The first serious review of my upcoming novel Ride On is out. It’s from Kirkus Reviews, a highly respected source of professional reviews. They maintain that reputation because they’re not afraid to give out bad ones.
Fortunately, this is the short version of Ride On’s review:
An amusing and ambitious road trip comedy.
—Kirkus Reviews
The rest of it is positive, too, although I’ll be the first to admit that I have a time or two where I ramble because at times I like to let the novel take a breath before getting right back to running. Nonetheless, I’m especially pleased at the one-sentence conclusion above because that’s exactly what I was trying to do with the book.
There are so many other good quotations to pull out. This one hits on two areas I worked very hard on:
“…unique in its premise and is sure to be enjoyed by even those lacking in pro-cycling knowledge.”
—Kirkus Reviews
I wanted to create a book that wasn’t like everything else today. There is so much out there that is nearly identical because you have to write to the formula to even get an agent nowadays, much less find a publisher. (It’s become so bad that there are classes not in how to write well, but how to write something to find an agent, and those are not the same thing.) Everything feels formulaic today because it is, so if I wanted to read a book I would love to read, I had to write it. My sense of humor and style is quirky and often relies on references I know more people won’t get than will. While having others read through it, sometimes the parts that made me laugh as I wrote it barely get an acknowledgement and other parts that I found mildly amusing and which barely passed the cut get real laughs. It makes it difficult to judge whether it worked as a whole, so my greatest happiness was seeing this line, which means I met my two highest goals:
“…refreshing and, at times, laugh-out-loud funny.”
—Kirkus Reviews
You can read the full review below, but I’d really appreciate it if you read it online at the Kirkus Reviews website instead (nicest please ever!) and gave it a thumbs up there. It won’t take any extra time and it would really help me out, so thanks!
A retired cyclist takes a job with a wealthy eccentric in Coleman’s novel.
Richard Timothy is a pro cyclist who has recently given up his career competing in various international tournaments. In contrast to his professional success, the rest of his life is a bit uninspired, including but not limited to a flailing relationship with his girlfriend, Alice, a corporate lawyer. Unmoored and unwilling to take a conventional gig, Richard happens upon an online job listing from someone seeking a “domestique” (a rider who supports the cycling team in various ways, such as a keeping the pace) to tow his dog. The ad was placed by Karl Hyacinth, a rich and quirky gentleman who, by his own admission is, “‘well-off’ rich, not ‘Bond supervillain’ rich” and lives near Sedona, Arizona. Karl, along with his dog, Orion, is on a treasure hunt along Route 66 and needs a cyclist to accompany him. (The treasure hunt was created by Ghostrider, a mysterious and anonymous user of Routz, a bike-riding app.) After setting out on their journey, Richard, Karl, and Orion travel to a casino in Cabazon, California. While there, the pair meets Eileen, a veteran and amputee. Romance blossoms between Richard and Eileen, but after Richard confesses his love, Eileen rejects him and flees. As Richard and Karl struggle through challenges both emotional and physical, they forge a deeper bond. Coleman’s story is unique in its premise and is sure to be enjoyed by even those lacking in pro-cycling knowledge. The tale is full of engaging humor, as the bulk of the text is devoted to witty repartee between Karl and Richard. While Coleman’s prose is funny and engaging, it is also occasionally meandering, which can make the narrative drag a bit. Still, the novel is refreshing and, at times, laugh-out-loud funny.
An amusing and ambitious road trip comedy.
—Kirkus Reviews
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