Realistic, Gritty, Dramatic Debut
This is a well written first-person account of New York's Freestyle music scene of the 80's. It chronicles the life and times of a latino singer, Solo, at the height of the Freestyle latin music scene---and the start of the crack cocaine epidemic. A fictional but very realistic account from someone who lived through it. Some amazing dialogue and character development, and you really feel like you're there, whether it's at Riker's Island, where Solo, who's been framed for drug possession, is dealing with Cano, the big prison gangleader...or at a music club, or back at the apartment of his dear mother who has been keeping a secret from him. You can feel the tension build as things come to a climax. It's got it all: some touching relationships, a protagonist who goes through a lot and grows as a result,an amazing fight scene...and some comic relief, such as scene in which Solo is trying to produce a witnessed urine sample in front of his big, black, female Parole Officer! I'd love to see more from Latif Mercado!
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