I wrote a book.
SUMMER’S REACH came specifically from expanding the concept of a day-in-the-park trip reporting to the scope of a character driven novel, narrated from an enthusiast’s perspective.
This is my love letter to roller coaster enthusiasm and the greatest amusement park ever built. It is a mix-tape. An architectural editorial. An ode to youth.
The setting is as historically accurate as I could make it, exploring a summer that unfolds against the early millennium. 2003 was the obvious choice for the season. A simpler time on the edge, before smart technology and social media pervaded every element of life. The construction of the Millennium Force and Top Thrill Dragster ushered the industry into a new contemporary era. On-line enthusiast culture was near its peak.
So whilst coming-of-age-at-the-amusement-park has been treaded before, I’ve tried to present something new here... a time period not often yet explored in literature.
It is weird to think that readers today that are the same age as my characters were too young for memory or concept of this pivotal time. I hope I’ve accurately captured feelings of being at the park that summer. Revisiting some ghosts along the way.
This is a long read. Divided into 35 chapters typically between 1500 and 4000 words each, the dropbox links provide an ebook of the entirety.
It has been a decade in my head and eighteen months in the making.
With the parks still shuttered as quarantine optimistically winds down… here’s a story for you to enjoy.
Enjoy summer and Happy 150 CP.
-K I
EPUB file download link (free)
MOBI file download link (free)
SUMMER’S REACH
K.I Talar – 2020
Thirty-Five Chapters in Four Parts; 87,000 words
Roller Coasters, Roll & Roll, and the Ghosts of Youth…
Scenes unfold the new friendships of college kids as they live, work and waste a single season at the world's greatest amusement park. Within historic and often lost locations of the early aughts, Kevin and his crew adventure through an Ohio resort, surrounding strip malls and greater rust belt while the park attempts to open the tallest, fastest roller coaster.
Infused with nostalgia, pop culture, music, and urban architecture, while taking a dive into coaster enthusiasm, SUMMER’S REACH captures the end of innocence. We are along for the ride.
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