

Author:

Simon Dunn is a UK scriptwriter and stand-up comedian. This is his first book. For more, visit his website.

Description:

Seven interwoven stories, which parody the noir genre.

Appraisal:

Humor is a strange beast. Whatever the form or the word used to describe it – comedy, parody, satire – individual reactions vary widely. It is safe to say that Simon Dunn knows how to be funny. That others continue hiring him as a sitcom scriptwriter and booking his stand-up act should be evidence of that. Rotten Apple has some laughs. Almost immediately, we find a laugh in the first story when Vic Malone (a “hard boiled” detective typical of the noir genre) and his boss Harry have an argument over the “vic,” with confusion between the slang for victim and Malone’s first name providing the comedic device.

Parody mocks or does a send-up of, in this case, a literary style or genre. Rotten Apple mocks genre conventions by taking them further, a little over-the-top. Sometimes, it seemed to me, too far. One example is referring to “Her Majesty’s NYPD Police” with its headquarters on “Sunset Boulevard.” The stories all take place in New York City, The Rotten Apple. The “Her Majesty’s” part and setting the headquarters in what many readers would assume is Los Angeles, seemed pointless rather than funny.

Other geographical faux pas were of the same type (traveling south from Philadelphia to New Hampshire and then north into New York State in one instance). Had this been a character traveling the wrong direction and not getting there, it would have been funny. Had it been a character confused about what direction they traveled, it might have been funny. But the narrator telling the story wrong just seemed stupid. Possibly this is a send up of some noir genre convention that I’m just not getting.

In the end, I was left wondering. Were the parts I found funny enough to counteract those that fell flat? Is a parody of the noir genre, which is a bit over-the-top to begin with, a flawed concept? Do my sense of humor and Dunn’s differ? Most important, which sense of humor is closest to yours? My suspicion is that some people would like Rotten Apple much more than I did.

FYI:

The author is British and uses some UK spelling and slang.

Format/Typo Issues:

No significant issues.

Rating: *** Three stars