Review Vintage is an outstanding example of how genres such as YA fantasy and supernatural fiction can be used to create new stories which exploit the potential of speculative fiction to address social issues. I am already anticipating the next book by Steve Berman. --Green Man ReviewAn unnamed, gay Goth enthusiast and his friend Trace spend their time frequenting thrift shops, attending random funerals, and playing with ouija boards. On the way home from one of their jaunts, the protagonist finds himself haunted by a jock-ish ghost dressed in 1950s regalia. At first, he is charmed, intrigued, and turned on, but when the ghost, Josh, turns out to be a jealous maniac bent on keeping him forever, the teen discovers that he needs to ditch the demon and fast before it's too late. The action kicks off with a blast in this slim, densely packed volume and keeps chugging forward until the bitter end. Berman has created a creepy, kitschy, lusty atmosphere particularly when the narrator's abilities to tap into a ghost's past are harnessed that should appeal to mature horror fans. That said, the narrative is weakened by more telling than showing, especially when the more gripping sequences are stalled by explanation rather than rapid-fire action. All the same, gay teen readers who've been hankering for a horror story all their own will be thrilled with all of the creeps, crawls, chills, and eyeliner that Berman has to offer. --School Library JournalAn unnamed, gay Goth enthusiast and his friend Trace spend their time frequenting thrift shops, attending random funerals, and playing with ouija boards. On the way home from one of their jaunts, the protagonist finds himself haunted by a jock-ish ghost dressed in 1950s regalia. At first, he is charmed, intrigued, and turned on, but when the ghost, Josh, turns out to be a jealous maniac bent on keeping him forever, the teen discovers that he needs to ditch the demon and fast before it's too late. The action kicks off with a blast in this slim, densely packed volume and keeps chugging forward until the bitter end. Berman has created a creepy, kitschy, lusty atmosphere particularly when the narrator's abilities to tap into a ghost's past are harnessed that should appeal to mature horror fans. That said, the narrative is weakened by more telling than showing, especially when the more gripping sequences are stalled by explanation rather than rapid-fire action. All the same, gay teen readers who've been hankering for a horror story all their own will be thrilled with all of the creeps, crawls, chills, and eyeliner that Berman has to offer. --School Library Journal Read more About the Author Steve Berman has been writing stories both queer and strange for many years. He has had more than 80 articles and short stories sold and his work has appeared in the fantasy anthologies The Faery Reel and The Coyote Road. Berman also edited So Fey and Magic in the Mirrorstone. He once worked as a professional bookbuyer to expand his personal library and he now lives in southern New Jersey surrounded by many old and odd books. Read more
S**E
Spooky mystery!
Every town has an urban legend of two. One night n New Jersey, a teenage boy was hit by a car and killed on his way home from a party. Now his ghost haunts the stretch of highway he was walking when he died.But some urban legends are true, as our protagonist discovers for himself one cold night. And so begins Vintage, a wonderfully spooky nystery about love, friendship, and one gay goth runaway dropout who seems to attract ghosts.Will there be a sequel? The author has hinted that it could happen, which would be great. I'd love to learn more about the narrator (like his name!) as well as his friends Trace, Maggie, Taylor, Liz and Mike. This one comes highly recommended!
M**3
Vintage ghost, fantastic read especially for YA audience, narration tops!!
Listen. Queue in The Everly Brothers… ‘Bye, bye love. Bye, bye sweet caress. Bye, bye loneliness, I wish that I could diiiee…’. Very apt song for this story.So, the beginning of this story starts with two goth teens sitting in the cemetery on some gravestones, chattering away attending a funeral, and wearing vintage clothing. This scene does a fantastic job of setting up the mood for the rest of the story. I found myself immediately pulled into these teen’s attitudes, the narrator’s thoughts and words, all brought to life by listening to Jason Frazier. Everything is from the 17-yr-old main character’s POV, and I don’t even recall his name, but you definitely got a feeling for the events through his eyes, almost as if they were happening to you.His friend Trace comes up with a theory…due to his own previous attempt at suicide, he now has ‘the sight’, and this is why he can see the dead everywhere.. He becomes a participant in Possession or channeling. Are ghosts actually inhabiting his body?There is some very gruesome imagery, but also some melancholy, including an interesting view of family. A family he has made his own since he has left home via bus before being thrown out after coming out and being told he is shameful, and that he wasn’t welcome at home anymore.He gets on a bus out of town and rides to his aunt’s in New Jersey. He asks if he can stay with her questions unasked. He doesn’t attend school, hasn’t graduated, and she mentions a curfew and that he get his GED. She can’t cook and burns pop tarts when she makes breakfast in guise of wanting to talk with him. I love the way she interacts with him.His best friend Trace (short for Tracey) has a different family. Her 15-yr-old brother’s name is 2nd Mike. 2nd Mike was named after their older brother who had disappeared, thought maybe dead. And they have a mother who has been committed. All makes for interesting supporting characters. And their dad is distant, always tired, works as a mechanic.The MC becomes obsessed with ‘Josh’, a young man who walks the New Jersey highway after having been run down 40 years before on a lone stretch of highway. For the first time in his life, someone wants him. A boy. Makes him feel all this confusing and wonderful things.Spooky story about ‘Josh’. In 1957 a lone high school student, star athlete is run down on Highway 47. And he just keeps walking until he disappears, everyday, until, that is, our MC interacts with him.The MC’s love of everything vintage gives him the first opportunity and courage to talk to this young man walking down the road in some perfect vintage clothing. Only as he wakes up the next morning and thought about the way he disappeared when he turned back to talk to him did he actually think he may have seen a ghost.He works at this vintage clothing store for an alcoholic gentlemen that is always asking about his ‘girlfriend’, the girl he borrowed clothing for and dressed to impress, was Trace, but the old man assumes he’s trying to impress his best friend. He dare not tell the old man he is gay, afraid of what his generation might think, and doesn’t want to lose his job.This story is at times dark and sad with the young teen’s need to feel desired and wanted by another boy. And it seems as if someone just may have ulterior motives..Some of the visions and a strange interaction with a haunted doll is really creepy, and an image of a WWII soldier who is missing his nose is rather disturbing. There is some awful stuff in this story, very vivid, but each in their own way adding to the whole atmosphere of horror and suspense..Possession and strange things that happen when you get what you think you want. Makes you wonder..?The story also includes a lesbian dance club, drugs, glowsticks, underage drinking, and even acting as a beard for a friend. Ouija boards and hanging men. He begins to question himself…Are all the people in town actually ghosts or are they real?Two long ago mysteries,and a bit of a surprise conclusion. How do you know the difference between love and infatuation? What if you fall for the wrong person while the right one is underfoot?So many elements in this story kept it moving rather quickly, which, especially for a young adult audience, keeps the listener/reader engaged. I could see young and adult alike enjoying this suspenseful ghost story, and the mysteries are resolved by the conclusion.Jason Frazier does an awesome job with this at times creepy but also enlightening young adult story of first love, ghosts, drugs, and goth. The audio effects, Jason’s fantastic sense of timing as well as his various voices and audio effects add even more to this ghost story. As always, Jason Frazier’s narration is tops. He’s so good at emoting, and makes listening very enjoyable. One little thing that would’ve helped the narration, though, would be a breath or space of time where it was an obvious break in time, as sometimes I did get lost. But overall, fantastic story.Highly recommended to readers young and old that enjoy historical elements in current day, a mystery and ghosts.
D**S
Or maybe Steve Berman's writing is just that good. I thought nearly every character in the novel ...
A week ago I would've said, "I'm not into ghost stories." But this charming and well-written novel may have changed my mind. Or maybe Steve Berman's writing is just that good. I thought nearly every character in the novel was credibly drawn, and the plot contained enough nonlinear developments to keep everything feeling realistic -- even though I don't really believe in ghosts or mediums. The sexual attractions were not written in an explicit fashion, which made sense given the age of the characters; and the strong emotions felt by the various characters -- whether sexual or not -- were credible. I found myself pulled through the story, wanting to know what would happen next, but I also felt like my patience during the various sideplots was rewarded. I recommend reading this book!
N**K
A perfect addition to your Halloween season book list
I have read this book three times and own digital and physical copies. Each reading reveals new elements, and its understated nature reminds me of another all-time favorite of mine, Rosemary’s Baby. It’s a good one to add to your Halloween season must-read pile.The protagonist and his best friend Trace are relatable teens, misfits from both mainstream high school culture and the families they hail from, stuck between childhood and adult life. Rejected by his immediate family for being gay, he is a transplant to her town, come there to live with a cool aunt. Bored and impatient with their current situation but also a bit overwhelmed by everything ahead of them, he and Trace spend their days either lurking at the funerals of people they didn’t know or hanging around the used clothing store where the main character works.He yearns to fall in love, and when he spies the ghost of a boy about his own age, everything changes. He listens to Trace’s retelling of the town legends about the boy and then, desperate to know more, fills in the unknowns with projections from his own life, as people so often do when they fall in love. He’s in love with the idea of being in love more than with the ghost, a fact that becomes clear when the ghost’s true nature is revealed. Deliciously creepy, this story will raise the hair on the back of your neck, but it’s also tender and sweet. Don’t miss it.
C**E
A Straight Reader's Review
I have to say up front that this is the first gay ghost story I've ever read, and it was quite by accident, but as I'm beginning to understand, there are no accidents. Once I realized I'd bought a book that would be about boys in love with each other, I wasn't sure I'd like the story. The opposite is what happened. Berman drew me into Josh's tragic death and the main character's ernest and poignant determination to bring an end to Josh's earthbound existence. While this is a story about gay love, it transcends sexual preference and tells about how devastating the idea of being jilted can be during the teen years.I loved that the author didn't stint on his other characters. Aunt Jan, Trace, Malvern and Maggie made up a supporting cast of believable and interesting characters. And the pace of the book wouldn't allow me to stop reading until I'd reached the end.
Trustpilot
2 months ago
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