February 5, 2024
Celebrity culture, climate collapse, and pandemic-era conspiracy theories provide fodder for this entertaining if overstuffed satire from Taylor (Riding with the Ghost, a memoir). Narrator David Crader, a former child actor and recovering alcoholic nearing 40, is slumming it as the voice of a popular video game character. While in Los Angeles for a fan convention, he meets up with his ex-wife and former co-star, Grace Travis, who proposes a reboot of their early-2000s “beach-town soap,” an East Coast OC mixed with Buffy the Vampire Slayer except with ghosts instead of vampires. Keen to the idea, David sets off to convince their former costars, including heartthrob Shayne Glade, now a star of the New York City theater world; and Corey Burch, dubbed by culture writer Molly Webster as “TheDesignatedFatKid™,” who’s pivoted to anti-vax politics and is running for mayor in the South Florida town where the show was set. Along the way, David faces wildfires in California and flooding rains in New York as he attempts to claw his way back into the limelight. Some sections, like one long tangent chronicling the backstory of David’s second ex-wife, seem superfluous, but Taylor makes up for it with Webster’s caffeinated pop-culture patter and David’s indomitable determination. Readers will find plenty to applaud. Agent: Noah Ballard, Verve Talent & Literary.
September 13, 2024
David Crader, the washed-up former star of a short-lived but popular teen television show, struggles with alcohol addiction and is prone to drunken public outbursts. His relationship with his six-year-old son is marginal at best, and his second ex-wife wants nothing to do with him. David's current job is voicing a popular character in an online game that boasts a large, somewhat toxic social media following, but things seem to be looking up when he is given the opportunity to reboot his early-aughts teen drama. His first ex-wife agrees to fund the revival, and David starts reassembling the cast. He seems to be making progress when his personal problems, climate change, conspiracy theories, and a giant sinkhole send the plans into a tailspin. Taylor (Riding with the Ghost) presents the story as a faux memoir ghostwritten by one of the characters in the story. He introduces the concept of speculative nonfiction (similar to "alternative facts") as a means of resolving many of the story's conflicts. Taylor narrates his own work, nailing the comedic timing and voicing the quirky, insightful, and very funny characters with sincerity. VERDICT Zany and full of surprises, this inventive novel will keep listeners engaged and amazed.--Joanna M. Burkhardt
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