Jacob Jump

by Eric Morris

Jacob Jump, the dark and meticulously crafted first novel from Eric Morris, follows a weeklong ill-fated boating trip down the Savannah River from Augusta, Georgia, to the lighthouse at Tybee Island. Chance and danger trump planning and intention at every turn, and the pull of the historic river and of fate itself propels Morris's characters with unrelenting force.

Old friends Thomas Verdery and William Rhind, each seeking temporary escape from the failures of their lives, take to the river with Rhind's father. Verdery, a native Southerner, has left his job and lover in Nepaug, Connecticut, while Rhind has lost his wife and child to his drinking. Encounters with dangerous weather and unhinged locals imperil the trio, who are held at gunpoint when they try to dock and soon are fighting among themselves. The hazards of the trip and a shocking loss along the way exacerbate William Rhind's drinking and tendencies toward violence. When Verdery and Rhind must become reluctant custodians of young Caron Lee, a lost girl from the backwoods family that had previously accosted them, tensions build toward explosive ends as the serene open waters of the Atlantic Ocean wait just beyond reach on the unknown, unknowable horizon.

Guided by a host of influences from William Faulkner and Ernest Hemingway to Cormac McCarthy, James Dickey, and Ron Rash, Morris's prose brings readers deep into the uncertainties of a still-wild Southern landscape and of the frailties of the human heart yearning for past and future alike while pulled along by the inescapable current of the present

216 pages, Paperback

First published August 18, 2015

Reviews

[Sarah Kennedy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this part-Deliverance, part-Cold Mountain story of three men traveling down a river. The pace may be somewhat slow for some readers, but the story picks up speed as it goes along. The narrative is punctuated with heavy philosophizing, which may wear on some readers who prefer that the action carry the novel, and the dialogue does seem to rely on repetition (by virtually all characters). That said, the characters are believable and the conflicts are very real. http://sarahkennedybooks.com

[Roxanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I won this book from Goodreads. This is the author's first novel. Writers use a river for their stories because it includes nature, and they can serve as symbols of escape and launches towards freedom. This book takes place on the Savannah river outside of Augusta and follows the borderlines of South Carolina and finally into the Atlantic Ocean. Two men start down the river on a escape but it does not go as planned and stuff happens. I will not give away the ending.

[Jackie Rogers · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wanted this book as it took place in the South. Love Southern novels. This one is well written but leaving an unfinished ending. Is about 3 men on a boat trip one the savannah river. The 2 younger men have messed up their lives and are longing for what they do not know. They meet some 'crazy' people along the way and endure hardship. Will they discover what they seek? The ending is left to our imagination. This novel will appeal mostly to men. An author to be aware of. Thanx again to Goodreads.

[Jim]

Exquisitely written, but overall depressing. Style much like Cormac McCarthy.

[Laura]

Bookmarks Festival Author 2015.
Good, quick read.