Rating: 3.5 stars

I'm not even sure how to get into this book. It took me forever to read. And I mean forever. Normally, it bugs me if I leave a book half read for too long but this one just didn't call me back. At all.

The writing style just bored me to death. Even when something major was happening I could just feel the need to yawn and 'rest my eyes'. And this languid feel was made worse by the fact I normally read before bed so the way it was written made it really hard for me to stay awake. Usually a book sucks me in completely and I end up not going to bed until 4 just to finish it but not this one, oh no. This made me look at my watch and think, I don't care if its only 7 pm, its time for an early night. In the end I actually scheduled when I was going to read it (which is something I have never ever done before) but after successfully finishing it, I can honestly say I'm glad I read it.

I really wanted to read this book. As soon as I laid eyes on it I knew that I wanted it and had to read it, which probably made the dreary style seem worse. Picking it off the shelf and seeing that it was all about music, the Birmingham scene and that it was based on Joy Division made my eyes wide and my heart flutter. I felt just as addicted to Karl as David felt, despite my growing hate for him. I wanted so much for the band, grasping onto hopes of their success before my heart shattered at the ending, even though I knew where it was going.

Lane, despite his languid style, also made the band feel very real. They were definitely the sort of band I'd find myself loving and buying every piece of music I could find. Another very clever factor Lane added in was the quotes from the magazines and a discography at the end. This made the band seem so real that I actually (stupidly) found myself googling them just to find a 70's Japanese band also called Triangle.

From Blue To Black is definitely a book for the more serious reader (which, on reflection, probably isn't me) and I would recommend that you give it a go.