Jove Brand Is Near Death

Quite possibility the best book of this or any year, who would have thought someone so overpoweringly handsome could have also written the great American novel?<br /><br />Also, I wrote this book. Read it.<br /><br />Please.

Fun book. Satire of James Bond franchise. Very enjoyable

I went to see an author friend speak today, and it turns out the nice guy I was chatting with in the audience was a debut novelist. And this is his novel. Talking to him, I was intrigued, not just by the premise of this book, but where he envisioned the series going. High concept, and very cool!<br /><br />But, if I've said it once, I've said it a million times: Execution is everything. Happily, in this case, the execution is excellent! <br /><br />Our protagonist, Ken Allen, is a personal trainer and martial arts expert in LA. His 15 minutes came years ago when he played fictional spy Jove Brand in a single film in the blockbuster franchise. He had the looks, he had the moves, he couldn't act his way out of a paper bag. There was the requisite humiliation, and then he moved on. He's a good guy. Unfortunately, a new Jove Brand has just been announced, and it appears to be the catalyst for a series of grisly murders implicating Ken. An amateur sleuth is born.<br /><br />Is it obvious yet that this is a satire of the James Bond franchise? Because it very much is. Do you need to be a Bond fan to appreciate it? No. I'm not, and I enjoyed it immensely. <br /><br />Ken is a great protagonist. So many amateur sleuths are perky women who do needlecrafts or work in bookstores. As noted above, Ken's a good guy, but he's got a real masculinity about him. He's also got action hero fighting skills. And J.A. Crawford writes a more than passable action sequence. In general, the book moves at a good clip, keeping readers turning pages. The other thing that stood out was the quality of the dialogue. Don't get me wrong, this is commercial fiction, but I've read a lot of wooden dialogue over the years, and this was a cut above.<br /><br />We're introduced to several supporting cast in this book, but I'm not sure who we'll see again. There are a couple of characters that I'd definitely love to see back. Notable among them are his former co-star. There's such nice rapport between them. Definitely the makings of a bromance! And another character who supplies hardware would be too much fun not to bring back. Kudos to Mr. Crawford for not wedging an unnecessary romance into the plot!<br /><br />I know about an elevator pitch-worth more than the general public of what will come next, but those tiny hints are enough to make me excited about the next two books in this series, and to leave me wondering what will come after them! This was a debut novel that slipped under my radar, but it's an entertaining mystery well worth checking out.

I loved this crazy book. Ken Allen is an MMA fighting machine turned personal trainer to the stars. He’s also a fan cult favorite, working the comic-con scene for $20 photo ops after his one disastrous turn playing super spy Jove Brand in the billion dollar, James Bond-esque movie franchise. After a cheesy public appearance turns deadly, Ken finds life imitating art as he embarks on an investigation in an attempt to clear his name.<br /><br />This book has everything. There’s action and intrigue and gadgets. Secret tech lairs and a masked assassin. Fight clubs and casinos on an abandoned oil rig in international waters. Yachts and hot ladies and motorcycles. Armored tuxedos and chases and fights and more fights. <br /><br />About those fights: The fight scenes were frequent and really detailed, so they could occasionally feel a bit long, but I love boxing and Muay Thai and watch an occasional UFC video, so it was fun for my wanna-be fighter trapped in a middle-aged lady body self to try to picture how everything worked. So, even if you’re not a fight fan, there’s plenty of mystery and other exciting business happening to keep the plot clipping along. AND it’s funny. <br /><br />This book was so entertaining, and I am already dying to read the sequel. (THERE HAD BETTER BE A SEQUEL.) <br /><br />* Huge thanks to the author @josephoforb and the publisher @camcat_books for the early opportunity to read Jove Brand and to participate in the @letstalkbookspromo book tour. Available today!! *

I received a complimentary copy of JOVE BRAND IS NEAR DEATH by J.A. Crawford as part of a scheduled @LetsTalkBooksPromo tour! Thank you to @CamCat_Books and the author @josephoforb!⁠<br />⁠<br />JOVE BRAND IS NEAR DEATH follows Ken Allen, the man who once had the opportunity to portray one of the world’s best known spy movie characters, Jove Brand. His particular installment in the franchise, Near Death, was low budget and never even made it to an English release, but its cult classic status has given Ken some opportunities and a bit of fame.⁠<br />⁠<br />When he is asked to participate in a sketch to help promote the passing of the torch to the newest Jove Brand actor, Ken’s successor is brutally killed. With the death appearing to be ripped from the script of Near Death, Ken is the prime suspect. When it turns out that is not the only murder to happen around him, Ken must put his Jove Brand persona to use to track down the killer.⁠<br />⁠<br />This was a change of pace from a lot of my usual reads, but this one was so much fun! I loved the way the author played with the James Bond and spy movie tropes throughout the book. Ken reaches out to the man who produced all the fun gadgets and gizmos for the movies and gets to put some real life spy weapons to use.⁠<br />⁠<br />This book is full of action sequences and there are some brutal scenes and injuries along the way, but it is also full of fun tongue-in-cheek humor throughout. The author managed to surprise me with some of the twists and turns as well as secrets from Ken’s and the movie franchise’s past come into play.⁠<br />⁠<br />I would absolutely pick up more books from J.R. Crawford in the future! JOVE BRAND IS NEAR DEATH is available now!!⁠

What a fun ride! I hope there's a follow-up because Ken Allen, PI, would make a great series (as long as Ray's included). I listened to the audiobook, and the narrator was excellent. Thanks, Susie, for mentioning this book in the review of an unrelated book.

This was the best convoluted mess I’ve read in a long while. It was funny and clever, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

This is a fun, intentionally over the top read.<br /><br />The main character, Ken, is a failed actor from the 'Jove Brand' franchise - think the Room meets James Bond. It's a super action heavy plot that gets a little ridiculous at times, but it's a fast paced novel that keeps you interested.

I cannot adequately convey how fun this book is.<br /><br />Imagine a James Bond film narrated by a hard-boiled <i>film noir</i> detective - Robert B. Parker's Spenser springs to mind - undercutting the over-the-top action with wry, understated humour and some downright beautiful phrasing. Now add a dash of Hollywood satire, in the vein of <i>The Player</i> or <i>Swimming with Sharks</i> or <i>LA Confidential</i>. Now add some of the best fight scenes I've ever read. My weekend plans were utterly trashed by this book, because there was no way I could put the book down and leave the house, not when the hero was about to <input type="checkbox" class="spoiler__control" aria-label="The following text has been marked spoiler. Toggle checkbox to reveal or hide." onchange="this.labels[0].setAttribute('aria-hidden', !this.checked);" id="611247b4-e0dc-4652-b8dd-e76087a10f6b" /><label aria-hidden="true" class="spoiler" for="611247b4-e0dc-4652-b8dd-e76087a10f6b"> face the debarred heavyweight champion of the world in a private cage match in the villain's secret offshore fight club</label>. My one regret about this book is that I cannot watch the - sadly fictional - Jove Brand films it describes.

Thank you to NetGalley and CatCam Publishing for giving me a copy of the Jove Brand Is Near Death Audiobook. All thoughts and opinions are my own!<br /><br />So before I get into my review of the book itself, I wanted to talk about the audiobook narration. The narrator was Tim Campbell, a popular voice actor and he did a fantastic job. I probably would have given up about at 10% if it wasn't for his work. He brings a likable drollness that nails both the noir tone and Ken's unique perspective. He really shows how funny and tragic of a character Ken Allen really is. His performance especially shone during the last act. I really hope if Crawford does a sequel, Campbell comes back because he is Ken Allen for me.<br /><br />That said, I do have a major problem with the narration: In chapter 6, Ken goes to visit a pair of legendary Chinese producers and the narrator does what is basically vocal yellowface, speaking with an old, gravelly voice and a faux Chinese accent. Thankfully, it isn't much dialog and but I wanted to call this out. I won't stand on my soapbox about how this is harmful to Asian people but at the end of the day, this was a lazy and unneeded choice that cheapened the hard work that came before it. It was especially gross because Crawford's writing didn't indicate any accent of any kind. I don't know if this was a call by the director but this went past numerous people and they said nothing. DO BETTER. <br /><br />Now as for the book itself, it wasn't my usual fare but I otherwise enjoyed it. Crawford is a clear fan of both spy thrillers and noirs and it shows. The mystery soon sucked me in and he did a great job planting his big reveals without giving too much away. I spent the last 30 minutes of the audiobook leaning forward, screaming "I knew it!" and "OF COURSE, IT WAS THERE ALL ALONG!" <br /><br />I also enjoyed how Crawford used the old tropes of spy thrillers and noirs: The dusky and blonde women from Ken's past, the quartermaster fitting him with his spy gear, the old beater of a car AND a motorcycle, the dark secret following our lead, they're all here gang. Unfortunately, there are some tropes that were best left in the past, namely regarding the queer characters and the aforementioned scene when Ken meets with the Chinese producers. I'm not queer or Chinese so I can't speak for those groups but it was a bit cringe.<br /><br />I also would have liked fewer descriptions of Ken's diet. As someone with bad experiences with diet culture, it was less triggering and just annoying. <br /><br />Still, even with the parts I didn't enjoy, this was a fun read and I'll likely read the next book. Crawford is a gifted writer. <br /><br />TW: Blood, Violence, mentions of human trafficking/enslavement, death, gun violence,