Ace's Version of KISStory!

NO REGRETS by Ace Frehley with Joe Layden and John Ostrosky (2011 Simon & Schuster / 305 pp / hc)
As a fan of KISS since I was five years old (maybe even younger), I had a blast reading about the early days of the band, and as a major ACE fan, I LOVED the stories about the recording of his classic 1978 solo album. Like most rock n roll memoirs, there's plenty of drug and alcohol stories, as well as car crashes and near-death experiences. So as a KISS and Ace fan, the book is a lot of fun, especially when Ace trashes Gene and Paul on nearly every other page, then offers something positive about them (although toward the end Gene really comes off as a total scumbag). 

What I DIDN'T like about NO REGRETS are several sections where it's painfully obvious Ace's two co-authors did all the writing, using language that just doesn't fit with the majority of the book's Ace/Bronx attitude and lingo. Sure, Ace is lucky to have one brain cell left after all these years of cocaine and beer parties, but a book released on a major label like this could've taken the time to make each chapter sound like they were part of the same book. A small complaint, but one that I found distracting despite the quickness of the read. 

I'm assuming any KISS fan will find much of this interesting, although fans of Ace's solo bands (if there ARE fans of JUST his solo bands) might be a bit disappointed as there's little time spent talking about them. 

Ace's recollections of his times hanging out with John Belushi are worth the cover price IMO, and he comes off as a cool old-school neighborhood guy you'd want to hang out with. And judging from this book, it seems Ace bagged almost as many women as Gene Simmons! 

Fun stuff for fans, including a 16-page section of rare pics.