Shine On, Marquee Moon

by Zoë Howe (Contributor)

Shine On, Marquee Moon, the debut novel of respected music writer Zoë Howe, is a rock ‘n’ roll love story that celebrates the extremes of life in the music business and challenges the myth of sex, drugs and rock n’ roll with plenty of wry humour, strong characters and sharp dialogue along the way. Never mind chick lit. This is rock chick lit.

Sylvie is a dresser working for a New Romantic band currently enjoying a 21st century revival. Sylvie becomes romantically involved with Nick – reluctant heart-throb and the least unhinged member of the band – after bonding amid the chaos of touring life over a shared obsession with Television’s seminal album ‘Marquee Moon’. However, a dark secret threatens to destroy their future together and much more besides.

Shine On, Marquee Moon exposes the hilarious, heart-wrenching and often bizarre reality of life on and off the road, where the most unlikely people become family, and ‘friends’ aren't always who they appear to be.

256 pages, Paperback

Published September 28, 2016

About the author

Also writes as Zoë Street Howe

Reviews

[Lynx · Rating 3 out of 5]

While on the road things were perfect. The crew had formed a family bond and Sylvie had snagged Nick, Concierge's hottest star. But the tour over, the band is in crisis, Nick is keeping secrets and to top it off Sylvie is feeling intense vibes from Sam, Concierge's latest crew member.

I was enjoying this one for awhile but the more I read the more disappointed I felt. It has all the rock n roll cliches, the man-child rockers and crazy groupies, the talented but tortured junkie popstar, the frazzled manager trying to keep it all together, the hippie gypsy woman, and let us not forget the chick-lit go-to, a love triangle! Because of this, it was all too predictable.

It was cute, I can see a lot of people enjoying it, but it certainly isn't original. It reminded me of Cameron Crowe's latest mistake Roadies. Cliches galore but with this tiny glimmer of hope that actually ends up depressing you more because you can see what could have been, but isn't.

2.5/5

*Thank you Troubador Publishing and Netgalley for this review copy.

[Melissa · Rating 1 out of 5]

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an Advanced Reader Copy in exchange for an honest review. Despite a truly amazing introduction where the narrator describes a single criterion for a serious relationship (must have Television's Marquee Moon album) in collection, the rest of the novel was jumbled, confusing and rushed. The premise is great, the execution was not so much.

[Kay · Rating 1 out of 5]

I so wanted to like this book, having enjoyed Zoe Howe's work on the JAMC, Wilko Johnson and Lee Brilleaux biographies, but this was dreadful in my opinion. Perhaps it was aimed at the Chick Lit market but I couldn't relate to any of the characters in the story. A shower of self obsessed wankers, in a New Romantic band FFS. I love Marquee Moon, as does the main character, but that was the only positive in this novel, although the other band seem like good eggs.

Ray Smillie

[Sophia · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's nice to read a not-very-serious romance set in the world of alternative music. That said, I failed to really understand the appeal of the main male character, but enjoyed reading this all the same!

[Samantha · Rating 1 out of 5]

Lacks everything. No plot, no interesting characters, no pacing. So badly written it’s bizarre, never encountered 1st and 3rd person point of view in the same sentence before! Bewildered how this ever got published, let alone on an award shortlist.

[Jorge Pérez · Rating 3 out of 5]

No conocía a Zoë Howe, periodista musical. Shine on, Marquee Moon es su primera novela. El título es en referencia al disco de Television, Marquee Moon (recomendable). Parte de la trama es la historia de la vida cotidiana de Concierge, una banda británica que vive su revival; parte de la historia es también la relación entre la narradora, Sylvie, y Nick, músico en Concierge. Creo que puede ser un buen título para promocionar la lectura entre jóvenes.
El libro estuvo nominado al The Virginia Prize for Fiction, premio literario que celebra obras publicadas por mujeres (Virginia es por Woolf).