REVIEWS

As a debut author, I am riddled with self-doubt. My greatest fear has been that once my book is released everyone will point and yell...'that's the most ridiculous excuse for a book I have ever read....'. I have been biting my fingernails waiting for feedback. So it is with some relief that I share these early reviews....I say a big thanks to these people for taking the time to write some words about my story. I only wish Vince was around to watch my book's journey into the public arena.

Review by Music Journalist, Vincent Lovegrove 30/12/11

"Make no mistake, this book leaves most other precious 'public-relations' rock books well in the shade. It's a down-home sexually-charged, emotionally frayed roller coaster ride from one of the girls who helped make rock'n'roll what it is today.

Some called them groupies or band molls, I called them pro-active fans, and without them there would be no rock'n'roll industry. You'll know some of the rock stars, & if your heart has pumped at all in the past 40 years, you'll know some of the dens of iniquity, some of the drugs, and the thrill of the chase.

Not just one of the best Australian rock books, but one of the best rock books. The tables have turned, and I reckon this book will start an avalanche of rock books from the other side of the stage. I kid you not - sex, drugs, rock'n'roll and a woman's point of view. Very, very different. Hold tight, and may the sleaze, the tears, and the emotions be with you.                                                         Vincent Lovegrove  

Review for Bookseller and Publisher Magazine, March 2012

In her Gold Coast home in 1981, with the aid of a stuffed 
rabbit named Andy Gibb and numerous  Countdown
viewings, 15-year-old Nikki McWatters connects her 
ever-consuming lust with rock stars. ‘Rock and roll was 
the only sensible sex education I had,’ she says. With her 
three aspiring groupie friends dubbed the Vulture Club 
she sets out to bed rock gods, sneaking out of her bedroom 
window at night while her parents sleep, and working her 
way backstage. This memoir is a who’s who of Australian 
’80s bands with some big international names thrown in, 
full of backstage antics and teased hair, unflinching yet 
discreet enough to protect the identities of her conquests. 
Just. We follow McWatters to Sydney, and deeper into a 
world of sex, drugs and rock‘n’roll, right up to the birth 
of her first child on her 21st birthday. McWatters renders 
her story with skill, sensitivity, wit and honesty, and writes 
from a place of hindsight and maturity, adeptly lifting 
her telling above the mere salacious and sensational. Her 
story of groupiedom is not without its consequences and 
is a fascinating look into some of rock’s seedier aspects. 
This will appeal to those who love rock‘n’roll tales, fans 
of the ’80s, and anyone with an interest in Australia’s 
music history.
Deborah Crabtree is a Melbourne-based writer 
and bookseller

Review by Readings Booksellers, Melbourne

http://www.readings.com.au/review/one-way-or-another-by-nikki-mcwatters

Review by Fairfieldbooks on Station

"It is as fascinating, shocking, thrilling and exciting as you can hope for an autobiography to be."
http://fairfieldbooksonstation.wordpress.com/2012/03/30/one-way-or-another-im-gonna-find-ya-im-gonna-getcha-getcha-getcha/


Review by Living in the Land of Oz

TOUGH LOVE
The book is called One Way Or Another, The Story Of A Girl Who Loved Rock Stars ($29.95, Black Inc). "Not another book about groupies shagging rock stars," we thought when we picked up a copy. But this book works because actor Nikki McWatters is a fine writer. She's got a story to tell, and she knows how to tell it. "Truth be told," she writes, "a rock star in real life would make a hopeless partner. Far better to be a rock and roll mistress than a rock and roll missus. Musicians were junk food, not a proper nutritious meal. Good and bad for you at the same time, like a plate of greasy chips and a bottle of red, red wine." Nikki is still a Gold Coast schoolgirl when she has her first sexual experience, with a member of Australian Crawl, who she doesn't name. She beds a Duran Duran member, and also falls for a star who sounds suspiciously like Steve Kilbey (who provides a plug on the front cover: "A great Australian rock 'n' roll read"), a relationship that has unintended consequences. Nikki gives Dragon a slap ("It was a running joke that Dragon was the ugliest band in Australia. Queen won the international title") and praises Pseudo Echo, calling bass player Pierre Pierre "a walking hairdo and an interesting musician and we chatted about current affairs. This was a breath of fresh air in an industry that often viewed girls backstage as meat on legs." More sad than salacious, One Way Or Another is a rollicking read. Richard Lowenstein calls it "a Puberty Blues for the '80s generation".
http://www.livinginthelandofoz.com/howzat.html