Fugue State

By: Steffan Piper

Narrated by: Nick Podehl

Sebastien Ranes has drifted aimlessly since graduating from high school six months ago. Down on his luck, the 19-year-old is recovering from pneumonia, working a dead-end job, and living in a shabby makeshift bedroom in the basement of his mother and stepfather’s home. Looking to escape his lousy situation, Sebastien robs a local grocery store and makes off with $4,800 - but not without the store’s security cameras spotting him. Driven to a state of panic, and out of control, Sebastien is hit by a drunk driver. Pulled from the wreckage by a Marine, Sebastien is offered a ride home - and a way out of Alaska.

The Marine Corps shows Sebastien another world - of abuse and authority, of war and compassion, of lust and consequences - and by the time he returns home, he’ll be forever changed.

©2012 Steffan Piper (P)2012 Brilliance Audio, Inc.

Exceptional!

I can't wait until Steffen Pieper's next book. His characterizations are so real. Great story.

Grittier than "Greyhound"

I read and devoured Steffan Piper's first book, "Greyhound", in just a couple of days.
"Fugue State" was a much tougher and grittier read. In some ways, Sebastien has grown up from the naive yet hopeful boy of "Greyhound" seemingly overnight, and the world around him (his family, notably) seems to not have changed at all. It's a juxtaposition that is incredibly jarring.
The narrator is terrific, as always, and this book would probably have been better if one hadn't read "Greyhound" first...

A memoir edited into a series of stories

starting with Sebastian's gray late teens in Alaska (hating living in his mom's basement -smells like mold to me) moving through Marines boot camp and on to duty in DC and the Gulf. If it isn't based closely on his life, he's able to completely nail someone's (italics) life.
Particularly with this narrator, it's a bit like sitting next to someone very bright and articulate -a good storyteller- on a cross country Greyhound ride and hearing their story though the night, shaking hands at the end, saying good bye and then, as you wander back off to your life thinking to yourself, "Man, that guy went through some crazy s*** ."
I listened to this mainly over Christmas in Maine, running in the 10° snow. It fit.

Interesting

I didn’t like it as much as greyhound; but it was still very interesting. I’llI look forward to seeing how Sebastian‘s future unfolds.

A Gripping Memoir

This follow up to Greyhound (which was fantastic) was an unexpected account of Sebastian's life as he grew into a person that you wouldn't have expected. Even though he wasn't the same person as I had expected, it didn't matter. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and hope there is a third journal entry into Sebastian's life, and where he goes next.
Also, the narration was superb. Nick Podehl did a fantastic job in both books. If you're thinking about buying this book, do it, but download Greyhound first. You'll be glad you did.