"Heart of Junk" by Luke Geddes is a quirky and unique novel that will leave you laughing and thinking long after you've finished reading. The author's humor is wacky and offbeat, making for a refreshingly original read. The writing style is engaging and easy to follow, and the characters are lovable and memorable. Whether you're looking for a lighthearted escape or just a good laugh, "Heart of Junk" is the perfect choice. I highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a good time and a fresh perspective on life.

I’m judging a 2020 fiction contest. It’d be generous to call what I’m doing upon my first cursory
glance—reading. I also don’t take this task lightly. As a fellow writer and lover of words and books, I took this position—in hopes of being a good literary citizen. My heart aches for all the writers who have a debut at this time. What I can share now is the thing that held my attention and got this book from the perspective pile into the read further pile.


Great work

I appreciate having had an opportunity to read and review this book. The appeal of this particular book was not evident to me, and if I cannot file a generally positive review I prefer simply to advise the publisher to that effect and file no review at all.

This book is an interesting and often funny satire, however the characters were hard to connect with which made the humor less funny than it could’ve been because I felt like an outsider watching a group laugh about their inside jokes.

Not as hilarious as I was led to believe. Its funny. Geddes hit the nail on the head when he visualized vendors at the antique mall. I'm still a little confused about the kidnapping.

Thank you NetGalley and Publisher for this early copy!

Did not finish - I could not connect with this novel and decided to not read it. Sorry, but thank you for the copy!

The premise of this book had me intrigued from the get-go. As a longtime junker, and as the friend of quite a few antique sellers, I loved the idea of reading about the shenanigans at an antique mall, and Geddes does a good job of capturing the multitude of personalities and the flakiness of the people there. That said, I found the story lacking. The multiple points of view were a plus at first, but as the book wore on, I realized I had far too many questions about each character, and most of those questions were unresolved by book's end. Also, I thought the author stereotyped his gay characters and did them no favors. Finally, the potty language and penis jokes made me think a 12-year-old boy got ahold of this manuscript and decided to have a go at it, resulting in a letdown in what could have been a really fun story.

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Heart of Junk by Luke Geddes is a novel about a group of antique dealers in Wichita, Kansas. Mr. Geddes is writer from Cincinnati, OH.

At The Heart of America Antique Mall the dealers are excited, a famous antiques television show, Pickin’ Fortunes, are planning to film an episode at the mall and they all believe that this is what they need to turn their flailing businesses around. The show’s producers, however, refuse to film due to the tragedy of an abducted little girl in the area. The dealers know that finding the little girl is paramount for their businesses.

I’m an avid watcher of antique shows, whether it’s Antiques Roadshow, Pawn Stars, or American Pickers (which I believe is what the author based his fictional show on). More importantly, I’m a collector and am able to find good deals at resale stores every now and then. Sometimes the item call my name from the back of the shelf.

So I understood perfectly well some of the loveable and colorful dealers in Heart of Junk by Luke Geddes. Items are, sometimes, more than just “things”, but almost enchanted objects with souls. If you don’t “get it”, think when your kids left out Sheriff Woody or Buzz Lightyear in the car, and just for a second you wanted to go out into the snow to get them out because they might be cold.

This book is a satire of the antique market culture and the people that inhibit it. The dealer that thinks she deals in high-end antiques and gets bent out of shape when a stall next to her is occupied by a gay couple selling “junk”. A lonely postcard vendor / collector, the dealer who’s just in it for the money, a woman who specializes in Barbie dolls looking for the holy grail of Barbies – and she can also hear them talking to her, among others.

Along with the vendors, the author introduces two sub-plots, one of a missing little girl, and the other of a fictional antique TV reality show which is about to come visit the struggling mall. The novel takes place over four days and is told from seven different points of view. While seven points of view might be a bit too much, I managed to follow along pretty easily, to my surprise.

This was a fun, original novel. It’s not meant to be taken seriously and the author embraces each character’s person, quirks, and stereotype. I appreciated the author staying away from a mean-spirited attempts at being funny at the expanse of his characters. To me it seemed that he does understand the collecting mindset of both collectors and vendors.

What first drew me into “Heart of Junk” by Luke Geddes was the cover. I mean it was quirky and I happen to love quirky things, books definitely included. The next thing that drew me in was the synopsis because, you know, quirky!!! The book itself was fun and hilarious at times. I really didn’t care for the characters if I’m being completely honest. There were also some moments where the story dragged. Overall, I liked it.

I received a digital copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

This book offers kind of a strange group of quirky characters & a bit of a comedy of errors. There isn't a mystery, but a goofy, mistimed clashing of events that lead the reader to smile, chuckle, shake your head...at how this is going to play out! Regarding the writing style.....the author tends to use very long sentences.....I'd notice it as I was reading it....& think 'boy, that was a lot packed into that sentence!' But it ultimately worked.....I was able to adjust to it without issue!
I received this e-book, compliments of Simon & Schuster via NetGalley, & in return I offer my own fair & honest review.

The set-up: The Heart of America mall is billed as "the largest year-round antiques market in the state of Kansas". It used to be quite the thriving business but times have changed. "Antiques" have largely been replaced by collectibles, flea market bargains, and just plain junk sold by a motley assortment of oddballs and misfits - a few old timers, a couple of newcomers, and a lot of empty space.

It's an open secret that the place is on the verge of permanently closing up shop. An impending visit by an American Pickers/Antiques Roadshow type of reality show might just be what it takes to save the place. Until the disappearance of a local child causes the show to think about cancelling. That's right about where Heart of Junk begins.

This is not a book that fits easily into a given genre. I would hesitate to call it crime fiction although the disappearance of a child beauty queen (or "pageant princess") figures prominently in the plot. There are some elements of mystery but at the same time it's not what would typically be considered a "mystery". Unique, satirical, quirky, humorous, melancholy, poignant - at one time or another it captures all of that. Plus there are some very unexpected plot twists.

My best attempt at a label or category for Heart of Junk is literary fiction. It's got something for everyone but at the same time it's not exclusively any one thing except a good read.

I'm recommending Heart of Junk with one caveat; If you are strongly attached to staying firmly within the comfort zone of one particular genre - no mash-ups or cross genres - then it might not be for you.

There is strong language and a few adult situations that could be offensive to more sensitive readers. The adult stuff is pretty mild. Mainly it's the cursing which isn't all that extensive but there are some F-bombs (that's usually the biggie in terms of offense).

***Thanks to NetGalley, Simon & Schuster, and author Luke Geddes for graciously providing me with a free digital copy of this title in exchange for an honest review.

I received an advanced reader’s copy in exchange for an honest review!

A comical read that made me think throughout. A very unique read and not what I was expecting.

This book is advertised as 'hilarious satire' but to me it was just sad. Lots of characters that go beyond quirky (I guess that's where the satire comes in). Yes, there are moments of humor bot the overall feeling of the book for me was just overwhelming sadness. It does, however, paint a picture of how pathetic a life devoted to acquisition can be and for this, I'll give it three stars.

“Heart of Junk” by Luke Geddes has such a fun and enticing cover that I knew I had to pick it up. The cover reminded me of some of the things I’ve been holding onto since childhood, such as the first book I ever read (“Fun With Dick and Jane”) and mementos from family and friends. I feel good about keeping those items but I know there are lots of old treasures (junk) I could get rid of at a place like the “Heart of America Antique Mall.” Geddes has written a satirical novel about a group of unusual characters who sell their “treasures” at an antique mall in middle America. There is an ideal mix of dark humor and suspense and a great deal of quirkiness. The ending seemed a little weak, but otherwise this was a entertaining book.

My review was posted on Goodreads on 1/29/20.

If you've ever wandered through an antique mall and marveled over some of the stuff some people choose to value and the people who make their living providing those things, you'll probably enjoy this satirical novel. It takes semi polite potshots at a number of classic misfits and self involved bulldozers while sniffing at the kinds of items being offered and purchased for unexpected prices. I snickered a lot.
I requested and received a free ebook copy from Simon and Schuster Publishing via NetGalley.

Know in advance that this is light satire and that the characters are in many ways caricatures- but it is chuckleworthy. You likely will recognize some of those who sell at the Heart of America antique mall. If you've wandered through one of these emporiums, you'll definitely recognize their wares. And Mark and Grant, the tv hosts who plan to film an episode of their show at the mall- you'll know them too. That doesn't mean that anything that happens is expected. The disappearance of Lindy, a toddler beauty queen, hovers in the background. This wanders close to over the top at times but it's fairly and appropriately short so that the reader stays with and does not tire of the jokes. Thanks to the publisher for the ARC. It's fun.

I loved all of the kooky weirdos in this story. This story is like if Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine took place in an antique shop. It’s Needful Things minus most of the horror. It’s hilarious and sad and hopeful and tragic. I wish it was longer so we could spend more fleshing out the characters and their backstories.

I loved the setting of this book in an antique mall and the characters were amusing. I found it interesting that the story was told through collectables in a way. The mall is going under and outside the mall a young girl is missing. A very intriguing read. I enjoyed it.

I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy free of charge. This is my honest and unbiased opinion of it.

This was SO good -- hard to describe but I was immediately immersed and this one was hard to put down. I loved the language, the characters and everything about this book. Such a unique setting and the way in which the stories were told through objects was superb. This is a debut but I am excited to read more by this author!

Heart of Junk comes out later this month on January 21, 2020, and you can purchase HERE. I loved this book, great to start the year!!

But now if Village Green could sound fresh to him after all these years, who knew? It was possible he could reenter the sweet zone of anything, maybe even as foundational a song as "I Want to Hold Your Hand." Lee was not young. The best days of his life were far behind him. If his only ambition was to avoid major tragedies such as disfiguring injuries and debilitating destitution while taking solace in his record collection, he supposed he could live with that. He would list only to pop music from now on, he decided, whether as sophisticated as Pet Sounds or as vapid as Ohio Express--or hell, even the Sodashoppe Teens.

'A collection was a record of a life lived, maybe not well or happily but at least with attention and passion. It was an autobiography made tangible.'

The Heart of America Antique Mall in the city of Wichita, Kansas is going under. For the impassioned collectors of what to others may be junk, this has been the one place they can display and sell the collectibles that are their lifeblood. They themselves are a collection of misfits, as strange and unique as the knickknacks they push on customers. Delores, a Barbie doll aficionado, communicates with her collection of rare dolls, abstaining from all of life’s pleasures for her betterment. Poor old widower and avid postcard collector Ronald finds himself stumbling, bumbling into quite a pickle without his wife to keep him in line. Lee, A middle aged man, is back in his childhood home with his partner Seymour in tow; they are the ‘fresh blood’ for the dying business, trying to peddle the ‘detritus’ of their life, the leftovers from their own failed vintage shop in Cambridge. Might the strain of this last stop place be too much for their dying relationship to handle?

Ellie feels like a caged animal, trapped working at her parent’s business since she was 13 and now likely for an extended stint thanks to her mother. Ellie wants nothing more than to spend her days trying to blank out her surroundings, dreaming of abandoning it all. This is not the future she desires, it is worse than death, so much so that she longs to be like the abducted beauty pageant toddler Lindy Bobo, at least something happened in her life. Bobo, whose face is on flyers, is soon discovered to have a strange connection to the very mall Ellie hates. The local child star’s disappearance is creating a ripple effect that may ruin Ellie’s dad’s plans for revival of the mall.

Keith, Ellie’s father and owner of The Heart of America is sure salvation will come in the form of the popular antiques show Pickin’ Fortunes. They just need the attention, and who better than the presenters Mark and Grant to shine a light on the place? But will the media attention of the missing child spoil his plans? Margaret Byrd spends her time feeling superior to the others, unlike the rest of the sellers, her things are treasures and the place is going to the dogs, now that ‘the gays’ have begun to sell pop junk in her friend’s former booth!She knows their things are certainly not antiques and will only put shoppers off! Pete Dean is the Dealer Association President, toy collector and hoarder, because of course this loud mouth isn’t serious about what he sells- but he always seems to know how to hook people, Delores especially.

Each of the characters in this novel are unraveling. The story has a slow beginning and then, out of nowhere, the most comical, ridiculous nonsense leads to serious trouble. Even the most uptight of them loses her grip on whatever semblance of control she had. They are disasters, and their future seems more doomed then poor little Lindy’s. Just how will it all end? In a tangle, of course!

A funny read about neurotic people.

Publication Date: April 1, 2020

Simon & Schuster