Save up to 20% off select gift cards
$4.99 with 69 percent savings
Print List Price: $15.99

Promotions apply when you purchase

These promotions will be applied to this item:

Some promotions may be combined; others are not eligible to be combined with other offers. For details, please see the Terms & Conditions associated with these promotions.

Sold by Amazon.com Services LLC.
Read with our free app
You've subscribed to ! We will preorder your items within 24 hours of when they become available. When new books are released, we'll charge your default payment method for the lowest price available during the pre-order period.
Update your device or payment method, cancel individual pre-orders or your subscription at
Your Memberships & Subscriptions
Kindle app logo image

Download the free Kindle app and start reading Kindle books instantly on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required.

Read instantly on your browser with Kindle for Web.

Using your mobile phone camera - scan the code below and download the Kindle app.

QR code to download the Kindle App

Follow the author

Eric Avedissian
Follow
Something went wrong. Please try your request again later.

The Ocean Hugs Hard Kindle Edition

by Eric Avedissian (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.0 out of 5 stars 12 ratings

Surfside City, New Jersey. 1966. Cub reporter Harman Bass is cutting his teeth in the fast world of local journalism and getting out-scooped by the competition. Facetious, cocky, and always quoting Nietzsche, Harman isn't making any friends both in and out of the newsroom.

All that changes when the daughter of a prominent family is found dead on the beach, handing Harman the juiciest news story of the year. But she isn't any old beauty pageant queen; she's his high school girlfriend. Harman's dogged reporting into the young woman's death reveals pushback from the authorities and pulls the newshound into the resort's darkest corners.

After one of his sources is murdered, the routine story becomes dangerous and personal. Something watches Harman from the shadows, something ancient and hungry, worshipped by powerful men who kill to keep their secrets. Harman's job and life are soon threatened, and the once brash reporter must battle his boss, rival journalists, and his own sanity before filing what could be his last story.

Read more
Previous slide of product details
  1. Print length
    336 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publication date
    June 24, 2024
  4. File size
    3.7 MB
  5. Page Flip
    Enabled
  6. Word Wise
    Enabled
  7. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
Next slide of product details
Unwell Hydration from Alex Cooper
Hydrate & focus with every sip Shop now

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0D4YGSYRF
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Shadow Spark Publishing (June 24, 2024)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ June 24, 2024
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 3.7 MB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 336 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.0 out of 5 stars 12 ratings

About the author

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

Eric Avedissian

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Eric Avedissian is an adjunct professor and speculative fiction author. His work includes the novels Accursed Son, Midnight at Bat Hollow, and the role-playing game Ravaged Earth. His short stories appear in various anthologies, including Across the Universe, Great Wars, and Three Time Travelers Walk Into…. He lives in New Jersey with his wife and a ridiculous number of books. When not chained to his writing desk, he hikes the Pinelands and wastes too much time on social media. Visit him online at www.ericavedissian.com.

Customer reviews

4 out of 5 stars
12 global ratings

Review this product

Share your thoughts with other customers
Write a customer review

Customers say

Customers find the book's plot engaging, with one review noting it's a complete tale in under 300 pages. They appreciate the character development, particularly the engaging main characters.

AI-generated from the text of customer reviews

Select to learn more

5 customers mention "Plot twists"5 positive0 negative

Customers enjoy the plot twists in this book, finding it engaging and fast-paced, with one customer noting it's a complete tale in under 300 pages.

"...The plot takes some surprising twists and turns and kept me fixed to its pages, compelled to keep reading to see how the story would pan out...." Read more

"Interesting plot and a very smooth read." Read more

"...Part murder mystery, part Lovecraftian horror, part nostalgia trip, and yes, part beach read, this is a wonderfully-paced book about a cub reporter..." Read more

"Things happen fast in this novel! Full of twists and turns, you won't be able to put it down. Fantastic." Read more

3 customers mention "Character development"3 positive0 negative

Customers appreciate the character development in the book, with engaging main characters, and one customer notes that it features an asexual protagonist.

"...Harmon Bass is an intriguing protagonist; he’s a young cub reporter still finding his way in his career and in his life, struggling to become..." Read more

"...This is the best book Eric has written so far. Several well-developed characters, a plot that keeps moving, and a a complete tale in under 300 pages...." Read more

"good characters......" Read more

Top reviews from the United States

  • Karen Siddall
    5.0 out of 5 stars A compelling tale of mystery, secrets, and death in a seaside tourist town in the 1960s.
    Reviewed in the United States on July 28, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    "The Ocean Hugs Hard" by Eric Avedissian is a new historical mystery and suspenseful horror novel that tells the absorbing tale of a young reporter investigating the death of a local beauty queen in a summer seaside tourist town. With its engaging main characters, 1960s setting, and suspenseful twists, the story held my attention completely as the truth slowly came to light.

    Harmon Bass is an intriguing protagonist; he’s a young cub reporter still finding his way in his career and in his life, struggling to become comfortable with his asexual nature. He’s made a first step toward becoming an independent adult by moving out of his childhood home and working as a reporter for his hometown’s paper rather than as an accountant, as his father wants. Though trying to prove himself with this important story (and keep his job), he is genuinely interested in finding justice for the victim, who was his former (and only) girlfriend back when they were in high school together.

    Harmon’s co-writer on this story is June Jensen, a smart reporter who has been relegated to puff pieces and covering local events. She’s struggling to break free of the traditional attitudes of the male-dominated newsroom that limits her success. Likewise, Lyle Morris, the paper’s new African-American photographer, is up against the complacent, entrenched racism of a time when the Civil Rights Movement was just getting legs.

    The author can certainly tell a story and took me places I didn’t expect despite the imagery on the fabulous cover. Didi’s murder occurs off-the-page, and the discovery of her bikini-clad body provides the story’s opening, so Harmon’s investigation starts immediately. The descriptions of people and places are vivid and I felt like I was right there with Harmon every step of the very unpredictable way. The plot takes some surprising twists and turns and kept me fixed to its pages, compelled to keep reading to see how the story would pan out.

    I recommend THE OCEAN HUGS HARD to mystery readers who would enjoy a "Twilight Zone" twist to their traditional mystery.
    Helpful
     Report
  • Our Town Books
    4.0 out of 5 stars good characters...
    Reviewed in the United States on June 26, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    Interesting plot and a very smooth read.
    Helpful
     Report
  • Ben Leach
    5.0 out of 5 stars The anti-summer-beach-read summer beach read!
    Reviewed in the United States on July 11, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    FULL DISCLOSURE: I have been Eric's friend for several years and I want to support his efforts as a writer. But I'm also an active reader and so I do think there's some objectivity in this review (you can see the vast majority of reviews are not for books written by authors I know personally). Having said that, this book needs some well-deserved praise!

    If you've ever wondered if there was an anti-summer-beach-read summer beach read, you will find it in the pages of "The Ocean Hugs Hard." Part murder mystery, part Lovecraftian horror, part nostalgia trip, and yes, part beach read, this is a wonderfully-paced book about a cub reporter torn between the rules of journalism, his personal feelings for his friends, his idealism and his quest for the truth, and trying to make enough money to pay the rent.

    Knowing Eric, I know a large part of inspiration comes from years of living in and reporting on Ocean City, a family friendly beach resort. While Surfside City is fiction, its inspiration as clear as day for someone like me, and I think anyone who has ventured down to an old-fashioned Jersey shore resort will relate to the kind of town portrayed in this book. I mean...maybe without the year-round residents summoning ancient horrors...but you never know!

    This is the best book Eric has written so far. Several well-developed characters, a plot that keeps moving, and a a complete tale in under 300 pages. Additionally, this features an asexual protagonist, and like most of my favorite books that include representation, it's done sensitively without it being his only personality trait.

    In my own former journalist's fedora to remain objective, I will say my physical copy had some layout issues. It's nothing that completely ruined my enjoyment of the book, but just something to take note of if you're reading the physical copy of it. But you should try and read it any way you can!

    It pleases me to be able to recommend a friend's book wholeheartedly and not just because I want to do right by a friend. I've read "fun" books by more well-renowned authors that weren't nearly as good as this one.
    Helpful
     Report
  • Norma Carroll
    3.0 out of 5 stars Only just mediocre
    Reviewed in the United States on July 24, 2024
    This book wasn't at all what I expected. It dragged in spots but overall, it did keep me reading. Intriguing premise but I didn't feel it gave me what I wanted in the book.
    Helpful
     Report
  • a helpful stranger
    4.0 out of 5 stars Thriller with lots of twists
    Reviewed in the United States on July 7, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    Things happen fast in this novel! Full of twists and turns, you won't be able to put it down. Fantastic.
    Helpful
     Report
  • bookworm for life
    5.0 out of 5 stars very exciting
    Reviewed in the United States on August 27, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    This story was fast and kept my interest. I saw someone reading it in a Dr.'s office and when I asked if it was any good she just said " read it! It won't disappoint." She was correct! It made me look up anything else written by this author and I found another fascinating story. It is called Accursed Son. Informative and entertaining. I hope the author writes more books.
    Helpful
     Report
  • RLBKBJ
    5.0 out of 5 stars Lovecraftian neo-noir set in the 60s
    Reviewed in the United States on August 25, 2024
    This book is a fun read. It has nods to both Lovecraftian investigating and noir reporters inquiring into murder. You don't have to be fan of either genre to enjoy this mystery. The writing is snappy and there are a few twists I didn't see coming. Bonus kudos to Eric for creating a main character who is "Ace" without reducing them to a caricature. Highly recommend!
    Helpful
     Report
  • els ebraert - b for bookreview
    5.0 out of 5 stars Great
    Reviewed in the United States on June 26, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    A powerful and very enjoyable read
    Helpful
     Report

Report an issue


Does this item contain inappropriate content?
Report
Do you believe that this item violates a copyright?
Report
Does this item contain quality or formatting issues?
Report