Ladies and Gentleman, The Redeemers

Author: Michael Scott Miller
ISBN:978-1456363475
Publisher: Create Space
Source: Author, for review
Reviewer: Malissa

This is a story of a band called the Redeemers. They are an unlikely group put together by a down and out former music talent rep.  The story follows the group from formation through their struggles and finally their hard won success.

Bert Ingram is a former talent rep who was once very successful that has now lost everything.  He is living on the streets battling alcohol addiction. The band is his brain child.  He sees this as his last shot at redemption.

Abe is the singer.  He lost his sight as a child and lives on public assistance as well as the spare change he gets from singing on the streets.  Charlie is a sax player Bert finds hustling cards on the street.  Charlie is a once promising musician who lost it all to a gambling problem.

Dave is a married music teacher.  He is dissatisfied with the path his life has taken.  He teaches music during the day and doing part time gigs at retirement villages and the like for extra money.  He is a very talented keyboardist with a flair for song writing. 

Aaron, aka Bongo Joe, is added as the drummer.  They find him washing dishes at a restaurant.  He struggles to stay in the band.  He is very talented, but not driven to practice. 

Ethan is a guitar player studying music at UC-Berkley. He’s the most unlikely member of the group.  He feels he has nothing in common with the rest of the band.  He’s the most reluctant to join the group.

The final member of the group is Gene the bass player.  They pull him out of a retirement home to join the band.  He had worked as a studio musician most of his life.

The group struggles to find their way as well as come together as a group.  There are some surprisingly tender moments as the group forms.  Unlikely friendships are formed.  There is one slight romance, but the encounters between the two involved are implied rather than direct. 

The story is a little unbelievable, but very heart warming.  I see it as a feel good story about overcoming obstacles thru hard work and determination.  The settings of the story helped make it more believable.

As a whole the story flowed very well.  It was easy to read.  All of the characters were interesting and likeable as well as well-developed thru their back stories. Those back stories made it easier to understand certain behavior. 

I really enjoyed reading this book.  Overall I give it 4 stars.  I would recommend it to anyone who likes a feel good story where the underdog is the winner. 

Highly Recommended