Waste of Space

By: Gina Damico

Narrated by: Dara Rosenberg, Maxwell Glick

Length: 9 hrs and 59 mins

Publisher's summary

Cram 10 hormonal teens into a spaceship and blast off: that's the premise for the ill-conceived reality show Waste of Space. The kids who are cast know everything about drama - and nothing about the fact that the production is fake. Hidden in a desert warehouse, their spaceship replica is equipped with state-of-the-art special effects dreamed up by the scientists partnering with the shady cable network airing the show. And it's a hit! Millions of viewers are transfixed. But then, suddenly, all communication is severed. Trapped and paranoid, the kids must figure out what to do when this reality show loses its grip on reality.

©2017 Gina Damico (P)2017 Audible, Inc.

Bizarre, but oddly plausible - 7/10

This is a great premise for a story, and the audio narration was excellent. OK, so the storyline appears absurd on paper, but given the surreal world we currently live in, most of it is actually pretty believable. The extremely underage kids and the last-second, totally illegal ‘on boarding’ of the contestants are probably the only parts I found totally implausible.

Yes, some of the characters are terribly annoying. But have you ever seen any Big Brother-type ‘reality’ show? Spot-on. (Also, some of them end up having quite good, legitimately dramatic backstories, eventually.)

One complaint? Col. Bacon did not get enough airtime. That pig had potential.

Overall, I was much more interested in the plot than I expected to be. I actually kind of wish the author had done a long epilogue, following up with the characters a year later. Or maybe a series in this universe, with two or three of the characters getting their own books. In any case, it was more absorbing that I thought it would be, and worth the read, IMHO.

Interesting story with quite the plot line

I do not want to share any spoilers so all I will say is how much I did enjoy this story and the unique vehicle the author used to tell it . Every character was well thought out and had specific value to the overall story.

Ok to pass the time

This was not Ms. Damico's best work, but it was not her worse. There were some stretches that got a little dull. She desperately needs technical advice if she ever attempts to write about television production again.

However, she nailed the personality of the show runner. I've worked with people just like she described. They probably would act exactly as Ms. Damico described were they not afraid of jail. That or figured out some way to make someone else take the fall.

The premise of the story was ok. I like the concept of telling the tale through a whistleblower diary. She pushed the edges of believability and the laws of physics a bit far for my taste. I think she could have done more with the story.

#CatchPhraseForever

Waste of Space is a fun and snarky story that entertains while making fun of the reality TV entertainment that some of us ;-) are addicted to! It is sarcastic, witty and over the top from start to finish! Complete enjoyment!

"Chazz: All right. What’s that in your hand? What are you drinking?
Hibiscus: [sips from a terracotta mug] Artisanal mud tea.
Chazz: What’s mud tea?
Hibiscus: It’s silt from the bottom of a top-secret bog in Manitoba, Canada. Steeped in water from that very same bog.
Chazz: What does it taste like?
Hibiscus: Socialism."
5 Stellar Stars

tough one

What disappointed you about Waste of Space?

I have read ALL of Gina's books and enjoyed everyone of them. For me in this case I think it was the type of dialogue format used.announcing each line as to who was speaking.

But I will still read future work from her. And for that matter , who am I to criticize...this one just wasn't my favorite