Gory, Musical Thriller Delights
I think John R. Deal sums up this book better than anyone else could – “You’re about to be a world-famous music star who also happens to be a serial killer. Keeping you outta the electric chair is going to be like juggling cats. Gonna be fun trying though.” And fun it is!
About the Book
In the final installment of The Comeback Trial trilogy, Jimmy Wayne has set off on his major tour of Europe, selling out the likes of the Royal Albert Hall and Zenith, Paris.
While Jimmy’s fame is reaching dizzying heights, behind-the-scenes crime bosses, Jack Lantern and George Digbeth, are scheming ways to bring him crashing back down to earth. But it’s not just these two he should be worried about. Jimmy’s adventures in Europe have drawn the attention of crime families across London, Paris, southern Italy, and Madrid and everyone is battling for a piece of the action.
From recovering valuable stolen artwork to Ma Lantern’s romantic escapades, will Jimmy survive the mayhem of this whirlwind tour or will the dubious, murderous circumstances to which he owes all his success, be exposed, for once and for all…?
My Thoughts
If you read the first two books, you’ll know that this is a book about a serial killer. If you haven’t read them, you might not know that he’s a pretty good guy overall and it’s sort of a Dexter situation, he mostly only kills bad guys. However, he has gotten himself involved with some pretty shady characters, not by choice, and this book is gory and violent in a way that the others were not. So if that is not your thing, you might need to skip this one. I was certainly unprepared, and there were scenes I had to skim. That said, it was part of the plot, and it had its purpose. I just felt like a sex scene it could have been more “closed-door.”
I still enjoyed the book. It has a wacky, zany cast of loveable characters, including the main character. My favorite still remains Kid. The author actually told me a lot of people don’t like him, and I just can’t imagine. He’s so loveable!
The twists and turns really keep you on your toes, and there were so many moving parts and new characters I’d sometimes forget where we were. It was fast-paced and kept me turning pages. I read over half the book in one afternoon, and I don’t read physical books fast these days (my ADHD loses my place). On my phone, I have tools to help me read faster and for some reason, I just generally read ebooks faster. But I still love everything about OG physical books!
The covers on these are amazing, my daughter loves them. She gets excited about the skeleton guitar every time she finds one of them lying around the house. The second and third ones were lying next to each other and she got so excited “It’s the same.” I got to explain to her about sequels and series. Great homeschool learning opportunity.
This is the final installment of this series, but the author has promised us another trilogy featuring Jimmy Wayne. I’ll definitely be interested to see that. He’s an interesting character. I always love an anti-hero, someone whose story isn’t the run-of-the-mill, day-to-day. We never trust the utopia right? Reading about one that stayed that way would just be boring. Give me a roguish, anti-hero any day. Maybe that’s why I always like the sidekicks, they’re always a bit more rough around the edges. Though, in this one, Jimmy and Kid complement each other exceptionally well, rough in some places and polished where the other isn’t.
I also really enjoyed the arc of gangster Tony C. in the story. I don’t want to give anything away, but it was truly heartwarming. It’s not something you usually see, and I appreciate it. Hale is amazing at writing a diverse set of characters and bringing them to life. I am so grateful to the author and Love Books Tours for including me on the tour of all three of these books, and I can’t wait to see the next three. Hopefully, I’ll be telling you about those before too long.
Who’s It For?
If you enjoy dark humor and can appreciate the cut-throat nature of show business, you’ll love this book. If you enjoy mafia/gangster literature, I think you might like this. But, I’ll be honest, I’ve never read any of that, so I can’t be sure. This series is steeped in gore and dark humor, but it also features a lot of exploration of organized crime around the world.
It can be read as a standalone, but I never advocate that personally. I always feel lost if I don’t start at the beginning of a series. Plus, characters are my love, and you miss out on a lot of character-building and connection if you don’t read the whole story.
Content Warnings: Extremely Graphic Violence, Drug Abuse, Alcohol Abuse, Adult Language, Adult Situations, and More. This is not meant to serve as a complete list of all topics that someone may find offensive or triggering.
Links
Amazon US: https://amzn.to/3uwukue
Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/3Kd4S1H
Bookshop UK: https://uk.bookshop.org/p/books/all-the-world-s-a-stage-guy-hale/7347904?ean=9781915635112
Waterstones: https://www.waterstones.com/book/all-the-worlds-a-stage/guy-hale/9781915635112
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/156424571-all-the-world-s-a-stage
Author Website: https://www.guyhale.com/
This is the third installment of “The Comeback Trial” trilogy by Guy Hale. See my review of Book 1 “Killing Me Softly” and Book 2 “Blood on the Tracks.”
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About the Author
Guy Hale was born in Worcestershire, England. His first job was as a Professional Golfer. He also played Rugby and raced motorcycles until his mid-twenties. When this failed to kill him he started writing plays, mostly two-handers which he performed in pubs and assorted venues with his mate, Andy.
When no call from Hollywood came, he went back into golf until his mid-thirties. Having met and married the love of his life, Lou, he was encouraged to get a proper job … by the boss. This led to him getting into construction and the design and supply of light gauge steel, really exciting stuff!
Surprisingly, this surf bum, ex-rugby player, ex-golfer, keen motorcyclist and cyclist turned out to be pretty good at business and he and his partner, Matt, built a hugely successful company which they sold in 2018. Instead of doing the sensible thing and retiring he started Gulf Coast Records with Mike Zito and then started songwriting. One night in a bar in LA, Mike told him a story about a dream he’d had. That story turned into the Jimmy Wayne saga and Guy was off and running.
Strange how you can drift into some things. Now the Jimmy Wayne Comeback Trail Trilogy is complete, it’s had great reviews and Mike and Guy have done a soundtrack, with the great Kid Andersen, to go along with the books.
Are you reading this Netflix?
Guy is working on a new trilogy based in 1970s Stratford Upon Avon. It promises lots of Shakespearian references and plenty of darkly humorous serial killing – is there any other kind? Jimmy Wayne will return in a second trilogy in 2024.
Published by Amorina Carlton. Award-winning American author, Amorina Carlton, is currently working on her first novel. You can find more about her published work and works in progress on the home page. She also serves as the PR/Marketing Lead for Ravens and Roses Publishing, and reviews books, mostly by other indie authors, here and on Bookstagram.