You can find hundreds of thousands of works this one on the Internet, it’s one of the most done tropes in fanfiction, yet presumably because this was written by a man it has been published. It’s a self insert fic, essentially. All the male characters are truly awful, even the one you’re supposed to identify with the most, and the female characters are one dimensional at best. If you have never heard of fanfics you might it, otherwise give it a wide berth. 3 s Sarah2,716 194

Ordinary Joe is probably not an obvious choice of book for me but after meeting the author at a blogger and author meet up, he very kindly gave me a copy of his book in exchange for an honest review.

Joe West is just your typical average man. In fact everything about him is pretty average, his height, his weight, his looks, I said pretty much everything. He is married with two children and is just your stereo typical average male.

Joe is fairly happy with his life and there's probably nothing of his personal life that he would change. Unfortunately that all comes under threat when he meets Olivia, a stunningly beautiful and famous actress. I am sure for many of us it would be a dream come true to sleep with someone so attractive and famous, well for Joe it becomes a reality and from then on in Joe's nightmare begins.

Olivia is a total fruit cake and Joe fears for his marriage and his job as he can't see how he is going to keep it quiet. Fortunately for Joe, Olivia has him mixed up with another of his work colleagues due to a business card.

Now Joseph Bennett, Joe's work colleague is everything that Joe isn't. He started the same day as Joe but is a bit of a high flyer, he works hard but also s to play hard and is more than happy to take advantage of working away and sleeping with lots of women. He is very arrogant and to be honest when Olivia is bombarding him with texts and emails and he is getting a hard time off his bosses as it could jeopardise them a big client, well I have to say I enjoyed it. Even though he denies sleeping with the actress, due to his past history, no one believes him, even his wife. Towards the end though I did feel really sorry for him and felt bad for being so hard on his character. The whole scenario of Joe and Joseph's lives felt a bit the film Trading Places, as Joseph once a high flyer who has it all starts to lose everything whilst Joe's life is set to become a lot better one being offered Joseph's post in the company with a nice pay rise.

Ordinary Joe is an intellectual and witty read. It is very much a story of digging yourself into a hole and instead of getting yourself out of it, you dig yourself deeper and deeper into it. The whole storyline had me going through a whole array of feelings. The two front teeth incident especially made me laugh, especially the short chapter where Joe's wife ns him to Hannibal Lector. I have to say the story did not end how I had expected it to and one event that happened near the end totally shocked me, yet it made the book better for it being in there. Even though Ordinary Joe, me, may not be your obvious reading choice I would certainly recommend taking a chance on this book as I think you will be pleasantly surprised.fiction1 Thelastwordreview330 30

Allow me to introduce you to Joe West, he is just at first glance an ordinary guy, a receding hairline, a little overweight Jewish accountant. Nothing wrong with that I hear you say! Joe works in the film industry. Ah I now hear you say.
So how many of us of dreamed of what it would be to wake up one morning alongside a Hollywood film star. Be honest? In Ordinary Joe author Jon Teckman takes that dream and turns into a rip roaring comedy that takes off from the very first sentence.
Joe West did wake up with a Hollywood actress the very beautiful Olivia Finch, Far too much to drink the previous evening and one thing led to another, remember Joe is happily married with a young family, the thing is Olivia is rather taken with our ‘Ordinary Joe’ and will not give up on him. So it begins. Now we meet Joseph Bennett Joe’s boss and Joe does not exactly ‘get on’ with Joseph, the problem now is that Joseph has been unwittingly drawn into the affair, from here chaos takes over and the story really moves along at a steady pace allowing the reader to make up their own mind about our Joe, you will either love him or want to slap his face real hard, oh this seems to happen to Joe a number of times to the point that he loses a few teeth.
This so reminds me of some of the great British comedies of recent years and Ordinary Joe would make for another. To witness the leading character running around the Keystone Cops trying to cover up Joe and Olivia’s illicit night of passion does read a classic farce. Through this I really felt for Joe’s wife Natasha, though she knows Jo better than he knows himself, Joe always seemed to manage to blame Joseph for the ‘night of passion’
Sometimes the grass is not as green on the other side as it seems at first and poor Jo is doing everything he can to hide his drunken night of passion from everyone especially Natasha. Does he manage to succeed now throw in a dead body and this becomes a classic comedy. This is a hilarious read, and it is over all too quick. Does Joe pay for his adultery with Olivia Finch? A wonderful debut novel from Jon Teckman that is pure escapism. One thing I should mention for other guys reading this. Just think about the socks you wear. Why? You need to read Ordinary Joe.
I have an appointment with my sock drawer.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
1 John Fish66 2

Allow me to introduce you to Joe West, he is just at first glance an ordinary guy, a receding hairline, a little overweight Jewish accountant. Nothing wrong with that I hear you say! Joe works in the film industry. Ah I now hear you say.
So how many of us of dreamed of what it would be to wake up one morning alongside a Hollywood film star. Be honest? In Ordinary Joe author Jon Teckman takes that dream and turns into a rip roaring comedy that takes off from the very first sentence.
Joe West did wake up with a Hollywood actress the very beautiful Olivia Finch, Far too much to drink the previous evening and one thing led to another, remember Joe is happily married with a young family, the thing is Olivia is rather taken with our ‘Ordinary Joe’ and will not give up on him. So it begins. Now we meet Joseph Bennett Joe’s boss and Joe does not exactly ‘get on’ with Joseph, the problem now is that Joseph has been unwittingly drawn into the affair, from here chaos takes over and the story really moves along at a steady pace allowing the reader to make up their own mind about our Joe, you will either love him or want to slap his face real hard, oh this seems to happen to Joe a number of times to the point that he loses a few teeth.
This so reminds me of some of the great British comedies of recent years and Ordinary Joe would make for another. To witness the leading character running around the Keystone Cops trying to cover up Joe and Olivia’s illicit night of passion does read a classic farce. Through this I really felt for Joe’s wife Natasha, though she knows Jo better than he knows himself, Joe always seemed to manage to blame Joseph for the ‘night of passion’
Sometimes the grass is not as green on the other side as it seems at first and poor Jo is doing everything he can to hide his drunken night of passion from everyone especially Natasha. Does he manage to succeed now throw in a dead body and this becomes a classic comedy. This is a hilarious read, and it is over all too quick. Does Joe pay for his adultery with Olivia Finch? A wonderful debut novel from Jon Teckman that is pure escapism. One thing I should mention for other guys reading this. Just think about the socks you wear. Why? You need to read Ordinary Joe.
I have an appointment with my sock drawer.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
1 FionnualaAuthor 4 books144

I read this on holiday over a couple of days. I did laugh out loud while reading and winced occasionally (on Joe's behalf) as well! Joe is 'ordinary' until he beds Olivia Finch, film star - after which his life with his wife and children, a life he loves, is threatened by a series of hapless events. He drove me mad at times but Joe's a perfect example, for me, where you don't necessarily have to 'love' the character to keep turning the pages. His antics (His poor unfortunate boss!) make him a bit hard to love, but the way he's written, I couldn't help feeling a bit sorry for him. Some very funny moments in this very well written debut.1 Fleur SmithwickAuthor 3 books17

I laughed out loud reading Ordinary Joe. The story of a modest accountant, a middle-aged bespectacled family man, who gets drunk at a film party and ends up in bed with the leading lady. I found the premise entirely believable. Strange things happen and beautiful women don't necessarily want to sleep with equally beautiful men. Olivia Finch found something comforting and real in Joe West. The result of this bit of bad judgement is funny, painful and gripping. Genuinely loved this book.1 Mathilde73 1 follower

I did not the story or characters. It felt predictable, but not plausible and just too cringe worthy at times.1 LouiseAuthor 4 books150

Funny, proper laugh-out-loud funny, and a great insight I suspect into the film industry's backroom shenanigans. I really warmed to Joe, even though he isn't truly able. None of the characters are, but I found myself drawn in and wanting to know how Joe's increasingly convoluted life was going to turn out. The plot is over the top, of course, and not always believable... but that's not a criticism, as this is one of those books where you have to suspend disbelief, and go with the flow. Trust the author! Humour is difficult to pull off, but Jon Teckman does it brilliantly, and this was a shot in the arm for me. Highly recommended. Dylan Rodrigues6

Really good book, highly addicting. Joe West had a mountain to climb in this novel and than he tried to hide the fact that he had an affair with Olivia Finch (Famous Actress) from his wife and kids, it was never going to go well for him. Olivia Finch was also very attracted to Joe West despite him being an ordinary person ( Not someone famous ). Joe's boss whose name is Joseph Bennett than tries to find out what really happened as he was getting text messages from Olivia on his phone, despite Joe trying to cover the story up to save his marriage. He loses a few teeth in the process after he puts the blame on his boss.

Great book to pick up and read. Lucy McLaurin759 9

I won this book as a giveaway on Goodreads.

When I started reading this book I wasn't 100% sure it was my sort of book.

However I continued reading and found myself enjoying it; whilst simultaneously not quite believing the disastrous turns this man's life was taking.

Funny, alarming, gobsmacking ... What a mess one night can make!This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.Show full reviewgoodreads-win Bev Evans64

I didn't the main character at all. He was a coward and weak. The book ended on somewhat of a cliffhanger which was disappointing as I don't think there is any sequel. Not that good.This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.Show full review Clare Scanlan190 4

Nicely written, good characters but not much of a story Katy Kelly2,199 92

There's a bit of Notting Hill in here, and various Hollywood mistaken identity stories that work if you go along with them.

An everyday guy, married with kids, who works for a firm that helps produce movies, meets the biggest female star in the world. Joe isn't expecting more than a pretty face. But what do they bond over? A shared love of Old Hollywood films. One thing leads to another... Uh-oh. But it turns out that Olivia has Joe mixed up with someone else... his boss.

Sounds pretty interesting. I love books (and films) about films, though beyond this opening, that doesn't really play a role in the story. This is the story of Joe's decision - does he own up to his identity? Does he own up to his wife? Does he risk losing everything?

I had mixed feelings throughout this, and I finished thinking that I wanted to it more than I actually did. It was hard to Joe very much - okay, he makes a mistake. But he never really tries to recover my sympathies after that, he lies, covers his own a$$, despite knowingly causing more than one other person distress. His boss, though unable himself is unable in a sleazy, grotesque way - the guy you love to hate. The star - Olivia Finch - well, after her impressive opening Old Hollywood monologue, she turns into a needy/whiny/bunny-boiling obsessive who goes from raging to snuggling in seconds. Did Joe really make that much of an impression on her? And on the home front, Joe's wife Natasha, while supporting her husband's career, in the majority doesn't get much more of a role than asking for Hollywood gossip from it.

I read to the end to find out what would happen. I did enjoy the writing, Teckman gives Joe some very funny lines. But the story itself is really unbelievable - would Olivia REALLY have been duped for so long into believing Joe was someone else? And the way in which she misunderstands his identity as well, just silly.

If you can suspend disbelief, this is an enjoyable story that wants to be a screwball comedy but doesn't have a Katherine Hepburn or a Cary Grant.

Review of a Goodreads giveaway copy.first-reads Shona Booky Ramblings of a Neurotic Mom550 28

I knew going into this book that Joe cheats on his wife. However, I anticipated it happening a little later into the book than it actually happened. I did think this was going to be the tale of a man pursued by the film star, who saw his resolve wear down over time, but instead was met by what can only be described as a drunken falling into bed. With him hiding in bed after the event and her slinking out of his hotel room you'd be forgiven for not understanding all that came after.

The morning after, Joe is flying back to England with his colleague Joseph, when in a case of mistaken identity Joseph receives a text that Joe should have received... instead of coming clean, Joe allows the mistake to go unchecked and everything snowballs from there. Joe has numerous times to put things right by coming clean but instead decides to keep his mouth shut, which in turn screws Joseph over.

I actually struggled with not only writing my review, but also my star rating... On the one hand I found the story well paced and well written, it definitely grabbed my attention, I read this in one sitting, so compelled was I to find out what happened. On the other hand I didn't a single character in this book... perhaps maybe Joe's son Matthew who had difficulty with words beginning with the letter S, with somewhat hilarious results... There wasn't a single second in this book that I felt the tiniest ounce of sympathy for Joe, Nor could I muster a shred of sympathy for Joseph, who was so seriously wronged, or even Natasha, Joe's wife, who in almost every scene was either moaning that her husband wasn't filling her in on the tiniest shred of gossip or was belittling his very existence and laughing at the possibility that someone Olivia would even consider looking at her husband.

If this is in fact what the author was aiming for then Kudos to him for a job well done, but for me there was no comedy, no connection with any of characters and I ended the book more than a little disappointed.arc paperback Jaffareadstoo2,685

First of all, I have to say that I was completely taken in by this book cover. It's so bright and cheery that you can't help but want to peek inside to see what's going on ..and believe me when you do peek inside you find that there's a lot going on for the hapless Joe West, who is about to commit a sexual folly of epic proportions that will have repercussions for a long time to come.

We know very early on in the book that Joe, a very ordinary middle aged accountant, finds himself in bed with a beautiful film star, it's the stuff of his dreams, the only problem being, that Joe is,....a) very drunk and.... b) very married...and, so, of course, neither misdemeanors show him in a very good light. When his boss, Joseph Bennett, a man Joe despises, finds himself unwittingly drawn into the whole sorry affair, well, ...you just know that therein lies disaster.

What then follows is a comedic story which at times reads almost a farce, you can so well imagine everyone rushing round madly trying to set the just right balance of damage limitations. When I finished the novel, I realised that I had found most of the characters unlikable, but looking back, I think that's a deliberate ploy on the part of the author, and for me it worked as then I didn't have sympathy for any of them.

I read the book quickly, it's not one that you need to ponder over too much. And it did make laugh out loud in places, so my advise is just go along with it and enjoy a quirky and wry look at modern life. Shell Baker633 17

Ordinary Joe is most definitely an original story and I have read a few film books in my time. I really did enjoy this book.

Joe west an account is a very ordinary guy, over weight, married with two kids who works in the film industry. until he beds film actress Olivia Finch. But who wouldn't bed a movie star, if you had the chance?! Joe goes through a series of nightmare events after digging himself a hole and trying to get out of it. Then there is bennett who denies sleeping with Olivia after she keeps sending him emails and texts. But no one believes him with his track record. But Olivia unknown to her is pestering the wrong guy.

The characters are very well written and realistic everyday people and you get to know them very quickly. I do really Jon's writing style. I couldn't help but feel sorry for Joe even though he did the unforgivable.

I read this book in two sittings and to be honest I didn't actually know where this book was going but then it turned out to be a totally fun laugh out loud book and very gripping. The ending wasn't what I expected at all but I did it being a shocker!

I am giving this 4 stars if you're looking for a light read that's different then this is the book for you. Also thank you Jon Teckman for a copy of this in exchange for a honest review. It was lovely to meet you.reading-challenge Lynne Harrison1 review

This is a light hearted read about a normal guy, an accountant and his opposite, the big brash guy with lots of flair. The relationship between the two is tempestuous to day the least and as an ordinairy joanna I am quite glad to see that slow and steady wins the day. My favourite quote is "Nobody grows up wanting to be an accountant" - so true!

The real art in Jon's book is that we recognise all of the characters as people we know and love every day. All of us make stupid mistakes, All of us have that person n the office who gets promoted because of confident personality and no ability. We all know people who think the grass is always greener elsewhere. We all know bosses who just want problems to go away and demonic HR managers are rife in every business in the world. The familiarity of the characters helps lead you through the mishaps and slapstick so that they too seem all the more believable.

This is never going to be a "classic" but it is nonetheless a very good read. Christina BanachAuthor 1 book133

I read this book on holiday and laughed so much during its reading that, when I finished, my husband practically snatched it out of my hands to read after me. The thing is Ordinary Joe isn’t just funny, it’s hilarious - as my other half soon discovered for himself. The book may be entitled ordinary but the story is anything but. Told from the point of view of Joe West - accountant, husband, father, built on the heavy side– it’s the tale of a man whose life is ticking along nicely until the unimaginable happens: he meets a Hollywood superstar who becomes besotted with him. Beautiful and desirable, Olivia Finch is every man’s dream. But what if that dream becomes somewhat of a nightmare? Well, that would be telling – read Ordinary Joe to see what I mean. Pacey, witty and at times laugh-out-loud funny, and fascinating insights into the film industry, this book is utterly brilliant. It would make a fantastic movie!
Louisa TregerAuthor 4 books89

This is a brilliant read: I devoured it in a day. It tells the story of Joe, a middle-aged, overweight, balding, married accountant who has a one night stand with the most beautiful actress in the world, and digs himself in and out of increasingly large holes to escape discovery. The characters are engaging and believable, and it says a lot for Teckman’s skill that you sympathise with Joe, even though he has committed an unforgivable act. The novel is sharply observant: domestic life in north London is as well-drawn as the glamorous and fickle world of the film industry. It is well plotted, well written, funny, touching and sad. Claire ThakeAuthor 2 books21

Ordinary Joe is a very well written book, that keeps you turning the pages. Married man Joe, goes away on a business trip and ends up falling into bed with a famous film star, and after that is where the story unfolds. I personally didn't any character in this book. There was no reason for Joe's adultery baring his own weakness which is never an excuse. Joseph was a horrible man, pulled into Joe's web of lies and you cant help but wonder if karma was at play here.
Overall the book was a good read and enjoyable. 2015 harper-collins-arcs Louise16

I found this book very entertaining and at times It made me laugh out loud
I found myself rooting for him and the scenes with arch nemesis were the bits that had me giggling to myself
We all get found out eventually but part of me didn't want him to get caught!
A great story from start to finish
Thankyou to the publishers and goodreads for the chance to read this funny and entertaining book
A brilliant 5 starsfirst-reads must-read Adelein644 5

Jon Teckmanin elokuvamaailmaan sijoittuva esikoisteos Tavallinen Joe tarttui kirjastosta mukaani takakansitekstin ansiosta. Ajattelin, että kirja olisi pirteän kepeä, mutta loppujen lopuksi tarina on tragikoominen.

Ihan ok kirja, joka ei herättänyt kovin suuria tuntemuksia. Odotin jotain hauskempaa, mutta toisaalta kaikki vitsit eivät kääntyneet niin hyvin suomeksi.2016 Tony230

Enjoyable, even if somewhat contrived, tale of a happily married English accountant being bedded by a beautiful American actress, after which event all manners of farcical complications develop for him and his boss. Light reading. Julie KendrickAuthor 9 books14

A pretty good first novel. A few unbelievable bits which made me roll my eyes and some characters which could have been developed more. But the story moved along nicely and enjoyably.
I would definitely read more of teckman's work. Debs86 3

I won this book in an auction in my book club & boy am I glad I did!
Fan-bloody-tastic! So nice to read a fast paced, twisting book. I don't think I've ever held my breath so much and shouted out loud! Love love love Joe, Olivia, Natasha & even Joseph! Read this book peeps and read it NOW! Linda Hill1,336 46

A no spoilers review here https://lindasbookbag.wordpress.com/2... Clare Stoddon1 review

Great book! So easy to read and a fantastic story with a few twists. Renita D'SilvaAuthor 11 books344

A fun, wonderful read. Lisa Bennett28 3

Autor del comentario:
=================================