Probably one of the most strange books I have ever read. The entire premise of the book, in which the author pretends to be just an editor for an imaginary journalist whom was writing a manuscript for a fictional rock star, was interesting and unique. The characters were wacky, insane, "out-there," but somehow believable. The events were obscure to say the least but made for an interesting adventure. Some parts were a little hard to follow or far-fetched but over-all it was a compulsively addicting story. ( )

Rock Star's Rainbow surprised me. I thought it would be a book simply about the life of a drugged and boozed-up rock star (and that was fine with me). But I was very pleasantly surprised by an emotional story. I was not prepared for the surprise of his daughter, but it made me love the book that much more. There was also the "finding yourself and your purpose" theme to the story, which helps keep me interested, because I always want to find out how that turns out.
I did get kind of bogged down in the last 75 pages or so, but I was ultimately pleased with the overall story. I would definitely recommend this book to all of my reader friends, because it would appeal to different audiences. Thanks for the read, and I hope to see something new from Kevin Glavin very soon!! ( )

I tried really hard to like this book. In fact, I spent something like three months reading Kevin Glavin's Rock Star's Rainbow in tiny chunks, hoping that, if I digested it slower, perhaps I would be able to properly appreciate it. But I couldn't.

That being said, I felt like there was a genuinely good story hidden somewhere amidst the prose, I just couldn't find it. This book follows the adventures of Rook, a rock star searching for the meaning of life. On his quest, he ends up flying all over the earth, discovering long lost relations, and catching up with an old flame.

The skeleton of this story is good. It's a classic redemption tale with a somewhat-likeable anti-hero, set in farfetched, but compelling circumstances. And it is a satire, so there is (a bit) of humor.

But mostly, this book is just bizarre. The longer you read, the more muddled Rook becomes... and consequently, so does the prose. For me, the characters never quite came alive. Is that because of their strange—and sometimes ridiculous—thought patterns and actions? I don't know; I just know they didn't 'work' for me.

"Rock Star's Rainbow" also requires you to suspend your belief just a little too often. I can handle crazy people, love triangles, mafias, people with very strange names, tigers, washed up Bollywood stars, leeches, men who are painted blue... any of those things on their own. But when combined, the story becomes quite absurd… and not in a good way. A woman named Hula Kentucky? A kung-fu chick that gets her ear ripped off? Many, many references to Van Gogh (Partly because of the ear?), and passages that read like cheesy song lyrics?

To add to the mess, Rock Star's Rainbow also seems to express a little "TMI". There are plenty of details I never wanted to know, and wish I hadn't read. I'm not a squeamish person; I just didn't want to know all the details.

I will admit, I enjoyed a lot of the references to famous people, times, and works of art. They were unexpected—almost out of place—in this book, but I enjoyed them nonetheless. I guess you could say they were a breath of fresh air. The descriptions of India were also captivating; both rich in detail and substance.

Overall, I can tell that author Keven Glavin was really trying with his book. You can sense the effort, and, if you can sift through all the filler on top, you might find a decent story. It just didn't strike the proper chord with me.

You can find more book reviews at my blog: http://www.dailymonocle.blogspot.com

"Rockstar's Rainbow" by Kevin Galvin

This novel, complete with preface and postscript by its author, takes readers along on a quest. The book came to me via Member Giveaway, arriving as I was rereading James Gurney's 1992 "Dinotopia." ( I mention this because both authors share credit with a predecessor. Notice, a predecessor, not a collaborator. )

My 1973 paperback copy of "Gravity's Rainbow" by Thomas Pynchon has 760 pages. "Rockstar's Rainbow," with its preface and postscript, weighs in at 477 pages, and is a more brisk read. The lively "Finian's Rainbow" [on stage 1947, film 1988] probably had a much shorter basic text then either. Rainbows seen from earth vary in duration.

I am far past the age of rock star fandom but I truly enjoyed the book. I was pleased when a waitress who didn't approve of his music or lifestyle promoted him from hell to purgatory because he tipped so well. I smiled because, like me, Rook enjoys drinking a mango lassi. As I read I came to care about Rook Heisenberg's quest for his daughter, an adventure not unlike those encountered in grand opera, but with modern circumstances. (Glavin has him keep a list of conquests similar to Don Giavonni's, and often drops allusions to literary figures, positing a literate readership.)

What a lucky fellow Rook is. . . despite overwhelming odds he has a wife and daughter at the end of his rainbow. ( )

******************* SPOILER ALERT ***********************

Rock Star’s Rainbow is Kevin Glavin’s self-published novel. It follows the adventures of rock star Rook Heisenberg (who dropped his surname - “It’s too uncertain for a rock star”) as he searches for lost innocence and love.

The premise of the book lays in the discovery of, in the seat pocket of a plane, a set of documents that appear to be an expose of Rook’s life and thoughts, apparently the work of a slimy entertainment reporter, Aitchkiss Killawathy, who gives paparazzi and the National Enquirer a good name.

The book opens: Rook and his band, Little Bang, have just finished the last show of their tour. Rook suffers post-tour depression. Although he lives in an LA mansion, sleeps in a coffin, has drug-soaked sex with groups of groupies, he wonders “Who am I? Who am I really?”

In a bid to revisit a simpler time, Rook decides to locate his high school love, Hula Kennedy. His search takes him to Amsterdam, where he finds Hula working for Svidrigailov, a Russian mafia hood (taken directly from “Crime and Punishment”). Rook hires a female Chinese bodyguard, Pui-Pui Poon. Rook discovers he has a daughter, and we’re off to India, where things just get down-right weird. I won’t take the time to describe the action here, but most of it didn’t seem to add to the plot.

They rescue the daughter, who’s been held as a sex-slave by a fading Bollywood star. After more misadventures, they wind up back in Amsterdam for a reunion with Hula and S. Heading back to LA Killawathy is thrown from the plane.

The end.

Kevin Glavin should have hired an editor. Yes, Rock Star’s Rainbow fits the definition of a satire, but it’s rarely funny. The original premise had promise, but appears to have been an after-thought (references to the documents are inserted randomly throughout the book, but serve mainly to remind us that there was, in fact, an original premise). The characters are thinly-drawn caricatures, and I found I didn’t care about any of them. In the famous last words of Aitchkiss Killawathy:

“Read it – I can’t!” ( )