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Class of '86
A dark comedy that spans across many years and genres, CLASS OF '86 is a loving tribute to high school comedies, Cold War thrillers, post apocalyptic adventure, and slasher horror.
Six friends are ready to graduate high school, only they are down to the wire on finishing a research paper for their chemistry class. Their plan is to steal an idea from Fletcher, the smartest kid in school. When their cheating doesn’t pay off, they retaliate with a prank that may lead to deadly consequences. As the years go by, and political tensions cause a post apocalyptic wasteland, they must take shelter in the one place they will have to confront their past and survive by any means necessary.
CLASS OF '86 is the debut novel for Brad Jones, which uses humor to celebrate these multiple genres that helped define this decade in pop culture and cult entertainment.
Six friends are ready to graduate high school, only they are down to the wire on finishing a research paper for their chemistry class. Their plan is to steal an idea from Fletcher, the smartest kid in school. When their cheating doesn’t pay off, they retaliate with a prank that may lead to deadly consequences. As the years go by, and political tensions cause a post apocalyptic wasteland, they must take shelter in the one place they will have to confront their past and survive by any means necessary.
CLASS OF '86 is the debut novel for Brad Jones, which uses humor to celebrate these multiple genres that helped define this decade in pop culture and cult entertainment.
325 pages, Kindle Edition
Published July 7, 2023
11 people are currently reading
39 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
July 23, 2023
A weak 3 stars. I like Brad's work on YouTube, but his writing skills need to be honed a lot more. I laughed a few times, so I can't say it's bad, I just can't say there's a lot here to be impressed by.
July 11, 2023
A rough diamond. Some definite good plot points. Obvious huge cinema snob review of a Golan globus/cannon film style narrative. Definitely Lloyd approved. For a first book, a good attempt, onwards and upwards, Brad. Seems like a sequel tease at the end, maybe for a Pierre Kirby character? Hopefully Ben Tramer lives.
May 15, 2024
I’m tapping out. It’s taking forever for the plot to get started, and the inane conversations about movies and cheeseburgers are getting on my nerves. Plus, this book needs another pass for all the typos I’ve found.
November 4, 2024
First, let me express my admiration and support for Brad Jones. He comes across as a genuinely kind, intelligent, and thoroughly enjoyable person. I’m glad I purchased this book to support his artistic endeavors; after all, not everyone has the initiative to write and publish a novel, which is a commendable feat in itself.
However, I must admit that I found the book lacking in several respects. There were some standout moments and ideas that I loved—such as the grease fight, the vodka beans, and the unexpected redemption of a seemingly one-dimensional character. I also appreciated the melodrama steeped in 80s nostalgia and the Mad Maxian vibe that made for a fun, if absurd, homage to the ethos of that era.
Regrettably, the book seems to have been in dire need of editorial scrutiny. It felt as though it had undergone little more than a single draft, and given its origins as a script, this might explain its often straightforward and sparse prose. A novel of this nature would greatly benefit from a thorough revision. Beyond occasional grammatical missteps—which, at times, could be egregious, with key characters’ names getting mixed up—the sentence structuring frequently faltered. It was common to find paragraphs marred by repeating words, such as "They made their way all the way to the house" or "She picked up the cup and walked into the kitchen to set the cup down." This undermines engagement and perspicuity. And for transparency's sake, these are not necessarily direct excerpts, these are merely examples to express much of the writing methods throughout the book.
Moreover, there were instances of unnecessarily explicit elaborations that felt redundant. For example, "He said sarcastically, implying he didn’t actually mean it" is superfluous; the term "sarcastically" should suffice for the reader to infer intent. In my opinion, this novel would also benefit from a humble dose of the classic "show, don’t tell" approach. We don’t need to be told that Susie is angry if her narrowed eyes and clenched fists convey the emotion. Similarly, if a character makes a snarky remark amid the chaos of a gunfight, we’ll understand their sarcasm and how it plays into their personality without the need for the narrative stating that "she was sarcastic even in the midst of danger". Your audience will draw their own conclusions.
While some dialogue sparkled with wit, other exchanges felt forced and disjointed, as if the humor was being shoehorned in rather than emerging organically. This, of course, is subjective, but it struck me nonetheless.
In conclusion, I hope the author continues to evolve and learn if he decides to embark on further literary projects. It's clear that his brain is a very fun place to be in, I just think it needs help to be more cunningly translated to paper. As the great character John Keating said, "Avoid using the word 'very' because it's lazy. A man is not very tired, he is exhausted. Don't use very sad, use morose. Language was invented for one reason, boys; to woo women. And in that endeavor, laziness will not do. It also won't do in your essays."
However, I must admit that I found the book lacking in several respects. There were some standout moments and ideas that I loved—such as the grease fight, the vodka beans, and the unexpected redemption of a seemingly one-dimensional character. I also appreciated the melodrama steeped in 80s nostalgia and the Mad Maxian vibe that made for a fun, if absurd, homage to the ethos of that era.
Regrettably, the book seems to have been in dire need of editorial scrutiny. It felt as though it had undergone little more than a single draft, and given its origins as a script, this might explain its often straightforward and sparse prose. A novel of this nature would greatly benefit from a thorough revision. Beyond occasional grammatical missteps—which, at times, could be egregious, with key characters’ names getting mixed up—the sentence structuring frequently faltered. It was common to find paragraphs marred by repeating words, such as "They made their way all the way to the house" or "She picked up the cup and walked into the kitchen to set the cup down." This undermines engagement and perspicuity. And for transparency's sake, these are not necessarily direct excerpts, these are merely examples to express much of the writing methods throughout the book.
Moreover, there were instances of unnecessarily explicit elaborations that felt redundant. For example, "He said sarcastically, implying he didn’t actually mean it" is superfluous; the term "sarcastically" should suffice for the reader to infer intent. In my opinion, this novel would also benefit from a humble dose of the classic "show, don’t tell" approach. We don’t need to be told that Susie is angry if her narrowed eyes and clenched fists convey the emotion. Similarly, if a character makes a snarky remark amid the chaos of a gunfight, we’ll understand their sarcasm and how it plays into their personality without the need for the narrative stating that "she was sarcastic even in the midst of danger". Your audience will draw their own conclusions.
While some dialogue sparkled with wit, other exchanges felt forced and disjointed, as if the humor was being shoehorned in rather than emerging organically. This, of course, is subjective, but it struck me nonetheless.
In conclusion, I hope the author continues to evolve and learn if he decides to embark on further literary projects. It's clear that his brain is a very fun place to be in, I just think it needs help to be more cunningly translated to paper. As the great character John Keating said, "Avoid using the word 'very' because it's lazy. A man is not very tired, he is exhausted. Don't use very sad, use morose. Language was invented for one reason, boys; to woo women. And in that endeavor, laziness will not do. It also won't do in your essays."
July 28, 2023
80s style cheap horror and sci-fi
I like Jones’s YouTube work, so naturally I gave his novel a try. If you know the sort of material he often covers as the Cinema Snob, you’ll see the fingerprints here: cheap 80s horror and sci-fi, the kind that if it is still made is direct to streaming at best. The characters here may not be the most complex, but they weren’t in the movies Jones clearly enjoys either when their one goal was to show up and die. If the characters feel like there isn’t much to them, there usually wasn’t in a story like this.
That said, if Jones writes a second book, I hope he gets a good editor. There were a number of basic spelling errors and a couple instances where he got character names mixed up.
I like Jones’s YouTube work, so naturally I gave his novel a try. If you know the sort of material he often covers as the Cinema Snob, you’ll see the fingerprints here: cheap 80s horror and sci-fi, the kind that if it is still made is direct to streaming at best. The characters here may not be the most complex, but they weren’t in the movies Jones clearly enjoys either when their one goal was to show up and die. If the characters feel like there isn’t much to them, there usually wasn’t in a story like this.
That said, if Jones writes a second book, I hope he gets a good editor. There were a number of basic spelling errors and a couple instances where he got character names mixed up.
December 18, 2025
Fun story about a group of high schoolers that survive a nuclear apocalypse. "Class of '86" is an easy read that is clearly inspired by all the teen comedies, Cold War thrillers, and bloody slashers that author Brad Jones is known for covering on his YouTube series, "The Cinema Snob". Brad clearly knows (and loves!) his stuff, and that enthusiasm is reflected on the page.
My only criticisms could have been prevented by an editor, as the book has some of the self-inflicted hangups common with independently published works -- grammatical errors, double-spaced text, chapters that start mid-page, etc. None of that ruins the story, but the book does cost money, so I think its worth pointing out.
My only criticisms could have been prevented by an editor, as the book has some of the self-inflicted hangups common with independently published works -- grammatical errors, double-spaced text, chapters that start mid-page, etc. None of that ruins the story, but the book does cost money, so I think its worth pointing out.
September 22, 2023
I took a day to think on this one… still a tad confused.
I’m fairly certain this was an homage to the forgotten horror movies the Cinema Snob reviews. And if so, it’s very well done. There’s little character development, overtly 80’s outfits despite the dubious circumstances, and a very weird albeit a bit predictable ending.
If that is indeed what Brad was going for, well done. I see you, I get it, most enjoyable.
If not, well … I finished it and didn’t hate it?
Either way I shall continue enjoying rewatching Cinema Snob reviews of movies I haven’t seen coz a) I’m scared of horror films and b) I don’t watch obscure pornos.
I’m fairly certain this was an homage to the forgotten horror movies the Cinema Snob reviews. And if so, it’s very well done. There’s little character development, overtly 80’s outfits despite the dubious circumstances, and a very weird albeit a bit predictable ending.
If that is indeed what Brad was going for, well done. I see you, I get it, most enjoyable.
If not, well … I finished it and didn’t hate it?
Either way I shall continue enjoying rewatching Cinema Snob reviews of movies I haven’t seen coz a) I’m scared of horror films and b) I don’t watch obscure pornos.
December 29, 2023
While I initially didn't know what I was walking in to with this book and while I had my reservations about reading it, I was pretty pleasantly surprised by this read. It flew by and I read it in just over a day and found the campy tone of the whole book engaging. It was certainly purposefully irreverent , but once you got past that it was pretty fun. I especially enjoying the glimpses into 1980s high school and the dynamic of the group. My least favorite bits were the Fletcher ending and some of the shark jumping moments, but that wasn't what drove the plot overall. A pleasant surprise.
April 5, 2024
While the story isn't bad it needed more world building and character development. There were typos as well and some logic holes.
November 13, 2023
This is a book written by Brad Jones, who plays The Cinema Snob, one of my favorite Internet reviewers. He specializes in horror, exploitation, and lower-than-low budget movies. The kind of stuff that even MST3K wouldn’t touch. And I guess he finally watched enough that he had to spew them back out somehow.
What I’m saying is, come into this expecting the same raw, grainy “first-time indie film” style used in Hobo with a Shotgun, Slumber Party Massacre, Hobgoblins, etc. That’s how Brad Jones rolls. He’s a “first iteration era” YouTuber, a humorist, but he hasn’t learned how to write a novel yet. This is a self-published work and it lacks the refinement of editing or proofreading that comes with multiple revisions. It lacks an eye to perfection. Which is fine if you’re making a cut-throat film. But as a reader, I expect more.
That’s not to say there are no good ideas in this. The characters act like silly caricatures, but that is the point. It’s like bizarro fiction. The story is like a combination of Class of Nuke’em High and My Bloody Valentine. It just means Brad Jones is not a writer of books. Maybe that’s just the book snob in me talking. I’d love to see what he can do when he really applies himself to the text.
What I’m saying is, come into this expecting the same raw, grainy “first-time indie film” style used in Hobo with a Shotgun, Slumber Party Massacre, Hobgoblins, etc. That’s how Brad Jones rolls. He’s a “first iteration era” YouTuber, a humorist, but he hasn’t learned how to write a novel yet. This is a self-published work and it lacks the refinement of editing or proofreading that comes with multiple revisions. It lacks an eye to perfection. Which is fine if you’re making a cut-throat film. But as a reader, I expect more.
That’s not to say there are no good ideas in this. The characters act like silly caricatures, but that is the point. It’s like bizarro fiction. The story is like a combination of Class of Nuke’em High and My Bloody Valentine. It just means Brad Jones is not a writer of books. Maybe that’s just the book snob in me talking. I’d love to see what he can do when he really applies himself to the text.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews