Official Review: Beer Goggles by Sean flynn

[claire mckay]

[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Beer Goggles" by Sean flynn.]

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Beer Goggles is a funny, exciting and interesting book. It is centered on two friends, Travis and Dave, who set off to Blackpool to buy a set of cheap golf clubs but instead become embroiled in a wild adventure. After a series of increasingly mad encounters they end up at a fancy dress party in a large country mansion where all sorts of intriguing and mysterious shenanigans are unfolding with these two as very confused and drunken witnesses trying to make sense of it all.

Travis and Dave are good friends and enjoy great banter throughout the story however the two friends are very different. Dave is a sociable, outgoing fireman with no trouble attracting the ladies although he secretly wants to meet that special girl. However, Travis has no hair, no self confidence and is cripplingly shy with girls and envies the easy charm of his friend.

The story starts off introducing the two boys and they are both instantly likable with an obviously strong bond and funny interactions between the pair. This relationship forms a strong foundation for the whole novel. I especially liked Travis and the author handles his development particularly well and although he is surrounded by utter chaos, his character is very believable and easy to empathize with. The scene in the pub with the hen party had me cringing in anticipation of another blow to Travis's ego and then cheering when he gets an unexpected boost! A couple of the characters are a little one dimensional (Jaime in particular) but there are other engaging characters that they encounter who more than make up for this and I did love Travis and really enjoyed the ending the author gave him.

The story is told in flashback style with some of the “morning after” events being told before we find out exactly what happened the night before but I enjoyed this quirk and feel that it added to the suspense and general unraveling of the story. The story moves along at a good pace and keeps us interested, entertained and slightly confused throughout. It has a strong finish with lots of loose ends and clues all tied up together to make sense of it all. However, it could do with another proofread as there were quite a few grammatical errors but thankfully this wasn't too distracting.

I give this book 3 out of 4 stars. This is a very good book and although it can be a bit far fetched in some places, it isn't trying to be a serious gritty thriller and so hits the mark as a humorous, enjoyable comedy thriller. Also the two main characters are engaging and believable so that the events around them can be pretty outlandish without losing the reader. It reminded me of a Christopher Brookmyre book only less dark and political which is not necessarily a bad thing! I'd recommend this book, particularly if you enjoy a good night out, and would look out for any future novels by Sean Flynn, especially if they involve Travis!

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Buy "Beer Goggles" on Amazon

[Innerspace]

Thanks Claire, for such a great review. It is always satisfying to find that someone appreciates my work. Will you be putting the review on Amazon or Goodreads? I ask because I'm trying to get Beer Goggles accepted for a Bookbub advertising slot, but keep getting rejected (I don't think it has enough reviews).

Sean
ps The version I uploaded to onlinebookclub is not the latest version, so I have probably already ironed out the gramatical errors.

[claire mckay]

Hi Sean, good to hear from you! I'm afraid there are forum rules which mean that this review is exclusive to the forum so I don't want to go against that. However I will try and go on Amazon and give it a different review for you as that is allowed.

Claire