A vampire and her lover amidst trashy LA goth types.

The lead characters are rather hollow, and the goth characters are ugly and unsympathetic. There's also an evil vampire whom the goths end up serving, to their misfortune.

I guess this book is supposed to be a commentary of some sort on the vapid LA lifestyle. Sort of like LESS THAN ZERO with fangs. Lots of bored "been there, done that" characters on the fringes of the music scene.

It's not a "heavy" or "literary" as the author seems to intend, but it reads well. Not a bad book if trashy goth types interest you.

Never in my life have I read a book that has managed to embrace so much pain, longing, and beauty in my entire life. The protagonist, broken rock musician Keith, is symbolic of the heavy hearted, hurting soul in all of us after the rejection and aftershocks of the cruel thing called Love. Set against the underside of L.A.'s music scene, "Stainless" tells the story of a talented man broken by the suicide of his girlfriend and the loss of the use of his hands (which were cracked one by one in a Venezuelan prison). Enter Justine, the soul sucking vampire with a sensitive side who can't save Keith, so she merely drags him further into a bleak, dark world of misfits, abuse, and lost denizens filled with longing. Through his beautiful descriptions, dream like visions, and painful metaphors, the author manages to present the reader with a raw view of life, unapologetic is its grief and sorrow. If you're looking for a book that touches your soul and brings you to tears, look no further. This is a definite masterpiece that will haunt the depths of your consciousness.

Never in my entire life have I read such a creative, heartbreaking book. Grimson's characters were so believable that I actually felt the broken rock musician protagonist's sadness. The plot, although not 100% original, was a nice change of pace from the usual bore and lore that can be found in Anne Rice's books. It's nice to know you won't find any whiny, "why must I continue to kill?" vampires here. The writing was pure poetry and I love his unusual style. Thanks for your contribution to the horror genre, Mr. Grimson.

The first few chapters were enthralling. Lisa Nova wasn't the most sympathetic or well-sketched character, but her interactions with Boro, the implications of the tattoos, made me want to keep reading. Once Lisa leaves town, I lost interest completely. Way too many characters were introduced and I had no interest in any of them. Many relationships were presented but not deeply explored--- the "love of [her] life" Lisa meets in Brazil, her rivalry with her siblings, her best friend's feelings toward her. Meanwhile there is no sense that Lisa has any feelings about the "gift" she has been given--- she makes little attempt to enjoy her newfound powers, but she also doesn't recoil from them in horror and try to unmake the chaos. She has no real reaction and by the end of the book she is a vague shadow with no real meaning. The author gives more attention to how characters are dressed than what they're feeling and thinking, and they have no discernible motivation for their actions. The book seemed like a screenplay stretched into a novel. Maybe it would play better as a movie.

Unfortunately, when I purchased this book, I was hoping that it would be another "Stainless". In my opinion, that was Grimson's best work ever. Moving on, the story itself was interesting, but tended to be a little lackadaisical and confusing at times. I caught a slight echo of "Stainless" through the characters Freak, Code, and Lisa -- they all seemed the "lost, neurotic, Hollywood" types. Still, the book was fine...as long as one isn't perturbed by weird voodoo rituals.

I don't know where to begin in saying that I loved this book. It doesn't stop, or slow down. I wanted to call in sick so I could stay home reading in bed, finishing it. This book does in 35 pages what it took "Silk" the whole thing to not quite do. The thing I thought would finish left it with fifty pages. I can't wait to read it again.

This is Mr. Grimson's first book and it is rotten. I am sorry to say this because I am a huge Grimson fan (Stainless and Brand New Cherry Flavor are two of the greatest books I have ever read). In this ne'er do well novel, a doctor swallows pills and deals with weird, insane requests from his equally weird, insane patients. It's unmoving and the purpose of the novel is lost on the reader. It lacks all the glamour, sadness, tragedy, and rock'n'roll rebellion of his better writing efforts, Stainless and Brand New Cherry Flavor. Perhaps this one should stay out of print.

Having an "open" marriage, a sissy kid, and a big head can't be easy..and it's not. This book is about an ER doctor who takes perscription medicine to cope with his job and all the "fakers and junkies looking for 'scripts". Very interesting hospital scenes. Semi-interesting rambling thoughts. And a bit of life thrown in. not altogether a bad combo.