There is just something so provocative about rock stars. We can't get enough of their gently-weeping guitars, tuneful talents, and sexy shenanigans. Whether you plastered Jimi Hendrix posters all over your bedroom walls, danced to Love Is A Battlefield at your wedding, or dressed as Slash on Halloween - admit it: you've been beguiled by the guitar gods. Go behind the music and down the rabbit hole with five bizarre, outlandish, dark, droll, and just plain sacrilegious stories by Darren Gordon Smith (Blurt: Curses & Verses) and Staci Layne Wilson (Dark Lullaby). Fandom/Phantom - When Alberta magically brings her favorite departed rock n roll poet back to life, he's everything she dreamed... at first. Little Rosie vs. The Devil - When Satan tempts guitarist Strings McGee at the crossroads of his life, there's hell to pay. In(ter)vention - When alkie music critic Ian is ambushed with an intervention by his well-meaning but misguided family, things go from bad to super-bad. Depraved Indifference - When Hawkeye gets too obsessed with the flameout fatalities of famous hi-fi heroes, fantasy spills into reality. Fishing With Grandpa - When aging, entitled rock star Rhys Weedham takes a shine to his granddaughter's best friend, the unsuspecting young lady is faced with a Hobson's choice.

Sex Death Rock N Roll: Short Stories

Literature & Fiction

Wilson, Staci Layne

Smith, Darren Gordon

Humor & Satire

Excessive Nuance

Legends and Lipstick: My Scandalous Stories of Hollywood's Golden Era

Biographies & Memoirs

Bacon, Nancy

Arts & Literature

“You may read tons of memoirs, but you can’t miss out on this one because it’s a story like no other told from a unique perspective.” – Sharon Mintz, The Hollywood Beat
“This is a detailed story about a life well-lived, and with an aim to help others (especially animals—if you love horses, you’ll especially enjoy this book) who have found themselves in difficult relationships.” – Tovee Rockland, All Book Reviews
Generation X
Staci Layne Wilson’s is a story of triumph over a legacy of alcoholism, suicide, and Hollywood burnout, but more than that, it’s a tale of unconditional love (with a healthy dose of humor). Despite the ups and downs, her upbringing gave her the powerful determination to carve out a successful life on her own terms. She has since become an award-winning screenwriter and bestselling author. 
Vintage Los Angeles
Tales of bygone eras – she grew up with showbiz parents in L.A. in the sixties and seventies, had ponies in the backyard and a psychotic monkey in the house, mingled with the stars on the Sunset Strip rock scene in the eighties, partied at the Playboy Mansion, and nearly died (twice!). She ultimately found love, purpose, and success as an author, film director, screenwriter, pop culture pundit and notable red-carpet reporter has interviewed the biggest celebs in the world.
PRAISE
 “A touching, laugh-out-loud memoir.” – Daily Sweets
 “Refreshingly honest look at Los Angeles, past and present.” – Curb Appeal
 “Charming, self-deprecating.” – Los Angeles Readers &amp; Writers
 “As a music fanatic, I was in heaven over all the inside stories about Rock and Roll Hall of Famers The Ventures (through their 50+ year career!), Metallica, Led Zeppelin, and the glam-rock scene on the Sunset Strip. There’s also a whole master class on the heavy metal hangouts of Hollywood: The Rainbow, The Roxy, The Troubadour… Staci’s seen it all!” – Gene Katz, director of The Hair Band Tease
If you want to read a time capsule of a specific period in Southern California pop cultural history, look no further. If you want to read a book that’s as delightful as it is insightful, one that stays with you long after you close its covers, this is that book. If you want to be simultaneously educated and entertained, you won’t find a better reference than this one. Staci Layne Wilson not only has a penchant for detail, she has a memory like a bear trap. Nothing escapes her notice, and she has been kind enough to let us see the world through her keen, sentimental (but never maudlin) eyes. The book should come with one caveat emptor, however: if you read it at night, you can forget about sleeping. Not all the coffee in the world can knock down the reading hangover you’re going to have the next day after flipping page after page the night before. – Stacey Keith, author of Stripped Down: A Naked Memoir
A book that rivals the best of Huell Howser's TV shows digging up the cherished as well as perished landmarks of the City of Angels. Speaking of angels, the author's parents were not, but that is the theme of this story, that all that glitters is not necessarily gold. But what a treasure for us to read a firsthand account about growing up in a fairytale turned inside out. The delight here are the dizzying details not only of her personal childhood story, and of her glamorous parents, but also of the city of Los Angeles, the city where most people come to from somewhere else to make their dreams come true. But this is a native's narrative, born and bred in LA, and while it is “SO LA” on its shimmering surface, it is “SO LAyered” in its honest reality. I LOVED IT! -PJ Soles, Actress – Carrie, Halloween
Download a free Kindle sample now, or check out the audiobook

So L.A. - A Hollywood Memoir: Uncensored Tales by the Daughter of a Rock Star & a Pinup Model

Wilson slices open the black heart of Hollywood, exposing its nastiest demons for our pulse-pounding pleasure. –Lotti Pharriss Knowles, Producer: Chastity Bites, & Goddess: The Showgirls Chronicles CITY OF DEVILS  Los Angeles and Lucifer are a lot alike. They both seduce and lure with promises of wealth, fame, beauty or love. But those promises are often empty; and even when they’re not, there’s a price to pay.  Come meet the denizens of City of Devils: Natasha is an underrated actress who goes to great lengths to win an Oscar in “Based on a true story.” In “Doom for Rent” a young man takes on a roommate to make ends meet, only to find he’s opened the door to pure evil. Geneva Hughes is a wealthy celebutant who loves her chihuahua Boo-Boo to death in “Ankle Biters.” Private dick Max Ryker gets more than he bargained for in “The Case of the Butchered Bombshell.” Tourist Ethel learns there’s no such thing as “Free Admission.” Child actor Cosmo Colombo finds out what he’s made of when The Big One hits L.A. in “Richter Mortis.” Are the paparazzi soulless? Find out in “Remote Trigger.” A narcissist devours the weak in “Depraved Indifference,” while the meek fight back against a sleazy film producer in “He Was Asking For It.” Partygoers in “Abracadaver” practice supernatural sleight-of-hand during a séance at The Magic Castle. A psychic shyster gets his comeuppance in “My Mother the Carcass,” while Malibu surfer Bjorn meets a malicious mermaid in “Tasty Waves.” Lastly, a lonely lady’s desperation to be thin and beautiful could cost her her life in “Alice on Wonderland.”  City of Devils is an intoxicating mixture of white-knuckle horror and laugh-out-loud gallows humor. – Daniel Love, producer: The Occult   Reader beware, you’re in for a scare! A travelogue through sinister L.A., accompanied by a soundtrack of sinful rock and roll, City of Devils will keep you awake all night. – Abigail Gibson, guide: Haunted Hollywood Tours.  City of Devils is a darkened mirror shoved in front of Los Angeles; shiny, grimy, always well-lit, and covered in lipstick-scribbled desires. –Christian Ackerman, editor: My Favorite Horror Movie  Atmospheric, suspenseful, and unsettling, but also funny, well observed satire. City of Devils is dark and smart, and a hell of a lot of fun. –Jordan Essoe, actor: Bedeviled

City of Devils: 13 Tales of the Uncanny, Unlucky & Unholy

Break out the keytar, throw your horn-hands, and get ready to rock down to electric avenue! Gory Days is set in an alternate evil '80s where androids take the stage, a washed-up rock star discovers the secret to time travel, and an aspiring musician puts her demo tape into the wrong hands. Stories include Don't Stand So Close to Meat, Hip to Be Scared, and Dead Over Heels.10 stories by Staci Layne Wilson, Mark Wheaton, Darren Gordon Smith, V. Castro, Sean McDonough, and Brenda Thatcher.

Rock & Roll Nightmares: Gory Days: '80s Edition Short Stories

McDonough, Sean

Castro, V.

Wheaton, Mark

Thatcher, Brenda

Take a chill pill, get ready to catch boogie fever, and turn it up to 11! Do You Fear Like We Do is set in an alternate scary '70s where 'disco inferno' isn't just a song tile, an FM radio DJ who works the graveyard shift finds out what 'catch you on the flipside' really means, and a rock band faces death flying the not-so-friendly skies. Stories include Tiny Danger, Comfortably Dumb, and While My Guitar Gently Reaps.

Do You Fear Like We Do: Rock & Roll Nightmares: '70s Edition Short Stories

Humor & Entertainment

Seemingly, Dr Oolong

Jagge, Ruthann

Lambert, Curt

Schlichter, Graydon

Rowe, LeeAnne

Amos, Joel D.

Humor

ALONG COMES SCARY\nTune in, turn on, and drop in to the rock & roll rabbit hole! Along Comes Scary is set in an alternate spooky ’60s where vampires play screaming guitars, hellbound hotrodders start a new trend on AM radio, and there are groupies who will do anything for a piece of their favorite band. Stories include Papa’s Got a Brand-New Body Bag, Hell-A Woman, and She’s Got a Ticket to Die.\n10 stories by Staci Layne Wilson, Jeff Strand, Darren Gordon Smith, Marco Mannone, Renee Mallett, and Shane Bitterling.\nPRAISE FOR THE ROCK & ROLL NIGHTMARES SERIES 
Short Stories set in the ’60s, ’70s, and ’80s\nRock & Roll Nightmares has all the sex, drugs, and broken dreams you can handle without going to rehab, plus musical fun facts interwoven throughout stories that are written by folks who know their music—and clearly love it. (Killer Queens Podcast)\nWhether you’re a Metallica devotee or a Monkees disciple, you’re bound to be shocked by something in these books… but if you can’t laugh at the idea of pitting Phil Specter against Richard Ramirez in a fight to the death at the Cecil Hotel, then you’re not invited to the afterparty! (Classic Rock Memories)\nPerfect for fans of Rock Stars Do the Dumbest Things and The Dirt—you will be laughing, grossed out, and scared to death all at once. (On Deck Book Review)\nThe anti-Summer of Love! The bands are still crazy after all these years, thanks to the twisted minds behind Rock & Roll Nightmares. Find out how the ‘27 Club’ really got started, discover why writing lyrics on a Ouija board is a bad idea, and if you think disco is dead you ain’t seen nothing yet. (Sucking in the ’70s Radio, Detroit, MI)

Rock & Roll Nightmares: Along Comes Scary: '60s Edition Short Stories

Mallett, Renee

Bitterling, Shane

Mannone, Marco

Strand, Jeff.

Novelization of the sci-fi rock n roll feature film, The Second Age of Aquarius.

Sex Death Rock N Roll 2: The Russell Aquarius Edition

Long, Nancy

Olson, Martin

Bellas, Brooke Lewis

Welcome To Your NightmareKurt Cobain. GG Allin. Wendy O. Williams. Duane Allman. Travis Barker. Jimmy Page. Janis Joplin. Ozzy Osbourne. Chrissie Hynde. Dee Dee Ramone. Chris Cornell. Marc Bolan. Tommy Lee. Amy Winehouse. Jimi Hendrix. What do these artists all have in common? They’re rowdy rock stars whose over-the-top lifestyles spun out of control, landing them deep in Rock & Roll Nightmare territory. 
READERS' FAVORITE: SILVER SEAL CERTIFIED / 5-STAR BOOK FINALIST: AMERICAN BOOKFEST AWARDS 
You will read about: The ill-fated 27 Club and how the whole thing got started Rock ‘n’ roll suicides taken out by guns, pills, and booze Shocking deaths ranging from plane crashes to spider bites Bands beset by tragedy, from Badfinger to The Bee Gees Alarming antics covering everyone from Keith Moon to Keith Richards Bizarre curses and strange, unexplained incidents Love, loss, murder, death by drowning, freak fires, and more! 
Rock & Roll Nightmares: True Stories, Volume 1 is a meticulously-researched, up-to-date, entertaining, and shocking book that rounds up the tragic tales from the 1960s to the present day.\nVolume 2 continues in a separate book and covers the awful incidents at Altamont, underage groupies, Satanic panic, the murder of John Lennon, musicians who’ve died on stage, rock stars who lived on borrowed time, and more.\nBe sure to check out all the books in the Rock & Roll Nightmares series.\n"MTV's Headbangers Ball" meets "Tales from the Crypt" — perfect entertainment for anyone who's ever played "Stairway to Heaven" backwards to hear the mumbled phrase "Here's to my sweet Satan." (Variety)\nAbout the Author: Staci Layne Wilson has been writing professionally about rock music for decades and is the director of the award-winning documentary, The Ventures: Stars on Guitars. She is donating a portion of the proceeds from the sale of this book to the Sweet Relief Musicians Fund (a 501c3 nonprofit charity).\nReader Praise for Rock & Roll Nightmares: True Stories, Vol 1\n“I loved this book and couldn’t put it down once I started. Staci has a wonderful writing style, lean and expressive.”\n“I really, really thought going into this book I'd know most of the stories. Not even close! I learned something new every page if not every paragraph about the mad excesses, personal tragedies or just bad luck that legendarily befalls musicians.”\n“Wilson’s extensive research sifts the facts from hearsay. I don't care how much you know about rock gossip. You'll be surprised and shocked by some of the anecdotes.”\n“For fans of rock ‘n roll – and the macabre – it doesn’t get much better than this book.”

Rock & Roll Nightmares: True Stories, Volume 1

Welcome To Your Nightmare? again!Rock & Roll Nightmares, Volume 1 scratched the sinister surface with tales of the 27 Club, rock 'n' roll suicides, plane crashes, curses, and more. Now the 5-star series continues with concert mayhem, an unflinching look at the "baby groupie" trend of the 1970s, Satanic panic, horrific home invasions, musicians who've died on stage, rockers who lived on borrowed time, gun-toting music producers, deadly DJs, and much more. You will read about:Murdered rock stars, hitmen hired, and narrow escapesShocking stories of rockers who've served time for violent crimesDevil worship and belief in the occultFolks on the fringe who took their obsessions too farPyrotechnics gone horribly wrongMusicians mowed down by deadly diseaseMysteries solved, graves robbed, fortunes stolen, and more!Rock & Roll Nightmares: True Stories, Volume 2 is a meticulously-researched, up-to-date, entertaining, and shocking book that rounds up the tragic tales from the 1960s to the present day. (Oh-there's a whole series of fiction Rock & Roll Nightmares books, too!)About the Author: Staci Layne Wilson has been writing professionally about rock music for decades and is the director of the award-winning documentary, The Ventures: Stars on Guitars. She is donating a portion of the proceeds from the sale of this book to the Sweet Relief Musicians Fund (a 501c3 nonprofit charity).

Rock & Roll Nightmares: True Stories, Volume 2

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