"Comforting, thought-provoking and hilarious throughout." Jet Tea Reviewed.

The Life and Loves of Jet Tea has been reviewed for the first time, which is an event I've been secretly dreading for the few weeks since the novel went on sale.  As it turns out I had little to fear.  While I've received plenty of word of mouth praise from friends and family, whose opinions I unquestionably respect, to read the positive, written opinion of an intelligent writer/reader/critic is very humbling.  And to be compared to Douglas Adams (Jet Tea was released on what would have been Adams' 62nd birthday, incidentally) is nothing short of an honour.  An actor friend of mine was once compared to Gary Oldman in a review from Time Out magazine.  Upon reading the comparison, he quite literally ran to the publication's office building and maniacally hugged what ever members of staff he could get his hands on.  Were I to know where this review was written, you can rest assured I'd act in kind.  Anyway, here it is;  

'Jet Tea is a man plagued by the twenty-first century. Stuck in a series of jobs which don’t really do justice to the years of ability he has built up, and dumped by the first real love of his adult life, he bounces from pillar to post, and pub to pub, trying to find love and answers at the bottom of a pint glass.

The joy of The Life and Loves of Jet Tea is in how English it is, therefore how relatable. There is an element of Douglas Adams to the prose, the awkward nature of not really being completely comfortable with the way we feel about our surroundings. Set against a backdrop of West London it’s a literary A-Z of the places to head if you want to face the arseholes you spend so long avoiding and confront everything which disenfranchises you from the world you are unfortunately a part of.

Accompanying Jet Tea on his voyage of self-discovery are his two sole friends, Maurice and Hayden, who for the most part are the cooler sect of the tripod. While they are all able to make a mischief of themselves, there is the image that Jet Tea isn’t able to deal with these things in the way his friends do. His dyslexia and distance from the world make him a target on top of his outwardly expressed ‘geeky’ appearance, and there is the concern he will never come out on top. Faced with rejection at every turn he continues unabated for the things we all want in our mid-twenties.

The book is comforting, thought-provoking and hilarious throughout, displaying the kind of aforethought only someone who has been there could have achieved. It’s a must read, and can be picked up through Amazon.'

Paul Schiernecker is a writer who will soon be releasing his first book.  His blog can be enjoyed here.  I'll be returning the favour and blogging about Paul's release when the time comes.