Year Zero

by Rob Reid

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Fiction. Literature. Science Fiction. Humor (Fiction.) HTML:NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER Low-level entertainment lawyer Nick Carter thinks it�??s a prank, not an alien encounter, when a redheaded mullah and a curvaceous nun show up at his office. But Frampton and Carly are highly advanced (if bumbling) extraterrestrials. The entire cosmos, they tell him, has been hopelessly hooked on American pop songs ever since �??Year Zero�?� (1977 to us), resulting in the biggest copyright violation since the Big Bang and bankrupting the whole universe. Nick has just been tapped to clean up this mess before things get ugly. Thankfully, this unlikely galaxy-hopping hero does know a thing or two about copyright law. Now, with Carly and Frampton as his guides, Nick has forty-eight hours to save humanity�??while hoping to wow the hot girl who lives down the ha… (more)

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Mint.ChocolateOcelot: A very similar tongue-in-cheek celebration of video games and gamers, rather than the music industry and fan culture.
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Life, the Universe, and Everything by Douglas Adams (Aula)
Aula: Nick Carter (not the Backstreet Boy) is a copyright lawyer who's visited by aliens who claim that the earth is in danger of being destroyed due to the universal (literally) popularity of its music. Similar humor to Adams' novels, well-plotted, and well-written.

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Funny concept, a bit long on execution. Would have made a first-rate novella; at novel-length, it dragged in places. (

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daplz | Apr 7, 2024 |

This was an entertaining story similar to The Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy. It has some good laugh-out-loud moments. However, I cannot give it more than three stars because a) there is gratuitous foul language used, including taking the Lord's name in vain, and b) a fawning endorsement of Bill Gates's "humanitarian" efforts in the epilogue. (

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jfranzone | Feb 14, 2024 |

A fun sci-fi romp reminiscent of a good Dr. Who episode or a Douglas Adams novel. (

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Treebeard_404 | Jan 23, 2024 |

I enjoyed it. There were a few areas that made me roll my eyes. A couple of the jokes were really predictable but overall a good read. (

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cdaley | Nov 2, 2023 |

Maybe I picked up this book at the wrong time. Maybe the comparison to Hitchhiker's set the bar too high. Whatever the reason, I didn't find the first few chapters entertaining enough to keep reading. (

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talon2claw | Dec 31, 2022 |

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thingScore 75

..a lot like if Carl Hiaasen wrote American Psycho, but about the music copyright business instead of a bloodthirsty psychopath—if there is any difference. At least one dust jacket review wants to draw comparisons with Douglas Adams. But this isn't the dry British humor of Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, it's the full-bore American smartass variety (though it does tend to meander like an Adams book).

added by WeeklyAlibi | editWeekly Alibi, John Bear (Aug 9, 2012)

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Awards

Goodreads Choice Awards (Nominee – Science Fiction – 2012)

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Amazon.com Best Books (Science Fiction & Fantasy – 2012)

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Canonical title

Year Zero

Original title

Year Zero

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People/Characters

Important places

New York, New York, USA

Zinkiwu

Important events

The Kotter Moment (1977-10-13)

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Dedication

For Morgan

First words

Aliens suck at music.

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(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)

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Robert Reid (author)

Year Zero (Reid novel)

▾Book descriptions

Fiction. Literature. Science Fiction. Humor (Fiction.) HTML:NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

Low-level entertainment lawyer Nick Carter thinks it�??s a prank, not an alien encounter, when a redheaded mullah and a curvaceous nun show up at his office. But Frampton and Carly are highly advanced (if bumbling) extraterrestrials. The entire cosmos, they tell him, has been hopelessly hooked on American pop songs ever since �??Year Zero�?� (1977 to us), resulting in the biggest copyright violation since the Big Bang and bankrupting the whole universe. Nick has just been tapped to clean up this mess before things get ugly. Thankfully, this unlikely galaxy-hopping hero does know a thing or two about copyright law. Now, with Carly and Frampton as his guides, Nick has forty-eight hours to save humanity�??while hoping to wow the hot girl who lives down the ha

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