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Rockstar Ending
NOW IN DEVELOPMENT FOR TELEVISION When Lexi discovers that older people are being coerced into genocide by stealth, she vows to take on the sinister powers behind the ultimate Rockstar Ending. The populist Yuthentic movement has driven a rift between the generations, promoting the redistribution of wealth to younger people by all possible means. After her best friend’s mother signs up to end her own life, Lexi is determined to intervene, no matter how high the price. An underground resistance is growing. Can a band of unlikely heroes really change the world? The first book in the Rockstar Ending series is a gripping page turner that will get you thinking about some of the biggest social and political issues of our lifetime. It skilfully explores the contentious territory between free choice, coercion, government and corporate control in an eerily plausible and unforgettable series of events. If you’re a fan of speculative fiction such as Black Mirror, The Handmaid’s Tale or Nineteen Eighty-Four , you're going to love Rockstar Ending .
- GenresScience Fiction
392 pages, Paperback
Published January 1, 2020
7 people are currently reading
55 people want to read
About the author
N.A. Rossi
4 books8 followersN. A. (Nicola) Rossi has lived in London most of her life, moving there from the seaside town of Southport in the early ‘80s.
After university she flirted briefly with journalism, and then began a 30-year career in communications management, eventually running international teams for big technology companies.
In 2017 she was awarded an MA in Digital Media from Goldsmiths University. That was when the trouble began. She started to write about surveillance, data ownership, consent and the potential for people to be manipulated without their knowledge.
Her debut novel, Rockstar Ending, started life as a short story, ‘One Last Gift’, which won a dystopian fiction award from the Orwell Society. The judges described it as ‘highly original, macabre and very funny’. It was published in the Journal of Orwell Studies.
By January 2022, Nicola will have published another two full length books in the Rockstar Ending series, Rock On and Rockaway, in addition to the prequel novella, For Those About to Rock.
In September 2021 Free@Last TV announced that they had acquired the rights to the Rockstar Ending books for a repeatable TV series which is now in development.
Nicola is a regular blogger on technology, society and the arts. She has lectured in universities on leadership, PR, ethics and corporate social responsibility and consults on communications management. She has appeared on BBC Radio 4 Today, BBC local radio, and written for a wide range of media outlets including The Independent, Time Out, Louder Than War and Influence.
She lives in south east London with her husband and two adult children.
You can find out more about Nicola over on nicolarossi.com
After university she flirted briefly with journalism, and then began a 30-year career in communications management, eventually running international teams for big technology companies.
In 2017 she was awarded an MA in Digital Media from Goldsmiths University. That was when the trouble began. She started to write about surveillance, data ownership, consent and the potential for people to be manipulated without their knowledge.
Her debut novel, Rockstar Ending, started life as a short story, ‘One Last Gift’, which won a dystopian fiction award from the Orwell Society. The judges described it as ‘highly original, macabre and very funny’. It was published in the Journal of Orwell Studies.
By January 2022, Nicola will have published another two full length books in the Rockstar Ending series, Rock On and Rockaway, in addition to the prequel novella, For Those About to Rock.
In September 2021 Free@Last TV announced that they had acquired the rights to the Rockstar Ending books for a repeatable TV series which is now in development.
Nicola is a regular blogger on technology, society and the arts. She has lectured in universities on leadership, PR, ethics and corporate social responsibility and consults on communications management. She has appeared on BBC Radio 4 Today, BBC local radio, and written for a wide range of media outlets including The Independent, Time Out, Louder Than War and Influence.
She lives in south east London with her husband and two adult children.
You can find out more about Nicola over on nicolarossi.com
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
January 24, 2022
The concept of assisted suicide is pretty bleak...but if you throw in a user-friendly app, a futuristic stretch limo, huge tax breaks for your kids, and a little bit of rock 'n roll, it starts lookin' real nice.
Set in the near future, Rockstar Ending centers around the exploitation of the elderly and the commercialization of death. The younger generation has instituted a new political party, Yuthentic, which has determined that the wealth of the older generations should be redistributed to the young. To private sector companies, that translates into coercing the elderly into an early death with promises of going out with a (head) bang. 🤘🏼
At first glance, the plot completely fascinated me, mainly because it paints a detailed picture of a frighteningly possible future. There are sci-fi books with spaceships and aliens, and then there are sci-fi books like these that sit right in the uncanny valley of what society might look like with just a little push. It's damn near unsettling to think that we are well on our way to making the plot of this book a reality, which is what makes it nevertheless enjoyable. Beyond telling a story, Rossi uses heavily debated topics to force the reader into considering the orientation of our current society and how their own ethics and moral philosophy fall into that space.
The writing itself flowed nicely, switching perspectives between various characters in the story. Usually, I'm not a huge fan of more than a couple of perspectives, but in this case, I think it was almost necessary to show the differentiation of thoughts and opinions to establish a spectrum of moral convictions. However, I wish the character switches were more obvious as they tended to happen within chapters and made the narrative a little chaotic.
The one disappointment that I did have was that I assumed a certain level of thrill and excitement as suggested by the synopsis, and it didn't really live up to expectations on that front. Scenes that I expected to be colorful and sharp came across as somewhat muted. Don't get me wrong, exciting events definitely ensued, but the execution of them wasn't what I had hoped. I'm not sure if that's attributed to writing style, plot development, or a bit of both, but since this is the first in a series, I don't hold it against the book as much as I normally would.
Long story short, I enjoyed this book immensely, not only in its ability to entertain but also morally challenge. Also, as a huge fan of all things rock and roll, the added musical references were a nice touch.
Thank you, NetGalley and Cameron Publicity & Marketing Ltd., for providing the e-book!
P.S. The entire time I was reading this book, I could not stop thinking about the episode of Futurama where Professor Farnsworth schedules to be picked up by a robotic grim-reaper and taken to the Near-Death Star (Season 7, Episode 10 if you're interested in watching).
Set in the near future, Rockstar Ending centers around the exploitation of the elderly and the commercialization of death. The younger generation has instituted a new political party, Yuthentic, which has determined that the wealth of the older generations should be redistributed to the young. To private sector companies, that translates into coercing the elderly into an early death with promises of going out with a (head) bang. 🤘🏼
At first glance, the plot completely fascinated me, mainly because it paints a detailed picture of a frighteningly possible future. There are sci-fi books with spaceships and aliens, and then there are sci-fi books like these that sit right in the uncanny valley of what society might look like with just a little push. It's damn near unsettling to think that we are well on our way to making the plot of this book a reality, which is what makes it nevertheless enjoyable. Beyond telling a story, Rossi uses heavily debated topics to force the reader into considering the orientation of our current society and how their own ethics and moral philosophy fall into that space.
The writing itself flowed nicely, switching perspectives between various characters in the story. Usually, I'm not a huge fan of more than a couple of perspectives, but in this case, I think it was almost necessary to show the differentiation of thoughts and opinions to establish a spectrum of moral convictions. However, I wish the character switches were more obvious as they tended to happen within chapters and made the narrative a little chaotic.
The one disappointment that I did have was that I assumed a certain level of thrill and excitement as suggested by the synopsis, and it didn't really live up to expectations on that front. Scenes that I expected to be colorful and sharp came across as somewhat muted. Don't get me wrong, exciting events definitely ensued, but the execution of them wasn't what I had hoped. I'm not sure if that's attributed to writing style, plot development, or a bit of both, but since this is the first in a series, I don't hold it against the book as much as I normally would.
Long story short, I enjoyed this book immensely, not only in its ability to entertain but also morally challenge. Also, as a huge fan of all things rock and roll, the added musical references were a nice touch.
Thank you, NetGalley and Cameron Publicity & Marketing Ltd., for providing the e-book!
P.S. The entire time I was reading this book, I could not stop thinking about the episode of Futurama where Professor Farnsworth schedules to be picked up by a robotic grim-reaper and taken to the Near-Death Star (Season 7, Episode 10 if you're interested in watching).
February 5, 2022
There is something of a noble tradition in science fiction of getting timescales wildly wrong. Think, for example, of the excellent movie Blade Runner that came out in 1982 - set in 2019, it portrays a future that's still in the far future past that date with lifelike androids and interstellar travel. With the Rockstar books, Nicola Rossi provides a similar overestimation of the rate of change, with a total transformation of civil society, ubiquitous self-driving vehicles and robots - all set in 2027, though this book was only published in 2020. Despite this distinct miss, though, the trilogy is engaging and has a powerful theme.
In the first novel, Rockstar Ending, we encounter a UK where youth has taken over and living past the age of 85 becomes horrendous. Admittedly this theme has been visited in more dramatic form in the excellent novel Logan's Run, where lives are terminated at 21 (in the distinctly inferior film, the age limit was raised to 30), but rather than being compulsory, Rossi gives the intriguing possibility of all government support being removed at 85, with citizens encouraged to euthanasia by inheritance tax breaks and power sales and marketing.
The 'rockstar ending' of the title is the euthanasia equivalent of a business class flight, and with enthusiastic young brand/advertising executive characters starting by making a pitch for this 'product', the concept is insidiously believable. We then meet main character Lexi, a forty-something woman who becomes increasingly horrified by what is happening and is forced into activism. She is driven to this by the additional discovery that anyone 70+ is being insidiously restricted in what they can do (largely by withdrawing insurance), making them depressed and more likely to end it all early.
After a disjointed start, once Lexi becomes the main character the book becomes quite a page turner. In a rare reflection of real life in a dystopia, Rossi is a bit fuzzy about who the bad guys are - is it the youth movement that forced this measure on parliament, or big business, looking to make a profit out of the euthanasia business? The economics are not awfully well thought through, though. While it's true that the company providing the euthanasia service (just called 'the corporation') would benefit, it's hard to see what insurance companies would get out of missing out on big profits on products for the over-seventies - or for that matter, why manufacturers would stop selling to the lucrative grey market. We even get Brexit wheeled in as part of the driving force with no logical reason beyond the author's dislike of it. But a spot of suspension of disbelief can cope with these points enough to keep the plot flowing (Logan's Run required a huge amount of suspended disbelief too).
Overall, a dystopia that manages to be both genuinely interesting and makes the reader think about some big issues.
In the first novel, Rockstar Ending, we encounter a UK where youth has taken over and living past the age of 85 becomes horrendous. Admittedly this theme has been visited in more dramatic form in the excellent novel Logan's Run, where lives are terminated at 21 (in the distinctly inferior film, the age limit was raised to 30), but rather than being compulsory, Rossi gives the intriguing possibility of all government support being removed at 85, with citizens encouraged to euthanasia by inheritance tax breaks and power sales and marketing.
The 'rockstar ending' of the title is the euthanasia equivalent of a business class flight, and with enthusiastic young brand/advertising executive characters starting by making a pitch for this 'product', the concept is insidiously believable. We then meet main character Lexi, a forty-something woman who becomes increasingly horrified by what is happening and is forced into activism. She is driven to this by the additional discovery that anyone 70+ is being insidiously restricted in what they can do (largely by withdrawing insurance), making them depressed and more likely to end it all early.
After a disjointed start, once Lexi becomes the main character the book becomes quite a page turner. In a rare reflection of real life in a dystopia, Rossi is a bit fuzzy about who the bad guys are - is it the youth movement that forced this measure on parliament, or big business, looking to make a profit out of the euthanasia business? The economics are not awfully well thought through, though. While it's true that the company providing the euthanasia service (just called 'the corporation') would benefit, it's hard to see what insurance companies would get out of missing out on big profits on products for the over-seventies - or for that matter, why manufacturers would stop selling to the lucrative grey market. We even get Brexit wheeled in as part of the driving force with no logical reason beyond the author's dislike of it. But a spot of suspension of disbelief can cope with these points enough to keep the plot flowing (Logan's Run required a huge amount of suspended disbelief too).
Overall, a dystopia that manages to be both genuinely interesting and makes the reader think about some big issues.
October 11, 2020
The prequel 'For Those About To Rock' got me very interested in this author, and this storyline.
This debut novel is a scarily plausible tale of what could be in our future. For me, I could relate to those older folks who were (effectively being) groomed by bots pretending to be their friends. This would be so easy to do, particularly with the financial incentives available. If you are older and/or have a long-term illness, you are invisible anyway, because you have no place and are of no use in our present society.
The storyline itself is very well written. The reader is drawn in from the first page, and is on tenterhooks until the last. Rossi presses all your emotion buttons when it comes to love, the family, and the dilemma of helping the youngsters on their way in life but ending yours in the process. The characters are full, and you'll feel like you know them well. They are entertaining, and bring a truthful reality, sadness, and humour to the tale. Chilling and so, so, believable.
Nicola Rossi is a very talented writer and I look forward to the next book, 'Rock On'.
This debut novel is a scarily plausible tale of what could be in our future. For me, I could relate to those older folks who were (effectively being) groomed by bots pretending to be their friends. This would be so easy to do, particularly with the financial incentives available. If you are older and/or have a long-term illness, you are invisible anyway, because you have no place and are of no use in our present society.
The storyline itself is very well written. The reader is drawn in from the first page, and is on tenterhooks until the last. Rossi presses all your emotion buttons when it comes to love, the family, and the dilemma of helping the youngsters on their way in life but ending yours in the process. The characters are full, and you'll feel like you know them well. They are entertaining, and bring a truthful reality, sadness, and humour to the tale. Chilling and so, so, believable.
Nicola Rossi is a very talented writer and I look forward to the next book, 'Rock On'.
February 28, 2020
A book to make you think. By pushing our technology usage to the brink this really tests our view on the role of tech!! And of course (almost) all of this is possible today but luckily used in a different way (well we hope). I found it so sad as a person who is actively targeting 90, every page was tinted with sadness for me.
February 6, 2022
** This book was provided to me by NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review **
Ahhhh, Dystopian Fiction. Oh how I love thee.
When I was far younger and beginning my journey into the twisting disillusionment of how society could potentially crumble upon itself, the general themes of Dystopian Fiction were either rooted in the past (e.g. post-World War II era), or set just out of reach in the near future.
I feel, now, that advances in consumer digital connectivity have bridged that gap and make Dystopian Fiction that much closer to a current theme than we could previously visualize. I’m not even going to touch on how modern politics pushes hard against those previously fictional themes.
That’s where Ms. Rossi slides right into the picture with Rockstar Ending . The setup is completely plausible. Our story opens with Meg: a woman approaching 85 who has lost her husband, has grown kids who have moved away, and is now approaching the cutoff of NHS benefits due to her age.
In Meg’s world, the “Yuthentic” movement has taken over the political climate in the UK. Younger people, who have become politically active, and see the older generation as more of a leech on the system than a resource for inspiration, have set into place laws that, effectively, remove health and welfare benefits for all citizens over the age of 85, and increasing restrictions for those over the age of 70.
The icing on the cake is the new “benefit” the government — and the corporation — are pushing as the “One Last Gift,” a.k.a. sanctioned euthanasia.
Rockstar Ending tackles the development, marketing and sly execution (if you’ll pardon the pun) of a complex, and very technology-driven, propaganda machine targeting UK’s aged population: leveraging hopes and fears, and exploiting some very grey areas of ethics.
At the same time, we have the story of Lexi and Bob: two (among many) individuals who are trying to fight the system against all odds.
I’ll leave the synopsis at that because this is a novel that is well worth discovering on your own.
Ms. Rossi is a natural storyteller. While there are, seemingly, many threads winding about the London setting of the story, all slowly begin to weave together in an intricate interconnection that pivots viewpoint and reader perspective. It’s a device that I absolutely love from authors like William Gibson, and Ms. Rossi uses the mechanism deftly.
Another thing I greatly appreciate is the likability, but also fallibility of just about every character we come across. None of the heroes are particularly shiny, and the villains (if there really are any) aren’t really the puppy-kicking variety. Rockstar Ending is a grand example of the snowball effect of bureaucracy and how the bounds of greed and success are not necessarily defined by ethical borders.
I feel like this was a very relevant novel to read, and gave me pause many times to consider how such steps were taken, and how they could easily be actualized.
Ms. Rossi has already written two sequels to Rockstar Ending , and you are damn sure that I’m going to be reading them very soon.
Ahhhh, Dystopian Fiction. Oh how I love thee.
When I was far younger and beginning my journey into the twisting disillusionment of how society could potentially crumble upon itself, the general themes of Dystopian Fiction were either rooted in the past (e.g. post-World War II era), or set just out of reach in the near future.
I feel, now, that advances in consumer digital connectivity have bridged that gap and make Dystopian Fiction that much closer to a current theme than we could previously visualize. I’m not even going to touch on how modern politics pushes hard against those previously fictional themes.
That’s where Ms. Rossi slides right into the picture with Rockstar Ending . The setup is completely plausible. Our story opens with Meg: a woman approaching 85 who has lost her husband, has grown kids who have moved away, and is now approaching the cutoff of NHS benefits due to her age.
In Meg’s world, the “Yuthentic” movement has taken over the political climate in the UK. Younger people, who have become politically active, and see the older generation as more of a leech on the system than a resource for inspiration, have set into place laws that, effectively, remove health and welfare benefits for all citizens over the age of 85, and increasing restrictions for those over the age of 70.
The icing on the cake is the new “benefit” the government — and the corporation — are pushing as the “One Last Gift,” a.k.a. sanctioned euthanasia.
Rockstar Ending tackles the development, marketing and sly execution (if you’ll pardon the pun) of a complex, and very technology-driven, propaganda machine targeting UK’s aged population: leveraging hopes and fears, and exploiting some very grey areas of ethics.
At the same time, we have the story of Lexi and Bob: two (among many) individuals who are trying to fight the system against all odds.
I’ll leave the synopsis at that because this is a novel that is well worth discovering on your own.
Ms. Rossi is a natural storyteller. While there are, seemingly, many threads winding about the London setting of the story, all slowly begin to weave together in an intricate interconnection that pivots viewpoint and reader perspective. It’s a device that I absolutely love from authors like William Gibson, and Ms. Rossi uses the mechanism deftly.
Another thing I greatly appreciate is the likability, but also fallibility of just about every character we come across. None of the heroes are particularly shiny, and the villains (if there really are any) aren’t really the puppy-kicking variety. Rockstar Ending is a grand example of the snowball effect of bureaucracy and how the bounds of greed and success are not necessarily defined by ethical borders.
I feel like this was a very relevant novel to read, and gave me pause many times to consider how such steps were taken, and how they could easily be actualized.
Ms. Rossi has already written two sequels to Rockstar Ending , and you are damn sure that I’m going to be reading them very soon.
April 3, 2023
This novel is about a dystopian near future where the old are disposable and their deaths are monetized. There is some conflating with this and the current dissatisfaction with late stage capitalism by younger generations that feels like a stretch. It's close enough feeling to be a purposely uncomfortable read.
January 29, 2022
This is the first book in a series, queued up to be released as a TV series, and set in a dystopian England where retirees are encouraged to plan for death with dignity and avoid those taxes they hate. One exciting premium package for the elderly is the edgy, glittery Rock Star Ending!
In this debut novel, the author disrupts the narrative with subtle techniques that create some lasting, uneasy feelings of disquiet. This style deeply connects to her underlying message about consent, coercion, cancel culture, victimization, and their outcome. That being said, the prose could use a lot of tightening up. A lot. Pruning a third of the text would sharpen the focus. EG too much description of minute actions and things especially everyone’s stylish clothing. Reveal character motivation through action, not a data dump. Cut some—not all—of the repetition.
The author has published an accompanying playlist on Spotify. Dunno why, but I can only play preview snippets of each song, web or app. Hope you have better luck than I!
Rockstar Ending playlist on Spotify:
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/0yH...
I received a preview via NetGalley in exchange for my review.
In this debut novel, the author disrupts the narrative with subtle techniques that create some lasting, uneasy feelings of disquiet. This style deeply connects to her underlying message about consent, coercion, cancel culture, victimization, and their outcome. That being said, the prose could use a lot of tightening up. A lot. Pruning a third of the text would sharpen the focus. EG too much description of minute actions and things especially everyone’s stylish clothing. Reveal character motivation through action, not a data dump. Cut some—not all—of the repetition.
The author has published an accompanying playlist on Spotify. Dunno why, but I can only play preview snippets of each song, web or app. Hope you have better luck than I!
Rockstar Ending playlist on Spotify:
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/0yH...
I received a preview via NetGalley in exchange for my review.
December 10, 2021
Terrifyingly possible and gripping to the end.
Set in the very near future this story resonated deeply as the loss of services and dismissive treatment of the elderly has already begun as seen vividly with the government attitude towards the elderly in care homes during covid. This story made the horror of the near future hit home by creating likeable characters that we could truly empathise with - really original story and frighteningly possible - would definitely recommend
Set in the very near future this story resonated deeply as the loss of services and dismissive treatment of the elderly has already begun as seen vividly with the government attitude towards the elderly in care homes during covid. This story made the horror of the near future hit home by creating likeable characters that we could truly empathise with - really original story and frighteningly possible - would definitely recommend
September 27, 2021
Book is not entirely bad, some interesting ideas but I didn't like the writing in the slightest and the story slithers along at a snail's pace. Certainly not the start I wanted to the year for reading.
Also on a final note:
music is subjective but the 'playlist' is quite boring and unoriginal. Always up for new music recommendations but 'Nickelback' has no place in any of my Spotify listening seshes.
But congrats on the book N.A Rossi, I wish you all the best.
Also on a final note:
music is subjective but the 'playlist' is quite boring and unoriginal. Always up for new music recommendations but 'Nickelback' has no place in any of my Spotify listening seshes.
But congrats on the book N.A Rossi, I wish you all the best.
January 19, 2021
Cannot wait to read the next book: Highest praise available.
I hate a book being called a 'must read', because it obviously makes me not want to read it. But this is an excellent book, and very well worth reading, for several reasons, not the least the pleasure of a good story with likeable characters. I don't do synopses, read it yourself, you'll like it.
I hate a book being called a 'must read', because it obviously makes me not want to read it. But this is an excellent book, and very well worth reading, for several reasons, not the least the pleasure of a good story with likeable characters. I don't do synopses, read it yourself, you'll like it.
March 6, 2022
I'm not a fan of Handmaid's Tale, but I liked this. It didn't seem to move along very quickly, but that didn't stop it from being interesting most of the time. Although set in the future, it seemed quite realistic, which added to it's impact as a story. Good stuff. Recommended.
I really appreciate the free review copy!!
I really appreciate the free review copy!!
August 21, 2020
Great easy reader and excellent premise that is probably going to be true one day or another.
January 7, 2020
Rock on and read .
Dystopian novels are an unfamiliar genre for me but I was gripped from the first page.
The characters are so well observed as to be believable.
It was such a convincing story that one might imagine it was fact instead of fiction.
Dystopian novels are an unfamiliar genre for me but I was gripped from the first page.
The characters are so well observed as to be believable.
It was such a convincing story that one might imagine it was fact instead of fiction.
May 30, 2021
Good but flabby
I enjoyed this story but I felt there was too much expo
so
I e
enjoyed this story but I felt there was too much exposition. It should have been more ruthlessly edited.
I enjoyed this story but I felt there was too much expo
so
I e
enjoyed this story but I felt there was too much exposition. It should have been more ruthlessly edited.
May 9, 2023
There are two insights I feel my modest experience with reading self-published novels allow me to express:
One - that writing is, quite honestly, really hard;
Two - that, for better or worse, a substantial number of self-published authors seem to inhabit an echo chamber, saturated with manufactured praise. The reasons for this artificial perception stem from the distinct gap between posted reviews, ratings, and the quality of the work itself. While one could easily hide behind the defence of personal opinions and preferences, my experience reveals that even books filled with grammatical and syntactical errors, plot holes within a few pages, and a significant amount of appalling sentence structures and/or repetition (in one case, I counted no fewer than six instances of "She said" on a single page) still achieve average ratings above four stars based on reciprocal reviews. In fact, the sheer volume of exchanged five-star reviews among self-published authors, although perhaps strategically sound in the quest for increased readership, renders the entire review system innocuous at best.
Rockstar Ending is not that.
I received my copy of Rockstar Ending at the end of last month. It boasts a beautifully illustrated, vibrant cover featuring a female-looking android reminiscent of David Bowie's Aladdin Sane phase. As an early insight, the theme of Music will be an elegant backdrop through the entire book, with blissful references to Bowie, Velvet Underground, Blue Oyster Cult, Led Zeppelin, and others. Exploring Tim Doyle's artwork, the cover illustrator (https://www.timdoyle.com/), has been part of the enjoyment.
However, the most impressive aspect lies within the story itself. I felt compelled to express my deep admiration for the author, through Twitter, after reading a couple of chapters such was my appreciation. Nicola's writing style is reminiscent of Margaret Atwood or Alice Sheldon, yet wholly original. It's evident that Nicola is well-read, and her prose is simultaneously simple and beautiful, unpretentious yet effective in conveying what I perceive as her greatest strength: crafting intricate, relatable characters with a depth that is remarkably difficult to convey. She achieves this with an economical use of language and an expansive range of expression that is rare, not only among self-published novels but in authorship in general.
My personal delight in the novel intensified as the story approached its climax. It becomes evident that Nicola has masterfully spent much of the novel laying the groundwork for a purposeful and interwoven narrative. The delicate construction of the plotlines is as gentle in its setup as it is ruthless in its execution. Although the initial premise of the novel hints at a singular narrative thread, Nicola skillfully maps out a grand design where she strategically places elements across a board where only she knows the connecting strings before unveiling a masterful, intense revelation of the underlying plot pieces. She accomplishes this with expert control of pacing and seamless shifts between introspective and exhilarating moments.
Self-published or not, Rockstar Ending is, unapologetically, a very good novel.
One - that writing is, quite honestly, really hard;
Two - that, for better or worse, a substantial number of self-published authors seem to inhabit an echo chamber, saturated with manufactured praise. The reasons for this artificial perception stem from the distinct gap between posted reviews, ratings, and the quality of the work itself. While one could easily hide behind the defence of personal opinions and preferences, my experience reveals that even books filled with grammatical and syntactical errors, plot holes within a few pages, and a significant amount of appalling sentence structures and/or repetition (in one case, I counted no fewer than six instances of "She said" on a single page) still achieve average ratings above four stars based on reciprocal reviews. In fact, the sheer volume of exchanged five-star reviews among self-published authors, although perhaps strategically sound in the quest for increased readership, renders the entire review system innocuous at best.
Rockstar Ending is not that.
I received my copy of Rockstar Ending at the end of last month. It boasts a beautifully illustrated, vibrant cover featuring a female-looking android reminiscent of David Bowie's Aladdin Sane phase. As an early insight, the theme of Music will be an elegant backdrop through the entire book, with blissful references to Bowie, Velvet Underground, Blue Oyster Cult, Led Zeppelin, and others. Exploring Tim Doyle's artwork, the cover illustrator (https://www.timdoyle.com/), has been part of the enjoyment.
However, the most impressive aspect lies within the story itself. I felt compelled to express my deep admiration for the author, through Twitter, after reading a couple of chapters such was my appreciation. Nicola's writing style is reminiscent of Margaret Atwood or Alice Sheldon, yet wholly original. It's evident that Nicola is well-read, and her prose is simultaneously simple and beautiful, unpretentious yet effective in conveying what I perceive as her greatest strength: crafting intricate, relatable characters with a depth that is remarkably difficult to convey. She achieves this with an economical use of language and an expansive range of expression that is rare, not only among self-published novels but in authorship in general.
My personal delight in the novel intensified as the story approached its climax. It becomes evident that Nicola has masterfully spent much of the novel laying the groundwork for a purposeful and interwoven narrative. The delicate construction of the plotlines is as gentle in its setup as it is ruthless in its execution. Although the initial premise of the novel hints at a singular narrative thread, Nicola skillfully maps out a grand design where she strategically places elements across a board where only she knows the connecting strings before unveiling a masterful, intense revelation of the underlying plot pieces. She accomplishes this with expert control of pacing and seamless shifts between introspective and exhilarating moments.
Self-published or not, Rockstar Ending is, unapologetically, a very good novel.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews