A tribute to bar bands, musical dreamers, and offbeat ambition….
Two admitted felons on probation, one ‘Nam vet, and one Grosse Pointe deb collide to form an unlikely rock band. Internal conflict blows them apart. Faith in the music they make patches them back together for one wild-ride cross-country tour.
A tribute to bar bands, musical dreamers, and offbeat ambition….
Two admitted felons on probation, one ‘Nam vet, and one Grosse Pointe deb collide to form an unlikely rock band. Internal conflict blows them apart. Faith in the music they make patches them back together for one wild-ride cross-country tour.
America, 1973. Christine on lead, Henry on rhythm, Gretchen on bass and Melissa on drums. A chaotic rise, fighting amongst themselves, battling self-destruction, finding their sound, learning to trust, finding a helping hand, overcoming convention (girls can’t play guitar) to become one band, on one tour, for one month – New York to LA and all the stories in between.
This one is for all the rock bands who never headlined the big stage, who never needed protection getting to the limo, who never made any money, who never got signed, who had no answer to the cry of “why aren’t you guys famous?” It’s for those who wrote killer songs never heard on the radio, who never made a Rolling Stone cover—or even a mention inside. It’s for those whose collars were always blue, who were promised this and wound up with that, who always opened and never closed.
Category: Historical Fiction
Publication Date: May 9, 2025
ISBN (paper): 978-1-965766-10-1
ISBN (ebook): 978-1-965766-08-8
Pages: 374
Trim size: 5.5 x 8.5
Olivia Swindler, author of Cynthia Starts a Band and Break the Glass"The Rise of The Mad March is an immersive novel that draws you into the music world of the 1970s. From compelling characters to an unputdownable story, this book will have you tapping your foot to the beat of the music the whole way through!"
The VVA Veteran Books in Review II“A tribute to womanly determination, Robert Espenscheid Jr.’s fifth novel taught me about the highlights and disappointments that abound in the every-dog-for-himself music business. Set in the early 1970s, the novel’s music world challenges anyone who plays an instrument. Espenscheid examines that by telling the stories of three cantankerous young women. With Vietnam War veteran Henry Hollins to promote and motivate them, Melissa, Gretchen, and Christine develop into rock musicians you won’t forget.”
Olivia Swindler, author of Cynthia Starts a Band and Break the Glass"The Rise of The Mad March is an immersive novel that draws you into the music world of the 1970s. From compelling characters to an unputdownable story, this book will have you tapping your foot to the beat of the music the whole way through!"
The VVA Veteran Books in Review II“A tribute to womanly determination, Robert Espenscheid Jr.’s fifth novel taught me about the highlights and disappointments that abound in the every-dog-for-himself music business. Set in the early 1970s, the novel’s music world challenges anyone who plays an instrument. Espenscheid examines that by telling the stories of three cantankerous young women. With Vietnam War veteran Henry Hollins to promote and motivate them, Melissa, Gretchen, and Christine develop into rock musicians you won’t forget.”
What is the true meaning of family?
Imogene Good finds herself wrestling with these questions when, still grieving her mother’s death, she abandons a promising teaching career to open a boarding house in the near-lawless oil boomtown of Borger, Texas. Alone.
Passion, Power, and the Price of Change. Discover the sweeping saga of ambition, family, and the American spirit in this a richly layered novel set against the dramatic backdrop of wartime and postwar Texas. Follow the unforgettable journeys of Brooks and Ray Oakley, two brothers whose divergent paths take them across military frozen landscapes, bustling Austin cafes, cutthroat oil fields, and the booming postwar restaurant scene.
The Confederacy might still exist if not for George Thomas, a Southerner who supported the Union. In this autobiographical novel, Thomas tells his story for the first time, taking readers inside the mind of The Best General in the Civil War.
Espionage, Survival, and the Fight for Texas Independence
From the author of the French Letters trilogy comes a sweeping historical adventure full of unforgettable Texas legends. Laced with exuberant, historical figures such as Sam Houston, Mirabeau Lamar, and Jack Hays, Dangerous Latitudes is a quest across a war-torn frontier that becomes a race to save two hundred captured Texans who the Mexican army has marked for death.
