An oral history of a fictional music group, it is really hard not to compare this to Daisy Jones & the Six. That said, for all of their similarities, there is a lot of difference too. Opal & Nev are a fictional duo from the 1970s made up of a talented British redheaded singer/songwriter and the brash strong-minded black singer he picks out of obscurity in a Detroit bar to become his musical partner. Whereas Daisy Jones felt like you were reading a Behind the Music type documentary where its all about the music and the entertainment, with Opal & Nev you find yourself getting a glimpse into the longstanding racial issues that plague our country, as seen through musical history. It's a bit more serious and deeper and perhaps a bit less fun than Daisy. Yet, it is a good, engrossing read with memorable characters that would also make for a good book club book.

This is everything Daisy Jones and The Six wanted to be.

Written as an oral history, The Final Revival of Opal & Nev is the story of a duo of musical artists in 1970's New York - who rose to fame, but have a dark secret about the event that brought them so much fame.

Opal Jewel is...Grace Jones, Eartha Kitt and Cher. A black woman from Detroit, she's full of pride, confidence and a drive to be something. Nev is...a red-haired English musical dweeb. Together, they create musical that crosses boundaries and genres. One night, at a label showcase, one of their label mates displays a Confederate flag, and Opal is having none of it. What happens next defines their careers.

In advance of a rumored reunion, S. Sunny Shelton, the editor of the premier music magazine, interviews all involved for a book. Sunny has a connection to the duo, her father, Jimmy, was killed at the label showcase that brought Opal and Nev their fame. When diving into the duo's history and 'that night' will change everything Sunny has been led to believe.

This is a story about race, music, success, sexism and freedom of artistic exploration. This book is on another level. It's...beyond good.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Opal is a black woman trying to make it as a star. She is discovered by singer Neville Charles at an amateur night. Opal and Nev sign with Rivington records. The label signs a rival band that likes to walk around wearing confederate flags. When the band arrives with a confederate flag at a promotional event, Opal decides to stage a protest that sets off a chain of events that will change her and Nev's life forever. Decades later, Opal wants to do a reunion with Nev and S Sunny Shelton decides to create an oral history of the band she grew up loving. As she interviews she finds that there are secrets that could change everything.

If you were a fan of Daisy Jones then this is a story for you. The format is the same, an interview format where the persons words are typed out. There were things I really loved about this book. It touched on some pretty tough themes like sexism and racism in the 1970's. While reading I felt like the characters were authentic and found myself wondering if Opal and Nev were real people. At the same time, I found parts to be slow. I struggled to be pulled into the story in the beginning, was sucked in in the middle, then I struggled at the end. While I found the interview format to be unique I feel like this hindered the story the author was trying to tell. My favorite parts of the story were when the author wasn't using the interview format. I wish we could have seen more of Opal in that format because Opal's character was pretty badass.

3.5 stars

The Final Revival of Opal & Nev was told in the same format as Daisy Jones & The Six, and for that reason, it felt a bit like something I had read before. That said, Opal & Nev is an entirely different story, and a more important one, at that. I love the IDEA of this writing style, but haven't decided yet if it works for me as a reader (while I enjoyed both this book and Daisy Jones, I didn't seem to respond to either one with the same enthusiasm as other readers).

When I first started reading it, I actually had to do a little research to make sure Opal & Nev were completely fictional. It was written in such a way that I thought maybe they were real and I had just never heard of them (that's not the case). It was a totally believable story that could have realistically taken place.

While I do think it was a good story, I had a hard time getting engrossed in the book. I felt that the characters could've been more developed. Perhaps that's a bit trickier when a book is written in this format. Opal was described as a very colorful, unique character, but I felt that as a reader, I didn't get to see her with the depth that she deserved. I thought her character could've been developed quite a bit more. I also felt that Nev's character was a bit lacking. There were brief mentions of his struggles, but there was little backstory to help develop him as a character. It made it challenging to feel an emotional connection to the characters.

I guess what I really wanted from the book was MORE. I wanted more from the individual characters, I wanted to feel more from Opal & Nev's relationship, I wanted resolution about a big revelation that was mentioned in the story (to be fair, I think that what I'm referring to was intentionally left open-ended). To be clear, me wanting more from the book isn't a criticism. I wanted more because I felt there was a lot to this story that could've been further explored and developed.

I do think this was a strong debut novel and will definitely check out future work from Dawnie Walton.

Thank you to Simon & Schuster and Netgalley for providing me with an early copy of this book.

“Folks rally around that stuff, they claim it, they hurt people like you and me in the name of it. So when I laid eyes on that Bond Brothers album cover (a studio shot of the member facing the camera in a line, each wearing a confederate flag belt buckle on the waist of his jeans)... it was like I had built this life I loved in New York only to zoom right back to Summertime in Alabama. Me and Pearl, and our own Mother worried about what people who waved flags like that could do to little girls like us.”

As much as I don’t want to bring up Daisy Jones and The Six, I feel it’s important to note that besides the format and the fact they are written about the same era, there really is no comparison. They are each very much their own stories (thankfully!)

This is a strong debut novel for Dawnie Walkton. With that said, I struggled to get through this book. It took me a couple of weeks to read. What I enjoyed: It deals with powerful and (sadly) current messages about racism, and coming up as a woman in a man’s world. I appreciated that the author chose to take on tough subject matter and that we are given a POC perspective. What I struggled with is that at times it dragged and I was waiting for something more... maybe more background on the characters? More sub stories? I just couldn’t ever get fully invested in the story.

Many thanks to the Dawnie Walton, Simon and Schuster and NetGalley for a digital copy of this book. I read and reviewed this voluntarily and opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.

When I saw that the Final Revival of Opal and Nev was a read now on Netgalley, I immediately downloaded it. Likened to a Daisy Jones and Six, a book I enjoyed, I was curious. Well this book turned out to be an epic journey dealing with feminism, sexism, racism and how much changes and yet stays the same. This is all set against the music industry of the early 1970s and 2016.

Told through interviews for an upcoming book, the story flows between the past and 2016. It’s a fascinating look at the music scene then and the very stark difference between how men and women were treated in the industry - particularly Black women.

Opal is a complex and talented woman and it was frustrating to see how stymied she was (career wise) by the labels put on her. The ending gave me hope that her talent and all that she went through were finally be recognized.

This was an excellent read that, for me, showcased the spirit and resiliency of Black Women in a male dominated world.

Actual rating 3.5 stars.

Everyone’s opening question is going to be “is this a Daisy Jones rip-off?” Personally, my answer is no, it’s not.

I liked Daisy Jones but liked Opal & Nev more. Opal & Nev felt more grounded in reality and the stakes felt higher. I think the genres of music the books cover are actually very analogous to the vibes of the books themselves – Daisy Jones absolutely feels soft rock, while Opal & Nev feels punk.

Opal is a fascinating character and I found myself always wanting to know more about her throughout the story. She’s one of those characters who I know is going to keep popping into my mind years down the line.

At times I wanted the pace to pick up and the ending is a bit of a letdown, but the book overall is extremely engaging, masterfully handles the racial aspects of the music industry and music fans, and is wonderfully written.

There has been a fair amount of hype about this book, The Final Revival of Opal and Nev, and frankly, I didn’t expect it to live up to it.
I’m pleased to say I was wrong!
The book has been compared to Daisy and the Six, another fictional bio of a fictional rock band, and a book that I also enjoyed.
The mismatched pair of Opal and Nev, him a pampered English white boy songwriter and her a gawky, balding black girl from Detroit, find one another and create something totally different than either would ever have without the other.
On the cusp of their big break a tragic event occurs that hurtles them into fame and the spotlight, but also spells the end of their relationship.
The book unfolds as a series of interviews some forty years after the fact with the principals and those surrounding them by an ambitious young, black female journalist who has a close personal connection to the story.
Issues of racism, sexism, and social injustice, which are so sadly relevant still today, propel the story forward.
First time author Dawnie Walton so convincingly creates the characters of Opal Jewel and Nev Charles and their musical collaboration that I could almost hear the songs as they performed them. Even the more peripheral characters are so well crafted that it feels as though you have known them for years. Their voices seem completely familiar as they recount their remembrances of the young duo.
The explosive climax of the pair’s final revival may not be the fairy tale ending you would have hoped for, but it is the ending that this completely engaging and believable book demanded.
If you are a music fan and you care about justice and most importantly, if you love a good story, this book is for you!

This novel tells the story of Opal and Nev, a musical duo of the 1979’a. This story tells of their rise to new, their influence and the fall of their career. Through interviews, the musicians and the people who were instrumental in their success details moments and situations that’s helped to shapes their music
.
This was a nice story, I enjoyed the format and the different characters . I listen to the end of it on audiobook and the full cast was amazing . I wish there was more romance and drama. Overs it it was an interesting read!

This is an extremely powerful book that takes on racism and sexism in the music world and beyond. It makes clear that you don't have to be a confederate flag toting redneck to be racist and that the people we love can hurt us more deeply than our enemies. I loved the interview format and the whole book is an easy and entertaining read. I am looking forward to reading more by this author. This is a confident and thoughtful debut.

“Opal Jewel was indeed everything: classic and modern, petite and immense, formal and casual, bold and restrained.”

Quick Summary: It’s 2016 and Sunny Shelton, the newly appointed Editor-in-Chief of music magazine, Aural, is writing about the story of Opal Jewel and Nev Charles. She has exclusive information that the duo will be making a historic reunion at an upcoming music festival. The Final Revival of Opal & Nev follows Sunny as she interviews a variety of characters to learn more about the events that lead to their break up and the truth about a tragic night that changed all of their lives forever.

This will obviously get lots of comparisons to Daisy Jones & the Six- both being written as oral histories about fictional rock bands. But that’s about as far as the comparison goes. For me, Daisy Jones fell flat and I always thought it was because it was written as an oral history/interview format. So I was half-expecting to not enjoy The Final Revival of Opal & Nev due to this but NO I WAS SO WRONG. HOLY S***. This book stands on its own and completely blew me awayyyy. And by the way… it’s a debut. Wow- the writing was just SO good.

I read a lot of books and a lot of them are good but this one felt different. It seeped into my soul in a way that most do not. Tension was gradually built throughout this in a way that I found impressive for a story where you’re supposed to already know what happened. This book is packed with social commentary and timely themes that cover racism (overt & covert), feminism, sexism, and fame.

And finally, how can I end this review without a plug for the queen of the novel, Opal. A rockstar literally and figuratively-- I absolutely loved her.

My favorite book of the year so far. The Final Revival of Opal & Nev is hard to put down. I recommend this for everyone.

An easy 5 stars.

Thank you @netgalley and 37 Ink/Simon & Schuster for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!

This is the story of Opal Jewel, an independent young woman trying to share her music, spread her messages of equality, and not lose who she is along the way, even if that’s exactly what society wants. Following her journey as half of a rock ‘n’ roll duo, its eventual break up and later reunion, we see how many of the issues of racism and sexism she faced in the 1970s, when the band began, still ran true in 2016 at the reunion.

Written as an oral history by an editor with personal ties to the story, I enjoyed being able to see the events from multiple perspectives. It emphasized how multi-layered and complex situations can be and the pivotal role of the most intricate details. Symbols from music, fashion and color all support the immense power of choice as well as the importance of balancing your own moral compass and advocating for yourself and others.

The main characters are well-crafted, flaws and all, making it a believable story. The author also accurately captures time and place through an approachable writing style, highlighting things that are better but also things that have unfortunately stayed the same. As seen at the reunion concert in the book, so many themes of racism and sexism still echo true today.

Whether you enjoyed the oral history format from Daisy Jones and the Six or you are looking for a relevant read in today’s times, keep an eye out for this book hitting the shelves on March 30th.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This book was mostly fantastic. Very Daisy Jones / Behind the Music-y. The only thing I have a complaint about is how open and ambiguous the ending was. I don't like open-ended endings. But I loved Opal. I was glad when she did what she did onstage at the end. 3.75 stars rounded up.

Everything here was in place to make this a great book. There is the turbulence of my childhood, the 70s and how it connects to the present day climate. There is the strange combination of a pale redhead from England and a bald black kid from the US. There are so many themes I love here. Things that are relevant and current even though they are happening decades ago should make for a great story. The story is good. The delivery though...it left me wanting.

I really wanted to like the way this was presented. The interview/documentary style has worked before. I found it especially effective in a very similar story. However, it was slow to move and get into in this case. The writing style seemed to be dry and the characters told their stories in a detached way that kept me form getting fully engaged. There was so much here that was an important reflection on past and current takes on racism, sexism, and political discord. The message and even the story of the two vastly different characters coming together were great. The event that forever linked them was horrifying and timely. The way it was told was the problem for me. It didn’t do the story justice. Too much tell and not enough letting the reader become engrossed in the experience.

The Final Revival of Opal and Nev follows a journalist’s attempt to track the tumultuous rise and fall of 70s rock and roll duo Opal and Nev, especially after a shocking revelation from a surprising source changes everything.

As someone who does not fall into the historical fiction reader camp, this book was phenomenal. I have a love for historical fiction that has something to say and this was exactly that. In terms of plot, the book went exactly where I thought it was going to go and if you are familiar with stories such as these, in books and real life, then you probably also know where this will go, too. If you have the inkling of where this book is headed, it allows you to read much deeper into everyone’s interviews from the get-go.

Speaking of the characters, all of them were so well developed. I imagine this has something to do with the way the narrative structure is formatted but regardless, each voice was distinct, including the journalist’s voice, Sunny. It was nice to see journalism done so well in this book because there is a clear way that Sunny structures her story to say a lot without saying anything herself. That said, the Editor’s Notes read more like a regular narrative structure than a journalistic note added into a book. At times I forgot this was supposed to be the published novel Sunny is writing as opposed to a series of published articles because of the Editor’s Notes at the start of a lot of chapters. As the book starts to get more and more into the present day, the line between journalistic historical narrative and viewpoint narrative got more and more blurred. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, just something to note.

For a debut, this surprisingly did not read like one. It was mostly well-paced, followed an intriguing narrative all the way through, had natural moving dialogue, and had amazing overarching themes that were deliberate, smooth, and subtle. The skill that Walton shows is amazing, and I cannot wait to see this writing grow. She made me believe that these characters existed, and there is a lot in here to enhance this story. Not only is everything that Opal, a black woman in the 70s entertainment industry, goes through real and visceral, it also contained so much to learn from. I can see white liberals gaining a lot from reading this if they are open to seeing the faults in their own attempts at allyship. But, I can see that this book wasn’t made for white liberals. The audience is seemingly Black women here. There are tidbits of culture that seem deliberately written and this led me to believe that at the crux of the story is a tale of empowerment for Black women, specifically. Though I would encourage you to read reviews from the Black community to really discuss the representation at length.

I will say the one thing I really wanted was for a little more of everything. While I think Walton did exceptionally with the oral storytelling, I almost wish we had gotten half of the text as excerpts from the book and half as a viewpoint narrative, from anyone really. Even though the story isn’t about the revelations that come up in Sunny’s interviews, seeing the repercussions or lack thereof, would have driven home the point Walton was seemingly trying to make. Even if the point was to focus on just Opal, I would’ve accepted a perspective from her or Sunny to explain the aftermath. I would have loved to get a little deeper into the mindset and thinking of those involved in all of this. Since I knew exactly where this was all going, I would have just loved for it to go that much further because it felt like a plateau rather than a climax and resolution. Simply by virtue of knowing the big twist (which wasn’t even really a big twist and I would argue wasn’t supposed to be), it felt like there wasn’t anywhere else to go with the story so the ending sort of just happened. However, maybe that was the intent. To really only tell parts of the story. To focus on growth rather than trauma. I don’t really know.
Again, as this is out of my wheelhouse, I think I was a little more critical with my rating here but I loved every second of reading this, despite how angry I got at times at some of the things coming out of people’s mouths during their interviews. I haven’t had a historical fiction do that in almost a decade.

I cannot recommend this book enough and I am so glad I already have a physical copy to keep on my shelves and reread, which I am already itching to do.

Again, as a last reminder, please seek out reviews from own voices reviewers for a better discussion of the representation and the subtle nuances Walton no doubt has here. Those reviews will be much better to learn and gauge from than I could ever offer here.

I enjoyed Opal and Nev. i would recommend it to anyone who loves musician backstories or stories about race relations.

This is Danie Walton's debut historical fiction book detailing a story about an early Afropunk/rock-n-roll duo from from different races and places coming together to make music. Opal, a fierce/independent black woman, comes from Detroit and Nev, a white British dude with red hair, from across the pond in the UK. Needless to say that sort of coupling made for some interesting music and moments. I thought the discussions of racism and sexism both in 70s music scene when the duo was just starting out and in the present day were well done.

I must say, I really enjoyed reading this book as it was written in the interview/oral history style. It made the story feel so immersive. All of the side characters giving their perspectives on certain events only made the story/picture more whole in my head. It played out like an episode from VH1's Behind the Music, which I loved when I was younger. From the descriptions of Opal's stage costumes and the songs they sang, to the Opal & Nev album covers I wanted to hear and see it all! I really wish there had been art included in this book....pages filled with pictures of Opal's costumes and album covers would have been really cool to see. #wishful thinking

Many thanks to #NetGalley and @simonandschuster for the egalley in exchange for an honest review.

Nev Charles finds Opal Robinson, now Opal Jewel in a small Detroit talent show while searching the country for a partner to create with him. They develop a strong relationship and make long lasting controversy with their music, especially after their performance at the Rivington Showcase. Together they make another album and tour, until the grief of loss and pressure from the tour send Opal to Paris for a break. When she returns, things don’t return to normal as she wishes they would. Nev, healing from his opioid addiction, turns his back on her and their partnership. Fast forward thirty years, a young reporter, Sunny, is writing a book about the two, and their rumored tour later that summer. As Sunny investigates the novel, secrets from the past arise and could just end the revival before it begins.

I wanted to love this book, but I just found it just alright. I’m not sure if it was the writing style or material, but it moved very slow for me and didn’t hold my interest long. There were intriguing parts, but most of it felt unnecessary. The end was redeeming and helped bring it to a satisfying close.

Race, class and gender come under the spotlight in this oral history of fictional 1970s Afro-punk duo, Neville Charles and Opal Jewel, whose unlikely partnership shot to fame in the wake of a concert that erupted into violence and the accusations that dogged Opal. When Rivington Records signed the orange-haired British artist, Neville Charles, an exhaustive search commenced to find a performer to do his style and sound justice. Nev’s choice, against the advice of his record label boss, is bald-headed, black, working-class and fiercely independent Opal Robinson from Detroit. Having teamed Nev up with flamboyant and confrontational Opal, their career together is chronicled through their own words with the input of those around them in the early seventies. When what appears to be their final shot at breaking into the big time comes it entails taking part in a showcase headed up by a rival band signed to their label and parading the Confederate flag in front of their redneck biker fans. The impudent actions of Opal in retaliation are the catalyst for a violent clash in which her black married boyfriend, Jimmy Curtis, is killed. S Sunny Shelton is the daughter of Jimmy Curtis and the first black woman to be made editor of Aural music magazine and when she is given word of a possible reunion between the duo in 2016 it provides the ideal opportunity for her to confront her personal history and Opal’s part in her father’s death.

Despite Nev’s continued success as an artist in his own right, sixty-six-year-old and now reclusive Opal has not performed for twenty-five-year but is seriously considering a reunion gig. When an inflammatory allegation from one of the key players in the events of the riot threatens to scupper the reunion and reframe the flashpoint moment by leaving a question mark over the instigator, Sunny struggles to keep a lid on her anger. Undecided as to whether to reveal the unconfirmed accusation to Opal and bitter about the death of the father she never knew, Sunny struggles to get under the skin of Opal, now regarded as black feminist icon. Written as a series of interviews the book really captures the characters, their humour and their flaws and conjures up a vivid picture of the times. Whilst the first half of the novel captured my interest and was unexpectedly suspenseful setting the scene for what should have been a riveting second half the story seemed to lose its way and became less about the specific night of the riot and a more general conversation about the Black Lives Matter movement. Although the story does circle back and briefly address the controversial night when S Sunny Shelton’s father died the book disappointingly ends up feeling more about the social issues and less about the band, with the character development of Nev disappointingly skimpy.

3.5 rounded up

“I drank her in, I mean really looked at her – all her vibrant colors, the sparkle on her eyelids, her dimensions and sharp edges. Her rarity. It put me in mind of a gemstone…a jewel. Opal Jewel.”

The Final Revival of Opal & Nev is fictional oral story about Opal and Nev, told in a style very much like, yes, as many have mentioned, Daisy Jones, which I enjoyed. Opal, bold, bald and black, ‘A punk warrior goddess’; Neville (Nev) melancholic, maudlin, melodramatic; two very opposite individuals whose fate brought them together. Rumor had it that Nev and Sunny were planning to get together to perform for a 2016 reunion concert, and music journalist, S. Sunny Shelton, who was also the daughter of drummer Jimmy Curtis, was writing their story in a series of interviews to be written as a book, while also trying to find the truth to what happened to her father on that fateful evening.

Opal & Nev centered around music and systemic racism in the 70’s, sex, drugs, rock and roll, and what it meant to be a Black woman then in the music industry.

“Being a nigger in this country during the 1960s meant that you constantly lived with the possibility of violence.”

But you’d soon realize, it hasn’t changed much since. Opal was judged, mistreated, misunderstood; called names, abused mentally and physically, was told she could never succeed, but she bounced back. Every. Single. Time. She rocked her life her way, on her own terms, but also rolled with the punches and did what she needed to do, to show the world who she was and prove the naysayers wrong. Unfortunately, because of her skin color, she had to work extremely hard for her to achieve her dreams. And when she asked for what she deserved, “folks seemed to think I was a terrorist.”, that she was being “ungrateful”. But that didn’t deter her from achieving her dreams. It simply made her stronger, to go all out and fight for her rights and her voice to be heard. “My armor was me, by best asset. It kept me protected in this world. A world that either hated me or just didn’t know what to do with me.”

I thought, overall, this was a strong debut, and besides its delivery style that has been often compared to Daisy Jones, this book had a whole different story to offer – one I found that was strong, relevant and timely. I loved reading about Nev's journey leading to meeting Opal, which was one of my favorite parts of the book – how Nev insisted that she was THE one he wanted to be working with, the lengths he went through to get her to sign the contract and how she played hardball. It was fun, funny and entertaining. I think this was when the spotlight was all on Opal, and her character shone brilliantly.

The peak of the story for me, was the Rivington riot, which was done really well – the chaos, the biker-gang, the Confederate flag and the incident that led to Jimmy’s death; it was all riveting and felt so real. I thought, wow, this is it. The story was about to take off. Unfortunately, everything slowed down. There wasn’t much going on except for the recollections of that event and The Photo from the interviewees.

But my patience paid off when the paced picked up at the end, although the build-up to the most-anticipated reunion felt a little slow. I thought the ending and how everything came together - the reunion, stage, the performance, the racket that took place, and the resolution at the end, won my heart.

What deterred me from fully enjoying this novel though, were its characterization and plot. I found there were too many recollections from the past, from not only the main characters but also various sources involved, so much so at times it felt a little dragged, and the plot was compromised because of it.

While I enjoyed and appreciated the distinctive voices of some of the characters, especially Opal, Virgil and Nev, I found my interest and focus waning a little whenever they weren’t in the story. I also wanted more exploration of the characters, to help me empathize a little more, to feel their anger and frustrations for the injustice they experienced, to feel part of their story and the band, but I somehow felt detached. Also, maybe more on Opal’s relationship with Jimmy, since he was the reason that drove Sunny to write this story and that he had a special relationship with Opal. I thought it’d give the ending a more heartfelt, heartbreaking, yet triumphant umph at the end.

And the unfortunate event that took place at the reunion concert, was disheartening yet real - how ‘justice’ was interpreted by those in power towards the white and people of color – why were the bikers not apprehended? Why was Opal the only one being judged for her actions? What about those who started it? Others who were involved?

In Opal’s words, “I remember now. Because it didn’t matter that I was violently offended, that I had been a victim, that as a human being I deserved respect. When the fighting started, all I id was try to defend myself and Jimmy, but that didn’t matter either. All that mattered was that there was a hospital full of injured and pissed-off white folks, and thousands of dollars in property damage, and a nigger they thought couldn’t take a joke.”

Overall, a strong debut; one I didn’t fall head over heels with, but didn’t regret reading either. Would I recommend it? Yes, if you loved Daisy Jones style of storytelling, and that you’re a patient reader, patient enough to wait for a good ending.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for a free eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are mine.