The Whyte Python World Tour

A Novel

By: Travis Kennedy

Narrated by: Wil Wheaton

Rikki Thunder, twenty-two-year-old drummer for the scorching new ’80s metal band Whyte Python, is about to have it all: absurd wealth, global fame, and a dream girlfriend. But an unwitting role as an international spy? That was definitely not part of the plan.

"A rock-n-roll thrill ride... Heavy Metal icon Rikki Thunder's satirical memoir is sweeter than Cherry Pie and better than a prescription from Dr. Feelgood! You need to read it."—Ernest Cline

It’s Los Angeles, 1986, and metal rules the world. For aspiring drummer Rikki Thunder, life is beautiful, just like his hair—even if he is sleeping in a condemned paint store and playing with a band that’s going nowhere. But when Rikki gets a shot to join L.A.’s hottest up-and-coming club band, Whyte Python, his young life takes a mind-blowing turn. Soon he and his new band mates have a hit single rocketing up the charts, Whyte Python is selling out major clubs, and Rikki has a gorgeous girlfriend in the audience and in his life. He literally could not ask for anything more.

But good fortune can be deceiving. As the band gets a deeper taste of success in the US, the late-80’s Cold War is breathing its last gasps around the world. American music is blasting through the Iron Curtain and a youth revolution is taking hold—with a hair band unknowingly playing host to the final battle for the hearts and minds of young people everywhere. Rikki Thunder soon questions the forces that are helping to propel Whyte Python, and he realizes the stakes of his musical journey—to spread peace, love, and epic shredding across the globe—might be far more dangerous than he had ever imagined.

Crafted on the satirical knife-edge between high-suspense and head-banging hilarity, The Whyte Python World Tour is a raucous, uplifting, and refreshing debut. Travis Kennedy’s adrenaline-charged novel is delightfully steeped in ’80s music and cultural nostalgia, delivering one of the most entertaining reads of the year.

Fun story

Cleaver and fun ride through rock n roll history. This would make a great movie.

Rock On White Python

The story is refreshingly original, true 80s fun, as it weaves in and out of nostalgia and events in communist rule countries at that time. Wil Wheaton is always fabulous as a narrator, this story is no exception, and you can tell he had fun doing it which makes it fun for the listener.

Holy shit, dude!

This story was pretty epic. As a kid who watched the Berlin Wall fall on the TV in our classroom, I enjoyed the homage to both eighties hair metal and the Cold War. The character development was excellent and Wil Wheaton did an incredible job with the narration.

80’s rock-anthem meets intrigue and spy storyline.

Wil Wheaton blends some of my favorite things from the 80’s. It reminded us of a time when “work-hard, play-hard” once ensured a fulfilling and exciting life - just by believing “You can do anything you set your heart and mind to do!” Wheaton takes us on the journey of a group of misfits who achieve not only fame and fortune, but also manage to champion the cause of winning the Cold War in the process. I love how a plumber saw through Ricky’s pain of a dysfunctional upbringing and helped him find a healthy obsession and a better emotional outlet. Wheaton also manages to tweak the heartstrings with a first-love story, contouring those butterfly feelings that we all experienced in our youth. I cannot wait to see where Wheaton takes us next!

Great story!

Fun bubblegum fun hair metal band Story sat in late 80s couldn’t have been cooler. Love the novel premise.