Reader's Review: "You're Not A Real Goth Until You Sack Rome" by Jeffrey Cook and Katherine Perkins

Synopsis from Amazon:

Death was supposed to be an aesthetic, not a plan for the weekend.

Rae Schwarz spends her lunches at the goth table, her evenings with eccentric loved ones, and her daydreams with poetic inspirations. But family secrets have a way of getting out, no matter how long one is sheltered. Some of the things brought to light are a little too bright for Rae's taste, and some have a darkness and a danger she can fall into all too easily.

>>>>>>>>>

My Review:

My! It's been too long since I've gotten to read and review a Cook/Perkins adventure! After the end of the Fair Folk Chronicles, I got into reading a lot of other things, and although they still produced some novels--and especially a short story here and there for Writerpunk Press, which I would read--I just never quite got around to their latest (and last) series together until just now.

This is on purpose, though. It's my 150th "Reader's Review", after all, and I wanted to make it special. Who better to grace this rank than one of the very first authors to ever respond to my tentative message, back when I decided to review indie books on The Upstream Writer?

Anyway, on to the review!!

My only regret was that I happened to start this book at a time when literally everything about my life was pretty stressful, and my opportunities to read were all very short, just when I would be about to fall asleep at the end of the day... many pages of this ebook had to be read and re-read because I would be nodding off in the middle of a paragraph, and would have to go back to the beginning of the chapter to figure out what was going on! As a result, there was a considerable chunk in the middle of the story that ended up rather confusing to me, and I quite literally lost the plot... but I forged ahead anyway, because the brilliant characters compelled me!

I absolutely loved Rae's dynamic, and the way she had basically two camps at her back. One was her "classic goth" crowd--not the "downer goth" variety, with myriad piercings, tattoos and garish skin, but more the "literary goth", with their candid conversations about morbid subjects, the penchant for writers from the Victorian-Gothic era, and of course, skulls on basic black clothing.

But Rae also had another sort of "crowd", one that featured more in the grand scope of adventures: Henny and the Littlethunder family (shades of the family of Menehune from Fair Folk!!) with their homey vibe, deep-running family traditions, and secret magical lore; and Erica, Rae's Viking "champion" friend, who would not hesitate to pitch into battle when the bullies would cause Rae trouble!

This impression of tight-knit camaraderie at the heart of the book was definitely the best thing about the book. Three friends from vastly different backgrounds, upbringings, and with vastly different features and skills--and yet they all accepted one another, and supported each other without hesitation. It took me a while to realize what the actual story had to do with "sacking Rome", as the title says--but I think I've got it by now, and you will too... and I hope when you do, it makes you chuckle as it did for me!

On the whole, I would give You're Not A Real Goth Until You Sack Rome a well-deserved *****4.5 STAR***** rating. It manages to keep its balance through precarious plot twists and complex narrative maneuvers, but only just barely. I wasn't quite pulled all the way in from the very beginning (as I have been, in past works!) but every time I picked it up again, it only took me a couple pages to rekindle that enjoyment I felt over it!

If you've ever experienced the feeling of being ostracized, isolated, excluded, or just plain lonely because of personal tastes or preference choices you've made, don't hesitate to pick up a Gothcraft book--or any other Cook/Perkins book for that matter!--today. You will always find a relatable character to root for in those pages!

Further Reading: (Also By The Author/Urban Fantasy/Brilliant Lore/Compelling Characters)

The Fair Folk Chronicles--Jeffrey Cook and Katherine Perkins
        -Foul is Fair 
        -Street Fair 
        -A Fair Fight
        -All's Fair 

Dawn of Steam Trilogy--Jeffrey Cook
      -First Light
      -Gods of The Sun
      -Rising Suns 

Punk Anthologies--Writerpunk Press Group
      -Sound & Fury: Shakespeare Goes Punk, Vol. 1 
      -Once More Unto The Breach: Shakespeare Goes Punk, Vol. 2 
      -What We've Unlearned: Classic Literature Goes Punk 

The Therian Way--Kimberly Rogers
       -Leopard's Heart 
       -Wolf's Path 
       -Tiger's Shadow 

Verona: The Complete Mermaid Tales--Pauline Creeden
       -Scales 
       -Submerged 
       -Salt 
       -Surfacing 

Lord of the Wyrde Woods--Nils Visser
     -Escape From Neverland 
     -Dance Into The Wyrd

The Firebird Fairy Tales--Amy Kuivalainen
       -The Cry of the Firebird 
       -Ashes of the Firebird 
       -Rise of the Firebird 

Talented Series--Amy Hopkins
     -A Drop of Dream 
     -A Dash of Fiend 
     -A Splash of Truth