“Holy Buckets! I couldn’t put it down!”
Two new 5-star reader reviews for Messages.
My crime/humor novel Messages has just received two new 5-star reviews, both posted on the same day.
John calls it a “great read and a must read for those of us who’ve spent our lives working in the news biz.” He goes on to say, “Forrest has captured the real personalities of us nut jobs who write the first draft of history. Forrest captured the insanity of what it’s like to report on the crime and filth in this world, and he hit a home run in detailing how covering those stories impacts journalists. This novel has more twists and turns that the back roads of Appalachia.”
John says he believes that in writing the book, I must have been channeling “gonzo journalist” Hunter S. Thompson, and he goes on to repeat the famous quote about TV news attributed to Thompson, calling it a “cruel and shallow money trench, a long plastic hallway where thieves and pimps run free, and good men die like dogs.” I agree that in all too many cases, that summation is perfectly accurate.
He also relates his own story about what some TV news managers really value. “30 years ago I was interviewing for a news producing job in Green Bay and I asked, ‘What’s the crime rate like in this town?’ My potential employer looked me in the eye and said, ‘low but getting better.’” By which, of course, the news manager meant that higher crime rates make for better TV news ratings. John added that he took the job. Sounds like he has his own book to write. Come on in, the water’s fine!
John concludes his review with these words: “Messages is a really entertaining read. Way to go Forrest, can’t wait to read your next novel.”
After I thanked John for his excellent review, he sent me a comment adding these words: “Messages was a page turner for me just based on the newsroom personalities. I’ve worked with every one of them. But the last 25-30 pages—Holy buckets! I couldn't put it down. That is NOT where I expected the story line to take me. Really nice change up!”
John, thanks so much!
Greg also posted a 5-star review. He writes, “This was a fun book to read wrapped up in a murder mystery. Having worked in the TV news industry for quite a few years, I found many of the characters ring true with the complex egos and peevish natures that often dominate newsrooms everywhere. It also has some great insight into the trials and tribulations of TV journalism and getting the job done under pressure. It's a ‘killer of a book,’ and despite the deadly topic is actually full of laughs.”
Both John and Greg work in the TV business. If you don’t, don’t let that worry you. The fact that they find the book to ring true means that you can be assured of getting a rare and authentic glimpse into a world you haven’t really seen before. Most movies, TV shows and novels about television news are set in big markets—but that’s not where most Americans live or get their news. The story of what goes on in small to medium market stations hasn’t been well told, until now. And that’s important, if you’re curious to know who decides what you may know—and not know—about the community where you live.
Messages also collected its first 1-star rating this week (bringing the total to 9 5-star, 3 4-star, and 1 1-star), courtesy of a reader who said he put it down after encountering profanity. The complaint is valid. The language in Messages is not quite as strong as what you might find in, say, the movie “Wolf of Wall Street,” and it’s there for the same reason: it’s authentic to the period. But if F-bombs are a deal breaker for you, my apologies, but you’ll want to pass this one by. (I do warn about the mature content in the book description and also in the Foreword.)
I’m very excited about the results so far. In addition to the overall great reader and critic reviews, during a promotion for it earlier this month Messages cracked the Top 100 on Amazon in three of its categories, including humor and crime fiction.
Many thanks to those of you who’ve taken time to post feedback. Remember—every successful author was a newbie at one time. When you post a good review for a book you liked, you could be helping to discover a worthwhile new author and send him or her on his way.
Find purchase links, a free chapter, reader and critic reviews, and more for Messages here:
http://www.forrestcarr.com/messages.html
My crime/humor novel Messages has just received two new 5-star reviews, both posted on the same day.
John calls it a “great read and a must read for those of us who’ve spent our lives working in the news biz.” He goes on to say, “Forrest has captured the real personalities of us nut jobs who write the first draft of history. Forrest captured the insanity of what it’s like to report on the crime and filth in this world, and he hit a home run in detailing how covering those stories impacts journalists. This novel has more twists and turns that the back roads of Appalachia.”
John says he believes that in writing the book, I must have been channeling “gonzo journalist” Hunter S. Thompson, and he goes on to repeat the famous quote about TV news attributed to Thompson, calling it a “cruel and shallow money trench, a long plastic hallway where thieves and pimps run free, and good men die like dogs.” I agree that in all too many cases, that summation is perfectly accurate.
He also relates his own story about what some TV news managers really value. “30 years ago I was interviewing for a news producing job in Green Bay and I asked, ‘What’s the crime rate like in this town?’ My potential employer looked me in the eye and said, ‘low but getting better.’” By which, of course, the news manager meant that higher crime rates make for better TV news ratings. John added that he took the job. Sounds like he has his own book to write. Come on in, the water’s fine!
John concludes his review with these words: “Messages is a really entertaining read. Way to go Forrest, can’t wait to read your next novel.”
After I thanked John for his excellent review, he sent me a comment adding these words: “Messages was a page turner for me just based on the newsroom personalities. I’ve worked with every one of them. But the last 25-30 pages—Holy buckets! I couldn't put it down. That is NOT where I expected the story line to take me. Really nice change up!”
John, thanks so much!
Greg also posted a 5-star review. He writes, “This was a fun book to read wrapped up in a murder mystery. Having worked in the TV news industry for quite a few years, I found many of the characters ring true with the complex egos and peevish natures that often dominate newsrooms everywhere. It also has some great insight into the trials and tribulations of TV journalism and getting the job done under pressure. It's a ‘killer of a book,’ and despite the deadly topic is actually full of laughs.”
Both John and Greg work in the TV business. If you don’t, don’t let that worry you. The fact that they find the book to ring true means that you can be assured of getting a rare and authentic glimpse into a world you haven’t really seen before. Most movies, TV shows and novels about television news are set in big markets—but that’s not where most Americans live or get their news. The story of what goes on in small to medium market stations hasn’t been well told, until now. And that’s important, if you’re curious to know who decides what you may know—and not know—about the community where you live.
Messages also collected its first 1-star rating this week (bringing the total to 9 5-star, 3 4-star, and 1 1-star), courtesy of a reader who said he put it down after encountering profanity. The complaint is valid. The language in Messages is not quite as strong as what you might find in, say, the movie “Wolf of Wall Street,” and it’s there for the same reason: it’s authentic to the period. But if F-bombs are a deal breaker for you, my apologies, but you’ll want to pass this one by. (I do warn about the mature content in the book description and also in the Foreword.)
I’m very excited about the results so far. In addition to the overall great reader and critic reviews, during a promotion for it earlier this month Messages cracked the Top 100 on Amazon in three of its categories, including humor and crime fiction.
Many thanks to those of you who’ve taken time to post feedback. Remember—every successful author was a newbie at one time. When you post a good review for a book you liked, you could be helping to discover a worthwhile new author and send him or her on his way.
Find purchase links, a free chapter, reader and critic reviews, and more for Messages here:
http://www.forrestcarr.com/messages.html
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