Milky Way Marmalade
By Mike DiCerto 

     Caffrey Quark has never heard real music. In the year 3265, music has been reduced to something that is mass produced from databases of pleasing notes and has no real meaning--something non-objectionable to fill radio time between commercials. One day he spots a jukebox floating by outside the window of his spaceship. He captures it. Once he plays Stairway to Heaven by Led Zeppelin, his world is changed forever.
Caffrey meets an android named Poe33. He is the guardian of the wisest substance in the universe. It is a cube of orange-colored gelatin known as "The L'Orange."

     Unfortunately, Poe33 has currently misplaced it. He believes Caffrey can help him find his master.

     Caffrey's friends are kidnapped by a beautiful woman in an attempt to recruit Caffrey to find "The L'Orange." She is part of an organization headed by Nefarious Wretch, who wants to use it to rid the universes of music.

    Caffrey will not be party to this evil plot, but he also is not willing to let his friends die. He sets off on a quest to defeat Nefarious Wretch and rescue his friends.
This book is very fast-paced with lots of action. It's full of things that feel like inside jokes--things that would be hilarious if only I knew who Hirika Joso was or what a corgishma is. There are endnotes, but the story would be so much better if you didn't have to turn to the back of the book to figure out what a reference meant. The end notes are very funny, but stopping to look up a reference really breaks the rhythm and pulls you out of the story.

     The story is interesting, although sometimes the plot gets lost in all the verbosity. The author has potential. Once he learns to integrate his endnotes into the story, stops making so many unknown references and cuts back his word count, he should be an enjoyable writer. I look forward to reading his future works.