“Once he met her, it was and always would be Lyla.”They were the gentlemen bad boys of rock. Forming in a garage in a small town in Indiana. Taking their licks on the road. Going balls to the wall until they made their big break.And then Preacher McCade and the Roadmasters redefined rock and roll.Guided by their tortured lead singer and songwriter, the Roadmasters changed the face of music in the … changed the face of music in the 80s and 90s. And on their journey to becoming one of the most enduring bands in history—dogged by rumors and myth and fueled by drugs and booze—the Roadmasters had one touchstone.
Lyla.
Preacher’s muse, the love of his life, and the band’s moral compass, from the beginning, Lyla is along for the ride.
But with fame and acclaim in their grasp, they’ve entered the fast lane.
And they didn’t know it, but they were headed for a crash.
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The story of Preacher McCade and the Roadmasters in Fast Lane is chronicled by means of an oral history. A book will be written and an unidentified interviewer has been recording her discussions with various band members about their history as a successful band; the ups, downs and where that life has led them. These interviews are interspersed with flashbacks to the past where readers become part of the action.
As a whole, the storyline works. We get an intimate and personal view of a highly successful band that people have followed for decades. At the end, I felt the story arc was complete. I didn’t have any large unresolved questions. However, it’s in the detail that I felt the book often derails.
What works against this book is the author spends too much time trying to build momentum and waiting until the final quarter to make many of the big reveals. Instead of revealing information throughout, we get waffling and vagueness and repetition and irrelevant details to pad out the story. There are a SIGNIFICANT number of teasers along the lines of ‘I just saw and I knew…’ [character looks off into the yonder]. OK, but what did you see? What do you know? I understand such teasers are meant to elicit interest but frankly, I felt I was treading in cliché filled water for a large part of the book; we are kept in the dark too long.
If you are a reader already familiar with Ashley’s books, and someone gave Fast Lane to you to read without telling you who wrote it, I would bet money you would know it’s one of hers. I recognise readers may find comfort in knowing what to expect from an author. The flip side of this is when you’ve read as many of Ashley’s books as I have, it becomes deeply unsatisfying to read yet another book with regurgitated scenes and similar characters with the same mannerisms, speech, and even dress sense; does a non-Henley wearing hero even exist in her world? The oral history style is certainly new to Ashley but she hasn’t pushed those boundaries far enough. In fact, I would argue, she has barely pushed at all. Fast Lane reads like a typical Ashley book being stuffed into a different format; square peg, round hole.
And yet, I didn’t hate the book. There are flashes of creative writing excellence. There are scenes so intensely emotional, they did bring me close to tears. The characters aren’t two-dimensional – even factoring in the uncomfortable similarity to previous KA characters. I enjoyed reading about their lives and their history. And for me, without doubt, Preacher McCade is the focus of this book, and I enjoyed his characterisation – but not as a hero. I thought he was a manipulative, controlling arse who was anointed as a saint by those around him. I actually detest him as a character but that’s also what makes him interesting. I didn’t need these characters to get a happy ever after, but you can relax. This is a romance book after all.
In summary, the framework is sound but the final construction falls short – even including the goodly amount of toss pillows.
Fast Lane is such a fantastic uniquely written rock star book. I love Kristen Ashley books and this one is so different from her others. I love how it is told in the way it is. It totally fits the rock star vibes and this love story being told. Preacher, Jesse and Layla each give a different voice that pull you in. Layla and Preacher have this strong bond that carries you all the way through and every recount of the band, the tours and love formed just fill you up. I love the gruffness of Preacher. He tells it how it is and you get why he does the things he does eventually. Layla is a tough cookie and doesn’t put up with anything. She can handle the rockers like no one else can. Then there is Jesse the founding member of the band and best friend to both. I really love Layla and Preacher and what Kristen Ashley gives us with this telling of their life together. I couldn’t put this one down.
Although I am a huge fan of Kristen Ashley and have read many of her books, this one just didn’t grab me like the rest. I had a hard time connecting with any of the characters and there just wasn’t that magic that she usually gives. The narration was done well and I can’t put any fault on them as I always knew who was talking with the many boo they used.
This book is a deviation from KA’s normal style of novel, but I don’t think it makes it any less amazing than her usual fare. I love Lyla, Preacher, and the Road Masters. The book was well researched, filled with music history anecdotes, which is no surprise given KA’s love of music, and wonderfully told through interviews and said bites of personal POV. I highly recommend it.
I have to first off say that I love music, 80s music is life to me, but I never had any interest in the lives of the members in a band. So when Kristen Ashley had announced the premise to this book, I was not marking it on my calendar. But I have read and re-read almost all of her books (only about 3 or 4 that I was just not interested in) so I pre-ordered and started reading at 9:25 pm (I live Pacific time). I started the book and thought that this writing style was so different to me that I wasn’t sure if I would be able to get used it. I thought I would just read a few chapters and just piecemeal it. But then chapter after chapter, I became immersed into the lives of the band that became Preacher MacCade and the Roadmasters.
Reading this book had my emotions all over the place. The love that Preacher had for Lyla was epic, but it was not perfect. Their love story was sometimes sweet, swoony, maddening, heartbreaking but in the end it was beautiful. It was their journey and all so fantastic.
To be completely honest, I was really surprised on how much I loved this book. It was not just the love story between Preacher and Lyla but also the bandmates that were interviewed. Their take was just so engrossing that I could not get enough. Fast Lane was just an awesome read, I couldn’t stop even when I thought I wanted to.
Well that was different. I give the author kudos for writing a book what I will call out of character for her. The whole book was written in interview style. I was digging this for a while but did realize you miss out on the emotional depth of the characters. You get the gist of how the band started and all the crazy years of sex, drugs and rock and roll as they were becoming famous. We get to see how Preacher and Lyla met (but not from their perspective) and the ups and downs of their epic romance over 40 years but only in snippets which at times made it a little impersonal. Deep at the core of the book the author’s style she is known for is there. During an interview with Lyla where we finally get one on one interaction between her and Preacher – its was like a little lighting bolt hit me – there is the Kristin Ashley alpha male she loves to write.
Bottom line for me, it was worth reading but its not a format I could stand reading very often.
Okay. I adore this author. Anything she writes is great. I really didn’t like the interview style of story telling simply because I cannot connect to the characters well that way. That’s why this is 4 stars instead of 5. It’s an amazing story, almost a work of art, truly! I just couldn’t connect. Didn’t make the story less, though as I finished this in ONE sitting!
From the start the book hooked me in. It’s different to most KA books I’ve read. This story of a band, or really a family, is from an interviewers point of view, and rolls like a movie I your mind whilst reading. I did find myself googling to find out if any of it was actually real and did find the band name itself to be real. KA’s expertise on the era she wrote of are exceptional. Expect the unexpected. Well worth the five star rating I gave it.
When you start a book and within the first chapter you know it is something special! I spent the weekend engrossed in Kristen Ashley’s latest and greatest, Fast Lane. She is an immediate one-click for me. I listened to the audible nonstop. Ignoring Husband and Kids until I was finished. The story is unique and captivating. Emotional. Rich. Honest.
The narration by Lance Greenfield, Aiden Snow and Susannah Jones is fan-freaking-tastic. I finished last night and want to start over at the beginning. Definitely my top listed of 2019.
This book was a departure from KA’s usual writing style, but it was by no means less engaging.
Disappointing. I did not like the format of interviewer telling the story. It was hard to finish the book. Sorry. She is one of my favorite authors but this fell short for me.