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Nuns with Shotguns
"...it’s impossible to deny P.H. Mountain's magnetic storytelling, his vibrant spirit, and the reckless abandon with which he presents this raucous memoir." - Indies Today
“You are NOT funny!” she claimed, falsely.Nuns with Shotguns, Vol II of THE WORLD IS MY ASHTRAY, picks up where Pepperoni, Jalapeños & LSD left off. Paul and Lonnie disappear into a Rocky Mountain ghost town to decompress from a manic year in Boulder, Colorado. The town of Eldora is spectacular, serene, virtually uninhabited. Perhaps a hundred hermits are scattered throughout the mountain valley, cleaning their guns and guarding their bongs. Now twenty years old and even more determined to write his way to financial freedom, Paul hunkers down at his typewriter in his new, idyllic setting and begins banging out his first novel, helped/hindered by 1,000 beers."The liquid acid I’d taken to celebrate having liquid acid rolled clean and strong..."Full of Budweiser, hallucinogens, and a young man’s lust, Paul cannot resist the temptation of the larger, manic world, of course. Before long, he’s relentlessly chasing new women, blasting through the mountains on his motorcycle, and tripping acid on the mountain peaks surrounding the Eldora valley. Wedding weirdness, stunning sunsets, puppy poop, brutal loss, hard drugs, continuous betrayal, and strange mountain saloons punctuate this continuation of P. H. Mountain’s whirlwind comedic memoir. Set against the backdrop of the final decade before the tech revolution, Nuns with Shotguns is a full embrace of reckless living, an unapologetic testament to the stunning beauty of attacking life with the throttle open and arms spread wide.“I knew I had to die, dammit, but since I had to die, I decided there could be no better moment to do so, and the intense awareness of perfect death made me suddenly fall madly in love with life. The moon, the night, the cold sting of mountain air, a madman at the wheel, his wailing scream penetrating nature’s wildly illuminated darkness. Damn. It was worth it, enduring all this long life, all the hidden terrors just over the horizon, the heartache and heartbreak, the hard work and easily achieved misery, if only for ten minutes as such.”
“You are NOT funny!” she claimed, falsely.Nuns with Shotguns, Vol II of THE WORLD IS MY ASHTRAY, picks up where Pepperoni, Jalapeños & LSD left off. Paul and Lonnie disappear into a Rocky Mountain ghost town to decompress from a manic year in Boulder, Colorado. The town of Eldora is spectacular, serene, virtually uninhabited. Perhaps a hundred hermits are scattered throughout the mountain valley, cleaning their guns and guarding their bongs. Now twenty years old and even more determined to write his way to financial freedom, Paul hunkers down at his typewriter in his new, idyllic setting and begins banging out his first novel, helped/hindered by 1,000 beers."The liquid acid I’d taken to celebrate having liquid acid rolled clean and strong..."Full of Budweiser, hallucinogens, and a young man’s lust, Paul cannot resist the temptation of the larger, manic world, of course. Before long, he’s relentlessly chasing new women, blasting through the mountains on his motorcycle, and tripping acid on the mountain peaks surrounding the Eldora valley. Wedding weirdness, stunning sunsets, puppy poop, brutal loss, hard drugs, continuous betrayal, and strange mountain saloons punctuate this continuation of P. H. Mountain’s whirlwind comedic memoir. Set against the backdrop of the final decade before the tech revolution, Nuns with Shotguns is a full embrace of reckless living, an unapologetic testament to the stunning beauty of attacking life with the throttle open and arms spread wide.“I knew I had to die, dammit, but since I had to die, I decided there could be no better moment to do so, and the intense awareness of perfect death made me suddenly fall madly in love with life. The moon, the night, the cold sting of mountain air, a madman at the wheel, his wailing scream penetrating nature’s wildly illuminated darkness. Damn. It was worth it, enduring all this long life, all the hidden terrors just over the horizon, the heartache and heartbreak, the hard work and easily achieved misery, if only for ten minutes as such.”
264 pages, Paperback
Published November 7, 2023
About the author
P.H. Mountain
8 books23 followersP.H. Mountain was partially educated at the University of Minnesota before earning his undergraduate degree from the Boulder Public Library and his master's from The Sundown Saloon. At 29, he founded a software company that continues to thrive. He has lived in three different vehicles, fifteen different states, and five different countries, but he generally considers Colorado home. In a moment of clarity, Paul married his wife Stella in 2001. To this day, he still considers her the luckiest woman alive.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
December 30, 2023
4.25 stars
I’ll rate part 2 the same as part 1.
Another fun, easy read. Don’t know if there is going to be a part 3, and I hope there is, because I want to know what happened between him and Lonnie, and if he ever confronted her, and/or if Phil told Lonnie….
If you are confused by my review then read both books!
I’ll rate part 2 the same as part 1.
Another fun, easy read. Don’t know if there is going to be a part 3, and I hope there is, because I want to know what happened between him and Lonnie, and if he ever confronted her, and/or if Phil told Lonnie….
If you are confused by my review then read both books!
March 23, 2026
Nuns with Shotguns by P.H. Mountain is a raucous, reckless, and unexpectedly beautiful continuation of The World Is My Ashtray series. Picking up where Pepperoni, Jalapeños & LSD left off, the memoir follows Paul and Lonnie as they disappear into a Rocky Mountain ghost town to decompress from a manic year in Boulder, Colorado. The town of Eldora is spectacular, serene, virtually uninhabited. Perhaps a hundred hermits are scattered throughout the mountain valley, cleaning their guns and guarding their bongs.
Mountain writes with the kind of magnetic storytelling that makes it impossible to look away. Now twenty years old and even more determined to write his way to financial freedom, Paul hunkers down at his typewriter in his new idyllic setting and begins banging out his first novel, helped and hindered by a thousand beers. But the larger, manic world is too tempting to resist. Before long, he is relentlessly chasing new women, blasting through the mountains on his motorcycle, and tripping acid on the mountain peaks surrounding the Eldora valley.
What sets Nuns with Shotguns apart is its refusal to sentimentalize or apologize. The memoir is a full embrace of reckless living, an unapologetic testament to the stunning beauty of attacking life with the throttle open and arms spread wide. Mountain does not flinch from the consequences of his choices, the brutal loss, the hard drugs, the continuous betrayal. But he also finds in that life moments of transcendent beauty.
The prose is electric. Mountain captures the wedding weirdness, stunning sunsets, puppy poop, and strange mountain saloons with equal attention. His description of a moment on the edge of death is worth the price of the book alone. "I knew I had to die, dammit, but since I had to die, I decided there could be no better moment to do so, and the intense awareness of perfect death made me suddenly fall madly in love with life. The moon, the night, the cold sting of mountain air, a madman at the wheel, his wailing scream penetrating nature's wildly illuminated darkness. Damn. It was worth it, enduring all this long life, all the hidden terrors just over the horizon, the heartache and heartbreak, the hard work and easily achieved misery, if only for ten minutes as such."
Set against the backdrop of the final decade before the tech revolution, Nuns with Shotguns captures a moment in time when that kind of reckless abandon was still possible, or at least still possible to document without the surveillance of a connected world. Mountain's voice is singular, his energy undeniable, and his ability to find the sacred in the profane is on full display.
For readers who enjoy raucous memoirs, coming of age stories that refuse to play it safe, and writing that pulses with life, Nuns with Shotguns is an excellent choice. It is the kind of work that deserves a much wider readership and with the right exposure it will find the audience it truly deserves.
Mountain writes with the kind of magnetic storytelling that makes it impossible to look away. Now twenty years old and even more determined to write his way to financial freedom, Paul hunkers down at his typewriter in his new idyllic setting and begins banging out his first novel, helped and hindered by a thousand beers. But the larger, manic world is too tempting to resist. Before long, he is relentlessly chasing new women, blasting through the mountains on his motorcycle, and tripping acid on the mountain peaks surrounding the Eldora valley.
What sets Nuns with Shotguns apart is its refusal to sentimentalize or apologize. The memoir is a full embrace of reckless living, an unapologetic testament to the stunning beauty of attacking life with the throttle open and arms spread wide. Mountain does not flinch from the consequences of his choices, the brutal loss, the hard drugs, the continuous betrayal. But he also finds in that life moments of transcendent beauty.
The prose is electric. Mountain captures the wedding weirdness, stunning sunsets, puppy poop, and strange mountain saloons with equal attention. His description of a moment on the edge of death is worth the price of the book alone. "I knew I had to die, dammit, but since I had to die, I decided there could be no better moment to do so, and the intense awareness of perfect death made me suddenly fall madly in love with life. The moon, the night, the cold sting of mountain air, a madman at the wheel, his wailing scream penetrating nature's wildly illuminated darkness. Damn. It was worth it, enduring all this long life, all the hidden terrors just over the horizon, the heartache and heartbreak, the hard work and easily achieved misery, if only for ten minutes as such."
Set against the backdrop of the final decade before the tech revolution, Nuns with Shotguns captures a moment in time when that kind of reckless abandon was still possible, or at least still possible to document without the surveillance of a connected world. Mountain's voice is singular, his energy undeniable, and his ability to find the sacred in the profane is on full display.
For readers who enjoy raucous memoirs, coming of age stories that refuse to play it safe, and writing that pulses with life, Nuns with Shotguns is an excellent choice. It is the kind of work that deserves a much wider readership and with the right exposure it will find the audience it truly deserves.
December 28, 2025
Another chapter in the story of Paul Mountain. I liked this book, not quite as much as the first, but almost. He has some interesting things to say and I am encourage to finally read "Atlas Shrugged" as an e-book and I already have it on Audible for roadtrips. I read this 2nd of Paul's books on the Kindle App (on my laptop and phone, still haven't committed to an e-reader). I am even tempted to try some acid, or more likely, micro-dosing some mushroom.
There is a sense of fantasy, every woman is drop dead gorgeous and sees Paul as some sort of sex god, but maybe that just part of his story and whether it's the absolute truth or not doesn't really matter. I had some trouble again with the infidelity, but there was more to the dalliances this time, and the stories are entertaining. Imagining what these girls look like in my mind is a sort of adventure too.
Haven't quite decided on the 3rd book, but I'll check it out. An intersting way to end 2025!! This was my 60th book this year, 27K pages.
There is a sense of fantasy, every woman is drop dead gorgeous and sees Paul as some sort of sex god, but maybe that just part of his story and whether it's the absolute truth or not doesn't really matter. I had some trouble again with the infidelity, but there was more to the dalliances this time, and the stories are entertaining. Imagining what these girls look like in my mind is a sort of adventure too.
Haven't quite decided on the 3rd book, but I'll check it out. An intersting way to end 2025!! This was my 60th book this year, 27K pages.
February 23, 2025
I enjoyed this one as much as the first !
By the end I did feel the over explained sexcapades were getting alittle tedious . Although entertaining in the beginning by the end it just felt like I was losing the storyline in detailed lsd trips and sex . It became repetitive.
However, the writing and actual storytelling compelled me forward . I would definitely continue with the series !
Fully invested !!
By the end I did feel the over explained sexcapades were getting alittle tedious . Although entertaining in the beginning by the end it just felt like I was losing the storyline in detailed lsd trips and sex . It became repetitive.
However, the writing and actual storytelling compelled me forward . I would definitely continue with the series !
Fully invested !!
August 28, 2025
P H Mountain does it again
This is a great coming of age series for those of us that didn’t follow the societal blue print; graduate college at 22, faceless drone in corporate America, marry and start having 2.5 kids. Pablo is an endearing protagonist with the soul of an explorer and courage of a bull fighter.
Hunter S Thompson for the next generation.
This is a great coming of age series for those of us that didn’t follow the societal blue print; graduate college at 22, faceless drone in corporate America, marry and start having 2.5 kids. Pablo is an endearing protagonist with the soul of an explorer and courage of a bull fighter.
Hunter S Thompson for the next generation.
May 27, 2025
Wow!
I’m not sure how this book got into my TBR pile. I rarely read memoirs. I didn’t even realize it was a memoir until I was almost finished with it. It was an unexpected wild ride. I really enjoyed it.
I’m not sure how this book got into my TBR pile. I rarely read memoirs. I didn’t even realize it was a memoir until I was almost finished with it. It was an unexpected wild ride. I really enjoyed it.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews