It took me a long time to finish this short book because I had to constantly force myself to keep going. Let me explain...

I really like Rob Dircks. He writes interesting, funny stories and does a fantastic job with his own narrations. This book had all the elements of being super fun but the method of delivery killed it for me so hard. Everything was presented as emails sent from the main character, Chip, to his estranged girlfriend, Julie. It just didn't work. I would get drawn into the action and dialogue and then a new email would start and remind me that I'm supposed to believe anyone would write an email in this way.

There was a lot of repetition and silly lists thrown in but if it hadn't been for the email technique, I probably would have given this 4 stars and recommended it to others.

Why did I keep going instead of stopping maybe an hour in? Because I have the sequel and am hoping it's a lot better with the delivery. I've not looked at a blurb or anything like that so I'm still hopeful. ( )

I received this book free from the publisher via netgalley.com in exchange for an honest review.

Please see my full reviews available at www.coffeeandtrainspotting.com. ( )

This is a great book. It's very funny. ( )

DNF @ 38%

The storytelling format of being (at least up to 38%) completely told through emails was amusing at first, but it got old. I don't care too much for the POV character, and when 99% of the emails are from him, they are therefore in his POV and written with his sense of humor. If you enjoy the MC, you will probably enjoy the book, because the premise is fun. But if you don't enjoy the MC, you're stuck.

Note: To get an idea of whether or not you'll like the sense of humor, read the "Chip's official disclaimer" section of the synopsis. That's a very good example of the tone of the emails (and therefore the book). ( )

Funny writing bough down by everything else.
The writing is funny and if that is enough to carry a book for you, go ahead pick it up, but if it can't you should probably avoid it.
The sci-fi doesn't make sense if you think of the concepts for more than a minute. It's more akin to fantasy wearing a cheap mask with science written all over it.
The gimmick of the book being told through emails doesn't work very well, with action scenes, suspense, etc. In fact I'm pretty sure the author forgot about it at points.
The villain is cartoon villain evil and wants to end the world for no apparat reason.Add to that that his plan is to end the multiverse(consisting of an infinite amount of universes) by destroying them one at a time.
The romance only works as a gag.
Then some stuff just plain doesn't make sense. Why is there a random alien there? Why would a hotel not fix a hole in a wall over the span of several weeks? Why would a dude just decide to settle down in a place where he's wanted by the government?
A potentially good book bough down by the lack of any thinking on the authors part beyond "hey wouldn't it be cool/funny if." ( )