∎ Read Blackout The life and sordid times of Bobby Travis Edgar Swamp 9780692832448 Books

Blackout The life and sordid times of Bobby Travis Edgar Swamp 9780692832448 Books

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If it can be smoked, drunk, snorted, gambled, or screwed, Bobby Travis has done it. Bobby’s the guy other addicts look to when they want to feel better about their pathetic lives. He spends every weekend blacking out on a potent mix of drugs and booze, either ending up in someone’s bed or jail.

Not that Bobby isn’t trying. He wants to be a good father to his daughter, even if her vindictive mother hates him. To better himself, he’s joined AA (where he found a drinking buddy), Gamblers Anonymous (where he met his bookie), and Sex Addicts Anonymous (great place to meet women). If nothing else, the meetings have enhanced his social life.

Bobby’s drug-driven binges and gambling reach a new low when a Mexican cartel abducts his daughter, putting her at the mercy of El Sadico, an assassin whose hobbies include wholesale slaughter, torture, and playing with dogs.

El Sadico’s bosses want to make a trade Bobby’s daughter for a cop with a bad habit of snooping into cartel affairs. The cop in question? Bobby’s do-gooder cousin. This is one mess Bobby isn’t going to forget.

Or maybe he will—depending on what the weekend brings.

Blackout The life and sordid times of Bobby Travis Edgar Swamp 9780692832448 Books

I was a little skeptical of Blackout when I first picked it up. I've read Swamp's 2 other novels, though, and have been impressed with his plot twists and ability to tell a story that keeps you engaged and wanting more. As was true of the previous novels, Swamp did not disappoint. Bobby Travis, the book's main character, makes you shake your head that someone could be such an idiot, but you find yourself rooting for him as he does everything he can to save his daughter from the cartel.

Product details Paperback 374 pages Publisher Edgar Swamp (April 22, 2017) Language English ISBN-10 0692832440

Tags : Blackout: The life and sordid times of Bobby Travis [Edgar Swamp] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. If it can be smoked, drunk, snorted, gambled, or screwed, Bobby Travis has done it. Bobby’s the guy other addicts look to when they want to feel better about their pathetic lives. He spends every weekend blacking out on a potent mix of drugs and booze,Edgar Swamp,Blackout: The life and sordid times of Bobby Travis,Edgar Swamp,0692832440,FICTION Satire,FIC050000
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Blackout The life and sordid times of Bobby Travis Edgar Swamp 9780692832448 Books Reviews

Much like Jonathan Doe of Grand Theft Octo fame, Bobby Travis, star of Blackout The Life and Sordid Times of Bobby Travis, is a human portal of wicked folly to whom the way of uprightness is an abomination.

Edgar Swamp’s personally witnessed foreword sets this debaucherous account into motion as the proficient author affirms before his readers’ eyes of how it all began when he, Swamp, met this really hot chick at a bar where he once worked and ultimately took her home. The author continues to attest that both he and the beautiful woman first came (pun intended) to the threshold of intimacy, and then crossed it into ecstacy. Inebriated out of her mind during their steamy copulation, as Swamp continues to assert per his foreword, the hot chick—whom the novelist addresses as Cassandra, though that is not her real name—blacked out and awoke the next morning with no memory whatsoever of the sensual activities from the night before. As things went, according to Swamp, the lady didn’t know where the hell she was, or even who the hell he was for that matter. And that, as acknowledged by Swamp, had been his very first up close and personal encounter with another mortal who had yielded to temporary amnesia, or a “blackout,” if you will, after a long stretch of boozing and drug-abusing. As the assertation specifies, it was the experience of this particular (wham, bam!) one-night stand that influenced the consummate Swamp to compose the idiosyncratic narrative currently under review.

Blackout The Life and Sordid Times of Bobby Travis introduces its reader to well, Bobby Travis, the thirty-seven-year-old owner of a swimming pool cleaning service and the tale’s star witness, as the fictional storyteller, who is Bobby Travis, spills the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth about his ignominious (not judging him, mind you) life—or shall I say, lifestyle. Travis is a member of some of society’s most dilapidated groups, being they as follows Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), Narcotics Anonymous (NA), Sex Addicts Anonymous (SAA), and Gamblers Anonymous (GA). In fact, the first four chapters of this possibly appetite-spoiling (depending upon whether or not you’ve a weak stomach) description casually begins with Bobby Travis presenting himself to each recovering assembly, individually. And it is while attending his many meetings with those of his fellow disreputable kind that Bobby Travis pours out his bleeding heart, testifying in exquisite detail of his constant backsliding. Here, the reader is made privy to an extreme overindulgence of the many drinking, drug-misusing, sexually-charged, and gambling-addicted pleasures that life has to offer, including, but not limited to hard liquor binges, various drug experimentations, drug-induced blackouts, horse race betting, sports betting, and constant sexual encounters with both strangers and semi-strangers—ranging from traditional penile and vaginal fornication to girl-on-girl oral pleasure to man-on-man oral pleasure to man-on-man anal penetration to bondage to turkey basters inserted in the anus…and even to felching. Yes, and even to felching. And Travis’ savory (or unsavory, depending on one’s POV) submissions will stimulate—in those readers who behold them—much arousing, gasping, ewwing, icking, oohing, and ahhing. For know for a certainty that many of the details in this witness come with a gross-out guarantee.

Set in sunny California, this diary form-written disclosure of a dopefiend’s hell fully showcases its grand scale addict, Bobby Travis, accompanied by a compact collective of standout players who each possess his and her own site in Travis’ sordid life.

Carolyn is a tempestous and self-loathing bitch of a (drunken) woman with whom, during one of his many drug-assisted blackouts, Bobby engaged in intercourse. Carolyn incidentally conceives, the consequence of their one-time cavort. But the child, a female to be named Gina, would soon be proven as inconsequential in the eyes of both of her harrowing parents—especially in those peepers of her alcoholic, dope-headed, sexually-transient, gambling addict of a father. Because, as is witnessed, Travis has neglected the child since her birth, forever preferring a livelihood of shameless debauchery to her. Though Bobby (when sober) loves his only child and covets to do right by her, his many demons repeatedly win him over—relapse after relapse. Still, regardless of his (many) screw-ups, Gina, now a wise and oh so intelligent 15-year-old, loves her daddy’s guts, and hopes for the achievement of a solid father-daughter relationship between them.

Melissa, who has subjected her body to hundreds of men and women for the function of illicit sexual acts, is the woman with whom Bobby becomes familiar while attending his SAA meetings. The two “recovering sex addicts” begin a sexual correlation, proceeding to carry out their habitual parking lot trysts in the backseat of Bobby’s miserable pickup truck after every group meeting.

Tony is the bartender at Hooligans, a local watering hole frequented—and quite often—by Bobby. In addition to his being an active participant in Bobby’s liquor drinking setbacks, the stony Tony also serves as Bobby’s personal pharmacist, providing the substance-squandering protagonist with many illegal and difficult-to-pronounce compounds that read like a pharmaceutical label synthetic cathinone, ethylphenidate, pyrovalerone, and benzodiazepines, in coexistence with other chemicals that all end in “am,” such as, clonazalam, flubromazalam, diclazapam, and etizolam. Of course, there is also the standard Xanax.

Teddy is an officer of law enforcement and Bobby’s first cousin. The two are very close, even from since the time of their shared childhood, and Teddy sincerely loves Bobby, whom, as things go, is no stranger to the same law that Teddy is sworn to uphold. But no matter how hard Teddy tries to help his perceivably hopeless cousin, Bobby, clean up his life by adhering to the straight and narrow, Bobby’s many demons repeatedly win him over—relapse after relapse. And Teddy soon fears that death will be the demon that finally wins Bobby over for good.

The unrebuked devourer of this narrative is a bookie named Terry. Terry clings to Bobby like a ruinous leech, hungrily feeding on not Bobby’s blood, but rather his finances, already pithy from the major funds that abruptly parted ways with him in favor of drugs and booze—or to be those of the strange women with whom his body had been joined right before his blackouts. Terry, while trolling GA meetings in search of new, weaker victims to skin, financially, no less keeps his sticky fingers on Bobby, for the purpose robbing the unsuspecting addict blind in the form of race track bets and sporting bets.

Simon Blackwell is a local boss of the British Mafia, and a shark to whom Bobby owes $15,000.00—the debt incurred at a Keno table during one of Travis’ drug-fueled blackouts. As a matter of fact, Travis, who often undergoes blackouts during his methamphetamine binges, has gotten in over his hard head with many vicious, earthly beings during those spells, only to (miraculously) awake the next morning with no memory at all of his egregious diversions from the day or night prior. And there are a quantity of vicious, earthly beings in vast pursuit of him…for none other than the purpose of settling their monetary scores, even if by way of taking part in Travis’ bodily destruction.

Such as is the lot in life for those who lead deplorable existences, the natural progression of this fiction brings about death, murder, overdoses, incarcerations, poverty, diverse hardships, and a number of other curses that gleefully befall the sinful, from its capturing beginning to its pulse-throbbing end.

In stark contrast to its interior beauty, the exterior surface of Blackout The Life and Sordid Times of Bobby Travis is unmistakably ugly, projecting a wretched, cutthroat demeanor and the whiff of a perverse stench that ought not be trifled with by those who embody faint hearts. Assuredly, I say to those of you prospective readers, that this tale is in itself cruel, nasty, and filthy—saturated in hardcore obstinacy and debauchery. The lascivious (though terrifically humorous) composition certainly lives up to its title.

Frankly, Blackout The Life and Sordid Times of Bobby Travis is a narrative that weighs in pros and cons.

The pros

Blackout The Life and Sordid Times of Bobby Travis is at once an emotionally rewarding story of hopelessness and redemption. Spurted in fear, doused in courage, scorched in hatred, and salved in forgiveness, it is a dexterously-penned and extremely gripping composition that sheds a bright light on the very iniquities that ensnare so many people in the real world on a daily basis. Though cold in spirit, the physical witness is genuinely heartfelt. And it is an effort which I found quite challenging to put into terms without selling out too much of its soul.

Swamp’s writing is flawless. And his investigation? Pristine. The author’s sublime examination of heterogeneous narcotics was not lost on me, and I surely don’t suppose that the same will float adrift on any other reader. Equally admirable is the way that Swamp digs deep into the lives of his characters, rendering to the reader comprehensive biographies of history, where the beholder actually feels as though they personally know each member of the author’s problematic ensemble.

A writer myself, I have come to greatly understand genuine talent where those of my fellow scribblers—regardless of his or her branch of language expression—are considered. And in truth, I can discern erudition in the written word from even a mile away. Edgar Swamp, with all due respect, is evidently one in possession of such blessed wisdom. And his scribbled artistry in this effect will serve as a major addition to the account’s pros.

The cons

While lovely in its own right, and with its own uniquely individual personality, Blackout The Life and Sordid Times of Bobby Travis, overall, is not an unoriginal inspiration. For I have read many a novel that featured similar storylines before, and it is for a surety that I will possibly read many more a novel of indistinguishable sorts. Also, however quickly-paced in the majority of its entirety, there were quite a few moments where the narrative became sluggish, dragging its bloated self along…perhaps from too many drugs and too much liquor. Such is to be expected—I guess—in a tale of this nature, but still, those slower-paced details were momentum killers.

My final word

If Lou Reed’s classic recorded opus, “Walk On The Wild Side,” were adapted into a 357-page novel of crime fiction, Blackout The Life and Sordid Times of Bobby Travis would be it. And this colored girl here, after finally being released from the sleazy grip of its smutty plot, is in dire need of a hot and soapy shower.

• It is my kindly pleasure to thank Edgar Swamp for the author-issued copy of Blackout The Life and Sordid Times of Bobby Travis in exchange for my honest review.
Blackout is an action-packed crime story. If there is an addiction, Bobby, the main character, has it alcohol, drugs, sex and gambling. The author somewhat wittingly introduces the various addictions in chronological chapters, thus painting a solid picture of Bobby’s flaws. Yet at the same time, Bobby seems likable. He tries and fails and tries again. He has a heart for animals and the people he cares for.

Bobby seems self-aware, not necessarily a common trait of someone with so many addictions. His drug and drinking habits are so bad that they sometimes lead to blackouts (hence the title); yet Bobby has even considered placing a security camera into his own house to see what he might do in that blackout stage when he cannot consciously remember his actions.

Bobby meets his women in the various addiction groups he attends so that they understand where he is coming from but do not have the stability he needs. His marriage that produced his daughter Gina has miserably failed.

Bobby’s character is truly tested when he learns that his daughter’s life is at stake. Kidnappers have taken Gina and her dog Ruby, pressing Bobby for money, the kind of money he does not have. The plot becomes more tense as more facts appear. Gina is in the hands of a known cartel’s assassin. Despite being trapped in his addictions, Bobby loves his daughter and does everything in his power to get her back unharmed.

Blackout is a well written novel, reflecting the main characters life circumstances, struggles, thoughts and environment. A crime story not for the faint of heart. It is filled with humor, vivid descriptions and imagery. If you like action-packed stories and don’t mind a few swear words that match the character’s mindset and the milieu he frequents, you’ll love this book!
I was a little skeptical of Blackout when I first picked it up. I've read Swamp's 2 other novels, though, and have been impressed with his plot twists and ability to tell a story that keeps you engaged and wanting more. As was true of the previous novels, Swamp did not disappoint. Bobby Travis, the book's main character, makes you shake your head that someone could be such an idiot, but you find yourself rooting for him as he does everything he can to save his daughter from the cartel.