It's 1994. Blur and Oasis are in the charts. New Labour are on the near horizon. Ladbroke Grove is the place, a thriving hub of art, music and cultural diversity.
Emerging from the wreckage of another lost weekend, Indie Guitarist of the Year, Joe E Byron, hurries home on the Tube to face the consequences of his actions. Ten years on the road has taken its toll. He should be spending more time with Justine and the kids. Instead, he's restless, angry, and in conflict with his manager and the rest of the band. Dark habits threaten his marriage and career. The curse of addiction that will rob him of everything. And at the heart of it all, a yearning to be free, to take off and never come back.
What others are saying...
Bodicia says;
There is nothing light-hearted about this book. Joe is pulled down into a spiral which takes him ever deeper into the pit of vicious addictions to drugs and alcohol which he is increasingly in denial about. He loses everything which used to be important to him but is in a place which he refuses to see how out of control he is. His only concern is taking the edge off and getting back to a place where he doesn't have to think or preferably can't think. Adam Dickson has done a really good job in showing how addiction can ruin the life of the person with it and the people around them too. Although it would be easy to judge Joe for his excesses, one can't help feeling empathy for this character and hoping that he is the 1 in 8 who will make it, not least for his children's sake. I think Adam Dickson has profiled Joe's personality very well and, as someone with an interest in psychology, it felt like I was reading the case study of a real person rather than a character in a novel. Nicely researched!
Rose Allen says;
I am a big fan of Adam Dickson's writing. His plots are realistic, the detail meticulous and sometimes quite graphic. The subject of addiction is obviously well-researched and we are with Jo all the way as he slides ever deeper into an addict's hell. Just when you think he actually has a hope of getting his life back on track, he lets himself down - together with all those who have supported him - and it happens again and again. If you're looking for a happy ever after ending, this book is probably not for you, but if you're looking for an excellent read with a hopeful ending, you will love 'Drowning By Numbers.'