With or Without Pulp

by Michael J. Elsey

John Smith is laying low in West Hollywood and trying to transcend his past by following the precepts of his guru, Ahmanarshi. However, darkness has a way of shadowing the light. When his neighbor Laura goes missing, John Smith will need to tread carefully on the path of good and evil. On his journey, he discovers a dead Russian thug, a truckload of meth laced oranges and Anya, a porcelain-skinned beauty that puts the nerve in Nirvana.

159 pages, Paperback

Published September 1, 2017

About the author

Michael J. Elsey is a filmmaker and writer living in Chicago. He studied film at Columbia College and earned a degree in Philosophy from Catholic University. He is passionate about film, binge watches a lot of crime shows and dotes on his son. When he isn't writing he is either dreaming or eating.

Reviews

[Dave]

What starts out as a meet-cute episode wth an apartment neighbor and her precocious daughter ends up in a tormented journey through the bars and taquerias of Los Angeles with Russian thugs, human traffickers, sleazy con artists, mafiosos, FBI agents, and more. From West Hollywood to Silver Lake, the city of angels is fleshed out like yet another character. Lots of stuff thrown in here and there are lots of characters, so many it's not always easy to keep them all straight. I received my copy via a Goodreads giveaway.

[Alan Taylor]

I received this as a Goodreads first reads giveaway.
A good fast paced novel, with in depth characters and a very good plot twist, thoroughly recommended as a good read.

[Kirk Weikart]

An intriguing premise; what would you do as a good neighbor. The persona of the main character is revealed slowly and only a piece at a time. The plot develops into a mad capped and unpredictable journey involving a LOT of characters who may or may not be what they first present.

For my tastes, the characters are underdeveloped. There were also too many characters for me to keep straight; several being referred to by more than one name.

I am a visual reader. For the most part, there was not enough detail for me to picture the characters or the scenery.

Overall, an enjoyable read, just too many moving pieces and lacking in detail.

[Janet Brand]

With or Without Pulp is an excellent book! Amazing story, and well told. The writer does an excellent job of pulling me in from the very beginning, I think this one will be my favorite because I enjoy reading it. What a talented author who contributed to this lovely book. It amazes me what these writer can accomplish in less than a 151 pages. The book had a good story line, conceivable and interesting characters, and a plot that kept you pretty much guessing until the very last chapters. If you like thriller/suspense/adventure/Mysteries all mixed together this is it! I was scared, thrilled and intrigued. Talk about a roller coaster ride! Can't wait to read more from this author. Worth Reading!

[Lady]

wow, such a brilliant story. From the second I started reading it I was hooked. It was a brilliant roller coaster ride of a story with plenty of twists. I definitely did not work out the ending. I just loved the characters they felt so real. I am so glad I read this book. I definitely recommend reading it and I will say you won't be able to put it down.

[Gwen]

Quick read. Full of twists.

I received this book free from Goodreads First Reads.