A Place To Bury Strangers

by Justin Kerr

A story about misreading danger in the California desert, Justin Kerr's debut novel is a murder mystery set against the real life stories of people mysteriously disappearing—and dying—in and around Joshua Tree, California.

147 pages, Paperback

Published February 21, 2021

Reviews

[Brady Gunson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Picked this up at Acme 5 liftstyle while In Joshua tree thinking it would be a cute keepsake for the trip and ended up finishing in about 2 hours. A great quick read with a twist ending!

[Josh · Rating 3 out of 5]

So i don’t know why, but when I bought this book I thought it would be short mini stories about people getting lost and dying in the desert. You could imagine my disappointment. The plot is lazy with cardboard characters, not to mention the ending is extremely predictable. I got a signed copy of this book so not a total loss I guess ?

[Katherine Vanderford · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. It's short and sweet. Takes place in one of my favorite places (Joshua Tree). And Justin Kerr's writing style reminds me of Bret Easton Ellis/Augusten Burroughs. Couldn't ask for more in a story and would highly recommend.

[Sofia Valbuena · Rating 5 out of 5]

Joshua Tree is one of my favorite places in the world and this book put into words the magic of it. A quick and fun end-of-the-year read.

[Lily Black · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quick and fun book that felt niche but also personable. I think the length was good for what it was trying to achieve but I do want to ask the author some questions…anyways thanks @agata for the book!

[Brooke Luger · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall, entertaining. An interesting way to test out and play around with a few different literary tools and a couple of cheeky references. Written quickly but well. The author does have a bit of an issue with the difference between "everyday" and "every day," which wouldnt be an issue if he didn't use the word nearly "everychapter."

In any case, kudos to Justin, the writer from New York.

[Sophia Bote · Rating 5 out of 5]

absolutely adored reading this post-visiting jtree

[Cassandra · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really wanted to love this book. The title alone compelled me to pick it up off the shelf and not want to put it back. Unfortunately, the story oozes pretentiousness as the author name-dropped just about every spot made Instagram-famous by tourists, without any knowledge gained by any significant amount of time spent in the area. Also many of the supposed “factual” tidbits of info are incorrect, and sadly this includes information related to the true missing/deceased persons cases that are interspersed throughout the book. If it wasn’t for these problems, I would have enjoyed the book for what it is—a fun, light, albeit highly predictable read—but I can’t get past the fact that the author put so little time into actually learning about the locations and the cases he mentioned, and for these reasons, I don’t think I’ll be recommending this book.

[Nolan Banfitch · Rating 1 out of 5]

A book about pretty much nothing. The best parts of the book are the interesting facts and tidbits about Joshua Tree and the surrounding areas, but the actual story itself is uneventful, and the characters waver between unlikeable and unrelatable. Justin Kerr inserts himself into the book towards the end, and his only actions in the story are to immediately sexualize the character he created. If it wasn't so short I probably wouldn't have finished this book.

[Mark Edward · Rating 4 out of 5]

Clever story, well turned out. Especially fun for those of us who live in the Hi Desert, since many of the characters in the book are actual real living humans we know. Promising start from writer Kerr.

Fun fact all copies of the book come “special edition” and “signed by author.” A nice tome for anyone’s Hi Desert home library.

[Aneliese Jordan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yep. This was a good read

This story presents a very interesting theory... Makes you think. It will makes you think twice before just wander off...

[Tina Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked up this novel at Wine and Rock, thinking it would be a fun read while spending a few days around Joshua Tree. It was! I sped through it in under two hours, delighting in the local references that I spotted driving along Route 62. The macabre element really suits the desert setting albeit a bit too real considering the recent missing person posters we’ve seen all around town. This also marks the first book I’ve read explicitly set during the pandemic.

[Jamie Pellerin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I recently made a trip to Joshua Tree and stopped in to the Wine and Rock Shop; one of the places one goes when visiting Joshua Tree. I bought rock candy, greeting cards, stickers… and in the corner of the store by the incense, I saw this book. The cover illustration immediately grabbed by attention, followed by the title. Can’t explain it, but I just knew it would be great. The bonus? Author signed the inside cover in sharpie.
I read as slow as I could just to savor every sentence. Clever, entertaining, funny and my first 5 start rating.

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great little book, picked it up at a shop in Joshua Tree, knocked it out by the pool. Written in an odd style, very day to day language, kind of saw it coming, but interesting factoids about J Tree and a good enough story. It was a long as it needed to be, I didn't think there was any way I would ever give this a 4 star but I'm done reading it and I smiled a few times and it made me think and I just liked it.

[Rachel Canada · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fun read! I loved the formula in which the author wrote. Living just down the mountain from the location of the story made it a quick read. Truly a page turner regardless of your location. Won’t spoil anything but the last page will make you feel like you’ve been smacked in the face by the very book you just loved.

[Anni · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. I have been out to JTree several times to hike and climb. I have seen lots of people ill-prepared for the harsh beauty of the high desert. This was a delightful book with a surprise twist. I appreciated the tempo of the writing. Good on you, Justin! I would be interested in reading more of your work.

[Andrea Laba · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read for little book club.

The structure of the story kept it interesting. I didn’t see the twist coming at the end. The segments about the history of Joshua Tree and Joshua trees was fascinating and authentic. I liked that you got a good sense of the characters that live in the desert.

Very funny and unexpected.

[Lali Verduzco · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bought this book right after my joshua trip ended and can confidently say it was very haunting to read of people dying in the very areas I was just hiking in and exploring. Honestly a really fast, and easy read that left me on the edge of my seat wanting more closure. The ending was brief but perfect, I can’t help but wish the story continued cause the final reveal was amazing!

[Brittany · Rating 5 out of 5]

A quick, fun read. I dig it. ‘When people think of the desert, they think of the desert.’ Love the tone of this book. And the simplicity. And then end. And the characters. 👏 stumbled across this book in a very beautiful (gentrified) store in yucca and it just seemed the perfect memento to for our trip. It didn’t disappoint.

[Rob Goldman · Rating 5 out of 5]

A tight, taut, compelling read. Raced through it in three sittings. You’ve got to read this book, especially if you have any affection for the desert generally or Joshua Tree in particular. So great.

[Rachel Sloot · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quick and easy yet captivating read, with a fun and unexpected twist at the end! I live in the desert so have a special appreciation for this book and will keep copies for friends to read and take home when they come into town. Highly recommend!

[Pauline Seydoux · Rating 1 out of 5]

I picked up this book since i live in Palm Springs and ive seen this book everywhere (out here).
It has some fun facts about the desert life-
The side story was ok
But the ending was so just so dumb and lazy.

Maybe just read for the facts but is it a good book?
No

[Taylor · Rating 3 out of 5]

fun writing style, felt like enjoying a conversation with a friend. I loved the little blurbs about the hikers, it’s always cute when a book rewards it’s readers for noticing the small things. Always have a soft spot for stories taking place near me in SoCal. 3.5/5

[Chister · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a pleasant surprise. I finished this in one sitting on my last morning in Joshua Tree. It was an impulse buy but I should make it a habit of picking up books by local authors in the places I’m visiting.

[Dr. Fernandez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this on a trip to Joshua Tree after finding it in a little knick knack store (classic). Easy, fun read! I finished it over about 24 hours. Very specific references to the places and things in the area, which made it more fun to be there. But this is a wonderful tale of desert noir.

[Tanya · Rating 5 out of 5]

A good purchase. Quick and engrossing. Good ending. Helped me get back into the thriller/horror genre, too.

To this book’s additional credit, some portions described how life was during the start of the pandemic, which serves as a worthwhile time capsule to open.

[Jenny Roh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Picked this book up while in Joshua Tree as a traveling book nerd like me would. This was a perfect little dose of a short story. A true crime-ish kinda story that’s super easy and fun to read, especially with Justin Kerr’s writing style. I found myself having a little laugh here and there and I would even honestly say I felt dehydrated while reading, you can really taste the desert in his writing. I would love to read more of his books!

[Alexa Anastasia · Rating 3 out of 5]

picked this up at a small shop called All Roads in Yucca Valley back in 2021 and never got around to reading it before — fun and quick 2 hour read… didn’t see the end coming until the Fullerton bottle bit and have some outstanding questions 🤔

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really easy read and fun having just visited the area last year before quarantine. Just that right amount of darkness to the story for anyone who typically reads murder mysteries. An enjoyable read!

[Jennifer Jacques · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it for a summer afternoon read. My husband and I go out to Joshua tree about once a month so it was fun to read about places we’ve been. Really solid read for the murder mystery fans.