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Asphalt Warrior #5
Doctor Lovebeads
In Doctor Lovebeads, the fifth in novelist Gary Reilly's Asphalt Warrior series, Murph must go undercover to accomplish his mission. He lets his hair go untamed, dresses in muslin and sandals and arrives on the scene in a beat-up VW van called the Cosmic Wonderbus and Mobile Mercantile.
Murph tries to pass himself off as an old love child in his confrontation with Brother Chakra. As the good Brother might say, It's a mind-blowing trip.
Murph tries to pass himself off as an old love child in his confrontation with Brother Chakra. As the good Brother might say, It's a mind-blowing trip.
- GenresFiction
303 pages, Paperback
First published November 21, 2013
About the author
Gary Reilly
19 books15 followersGary Reilly was a writer.
Simply stated, that was the essence of the man.
Born in Arkansas City, Kansas he spent his early years in Kansas and Colorado in a large Irish-Catholic family–seven brothers and sisters. The family moved to Denver where Gary attended parochial high school, graduating in 1967.
He served two years in the army, including a tour in Vietnam as a military policeman.
After discharge, Gary majored in English at Colorado State University and continued studies at the Denver campus of the University of Colorado.
All along, his overarching ambition was to write fiction. And he did, prodigiously. His first published short story, The Biography Man, was included in the Pushcart Prize Award anthology in 1979.
Later he turned to novels, several based on his army experiences. While he wrote both serious and genre fiction, his greatest invention was the character, Murph, a likable, bohemian Denver cab driver. Starting with The Asphalt Warrior, Gary cranked out eleven Murph novels.
His dedication to writing did not include self promotion. Instead of seeking agents and publishers, he focussed on his craft, writing and rewriting, polishing to perfection. He wrote well over twenty novels before he thought he was ready make his work public.
Unfortunately, he passed away in March, 2011, before he could realize that dream.
Friends and family remember Gary as a fun-loving, generous soul who always had time for other writers, helping them shape their work, getting it ready for print.
Now, through Running Meter Press and Big Earth Publishing in Boulder, Colorado, Gary Reilly’s fiction is finally coming to bookstores in Colorado and across the nation.
Simply stated, that was the essence of the man.
Born in Arkansas City, Kansas he spent his early years in Kansas and Colorado in a large Irish-Catholic family–seven brothers and sisters. The family moved to Denver where Gary attended parochial high school, graduating in 1967.
He served two years in the army, including a tour in Vietnam as a military policeman.
After discharge, Gary majored in English at Colorado State University and continued studies at the Denver campus of the University of Colorado.
All along, his overarching ambition was to write fiction. And he did, prodigiously. His first published short story, The Biography Man, was included in the Pushcart Prize Award anthology in 1979.
Later he turned to novels, several based on his army experiences. While he wrote both serious and genre fiction, his greatest invention was the character, Murph, a likable, bohemian Denver cab driver. Starting with The Asphalt Warrior, Gary cranked out eleven Murph novels.
His dedication to writing did not include self promotion. Instead of seeking agents and publishers, he focussed on his craft, writing and rewriting, polishing to perfection. He wrote well over twenty novels before he thought he was ready make his work public.
Unfortunately, he passed away in March, 2011, before he could realize that dream.
Friends and family remember Gary as a fun-loving, generous soul who always had time for other writers, helping them shape their work, getting it ready for print.
Now, through Running Meter Press and Big Earth Publishing in Boulder, Colorado, Gary Reilly’s fiction is finally coming to bookstores in Colorado and across the nation.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
November 23, 2013
See also my book feature here.
Book Info: Genre: Literary Fiction/humorous
Reading Level: Adult
Recommended for: Anyone
My Thoughts: I'm running out of adjectives to describe how awesome these books are. In this one, Murph runs across a hippie commune in the mountains past Boulder and, as usual, breaks his vow to not become involved in his passengers' personal lives, leading him into a labyrinthine plan involving passing himself off as a hippie. It's pretty funny. As always, Murph is full of advice on many things. I don't want this review to be all quotes like a couple of my earlier ones, but I will give you this.
Murph on Fashion:
Series Information: The Asphalt Warrior series, a proposed eleven-book series each featuring Murph, but which can be read as stand-alones.
Book 1 The Asphalt Warrior . review linked here
Book 2: Ticket to Hollywood . review linked here
Book 3: The Heart of Darkness Club . review linked here
Book 4: Home for the Holidays , review linked here
Book 5: Doctor Lovebeads
Disclosure: I received a copy from JKS Communications/NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Synopsis: In Doctor Lovebeads, the fifth in novelist Gary Reilly's Asphalt Warrior series, Murph must go undercover to accomplish his mission. He lets his hair go untamed, dresses in muslin and sandals and arrives on the scene in a beat-up VW van called the Cosmic Wonderbus and Mobile Mercantile.
Murph tries to pass himself off as an old love child in his confrontation with Brother Chakra. As the good Brother might say, It's a mind-blowing trip.
Book Info: Genre: Literary Fiction/humorous
Reading Level: Adult
Recommended for: Anyone
My Thoughts: I'm running out of adjectives to describe how awesome these books are. In this one, Murph runs across a hippie commune in the mountains past Boulder and, as usual, breaks his vow to not become involved in his passengers' personal lives, leading him into a labyrinthine plan involving passing himself off as a hippie. It's pretty funny. As always, Murph is full of advice on many things. I don't want this review to be all quotes like a couple of my earlier ones, but I will give you this.
Murph on Fashion:
“The big house... reminded me of the types of structures you can still see in places like Center City: gingerbread houses, two-story affairs built back in the nineteenth century when people didn't have televisions and were forced to build interesting things out of wood. I have a theory that the outrageous fashions you see in pre-twentieth century culture came about as a result of the lack of television. I'm talking wild hats on women with lots of feathers, pelts, sequined dresses with long trains, as well as top hats on the men, with long-tailed coats. I figure that life in those days was so dull that people themselves became televisions. I'm still working on the theory. I include European royalty in this construct, but let's move on.”I can't think of anyone who wouldn't like this book, honestly. It's funny and thought-provoking. Check it out.
Series Information: The Asphalt Warrior series, a proposed eleven-book series each featuring Murph, but which can be read as stand-alones.
Book 1 The Asphalt Warrior . review linked here
Book 2: Ticket to Hollywood . review linked here
Book 3: The Heart of Darkness Club . review linked here
Book 4: Home for the Holidays , review linked here
Book 5: Doctor Lovebeads
Disclosure: I received a copy from JKS Communications/NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Synopsis: In Doctor Lovebeads, the fifth in novelist Gary Reilly's Asphalt Warrior series, Murph must go undercover to accomplish his mission. He lets his hair go untamed, dresses in muslin and sandals and arrives on the scene in a beat-up VW van called the Cosmic Wonderbus and Mobile Mercantile.
Murph tries to pass himself off as an old love child in his confrontation with Brother Chakra. As the good Brother might say, It's a mind-blowing trip.
December 7, 2013
Part mystery, part philosophy, and wholly awesome, this book was entertaining from beginning to end. Our favorite cabbie, Murph, fails once again at minding his own business. He becomes intertwined in a missing persons case and claims he is only involved out of self interest (I don't believe him).
Murph's constant sidebars add to the narrative and infuse the story with his contagiously thoughtful personality. Chapter 22 starts: "I won't bore you with the detailed descriptions of my 'plan.' I know what you're thinking. Why did Murph put the word 'plan' in quotation marks? What is it about quotation marks that absolves people of responsibility for the things they try to do? I don't know the answer. All I can say is thank God for quotation marks." And then he gets right back to his "plan". I love it.
See this review and others at http://wonbooksblog.blogspot.com
Murph's constant sidebars add to the narrative and infuse the story with his contagiously thoughtful personality. Chapter 22 starts: "I won't bore you with the detailed descriptions of my 'plan.' I know what you're thinking. Why did Murph put the word 'plan' in quotation marks? What is it about quotation marks that absolves people of responsibility for the things they try to do? I don't know the answer. All I can say is thank God for quotation marks." And then he gets right back to his "plan". I love it.
See this review and others at http://wonbooksblog.blogspot.com
January 21, 2020
I love Murph and the Asphalt Warrior series so much. Rarely have I found a character to which I can relate to more. It's heartbreaking to rate this one so low, especially when Gary Reilly is a small press writer. But man, this one, especially compared to the rest of the series, is no good. This case is one instance where Murph needed to listen to Big Al for a change and not get involved. There's something creepy about a guy following around 18-year old women to try and save them. Murph has never been a Messianic figure and there's no reason to start now. Reilly clearly has an axe to grind with hippies and the commune movement of the 60s. That's fine, I just wish he had done it somewhere else. This is far and away the most disappointing of what is otherwise a fun series.
September 23, 2023
…”but I don’t want to talk about that”… whenever Murph says that I know that I want to know more about it… Lol! But seriously this series is very entertaining. It doesn’t move very fast and it kind of meanders a little bit but that’s kind of part of its charm really. It’s like being stuck in someone’s head and hearing their thoughts as well as experiencing what they’re going through, but I feel like it’s a more interesting than if someone were to be stuck in my thoughts, do you know what I’m saying? I don’t have those kinds of entertaining thoughts, and it’s fun to listen to the free-flow thoughts of a fictional character, whose thought processes flow the way his do.
July 22, 2017
I love this author. Murph, Gary Reilly's protagonist , is quirky, hilarious and smart. I have laughed my way through all of his books. As much as I love this series, I recognize it may not be for everyone. It is really all about the voice. You have to fall in love with the wanderings of Murph's eclectic mind. If you are looking for a straight plot driven novel this may not be for you. But if you can imagine a concatenation of The Big Lebowski, the TV series Taxi and a Robin Williams monologue you would just about hit on the sensibilities of this series. Great stuff.
December 20, 2021
An American Treasure, an era that is gone
Anyone who hasn't read Gary Reilly is missing a treat. This 5th book in the Asphalt Warrior series is the least subtle and perhaps the weakest story, but the prose and the heart are so good.
Anyone who hasn't read Gary Reilly is missing a treat. This 5th book in the Asphalt Warrior series is the least subtle and perhaps the weakest story, but the prose and the heart are so good.
March 6, 2017
Another fun story with a twist of mystery.
December 2, 2013
I was given a print copy of this book in exchange for my honest review by the literary publicity firm, JKS Communications.
Murph is minding his own business, with his Twinkie and his coffee when he starts minding other's business--landing him in the middle of what can only be described as part psychadelic vision quest and part undercover caper.
The guy who went into the military plays hippie very well, from his tousled long hair to his far-out manner of speaking.
The fifth book in Gary Reilly's Asphalt Warrior ("Murph") series had me going from the beginning with Reilly's signature snappy and honest style. Some of my favorite quotes are found in this book, which made for laugh-out-loud moments:
“I don't think there is anything that annoys me as much as having to "be" somewhere. It seems like every bad thing that ever happened to me happened when I was somewhere.”
“Late Friday morning I was driving toward Boulder. I was seated in "Doctor Lovebeads Cosmic Wonderbus and Mobile Mercantile." That entire phrase was painted in psychedelic colors on both sides of the van. But I left out the possessive apostrophe on "Lovebus[']" in order to show my contempt for bourgeois conformity.”
I especially enjoyed how believeable Reilly makes Murph's actions in this book--Murph knows what he is doing is not what he is supposed to do as a cab driver, but at the same time, he knows as a person that he is doing right. And that wins over. Sure, he didn't have to do it, but it speaks highly of the quality of his character that Murph is willing to stick his neck out.
The quality of the series keeps me coming back. I cannot wait for the next installment.
As I stated, JKS Communications provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. While I am happy that I was able to get a copy of this, I am saddened by the fact that Gary Reilly is no longer with us.
Murph is minding his own business, with his Twinkie and his coffee when he starts minding other's business--landing him in the middle of what can only be described as part psychadelic vision quest and part undercover caper.
The guy who went into the military plays hippie very well, from his tousled long hair to his far-out manner of speaking.
The fifth book in Gary Reilly's Asphalt Warrior ("Murph") series had me going from the beginning with Reilly's signature snappy and honest style. Some of my favorite quotes are found in this book, which made for laugh-out-loud moments:
“I don't think there is anything that annoys me as much as having to "be" somewhere. It seems like every bad thing that ever happened to me happened when I was somewhere.”
“Late Friday morning I was driving toward Boulder. I was seated in "Doctor Lovebeads Cosmic Wonderbus and Mobile Mercantile." That entire phrase was painted in psychedelic colors on both sides of the van. But I left out the possessive apostrophe on "Lovebus[']" in order to show my contempt for bourgeois conformity.”
I especially enjoyed how believeable Reilly makes Murph's actions in this book--Murph knows what he is doing is not what he is supposed to do as a cab driver, but at the same time, he knows as a person that he is doing right. And that wins over. Sure, he didn't have to do it, but it speaks highly of the quality of his character that Murph is willing to stick his neck out.
The quality of the series keeps me coming back. I cannot wait for the next installment.
As I stated, JKS Communications provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. While I am happy that I was able to get a copy of this, I am saddened by the fact that Gary Reilly is no longer with us.
November 25, 2013
Doctor Lovebeads is the fifth book in the Asphalt Warrior series by Gary Reilly. Once again after doing a good deed and getting himself too involved in the lives of those around him Murph is called back to the station to talk to the police. This time a couple of young ladies that Murph took to a concert, for free, are missing. After tracking them down to a farm on the outskirts of town Murph must disguise himself as a flower child to get past the gate and try to find the young ladies that have caused him all this trouble.
This particular version of Murph is probably the most comedic yet. Listening to his thoughts as he tries to fit in to a community that he would avoid if he could provides some hilarious moments. As I already stated this is the fifth book in the series. Murph is an established character and his personality hasn't really changed, there is just a bit more of him revealed.
If you are a fan of the series you'll continue to enjoy it through this book. If you've never heard of the series pick up one of the books and give it a shot. You're in for an enjoyable read.
A copy of this book was provided to me in exchange for an honest review.
This particular version of Murph is probably the most comedic yet. Listening to his thoughts as he tries to fit in to a community that he would avoid if he could provides some hilarious moments. As I already stated this is the fifth book in the series. Murph is an established character and his personality hasn't really changed, there is just a bit more of him revealed.
If you are a fan of the series you'll continue to enjoy it through this book. If you've never heard of the series pick up one of the books and give it a shot. You're in for an enjoyable read.
A copy of this book was provided to me in exchange for an honest review.
January 1, 2015
Groovy!
Another great story from Gary Reilly in the continuing saga of Murph the Denver cabbie. Undercover in a hippie commune tracking down two young girls gone missing.
Another great story from Gary Reilly in the continuing saga of Murph the Denver cabbie. Undercover in a hippie commune tracking down two young girls gone missing.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews