What They’re Saying About The Book...
- Pikasho Deka (Reader’s Favorite Review)
“Hell No... Purgatory, Yes is a captivating collection of tales filled with dark humor, drama, and intrigue. There are moments in this book that will make you laugh out loud at the most inopportune situations.”
“Cherie Kerr does a brilliant job of crafting lively and well-developed characters within a few pages. As you read further into these tales, you realize that these characters have layers to them that get slowly peeled back as the story progresses.”
“If you enjoy dark comedy and short stories, grab a copy of Hell No... Purgatory, Yes by Cherie Kerr. This collection contains twelve tales that examine human behavior in extraordinary situations. An eight-year-old Catholic girl makes sure she has enough sins to confess. A former actress goes through an existential crisis at lunch with her indifferent husband. A woman trapped in a room tries to leave but struggles to let go of her possessions. A mother admonishes her grown and uncaring son to no avail. Plagued by guilt after being forced to skip church by her big sister, a little girl unwittingly takes the blame for a stolen toy watch. A woman goes through every option to repair her faulty dryer. A woman loses herself in the memories of an erotic encounter with a mysterious man.
Hell No... Purgatory, Yes is a captivating collection of tales filled with dark humor, drama, and intrigue. There are moments in this book that will make you laugh out loud at the most inopportune situations. Cherie Kerr does a brilliant job of crafting lively and well-developed characters within a few pages. As you read further into these tales, you realize that these characters have layers to them that get slowly peeled back as the story progresses. The author uses a diverse cast of characters from a wide range of backgrounds. Each story tackles a different facet of human behavior as part of a larger tapestry of existential themes of the overall narrative. The collection is very entertaining as there is not a single, dull moment in the entire book. Short story lovers are in for a treat with this one.”
- Pikasho Deka (Reader’s Favorite Review)
“Cherie Kerr is a polymath artist, writer, playwright, and author of fifteen books. She has helped countless people and institutions overcome our universal fear of public speaking to communicate better and laugh harder. She trained me to speak from the heart while equipping my organizations to be more effective.
Hell No Purgatory, Yes… is a kaleidoscopic, self-described dark comedy trek of eleven personal short stories. As a gritty D’Artagnan dueling the injustices of life, she captures our attempts to survive in a hostile postmodern world. From childhood to much later, she poses large existential questions.
With the verve of a NASCAR race car driver, with moments of genius prose and dark wit, Cherie Kerr tackles universal themes and the underside of marriage, family, evil sibs, Inquisitional nuns, and the meaning of life. Her “Confession” cast me into a Stygian fear of harsh taskmasters; “The Balcony” is pure F. Scott Fitzgerald; “Sisters” is suspenseful Gothic horror; and “That Room” beguiles until the final reveal in a taut tale that could have been penned by Rod Serling for a transcendental Twilight Zone adventure. From aging and family follies to laundry and litigation, Kerr describes tipping points into hell as a gutsy woman stands up to power.”
Gus Lee
Bestselling author of China Boy and Courage of Leadership
- Gus Lee (Bestselling Author of China Boy and Courage of Leadership)
“ ...“Confession” cast me into a Stygian fear of harsh taskmasters; “The Balcony” is pure F. Scott Fitzgerald; “Sisters” is suspenseful Gothic horror; and “That Room” beguiles until the final reveal in a taut tale that could have been penned by Rod Serling for a transcendental Twilight Zone adventure.”
“Hell No by Cherie Kerr is a deep conglomerate of stories plumbing into the human psyche, crossing into the dark regions of human guilt, redemption, and personal struggle. Characters like Helen, an ungrateful young Catholic girl who will resolutely be pursued by her sin; Buford, the honest servant who was thinking back on his life; and Irene, wrestling with her internal demons while congealed in a cramped space, are what the stories are about.
Each story carries itself within the depth of human feelings and their pursuit for meaning in life. The stories intertwine in the quest for existential themes that a person reflects on to find answers and reflections on this journey of life and on the morality that defines existence in general. The book was exceptionally well-edited and error-free.
Maybe the most important strength of this book is the capability to make one feel and think at the same time. Kerr's writing is reflective and moving, which resonates with the inner strife of each of the characters. Living characters come to life through descriptive words and well-woven dialogues brought about by character development, making readers able to feel with them. The story structure, the interlinking of various stories, gives depth and cohesion to the whole reading experience.
Whereas most of the stories are quite deep emotionally, they require a more compact way of telling. Sometimes, therefore, they feel extended, which decreases the impact. For instance, Rachel's story of her work struggles would be made a little tighter to keep the reader reading. Another thing is that some of the characters, such as Ernie, are criminally underdeveloped, which would give them much more depth in their character. These are areas of streamlining to allow for a smoother pacing of the book and keeping it more captivating for the readers, but honestly, I do not dislike any part of this book.
This book is an emotional and thought-provoking book. The deep writing of the characters manages to bring out the inner struggles each has to wrestle with. The vivid details and well-presented dialogues enrich the stories to make them more powerful. For the above reasons, I feel this book deserves a rating of 5 out of 5 stars. I would advise readers who appreciate thoughtful, rather deep kind of literature, in the vein of Margaret Atwood or Kazuo Ishiguro, to give this one a go. At the same time, it is a great book for those who like deep considerations of the human condition and morality.”
-OnlineBookClub.org
About the Author
“Hell No Purgatory, Yes…” is Kerr’s sixteenth book; though her first short story collection. A prolific writer, Kerr has written books on presentation and communication skills to accompany the classes she teaches via her ExecuProv training company. Her Fortune 100 clients include Toyota, Honda, Southern California Edison, Allergan, Office Depot, The Los Angeles District and City Attorney offices, and many others. She also has taught at West Point and at the U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis for eight years—both its midshipmen and its faculty. She also ghosted three books for her P.R, clients, one of which is a true story about the person who “unwittingly” caused the Watergate scandal.
Kerr is best known for her background in comedy. A founding member of the world-famous L.A. Groundlings, Kerr became the founder in 1990, Executive Producer and Artistic Director for the Orange County Crazies, a sketch and improvisational comedy troupe in Santa Ana, California. She has written six screenplays, produced, and starred in three of these indie award-winning full- length comedy features—winning thirty-five film festival awards in all including “Best Director” more than once. She has written how-to books on comedy and teaches improv, sketch, and standup comedy. She also has written more than 450 comedy sketches, a full-length Broadway musical, in addition, her own one-woman show—all of which were produced and well-received by both critics and live-theater audiences alike.
Kerr was named one of the “Top 10 Most Sensational People in Orange County” (along with Disney’s Michael Eisner) and also given the prestigious “Helena Modjeska Lifetime Cultural Legacy Award” for her work in comedy. She is currently in pre-production on the film, “Charlie’s Notes,” based on the book of the same title—a memoir about her father’s life as a jazz musician.
Kerr resides in Santa Ana, California. She has three children and six grandchildren.
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