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Amplify
Music promoter Billy Lime is in trouble.
The tour of rock legends, The Pagan Virtue, is the biggest in music history. Their concerts in Australia should be a career highlight if Billy can keep the warring musicians off the drugs, out of the bars and on the stage.
When lead singer Jet Kelly is poisoned, Billy's world starts to crumble.
Motorcycle gang the White Sharks has stashed $100 million of cocaine inside the band equipment bound for Sydney, and the cops mark Billy as a killer and drug runner.
How will Billy Lime keep the show on the road . . .
The tour of rock legends, The Pagan Virtue, is the biggest in music history. Their concerts in Australia should be a career highlight if Billy can keep the warring musicians off the drugs, out of the bars and on the stage.
When lead singer Jet Kelly is poisoned, Billy's world starts to crumble.
Motorcycle gang the White Sharks has stashed $100 million of cocaine inside the band equipment bound for Sydney, and the cops mark Billy as a killer and drug runner.
How will Billy Lime keep the show on the road . . .
- GenresCrime
404 pages, Kindle Edition
First published November 1, 2015
3 people are currently reading
16 people want to read
About the author
Mark Hollands
1 bookMark Hollands was born in Portsmouth in southern England and spent his teenage years in Devon, playing cricket, rugby and cultivating a prolific knowledge of music trivia thanks to punk-era media like the NME, Melody Maker, Kerrang! and Sounds.
He began his media career as a 16-year-old cub reporter and tea-boy at The Sidmouth Herald, and went on to edit magazines before migrating to Australia after a working holiday took a permanent turn. He has held editorial roles in major media companies across Australia and the UK, and spent two years as a journalist in Papua New Guinea. He’s currently CEO of the Australian media industry body, The Newspaper Works.
Mark has worked in major American companies Gartner Inc. and Dow Jones, launched a dotcom back in the day, is a keen student of psychology and devours crime novels and music biographies. He lives in Sydney with wife Kylie and youngest son Charlie with his eldest son, Sam living and working in the UK.
Amplify is his first novel.
He began his media career as a 16-year-old cub reporter and tea-boy at The Sidmouth Herald, and went on to edit magazines before migrating to Australia after a working holiday took a permanent turn. He has held editorial roles in major media companies across Australia and the UK, and spent two years as a journalist in Papua New Guinea. He’s currently CEO of the Australian media industry body, The Newspaper Works.
Mark has worked in major American companies Gartner Inc. and Dow Jones, launched a dotcom back in the day, is a keen student of psychology and devours crime novels and music biographies. He lives in Sydney with wife Kylie and youngest son Charlie with his eldest son, Sam living and working in the UK.
Amplify is his first novel.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
August 28, 2017
This was a very pleasant surprise; a rip-roaring debut full of vivid characters and happenings that was a very enjoyable read; unique, interesting, and action-packed. Amplify takes us backstage into the world of rock music and events promotion, and is pretty sex, drugs and rock'n'roll in style.
It's not a perfect book by any means - there are occasional moments which are a little cheesy or over-written, veering 'airport thriller' in nature, but Amplify is just a lot of fun, a compelling page-turner. I actually read this last year, and did a 'mini-review' at the time. It was one of my favourite finds of 2016, a real gem, thanks to its unique setting and viewpoint, and tense, entertaining storyline.
Amplify is peppered with plenty of nasty, dark deeds, but maintains a fun, almost light-hearted vibe throughout. Almost a bit tongue-in-cheek, like an Oceans 11 or Guy Ritchie-style movie.
Caper-esque and full of crazy characters, humour and high-stakes action. It would have been easy for the set-up and setting to fall into cliche, but I thought debutant Hollands did a terrific job balancing plot, character, and setting - throwing in some unique touches and depth, without slowing the pace.
Music promoter Billy Lime lives a sex, drugs, and rock'n'roll life. He's no wallflower; he drives a bright lime green sports car, and has associates that span all sorts of spectrums, from bikers to money managers to rock stars. The rock industry can be big business, and plenty of people want a piece.
Lime's plans are thrown into disarray thanks to tax investigations and the lead singer of an aging band whose upcoming tour is going to rake in the dough getting poisoned. Under pressure on several fronts, Lime is forced to hustle to work out what's the heck has been going on, and how he can keep his head above water. A can of worms opened - or even Pandora's Box.
One heads-up: this is set in a realistic version of the rock'n'roll world, covering everything from the corporatisation of artists to the dingy backstage hook-ups and hotel parties. It also delves into biker gang life and other quite masculine areas of the world. There's misogyny and unlikable characters, people treating women carelessly or badly, amongst plenty of partying, fun and engaging personalities. For some readers this might not be a setting they enjoy or approve of, although I thought it read quite authentic. There are several strong female characters that balance out the airhead groupies and biker molls, including managers and more who help Lime and hold things together.
Overall, an exciting debut in a fascinating setting that provides tension, action, and laughs.
It's not a perfect book by any means - there are occasional moments which are a little cheesy or over-written, veering 'airport thriller' in nature, but Amplify is just a lot of fun, a compelling page-turner. I actually read this last year, and did a 'mini-review' at the time. It was one of my favourite finds of 2016, a real gem, thanks to its unique setting and viewpoint, and tense, entertaining storyline.
Amplify is peppered with plenty of nasty, dark deeds, but maintains a fun, almost light-hearted vibe throughout. Almost a bit tongue-in-cheek, like an Oceans 11 or Guy Ritchie-style movie.
Caper-esque and full of crazy characters, humour and high-stakes action. It would have been easy for the set-up and setting to fall into cliche, but I thought debutant Hollands did a terrific job balancing plot, character, and setting - throwing in some unique touches and depth, without slowing the pace.
Music promoter Billy Lime lives a sex, drugs, and rock'n'roll life. He's no wallflower; he drives a bright lime green sports car, and has associates that span all sorts of spectrums, from bikers to money managers to rock stars. The rock industry can be big business, and plenty of people want a piece.
Lime's plans are thrown into disarray thanks to tax investigations and the lead singer of an aging band whose upcoming tour is going to rake in the dough getting poisoned. Under pressure on several fronts, Lime is forced to hustle to work out what's the heck has been going on, and how he can keep his head above water. A can of worms opened - or even Pandora's Box.
One heads-up: this is set in a realistic version of the rock'n'roll world, covering everything from the corporatisation of artists to the dingy backstage hook-ups and hotel parties. It also delves into biker gang life and other quite masculine areas of the world. There's misogyny and unlikable characters, people treating women carelessly or badly, amongst plenty of partying, fun and engaging personalities. For some readers this might not be a setting they enjoy or approve of, although I thought it read quite authentic. There are several strong female characters that balance out the airhead groupies and biker molls, including managers and more who help Lime and hold things together.
Overall, an exciting debut in a fascinating setting that provides tension, action, and laughs.
May 19, 2016
What a little gem AMPLIFY turned out to be. A debut novel from journalist Mark Hollands, introducing musical impresario Billy Lime and his world of sex, drugs and rock and roll.
So much potential for cliché so very nicely dodged here. The women are not all sex objects or madder than meat-axe fans, the rock and roll is slightly on the older and might not be quite up to it any more side, the muso's an interesting combination of old and wise, and still living the dream types. Then there's the daring deeds of Lime himself liberally laced with martial arts, some aches and pains, and a hefty dose of clever humour.
The plot is cleverly interwoven into the corporate music world and takes advantage of a tax investigation of highly suspect intent, an international rock tour, a well known identity in Lime, and some decidedly Bolshie female managers of his various businesses to pull everybody and everything into the mix nicely. The characters are all strong, with nuance in unexpected places, and no daft lapses into fem-jep, or any other annoyances. There are a few lowlights that you're just going to have to accept as part of the rough and tumble of biker gang / jail / threatening behaviour all of which made sense in the context - if not purely in terms of justice.
There's lots of laugh out loud moments along the way - with plenty of in jokes to be found in Billy Lime's name, his choice of car colour and his business activities. AMPLIFY is tightly paced, with no extraneous information along the way and the character development and background is built elegantly into the overall pace and fun of the thing.
Slightly from the more manic, light-hearted side of crime fiction, despite the seriousness of the scenario's played out, there's an awful lot to like about AMPLIFY. Certainly enough to be on the lookout for a follow-up.
https://www.austcrimefiction.org/revi...
So much potential for cliché so very nicely dodged here. The women are not all sex objects or madder than meat-axe fans, the rock and roll is slightly on the older and might not be quite up to it any more side, the muso's an interesting combination of old and wise, and still living the dream types. Then there's the daring deeds of Lime himself liberally laced with martial arts, some aches and pains, and a hefty dose of clever humour.
The plot is cleverly interwoven into the corporate music world and takes advantage of a tax investigation of highly suspect intent, an international rock tour, a well known identity in Lime, and some decidedly Bolshie female managers of his various businesses to pull everybody and everything into the mix nicely. The characters are all strong, with nuance in unexpected places, and no daft lapses into fem-jep, or any other annoyances. There are a few lowlights that you're just going to have to accept as part of the rough and tumble of biker gang / jail / threatening behaviour all of which made sense in the context - if not purely in terms of justice.
There's lots of laugh out loud moments along the way - with plenty of in jokes to be found in Billy Lime's name, his choice of car colour and his business activities. AMPLIFY is tightly paced, with no extraneous information along the way and the character development and background is built elegantly into the overall pace and fun of the thing.
Slightly from the more manic, light-hearted side of crime fiction, despite the seriousness of the scenario's played out, there's an awful lot to like about AMPLIFY. Certainly enough to be on the lookout for a follow-up.
https://www.austcrimefiction.org/revi...
September 17, 2016
Verified Purchase
An unexpected surprise, I bought this book because I like supporting Aussie writers; I didn't really know too much else about it other than the blurb sounded good! Well, definitely worth the money spent. A rocking good read, very difficult to put down once you start - be warned - you might want to start it when you have some time up your sleeve. Give it a go.
An unexpected surprise, I bought this book because I like supporting Aussie writers; I didn't really know too much else about it other than the blurb sounded good! Well, definitely worth the money spent. A rocking good read, very difficult to put down once you start - be warned - you might want to start it when you have some time up your sleeve. Give it a go.
June 5, 2016
A pleasant read
I found this a very pleasant relaxing read - possibly because I was on vacation when I read it, but in spite of the various incidents of violence in the book I felt no stress. While the book sports a "Billy Lime" subtitle, the main character in this book is the aging dysfunctional rock band The Pagan Virtue. Billy Lime is brothel-owning music promotor who's scene gets messed up by the band's baggage, literally and metaphorically. I think the brothel owning aspect of Billy Lime was the only thing that bothered me in this book - 21st century not something any ethical person would do for a living, yet it's clear Billy has some sense of ethics, so it seems discongruous.
There is a nice lineup of characters from a media relations guy who can get no respect to flirty reporters, hit men in dark glasses and a villainous motorcycle gang and a lead singer with a massive ego. All in all I had a good time reading this and I even had a dream in which I played a character in the book!
I found this a very pleasant relaxing read - possibly because I was on vacation when I read it, but in spite of the various incidents of violence in the book I felt no stress. While the book sports a "Billy Lime" subtitle, the main character in this book is the aging dysfunctional rock band The Pagan Virtue. Billy Lime is brothel-owning music promotor who's scene gets messed up by the band's baggage, literally and metaphorically. I think the brothel owning aspect of Billy Lime was the only thing that bothered me in this book - 21st century not something any ethical person would do for a living, yet it's clear Billy has some sense of ethics, so it seems discongruous.
There is a nice lineup of characters from a media relations guy who can get no respect to flirty reporters, hit men in dark glasses and a villainous motorcycle gang and a lead singer with a massive ego. All in all I had a good time reading this and I even had a dream in which I played a character in the book!
November 27, 2015
A very hard book to put down, with beautifully defined characters and a fast moving plot.
Rock stars to envy and pity, tax inspectors to hate, good, bad & beautiful cops, all woven into a fast action story with Billy Lime conducting and/or surviving the ensuing chaos.
As an Aussie, I loved the accurate local references and could almost smell the pubs and taste the ice cold schooners.
Who wouldn't want to be Billy Lime? This character has it all, and will be fun to follow in hopefully following books.
Rock stars to envy and pity, tax inspectors to hate, good, bad & beautiful cops, all woven into a fast action story with Billy Lime conducting and/or surviving the ensuing chaos.
As an Aussie, I loved the accurate local references and could almost smell the pubs and taste the ice cold schooners.
Who wouldn't want to be Billy Lime? This character has it all, and will be fun to follow in hopefully following books.
September 17, 2016
As a lover of crime novels, ‘Amplify’ ticks all the boxes for me. With a thoroughly modern setting, sexy characters and a multi faceted plot, there is nothing about this book that will allow it to be put down. No need to go on a wild rant about sexism or incite ludicrous political statements, Billy Lime is a fast paced crime fiction and a totally enjoyable read. The plot is deliciously intriguing and I finished it desperate to read the next instalment. 5 stars. (less)
January 10, 2018
I seemed to fly through this book even though I felt I was taking my time to enjoy it as much as possible. It gets straight in to the storyline & all the characters are well polished so you love some & equally hate some at times due to the rock star lifestyle & antics. Holland's has a knack for telling stories of rock music, drugs, girls, clubs, promoters, constabulary officials, prison life, biker gangs, record labels & worst of all lawyers. I thoroughly enjoyed every page of this book as I could never guess what was about to happen next. You do not need to like rock music at all to enjoy this book but if you do you will definitely enjoy it that bit more.
July 2, 2016
For me, this book was totally spoilt because all references to women were derogatory and all female characters were either sex objects or wore tight skirts so they could be ogled as they exited rooms. They were shrill, hookers, harridons, or spoke like their bitch mothers, or were referred to by their body parts. None were listened to, all were objectified. In this day and age, with two-thirds of crime readership being women, it is a reasonable expectation for female readers to see female characters who are not simply there for their sex potential. Every potentially strong female character is this novel is denigrated. An example: Billy's lawyer has a bevy of attractive blonde interns called 'Tilly or Milly or something' and when of of them speaks to offer legal advice, it's written as 'Daddy's Little Girl said...' Seriously? The female premier of NSW can't get a word in edge ways when talking to the American Governer, and the FBI agent looks like Jennifer Lopez, wears a g-string, and sleeps with Billy (a potential suspect) on the very night she meets him and does little actual investigating. To understand the true awfulness of this kind of writing, imagine replacing the genders of all characters. A female rock star could lie on a hotel room floor with four naked men around her, all watching porn, and then, because a band meeting was going on meters away in the same room, she could grumpily sent them packing and they could grab their jocks and complain and whine on the way out of the room. Hmmm. Sounds silly, doesn't it.
September 19, 2016
As a fan of the crime / thriller genre I was absolutely thrilled to discover this stunning Australian gem.
Add to the usual ‘good things’ (sex, drugs and rock ‘n roll!) a mix of totally believable Australian characters and locales (Sydney).
An absolute page turner! Warning – don’t start reading it when you check into an overseas hotel (as I did) as you might find it hard to put it down and get some sleep.
As Uncle Molly used to say – Do yourself a favour!
By the way, I hope the author is on some sort of commission with the locations mentioned in the book. Anyone for a beer at the The Friend in Hand Hotel in Glebe?
Add to the usual ‘good things’ (sex, drugs and rock ‘n roll!) a mix of totally believable Australian characters and locales (Sydney).
An absolute page turner! Warning – don’t start reading it when you check into an overseas hotel (as I did) as you might find it hard to put it down and get some sleep.
As Uncle Molly used to say – Do yourself a favour!
By the way, I hope the author is on some sort of commission with the locations mentioned in the book. Anyone for a beer at the The Friend in Hand Hotel in Glebe?
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews