The Bad Decisions Playlist
Michael Rubens
Austin’s got a dream of being a musical rockstar in New York. His only problems are half-written songs and a case of failures to front up to performances. When his father unexpectedly walks back into his life.
Austin thinks that smoking weed is a good idea. He smokes cigarettes, which basically makes him drop out as any sort of good character for a teenager to read. And he never turns up to things on time. And he is making out with every girl he can get his hands on. And yet, he’s not the cool kid or the jock. He’s just an idiot that I was irritated by the whole novel. Even his ‘true-ness’ to Josey is a fake.
Oh yes! That twist! Bam! Suffer! Just what I wanted for a character I didn’t even like very much. I in fact, didn’t like any of the characters. You, sir, are an idiot. And so are you. And you. And I can’t believe you fell for that.
Honestly, this novel didn’t do it for me. I wasn’t convinced by the song lyrics, I wasn’t convinced by the character interactions (particularly Austin and his mother) and I predicted the plot line. If you are looking for something with teenagers and music, you should go for The Haters. If you’re done with The Haters and can put up with some unrealistic teenage angst, I guess you could try this novel. 3 stars from me.
Penguin Random House | 1st July 2016 | AU $19.99 | Paperback
