Humor mixed with debauchery and bad decisions gives us this ride. This is the first book by the author I have read. I found it intriguing and interesting. Enjoyable.

3.5

I've not read any Joseph Fulkerson before so wasn't sure what to expect. I guess this would be a modern chapbook format.

It tells the story of Jim, a good looking divorcee, just getting on with life in the backwater he describes as East Jesus Nowhere because if the proliferation of churches (and restaurants). It started out quite funny but after a while it's just Jim, getting drunk, trying to connect, living his life.

It was an okay read but nothing special. If you want a very quick read that's just about ordinary people then give it a go.

Thanks to Netgalley for the advance review copy.

There were parts of this that I enjoyed. There were other parts of this that didn't really work. It had the potential to pack a real punch, but it fell flat.

I did enjoy this book, despite not being a fan of humour in books. It was fast paced which kept me interested and the dark humour fit it perfectly.

It was outside of what I usually read, but it's made me think that I should look into this style of book more and I would also be interested in more from this author.

It was a surprisingly good read for me.

Sometimes a title is all that is needed to captivate an audience. A title so intriguing that the book must be read. That's the trick that author, Joseph Fulkerson mastered with EAST JESUS NOWHERE. A title that you just want to pick up.

DESCRIPTION;
EAST JESUS NOWHERE is about a blue-collar bastard who spends far too many of his nights sucking down booze at a bar called the Sand Dollar. Along with his friend Big Mike, Jimmy Lane (Jimbo) tries his best to navigate life and love while stuck in the middle of nowhere.

SUMMARY:
The description of East Jesus Nowhere says it all. Joseph Fulkerson can turn a phrase and does a wonderful job in the opening chapter setting the scene. The reader gets a nice glimpse into the life and the motivations (or lack thereof) of the type musings of a 'young-ish' blue collar guy. The set-up is intriguing but it rapidly becomes apparent that the novella's blurb is all there is.
East Jesus Nowhere goes nowhere. There's no plot, the characters are little more than names with a single attribute to distinguish one from another, and beyond the third chapter there is little more to be had than a series of repetitive incidents only striking for their familiarity. By the end, the novella has devolved into the type of scenarios that one would expect to index Penthouse Letters.

EAST JESUS NOWHERE is a great title in search of a story.

Thanks to NetGalley for providing an Advance copy of this novella in exchange for an honest review.

EAST JESUS NOWHERE
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2023