No Regrets (original 2011; edition 2012)

by Ace Frehley, Joe Layden, John Ostrosky

Members	Reviews	Popularity	Average rating	Conversations
119	3	229,047	(3.41)	None

Jarratt's review

As a life-long KISS fan, I wasn't expecting to learn a whole lot from Ace's book that I didn't already know. By and large, I was right, but most of the book was enjoyable nonetheless.

Ace, as he readily admits, is a screw-up. Being very anti-drug myself, I tend to side with Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons on most things KISS related. If you can't rely on someone, you need to find alternative ways to achieve a goal. Clearly they put up with much of Ace's shenanigans and genuinely tried to keep him in the band in the early '80s. But I don't think KISS would have survived as long as they have with Ace (or Peter Criss for that matter) in the band over the long haul.

Even still, after reading about all his crazy stories of drugs, alcohol, and debauchery, I was left with the impression that Ace seems to be a genuinely nice guy. And ultimately, stoned or not, he knew when KISS was heading in the wrong direction.

If you're a KISS fan, you'll enjoy the book, as I did. However, I got a little bored with the repetitive drug stories, especially after he left KISS initially. It's clear that he has no real direction in his life and that had it not been for Paul, Gene, and Bill Aucoin, Ace wouldn't be what he is today. (

)

Jarratt | Apr 21, 2013 |

All member reviews

date ▼ | votes

Showing 3 of 3

Pretty standard rock bio, including the clunky structure and lame writing. (

)

jrmypttrsn | Sep 5, 2019 |

)

Jarratt | Apr 21, 2013 |

An incredible rock and roll story, as told by Ace Frehley. The story of Kiss is one for the ages but it is almost always told from one particular view point; that of the remaining members and not the “other” founding members. To understand the real story you need to see all sides and this book is a great starting point to know the whole story. Ace holds nothing back, telling us all, even the stories when he was not exactly acting appropriately. I found the book to sound honest and I was a little bit surprised by how controlled Ace is in the book. I was expecting Ace to go after Paul, and especially Gene more, but Ace never gives in to that temptation. If you are a Kiss fan, or a historian of Rock and Roll, here is a point of view we rarely ever see. (

)