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To Rise in the Dark: What price the rock 'n' roll dream?
PETE MORAN IS DEAD
In early nineties Manchester, Pete and Jim are high on music, sarcasm and dreams of success. With Devon and Steve they form a band, play four gigs, then suddenly implode.
Thirty years later, Jim is a warehouse worker with a wife, two kids and back trouble. Threats of medical retirement loom over his future.
Cult singer Pete is gone, leaving behind five albums, a history of belligerence and a daughter, Lauren, who wonders why the last 45 spinning on her father’s turntable is a record by a group she’s never heard of and no one wishes to speak about.
At Moran’s funeral, Lauren reunites his old bandmates, leading them on a booze-fuelled odyssey through Manchester in search of a secret they would rather remained buried…
A tale of working class dreams realised and unfulfilled, and the easy hit nostalgia can provide but also what it can bury, the scars that don’t show and conversations never had.
In early nineties Manchester, Pete and Jim are high on music, sarcasm and dreams of success. With Devon and Steve they form a band, play four gigs, then suddenly implode.
Thirty years later, Jim is a warehouse worker with a wife, two kids and back trouble. Threats of medical retirement loom over his future.
Cult singer Pete is gone, leaving behind five albums, a history of belligerence and a daughter, Lauren, who wonders why the last 45 spinning on her father’s turntable is a record by a group she’s never heard of and no one wishes to speak about.
At Moran’s funeral, Lauren reunites his old bandmates, leading them on a booze-fuelled odyssey through Manchester in search of a secret they would rather remained buried…
A tale of working class dreams realised and unfulfilled, and the easy hit nostalgia can provide but also what it can bury, the scars that don’t show and conversations never had.
320 pages, Kindle Edition
Published August 15, 2024
11 people are currently reading
25 people want to read
About the author
Nick J. Brown
2 books2 followersNick J. Brown was born in Salford sometime between the death of Elvis Presley and the release of Never Mind the B******s, Here’s the Sex Pistols. He has worked at Royal Mail for over twenty-five years, and lives in Manchester with his partner.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
September 20, 2024
Funny, nostalgic, emotional and a little bit punk.
Set partly in ’90s Salford and Manchester and partly in the present day, this is a funny, insightful and emotionally astute read, packed with nostalgia, about a group of lads who dream of music stardom - and the turns each of their lives take to help or hinder that path. A must-read for music and culture lovers, especially those who were there in the 90s with all the promise it contained, it's also a touching account of lifelong friendships, growing up working class with big dreams, and how to recapture that passion when life has other plans.
To Rise in the Dark
Set partly in ’90s Salford and Manchester and partly in the present day, this is a funny, insightful and emotionally astute read, packed with nostalgia, about a group of lads who dream of music stardom - and the turns each of their lives take to help or hinder that path. A must-read for music and culture lovers, especially those who were there in the 90s with all the promise it contained, it's also a touching account of lifelong friendships, growing up working class with big dreams, and how to recapture that passion when life has other plans.
To Rise in the Dark
July 9, 2025
nostalgia without cliche
Just finished this book - read in less than 24 hours, and it covered a lot that just resonated with me. More because of my age rather than being in a band but have been surrounded by folks in bands for my adult life. There’s a lot of humanity and wisdom. Yeah, just a really enjoyable read. Look forward to reading more from Nick
Just finished this book - read in less than 24 hours, and it covered a lot that just resonated with me. More because of my age rather than being in a band but have been surrounded by folks in bands for my adult life. There’s a lot of humanity and wisdom. Yeah, just a really enjoyable read. Look forward to reading more from Nick
April 15, 2025
A great tale of friendships past and present, relationships expired and rekindled, all told through one grief and drink-fuelled day.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews