I’ll tell you right now, this book covers some hot topics. There’s a fair bit of on-screen sexual content, both male/female and female/female. Lots of drinking and drug use and the effects thereof. Violence. It is not for teenagers and it is not for the faint of heart. I’ve seen one review liken it to a Quentin Tarantino movie. I’ll agree with that assessment. If that isn’t your jam, you have my blessing and encouragement to stop reading right here.

Jaqui Benderman is a small-town Texas girl. Her father is raising her on his own, and he may be renowned for the Black Diamond watermelons he grows, but sometimes he isn’t quite sure how well he’s doing as a dad. Jaqui aims to break free of her little town, and winning the title of Watermelon Queen (and a good chunk of change for college) seems to be the quickest way to do that. With the help of her best friend Langley, she nurtures her previously unrealized singing talent. But a tragic accident on the farm takes the life of Jaqui’s boyfriend Randy, and the judgmental eyes of the town hold her responsible. Her drunken stupor at the talent competition is her undoing, and when they find booze and drugs in her things there, she’s disqualified from the contest. Gathering up her tattered dreams, Jaqui heads off for the music scene in Austin, while Langley stays behind to pursue his dream of the police academy.

Jaqui is by turns driven to achieve her goals and something of a lost little girl. She makes a name for herself on the local music scene, and in the process meets Katrine, a  Romany immigrant and a performer herself. They become roommates and then more. Jaqui isn’t sure how she feels about Katrine’s method of supporting herself, but she comes to realize that her feelings for Katrine are very real. She continues to dive deeper into alcohol and drug use to numb emotions she isn’t always sure how to handle, and I sometimes wondered if she would ever be able to find her way out of that web again.

There’s also the mystery (which isn’t really that mysterious) of who wants Jaqui dead. Someone is trying to get to her, to avenge Randy’s death. The tension builds as the threat draws closer and closer to Jaqui and those she cares about.

While Langley is a part of the book, this really isn’t a story about Jaqui’s friendship with him. We see the story unfold through their alternate viewpoints, but Langley is a tangent. He is a touchstone for Jaqui, but she is the story’s focus. They’re both growing up and coming of age in their own way, although Langley’s path is a tad more conventional. Perhaps there’s a future book planned with more of Langley’s story?

The story gives what I would think is a pretty accurate look at the underbelly of the musical scene in Austin, or indeed, in any big city. Jaqui is the personification of “sex, drugs, and rock & roll” (although she favors torch songs, not slammin’ guitars). Tony Burnett has done his research, and he puts together a barnburner of a book. It may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but it’s gonna be somebody’s shot of whiskey, and what a shot it is! Slam it down and hang on.

And if you want to know more about the titular watermelon tattoo, you’re just going to have to read and find out.

I don’t have a whole playlist, but the Cowboy Bebop theme just seemed to keep playing in my head while I read. Give it a listen.