Overview

Hard times and bad decisions drove Dan to borrow money from neighborhood mobster Fat Jackie the first time, and bad luck the second. Now he's beaten and handcuffed in a damp basement, hoping Jackie doesn't pull the trigger over ten thousand dollars. But that's just the way some Ash Wednesdays go. Dan and Jackie hated each other in high school, and twenty years later, not much has changed except Jackie's fatter and more dangerous than ever. When his daughter, Lydia, disappears without a trace, Jackie offers Dan a way to settle his debt: find the girl. Simple as that. The problem is, Dan's not a detective. He's a garbage man with a drinking problem, and Lydia could be in New Mexico-or New York-or anywhere in between. Desperate, Dan turns to Annie, a waitress trapped in a passionless marriage and hungry for purpose. But the search for Lydia drags her into a world she's not ready for, as the two set off through dive bars, tattoo shops, and the New Mexico desert, where each lead sends them down a darker path and every shadow hides a fresh new horror. With the clock ticking, a low bar for success, and romance sparking between them, all Dan and Annie need to do is navigate each dead end, find Lydia, figure out what to do about Annie's husband, and survive Jackie's vicious mood swings-all without running out of money for booze. The Bar Is in Hell is a fast-paced race against time, where the only thing more daunting than the grisly tasks at hand are the morning hangovers. Joshua Murray captures the grind of daily life, where laughter is the only defense left against the futility of it all. The Bar Is in Hell is razor-sharp, darkly funny, and a testament to how far someone will crawl through darkness to protect the fragile hope that keeps them alive.

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Reviews

""The BAR IS IN HELL is a madcap violent delight, deeply funny, with a big heart. Joshua Murray weaves a wild tale that is brutal and hilarious, featuring a love story you can really believe in. It's a live-wire act that keeps the pages turning, a novel you will want to revisit time and time again, like checking in on old friends."" - JIMMY CAJOLEAS, author of The Good Demon ""Joshua Murray creates characters so believable, you swear you've known them in real life. Their words, their actions, and their decisions are genuine. In THE BAR IS IN HELL, Dan's decisions are about to get him killed, but he finds a reason to keep on fighting. If you like stories that show humanity as dirty, dumb, ugly, and as beautiful as it really is, you should read this book."" - STANTON McCAFFERY, Editor-in-Chief of Rock and a Hard Place Press and author of Neighborhood of Dead Ends ""Joshua Murray's THE BAR IS IN HELL is an urgent and electric debut novel. It's gritty, violent, infused with desperate energy, and funny as hell. Murray is a great new voice."" - WILLIAM BOYLE, author of Saint of the Narrows Street

Author Information

JOSHUA MURRAY grew up in Babylon Village, New York. He is the Editor-in-Chief of the newly formed Dog Named Dog Press. You can find some of his stories in Rock and a Hard Place Magazine, Dark Yonder, and Shotgun Honey. The Bar Is in Hell is his first novel. He works as a graphic designer and lives on Long Island with his wife and cats. JOSHUA MURRAY grew up in Babylon Village, New York. He is the Editor-in-Chief of the newly formed Dog Named Dog Press. You can find some of his stories in Rock and a Hard Place Magazine, Dark Yonder, and Shotgun Honey. The Bar Is in Hell is his first novel. He works as a graphic designer and lives on Long Island with his wife and cats.

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