Enjoy fast, free delivery, exclusive deals, and award-winning movies & TV shows with Prime
Try Prime and start saving today with fast, free delivery

Kindle
$2.99

Available instantly

Hardcover
$24.99

Paperback
$7.70

Buy new:

$7.70

Get Fast, Free Shipping with Amazon Prime FREE Returns

FREE delivery Thursday, April 4 on orders shipped by Amazon over $35. Order within 14 hrs 55 mins

Select delivery location

In Stock

$$7.70 () Includes selected options. Includes initial monthly payment and selected options. Details

Ships from

Amazon.com

Ships from

Amazon.com

Sold by

Amazon.com

Sold by

Amazon.com

Returns

Eligible for Return, Refund or Replacement within 30 days of receipt

Returns

Eligible for Return, Refund or Replacement within 30 days of receipt

This item can be returned in its original condition for a full refund or replacement within 30 days of receipt.

Read full return policy

Payment

Secure transaction

Payment

Secure transaction

We work hard to protect your security and privacy. Our payment security system encrypts your information during transmission. We don’t share your credit card details with third-party sellers, and we don’t sell your information to others. Learn more

Details

Add a gift receipt for easy returns

Image Unavailable

Image not available for
Color:

To view this video download Flash Player

Follow the author

Jo Perry

Follow

Pure Paperback – July 28, 2021

by Jo Perry (Author)

15

See all formats and editions

{"desktop_buybox_group_1":[{"displayPrice":"$7.70","priceAmount":7.70,"currencySymbol":"$","integerValue":"7","decimalSeparator":".","fractionalValue":"70","symbolPosition":"left","hasSpace":false,"showFractionalPartIfEmpty":true,"offerListingId":"b0Sc9iL341HI5eAglbpuql%2FtjZPG8W8heNSlQlLchY%2Fq4LPOmTxq9JkX85QezstcCdjapKG3s3C60rkO19ZN2WtGPD0f1LZIY7AAb1%2BjbBlo2CFak4uuZ51PS6%2Fz1mygAkL3rP1lpLKw38J1DBkNDw%3D%3D","locale":"en-US","buyingOptionType":"NEW","aapiBuyingOptionIndex":0}]}

Purchase options and add-ons

"Faultlessly imagined and beautifully written, this is one of the best novels I've read all year." –Timothy Hallinan, author of the acclaimed Simeon Grist series

Caught in a pincer movement between the sudden death of Evelyn (her favourite aunt) and the Corona virus, Ascher Lieb finds herself unexpectedly locked down in her aunt’s retirement community with only Evelyn’s grief-stricken dog Freddie for company.

As the world tumbles down into a pandemic shaped rabbit-hole Ascher is wracked with guilt that her aunt was buried without the Jewish burial rights of purification.

In order to atone for this dereliction of familial duty, Ascher – in her own words ‘a profane, unobservant, atheist Jew, frequent liar and grieving loser’ –volunteers to become the newest member of Valley Haverim Chevra Kadisha, a Jewish burial society on-call twenty-four-seven during lockdown and performing Mitzvot at no cost to the bereaved.

What follows is a journey through the insanity of lockdown in Los Angeles as Ascher attempts to bring peace to a troubled soul, and perhaps in the end redemption for herself.

In the hands of a lesser-writer a novel set in the time of covid could lead to a cliché ridden trope-fest, but instead with the skill and grace we’ve come to expect from Jo Perry she has delivered a book that is wise and beautiful and uplifting.

Praise for Pure

"Pure is an immersive, twisting and turning metaphysical murder mystery set in the L.A. of 2020 with its Covid lockdowns, conspiracy theories and ethnic hatreds. Highly recommended." –Seth Lynch, author of the 3rd Republic mysteries.

Perry’s mysteries never fail to mesmerize...With Pure she’s outdone herself..." –Jeffrey Siger, author of the celebrated Chief Inspector Andreas Kaldis novels

"Jo Perry's Pure is a beautiful story you will savor. Ascher's journey, a fusion of dark and light and mystifying gray, is compelling all along the way. Set against the backdrop of Covid, Pure poignantly explores solitude in a way that transcends this pandemic and makes us think about the loneliness we carry through our lives. Ghosts may be the loneliness of our hearts, or they be the chaperones of our destiny; the spiritual inhabits Perry's novel as she deftly camouflages mystery against themes of grief, guilt, love and reconciliation. The mystery will get under your skin, for sure, but the humanity of this novel will resonate far beyond the page." –Steven Cooper, journalist and author of the Gus Parker and Alex Wills series.

Print length

298 pages
Language

English
Publication date

July 28, 2021
Dimensions

5 x 0.75 x 8 inches
ISBN-10

1914475100
ISBN-13

978-1914475108
See all details

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Fahrenheit Press (July 28, 2021)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 298 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1914475100
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1914475108
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 11.7 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5 x 0.75 x 8 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #3,369,579 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #4,047 in Jewish Literature & Fiction

Customer Reviews:
15

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.

Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Upload your video

About the author

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.

Jo Perry

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.

Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

"Wonderful, original, hilarious and brilliant..." Eric Idle

"Like 'The Wire" meets the Tibetan Book of the Dead," Derek Farrell

"total delight, a terrifically original, always surprising, very funny," Timothy Hallinan

"Killer." Steven Cooper

"Jo Perry kan write her ass off." Duvay Knox

...wickedly entertaining, hardboiled supernatural deftness," Gary Phillips

"Noir with conscience," It's An Indie Book Blog

Jo Perry is the of PURE, DEAD IS BETTER, DEAD IS BEST, DEAD IS GOOD, and DEAD IS BEAUTIFUL, and the novella, EVERYTHING HAPPENS (Fahrenheit Press)

She earned a Ph.D. in English, taught college literature and writing, produced and wrote episodic television, and has published short stories, reviews, and poetry.

Perry was the first woman invited to speak at the venerable Men of Mystery event in southern California. Her short story, "The Kick The Bucket Tour," made the 2018 Distinguished Mystery Stories list in Best American Mystery Stories.

She lives in Los Angeles with her husband, novelist Thomas Perry and two rescue dogs.

website: www.authorjoperry.com Twitter: @JoPerryAuthor Instagram: @noirjoperry

Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5

15 global ratings

2 star

0%

1 star

0%

How customer reviews and ratings work

Reviews with images

See all photos

Sort reviews by

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

someone in california

I Will Read Everything Jo Perry Writes

Reviewed in the United States on February 12, 2023

Verified Purchase

In PURE, Jo Perry captures the sense of isolation, alienation, and profound loneliness that many experienced during the pandemic--along with elements of Covid that were frightening, ridiculous, or both. Set in Southern California, which becomes not just the setting but almost a character, in a time of civil unrest, racism, antisemitism, fearfulness, and anxiety, PURE explores grief in a way that is as wise, beautiful, and redemptive as it is edgy and raw.

One person found this helpful

Helpful

SRL92

A unique, engaging read

Reviewed in the United States on August 1, 2021

Verified Purchase

A refreshingly complex and well-paced mystery that takes the reader to unexpected places.

2 people found this helpful

Helpful

The Irresponsible Reader

A Murder Mystery and So Much More

Reviewed in the United States on December 21, 2021

An expanded version of this originally appeared at The Irresponsible Reader.
---
This is a great novel, an immersive read—I had a hard time putting the book down, and a harder time not thinking about it when I had put it down. And I was on vacation when I read this—I had plenty of things to do, see and think about when I wasn't reading. If I only had routine day-to-day things to think about, I'm not sure I'd have been able to focus on work/home life instead of the book.

The characters who aren't Ascher are interesting enough—and there's a couple I can think of that I would've liked to spend more time with. But that's not possible in this book—Spring of 2020 was not a time to meet people and spend a lot of time with them. But your appreciation for this book is going to come down to what you think of Ascher and her actions.

This is a mystery novel **about** something—it's more than a whodunit (assuming there was something for a "who" to have "dun"). It, like pretty much everything Perry writes, is about death and how we deal with it as humans (and one neurotic Mini-Pinscher). THere's more to chew on, too, but that'd be telling...

It's trite to say "this moved me." But it did, and I can't think of a better way to phrase it, so trite it is. Pure is the best thing I've read by Perry—it's not the most entertaining, but it's the best, and will likely stay with me in more detail than the rest. You won't be sorry if you pick this up. You may regret not doing so. So, why take the chance?

One person found this helpful

Helpful

Kathryn M.

RESPECTFUL PASSING

Reviewed in the United States on December 27, 2021

How does one deal with the passing of a close relative? The protagonist, Ascher Lieb, takes us on a journey through the many steps involved with saying goodbye to someone, taking care of their estate, and dealing with one's own grief and guilt. Though the topics addressed are heavy, the story itself is not. Ascher Lieb may not be the easiest person to like, until you learn more about her history and the emotions she is carrying. Regardless, there is Freddie, the elderly dog, who is a good boy and an entity who still needs affection and care. Jo Perry keeps the story moving and balances sadness with light.

One person found this helpful

Helpful

Margaret Aldrich

THE THING ITSELF

Reviewed in the United States on September 3, 2021

After the first read I thought, "It's good, kind of offbeat." It snuck up on me. A day or two later, recognition hit. PURE is fresh--it's unfamiliar, like life. As a book-addict, I'm jaded; I don't expect something new, and if I notice it's new I don't expect it to be good at the same time. That's asking too much. Yet PURE delivers. The narrator (helped by the writer) notices things that books simply do not notice, like illegally-tinted car windows. PURE is not just vivid, it's ultra-vivid; and it's stuffed with un-book-like things; and also it's a crack-up, the way purity tends to be. But nonchalant.

One person found this helpful

Helpful

Brian Brady

A great book, a mystery, a ghost story, a dog lover story, a pandemic lockdown story...

Reviewed in the United States on August 11, 2021

An excellent book, a wonderful story to read, also very educational. Sad, happy, lost and then hopefully found, I hope the main character , Ascher , finishes her To-Do list and realizes she was Pure all along. Read the book and you will know what I mean. Oh yeah! A ghost story, a mystery and maybe a love story in book 2.

One person found this helpful

Helpful

T. Langbudenholzer

Loved the humor and unpredictability

Reviewed in the United States on September 7, 2021

This is a fun and funny book that challenges preconceived notions in pursuing answers to the basic questions of life and death, character and motive. Perry's journey through the fringes of society take you to the never seen worlds that exist just outside our door. It’s an easy and quick read. Enjoy…

One person found this helpful

Helpful

Josh Gidding

Beautiful Writing, Memorable Characters, Delightful Humor

Reviewed in the United States on September 6, 2021

There is much to enjoy in this charmingly offbeat mystery -- especially in the writing itself: its imagination, its humor, its engaging characters (including a hardboiled yet devout protagonist), its poetry, and its dystopian vision of L.A. The only downside is the unfortunate copyediting errors in the text.

One person found this helpful

Helpful

Buy new:

$7.70

Return this item for free

Image Unavailable

Follow the author

Pure Paperback – July 28, 2021

Purchase options and add-ons

Product details

Videos for this product

Pure by Jo Perry from Fahrenheit Press

About the author

Jo Perry

Customer reviews

Reviews with images

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

Amazon Prime includes:

Buy new: $7.70

Follow the author

Pure Paperback – July 28, 2021

Purchase options and add-ons

Product details

Videos

Videos for this product

Pure by Jo Perry from Fahrenheit Press

About the author

Jo Perry

Customer reviews

Reviews with images

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

Buy new:

$7.70