Book Review: "Zero Stars, Do Not Recommend" by MJ Wassmer

It was going to be the perfect vacation for Dan and his girlfriend Mara: a newly opened resort on a remote island in the Bahamas. For the first few days it really does feel like paradise. And then the sun explodes.

The resort guests panic. They have no phone or internet access to see how their families back home are—and they can’t reach the airlines to try and get out of there, not that they know whether planes would still be able to fly. Plus, there’s the fact that without the sun, the temperatures will start to drop.

When the wealthiest resort guests stage a coup, anger erupts along with the panic and paranoia. The leader of the coup, the head of a fitness pyramid scheme, pretends to be folksy and faith-based, but she’s actually a dangerous threat. Supplies start to be rationed and tensions between classes intensify.

Dan has been content to let life go by, although he always wanted to make a difference. Somehow he is pressed into duty to fight for the non-wealthy guests, and although he’s a bit of a bumbler, as things get crazier, he starts to relish his role as hero. But what will that mean for him and Mara?

I thought this was a terrific concept and parts of the book are hysterically funny. But as things went further and further off the rails, the story went way over the top, and I found myself not caring that much.