You can read it here.
UPDATE, 2/3/14: This is not the last chapter! I'm getting e-mails from people who have that impression! There are probably around 12-15 installments left, not to mention that this would be an incredibly anti-climactic conclusion.
I've never felt uncomfortable reading one of the chapters like I am this one. Holy jesus. And I'm only halfway through.
ReplyDeleteI knew what was coming at the end but it was still heartbreaking. Damn it JPM, you're good.
ReplyDeleteI never really thought I'd be excited to be home on a Saturday night because I had work in the morning, but this was a nice surprise. If the end of the last chapter was a dagger to the heart, this was the twist. I won't comment on the plot points, because I don't want to be a spoiler, but man... It's amazing how - while reading - you can get so caught up in the characters that you forget (and often blatantly ignore) lessons you've learned yourself over the years. The last 5 paragraphs (8 sentences) ring so true so powerfully and so beautifully.
ReplyDeleteI don't know if this is directed at "you" the author or "you" the character... but save him. I don't care how. Wounded, bloodied, scarred; save him, please.
Seriously, I can't get enough of your updates. Great story!
ReplyDeleteWoooooooooo!!!
ReplyDeleteExactly as above said: so true, so powerful, so beautiful. How can you go to sleep right after reading this?
ReplyDeleteI was excited that the chapter was posted, then I read it and now I'm shell-shocked and depressed. Dude, you are a great writer.
ReplyDeleteAwww, jeez. Group hug, guys.
ReplyDeleteJesus, wow, that was... the saddest thing I have ever read, like, ever. I didn't think it would happen so soon. I guess that was what Ch 25 was for - reliving the best time, before the worst.
ReplyDeleteGreat chapter, especially with all of the foreshadowing. It was a wonderful thing to wake up to yesterday.
ReplyDeleteGreat chapter, especially with all the foreshadowing at the end of coming attractions. It makes me reflect on a whole bunch of events in my life and how they might have turned out differently. Especially Matt's advice that it's best to move ahead, because either way there would be progress. A wonderful thing to wake up to yesterday.
ReplyDeleteI don't really know what to say. It hit me like a freight train. I wanted Joe and Chris to be together so much it hurt me. Like, i don't know if i can carry on reading. Chapter 25 was just, perfect. A halycon summer told perfectly. I cried. I cried lots reading 25 but 26 just broke me.
ReplyDeleteStick with me! I'll do my best to make it worthwhile!
DeleteI get it in a strange why, why you did that to Joe and Chris. It is more like real life. But holy shit. You made me sob. Properly sob. I think we were all rooting for Joe and Chris and it just, was so upsetting. You are SO skilled at writing. Shit man.
ReplyDeleteThose last paragraphs were just...searing. At the other end of the emotional spectrum: Sam's public dismantling of Chris' character was epic.
ReplyDeleteIt's odd seeing so many people still rooting for Chris and Joe. Chris has been an irredeemable hot mess from the word go. It was never gonna work.
Now, if Chris and *Andy* don't end up riding off into the sunset, then JPM will have committed a sin against fiction.
Ugh. I meant Joe and Andy.
DeleteYour original suggestion was intriguing, though!
DeleteI want to keep it vague, but I promise that this isn't heading toward an epically tragic arc. Brokeback is played out. It'll be mostly the same mix of bittersweet, angsty, funny, neurotic, occasionally dumb moments. There are much worse gut punches coming but lots of good times as well. If I pull it off properly (I may not!) the story threads and characters will eventually converge in surprising and awesome ways.
ReplyDeleteSomehow Chris was growing on me especially in chapter 25 so I did not exactly expect him to be like that. Since last night I had been rationalizing why this chapter had a big impact on me. Perhaps, it hit close to home when my own Chris Riis disappeared in my life; I sincerely thank you JPM for just that.
ReplyDeleteIt is fucking amazing and awesome to me that you guys care about these characters and this story so much. Thanks so much for all of your comments and e-mails. They're the closest thing I get to royalty payments.
ReplyDeleteEven though I knew it was coming it still felt like a punch in the gut. knew that Chris was a lost cause but I guess a little part of me was hoping he'd be able to grow and accept himself. That door's shut now. I couldn't go to sleep after I read it. I kept agonising over every turn of events and Chris's comments. Such amazing writing and so awesome to be able to move people so much.
ReplyDeleteNot that I didn't like what Joe and Chris had , when they had it, but it was never going to work out. Now Joe has a chance to move on and get Matt back. I think Joe and Matt are much more compatable, were with Chris there was just the infatuation.
ReplyDeleteJust when I think your writing couldn't get better, you ratchet it up yet again. Amazing. The last paragraphs are heartbreaking, as others have pointed out, even though you have been telegraphing this outcome in multiple previous chapters. What do we grieve for here? It is the relationship between Joe and Chris first and foremost of course, but we also mourn for Chris and the way he can't get a grip on his own life and what could make him happy. Joe we have more hope for, because he sees so much more. It is brilliant to put Chris in context as a case like Matt Canetti's Republicans, even if it may not be quite right, it's still speaks to our understanding of why Joe and Matt themselves could never quite get it together.
ReplyDeleteThere are other brilliant writing gems here. The vignette of the Faulkner seminar is perfect -- you so capture the mixture of intellectual passion with pretense and posturing that flows almost effortlessly from Joe. Anyone who has ever been in such a class will recognize this instantly, but you convey a kind of understanding available only to an outside observer who knows the characters.
This is such a feast, it is worth the long waits between chapters.
CLS
Oh god, the feels. The feeeeels. Dude.
ReplyDelete[SPOILER ALERT]
By the way, nice "Joe gets outed" cliffhanger about half way through.
Oh god, the feels. The feeeels. Dude.
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Nice "Joe gets outed" cliffhanger about half way through. We noticed, don't worry.
Part of me hoped denial was just a phase for Chris, but I wasn't exactly surprised at this turn of events. Still love Chris to bits though, I understand completely why Joe would be so into him (beside his good looks), he's a darling when he's not a brat!
ReplyDeleteGood to see Matt back and I was happy to see Joe open up to him about Chris. Matt must have been a bit heartbroken too.
I can't wait to see how it all pans out with Joe's little secret.
Your writing has tremendiously improved over the years and you created such lovable characters that will stay with me forever.
Kudos
I literally started reading this story 5 days ago and could not put it down. At times, Joe College reads like an autobiography -- dramatized and embellished, but nonetheless so believable. Whether the tale is so believable because you've drawn on personal experiences, or we as readers are so willing to immerse ourselves because you are that great of a writer, kudos to you for sharing this incredible piece of literature with your fans.
ReplyDeleteAs a junior at one of the institutions Joe frequently dismisses, this story feels just as real and relatable in 2014.
Bravo.
Thanks so much, dude! I hope that Dartmouth/Penn is treating you okay.
DeleteSomeone recommended this series and I have really enjoyed it. Started reading and could not put it down. Glad to hear this is not the end. Thanks for your effort in creating a great story.
ReplyDeleteAWESOME! Love this! I am glued....keep 'em coming....Chris is a shmoe
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