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bookishtrina's review against another edition
4.0
The Brothers Crunk by William Pauley III is a masterclass in bizarre and weird and I loved it! William Pauley III has become one of my favorite authors in record time.
I received a review copy of this book from the author/publisher through NetGalley for my honest review. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.
I received a review copy of this book from the author/publisher through NetGalley for my honest review. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.
smorrison4's review
4.0
Another weird and wonderful story from William Pauley III. I never know what the stories will bring but I know they will bring me joy.
Connor Brannigan once again brings William's stories to life. I love listening to Connor narrate these novels. His voice is like velvet and he always brings that extra bizarre/creepy factor.
Looking forward to reading the next William Pauley III book when it is released!
Connor Brannigan once again brings William's stories to life. I love listening to Connor narrate these novels. His voice is like velvet and he always brings that extra bizarre/creepy factor.
Looking forward to reading the next William Pauley III book when it is released!
waywardnova's review
4.0
the best way to read this book is:
1. with the audiobook. my GOD the narrator deserves a raise for this. he was GIVINGGG with the voices and the added sound/voice effects were super cool. the word "fack/facking" is used in the text a lot, and i thought that would be annoying, but when the narrator says the lines in thick cockney accents, it makes 100% sense and the jokes actually land in a way idk they would if i only read it with my eyeballs
2. going into it not expecting much in terms of...making sense. this was 2 hours (only 1 hour for me bc i speed it up) of me going "yeah sure why not" at every absolutely wack thing that gets introduced. riding on an ostrich through a spacetime portal? sure why the hell not
i love a weird ass book and "bizarro fiction" is the best descriptor for this omfg. might dig around in this genre some more
1. with the audiobook. my GOD the narrator deserves a raise for this. he was GIVINGGG with the voices and the added sound/voice effects were super cool. the word "fack/facking" is used in the text a lot, and i thought that would be annoying, but when the narrator says the lines in thick cockney accents, it makes 100% sense and the jokes actually land in a way idk they would if i only read it with my eyeballs
2. going into it not expecting much in terms of...making sense. this was 2 hours (only 1 hour for me bc i speed it up) of me going "yeah sure why not" at every absolutely wack thing that gets introduced. riding on an ostrich through a spacetime portal? sure why the hell not
i love a weird ass book and "bizarro fiction" is the best descriptor for this omfg. might dig around in this genre some more
nelli_lakatos's review against another edition
5.0
This was such a unique story, amazing writing as always, interesting, fun storyline and overall a brilliant book!
I absolutely loved everything about this and highly recommend reading it!
Thank you to @netgalley and the publisher for an AudioARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.
I absolutely loved everything about this and highly recommend reading it!
Thank you to @netgalley and the publisher for an AudioARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.
jonathan_lee_b's review against another edition
2.0
The Brothers Crunk is the novelization of a retro-video-game-accessory-referencing futuristic short film that doesn't exist.
paperback_meg's review
4.0
This book was an absolute fever dream. I just love William Pauley's writing style and the incredibly imaginative stories he tells.
sheldonnylander's review against another edition
3.0
Reynold and Divey Crunk run a “brackfas burrito” truck, using a mystery source of meat. After a car accident, Divey gets possessed by Vandenboom, leader of the Damned Dirt Devils, leading Reynold on a chase to get his brother back. This is a short synopsis without giving too many spoilers.
We start with an opening scene where the brothers try to trick their business partner into a game of Russian Roulette using an overpowered 1984-era Nintendo zapper. You remember that gray plastic pistol that came with the old 8-bit Nintendo consoles? Yeah, that's the one.
Unfortunately, this felt like where the novel peaked. Being a huge fan of old-school games, not to mention a regular reader of Bizarro fiction titles, I wanted to like this book a lot more. But something about it just didn't click for me. The references to Nintendo accessories being used as actual weapons felt tacked on and silly rather than clever or...well, bizarre.
The story felt very average and there seems to be some lack of motivation to the characters for their actions, or there are changes to character directions that, instead of making you go “Ooooo” with a sense of awe, make you go “huh?” with a sense of confusion.
A particular aspect to the novel that could have been played a little better in this regard was Pete, or rather Meat Pete. After being captured by Wasp Women, Reynold uses the meat for the brothers' burritos made from Pete to reconstruct him as a pile of talking meat that only he can hear talking to him (it made me flashback to Pizza the Hut from “Spaceballs”). This seemed clever in a way, but at the same time felt like a lost opportunity that could have been used to greater effect. It should also make the case that gory does not equal bizarre. Don't expect that slapping buckets of blood or fresh human meat all over a book will make it bizarre or clever (it doesn't necessarily preclude it, just don't rely on it).
Upon looking up the author, William Pauley III, it appears that this is not the first novel he's written in this particular world, such as [b:Doom Magnetic!|7845512|Doom Magnetic!|William Pauley III|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1268248679s/7845512.jpg|10951116], which would explain some of the passing reference that seemed like we were supposed to already know who or what some of these people were. This wasn't clear from the book description and might have helped. Or it might not. I'm not sure. I may try to track down [b:Doom Magnetic!|7845512|Doom Magnetic!|William Pauley III|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1268248679s/7845512.jpg|10951116] and see if it helps in understanding and appreciating The Brothers Crunk a little more.
Don't get me wrong here. I would not say that The Brothers Crunk is a bad book, but it felt rather mediocre. It's short, so if you don't like it, it won't be major waste or time, or you could like it quite a bit and take more away from it than this reviewer did, which after reading some other reviews could very well be the case. It seems that this book may be very specific to the reader. There are aspects to like, but this reader ultimately found it disappointing.
2.5 out of 5 stars (2 stars for the book, meaning it was “OK;” however, I do want to add that the cover art is awesome and alone deserves 5 stars, so since we can't give half stars on the system, The Brothers Crunk gets the benefit of the doubt and gets 3 stars).
We start with an opening scene where the brothers try to trick their business partner into a game of Russian Roulette using an overpowered 1984-era Nintendo zapper. You remember that gray plastic pistol that came with the old 8-bit Nintendo consoles? Yeah, that's the one.
Unfortunately, this felt like where the novel peaked. Being a huge fan of old-school games, not to mention a regular reader of Bizarro fiction titles, I wanted to like this book a lot more. But something about it just didn't click for me. The references to Nintendo accessories being used as actual weapons felt tacked on and silly rather than clever or...well, bizarre.
The story felt very average and there seems to be some lack of motivation to the characters for their actions, or there are changes to character directions that, instead of making you go “Ooooo” with a sense of awe, make you go “huh?” with a sense of confusion.
A particular aspect to the novel that could have been played a little better in this regard was Pete, or rather Meat Pete. After being captured by Wasp Women, Reynold uses the meat for the brothers' burritos made from Pete to reconstruct him as a pile of talking meat that only he can hear talking to him (it made me flashback to Pizza the Hut from “Spaceballs”). This seemed clever in a way, but at the same time felt like a lost opportunity that could have been used to greater effect. It should also make the case that gory does not equal bizarre. Don't expect that slapping buckets of blood or fresh human meat all over a book will make it bizarre or clever (it doesn't necessarily preclude it, just don't rely on it).
Upon looking up the author, William Pauley III, it appears that this is not the first novel he's written in this particular world, such as [b:Doom Magnetic!|7845512|Doom Magnetic!|William Pauley III|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1268248679s/7845512.jpg|10951116], which would explain some of the passing reference that seemed like we were supposed to already know who or what some of these people were. This wasn't clear from the book description and might have helped. Or it might not. I'm not sure. I may try to track down [b:Doom Magnetic!|7845512|Doom Magnetic!|William Pauley III|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1268248679s/7845512.jpg|10951116] and see if it helps in understanding and appreciating The Brothers Crunk a little more.
Don't get me wrong here. I would not say that The Brothers Crunk is a bad book, but it felt rather mediocre. It's short, so if you don't like it, it won't be major waste or time, or you could like it quite a bit and take more away from it than this reviewer did, which after reading some other reviews could very well be the case. It seems that this book may be very specific to the reader. There are aspects to like, but this reader ultimately found it disappointing.
2.5 out of 5 stars (2 stars for the book, meaning it was “OK;” however, I do want to add that the cover art is awesome and alone deserves 5 stars, so since we can't give half stars on the system, The Brothers Crunk gets the benefit of the doubt and gets 3 stars).
swalk's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Another amazing offering from William Pauley III - A short horror/ sci-f tale of 2 cannibalistic brothers in a dystopian universe.
Divey Crunk and Reynold Crunk are brothers, unfortunately Reynold doesn’t have many braincells to rub together and so is a huge liability. The story is linear but, only in the manner of a fever dream, every time you think it can’t get much weirder, turns out you’re wrong! The characters are fun and creative with nods to video games and film (I am getting serious Mad Max vibes throughout) sprinkled with steam punk. If you are into dystopian fiction and horror with the fun of robots and other futuristic beings, then this is for you.
Connor Brannigan is fantastic as usual. As a London native, I must say I am impressed with the Cockney accents, often they are very Dick Van Dyke and make me cringe inside terribly, but these were actually very good and believable!
Divey Crunk and Reynold Crunk are brothers, unfortunately Reynold doesn’t have many braincells to rub together and so is a huge liability. The story is linear but, only in the manner of a fever dream, every time you think it can’t get much weirder, turns out you’re wrong! The characters are fun and creative with nods to video games and film (I am getting serious Mad Max vibes throughout) sprinkled with steam punk. If you are into dystopian fiction and horror with the fun of robots and other futuristic beings, then this is for you.
Connor Brannigan is fantastic as usual. As a London native, I must say I am impressed with the Cockney accents, often they are very Dick Van Dyke and make me cringe inside terribly, but these were actually very good and believable!