Praise for jon's writing
Junior (Livingston Press/2024)
“In his latest novel, Junior, Jon Boilard does that rare thing which is to take people living in purgatory and elevate their lives to the level of art just by the telling. If you were a hardass as a kid, you might recognize yourself in Junior, the eponym of the story. If you were ever down and out, you might be lucky if you had a guardian angel like Bluepriest looking out for you. Boilard is the Charles Bukowski of rural Massachusetts.”
~ Daren Dean, author of Roads
“Jon Boilard’s powerful new book, Junior, treads territory that will be familiar to those who’ve read him in the past. Set in a small town in Western Massachusetts, it features similarly rough characters like the ones that populated his earlier works. Not that any of the characters in Junior have appeared before, but many of them could have easily rubbed elbows at the Bloody Brook Bar, gone joyriding together at midnight through the corn fields, or ended up lying side by side on their bellies on a patched-together apparatus behind a tractor, snapping cucumbers for the local pickle factory.”
~ The Typescript Magazine
“Junior is the fascinating story of a young man at war with his life's status quo. Junior Beauchamp feels obligated to his family, even as his mother is on the lookout for the next fix. Author Jon Boilard deftly captures the chaotic nature of a household riven by abandonment and addiction. The characters inhabiting this provincial drama are an assorted lot, yet all add value to a compelling narrative.”
~ The San Francisco Book Review
“In Junior, author Jon Boilard has created a most interesting cast of characters, all of whom are believable. The story is set in rural western Massachusetts, although there is a southern rhythm throughout. The story is compelling and quite unpredictable. Readers who are looking for tension on every page will like this book.”
~ The Manhattan Book Review
“The novel Junior by Jon Boilard is an immersive, gritty and engaging dive into a place where tenderness rarely shows its face. The author effectively transports readers to a rough-and-tumble burg in rural Massachusetts circa 1985 where townies seem willing to fight over just about anything, and he convincingly brings it all to life.”
~ Kirkus Reviews
Junk City (Livingston Press/2020)
“Jon Boilard writes like a predator. His stories grab you by the throat in the first sentence and you have to keep reading out of self-defense.”
~ Los Angeles Review of Books
“What muscular writing. Not an ounce of fat.”
~ The Sun Magazine
“We know little of the past or future of the characters in Junk City, simply the heart-pounding present. At times blunt and raw, at times lyrical and poetic, Boilard plunges us head-long into the seamy side of life in North Beach. Bar brawls, booze, drugs and sex drive the action in these stories that are both an elegy for and celebration of those of us with damaged souls and broken hearts.”
~ Philip Ciofarri, author of The Bronx Kill
Settright Road (Dzanc Books/2017)
"When you think rural noir, you might not think New England. But Settright Road proves you should. Jon Boilard's tight, haunting collection about struggle and decline in crumbling mill towns is a must-read for fans of the genre--or for anyone who enjoys stories that stick with you long after you've read them."
~ Rob Hart, author of The Warehouse
"It takes a mix of courage and vulnerability to write beautiful, truthful stories in which we lay bare our characters and our very selves. Boilard is a brave, honest and open storyteller. He writes from his heart and we are fortunate witnesses."
~ Ethel Rohan, author of The Weight of Him
The Castaway Lounge (Dzanc Books/2015)
"Boilard's writing isn't just fighting-weight lean, but scarred and calloused as well, yet he writes of society's castoffs with profound empathy and affection."
~ Craig Clevenger, author of The Contortionist's Handbook
"The Castaway Lounge is the kind of book that'll keep you up all night, and then send you walking around the next day looking to smack anybody who hasn't read it. It's a profane, heartsick and hilarious masterpiece."
~ Benjamin Whitmer, author of Cry Father
A River Closely Watched (MacAdam Cage/2012)
"Boilard's debut novel is an exercise in noir. Southern Gothic come to rural New England."
~ Booklist
"The literary equivalent of punk rock."
~ Kirkus Reviews
"A River Closely Watched is a stunning debut. You will hear from Jon Boilard again and again."
~ Steve Yarbrough, author of Realm of Last Chances