Ali Karim was a Board Member of Bouchercon [The World Crime & Mystery Convention] and co-chaired programming for Bouchercon Raleigh, North Carolina in 2015. He is Assistant Editor of Shots eZine, British correspondent for The Rap Sheet and writes and reviews for many US magazines & Ezines.
This novel gripped me like the snake it eponymously references, preventing me from doing anything apart from purely reading the story. During the times I was away from the book – I was thinking about it, even dreaming about the characters and the narrative in my sleep. It is clever, thought-provoking and witty, which at times becomes ‘laugh-out-loud’ as the absurd plot unravels at a fevered pace.
Set in the late 1980s, the author weaves the collapse of the Soviet Bloc into the era of peak heavy metal with the rise of a fictitious Los Angeles rock band Whyte Python. The band consists of four weird misfits - on Vocals Davy Bones (aka Lawrence Barkly), on Bass Guitar Spencer Dooley, on Lead Guitar (Robert) Buck Sweet and finally on Drums Richard Henderson aka Rikki Thunder.
Whyte Python is managed by the wimpy British producer Kirby Smoot for Andromeda Records and unbeknownst to the band, manipulated by the American Central Intelligence Agency’s Asian Intelligence Division [AID].
It appears that the Deputy Director of the CIA Ed Lonsa is reluctantly tasked to orchestrate a Cold War Psychological Operation against the Soviet Bloc. The Psy-Ops entitled Operation Facemelt is born, peopled by agents undergoing ‘disciplinary process’ though only three of them are aware that they are in this process. Firstly we have Amanda Price [aka Shawna Peppers] who works under the identity of rock and roll journalist Tawny Spice who is tasked with manipulating Drummer Rikki Thunders [from his band Qyksand] into joining Whyte Python. The other CIA agents being the insubordinates Catherine Stryker and Daryl Boone with the more conformist Bradford Mancuso.
The CIA’s Operation Facemelt manoeuvres Whyte Python’s debut album “All Squeeze, No Vermin” to the top of the charts and pushes the band to embark upon a massive US tour. Operation Facemelt’s Daryl Boone uses subliminal design to help write the rock ballad ‘Tonight, for Tomorrow’ that vocalist Davy Bones is tricked [due to egotism] into believing he wrote. This song is the lead from their sophomore release ‘The Whyte Album’ and becomes an anthem for disaffected youth of Eastern European rebelling against Soviet Oppression. Soon, Whyte Python embark on their ‘Wyrld Peace Tour’ playing stadiums in Romania, Bulgaria, Yugoslavia, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Poland and East Germany.
The Stasi [East German Intelligence] under the aegis of Lt General Kurt Becker have their own counter-intelligence operation ‘Cobra’ which gets wind of the American Psy-Ops Operation and their vehicle the Heavy Metal band Whyte Python.
Soon the Cold War becomes fought over the sounds [and absurd excesses] of Heavy Metal music with booze, drugs, groupies, big haircuts, face paint and shoulder pads. With the absurdities of Slow Horses mixed with doses of Wayne’s World & This Is Spinal Tap, Travis Kennedy’s novel entertains as it forces contemplation and amusement from the reader.
It is hard to believe this work to be a debut, as it features such assured and confident writing.
As a thriller it is outstanding.
When I put the book down, I sat in silent contemplation and then downloaded the audio book narrated by Wil Wheaton as I wanted to revisit this crazy world again.
Hugely recommended, as beyond the wondrous absurdity and humour – it has heart and leaves the reader feeling good because it is totally life affirming.
