The Pinball Theory of Apocalypse

Jonathan Selwood

Isabel Raven is an artist living in Los Angeles who has earned her way by painting faux classic paintings for the noueaux riche in Hollywood. It doesn't pay well, but she can support herself. She has a boyfriend who is a personal chef to the famous. Recently, he has been gone most of the time with the hottest Latina teenage superstar.

Isabel, though, has found a lucrative niche for herself. She now takes classic paintings and replaces the original faces with those of the current famous. Currently she is working on a copy of American Gothic substituting Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes' faces for the serious farmer and wife. She has a show that is going to open in two days.

L.A. is constantly shaking from aftershocks. Cracks are routinely showing up in all the buildings of the city. Wildfires are burning everywhere in the area. Tar is seeping up. Sinkholes are opening and buildings, like Isabel's apartment building, are being sucked into the ground.

Isabel has a gallery owner/agent who threatens her every time she doesn't do what he wants. She learns through a gossip magazine that her boyfriend is cheating on her. She has to go to fancy Hollywood type parties to sell her art - which is not her thing. The final insult is her father, a physicist, has proven that the Earth and the Moon are going to collide on October 9, 2024. Can life get any stranger?

The Pinball Theory of the Apocalypse is described as black comedy. That's a good choice - it is defintely skewed humor. This short novel has its bits of irony. For example, Isabel's father has proven the world will end in about 20 years. Her mother makes a fortune selling real estate. Hmmmm - she's selling a short term commodity, it appears.

Jonathan Selwood highlights the craziness of Los Angeles high society in this short novel. Fame comes and goes quickly there in the Hollywood set. So does money. Isabel should grab what she can get while she can. But is it worth her self respect?

The Pinball Theory of the Apocalypse is not for everyone. The language is coarse and graphic. It is beyond shock value to constant. The people are often caricatures, like the gallery owner. I'm sure that is Selwood's intent - to mock the people who thrive in that type of craziness. He has succeeded. This short, easy read is not to my tastes and can often offend.

Notice: Strong indecent language, Suggestive dialogue or situations

Publicist provided for review