Friends in Low Places

How strong are the bonds of friendship? 

In his debut novel, Vince Wetzel explores the evolution of lifelong friendships and how they withstand the strains of human failures.   

Jim organized their annual guys trip to the lake. He picked the date. He booked the spot. He even chronicled every adventure over the past 20 years in a ragged notebook. Now, he is a box of ashes that his four closest friends will take up to the lake one last time. Over the course of their final weekend together, they will read Jim's journal through his eyes, reliving their shared laughter, life moments, revelations, and regret while coming to accept their grief.  

Friends in Low Places is a funny, poignant, sometimes heartbreaking portrayal of male relationships and the support they provide as boys mature into men. 

Friends in Low Places deftly illuminates the intricacies of the male-bonding experience, following five best friends over several annual camping trips that embody everything from side-splitting laugher around the campfire to youthful heartbreak to drinking Olympics to crushed lifelong dreams to the ultimate power of forgiveness. There's a lot of love and hope in this novel, an interweaving of lives that shows the importance of vulnerable communing and always offering a hand when the valleys grow deeper. A nostalgic nod to the friendships we hold dear and the kinds of men we've always admired. 

Jonathan Starke, You've Got Something Coming 

In a normal world it is often easy to forget the importance of the bonds and the friendships we develop in life, especially when we are young and still figuring out what life is all about. Vince Wetzel has masterfully captured the ups and downs and evolutions of those friendships, and how fortunate we are to have them last well into our adulthood. This book is a treasure. 

Rich Ehisen - Creator of the Open Mic and author of In Their Own Words: Twenty Successful Writers on the Craft and Business of Writing 

I couldn't help reflecting on my own camping trips, the rituals of an annual gathering with friends, the laughter around mischief and debauchery, the moments you'll always cherish with your bros, and the times you want to punch those same dudes in the face. Author Vince Wetzel taps into all these emotions, introducing us to relatable characters that are flawed and funny (my kind of people), and stories that remind us how mistakes can lead to life-long consequences. There is healing in nature, there is reconciliation around the guys that know you best, and the best rejuvenation is "Friends In Low Places."

Josh Suchon - author, Miracle Men: Hershiser, Gibson, and the Improbable 1988 Dodgers