Hard Case Crime, Part 4

[Lawrence Block]

Originally Posted by djmont

p.s. You just like it because you've got the biggest one.

The impulse to respond "That's what she said!" is well nigh irresistible, but fortunately I'm a man of strong character and refuse to give in to it.

[djmont]

For those who might be interested, I posted a review of Getting Off:

http://www.crimefictionblog.com/2011...nce-block.html

[DJLinus]

So yesterday I went to a book launch party for a collection of short horror stories set in Richmond, by local authors (gotta support local literature) and it was brought to my attention that last year a similar project had been done for crime noir stories.

I looked it up when I got home and found that it's a whole series, each tackling a different city/region: http://www.akashicbooks.com/noirseries.htm

That's such a great idea. Forum favorites such as Mr. Block and Mr. Ardai even have contributed stories. Has anybody read any of these books? Which ones stand out? I'm thinking of picking up a few.

(I'd love to get them all, but I don't really need another crime fiction line to get woefully behind on. )

[djmont]

I was getting all of Akashic's noir series for a while, but I kept falling behind so I finally gave up. I have a bunch of them, though, and have read through (and reviewed) a few. I recall liking:

Baltimore Noir (ed. Laura Lippman)
D.C. Noir (ed. George Pelecanos)
Manhattan Noir (ed. Lawrence Block)
Los Angeles Noir (ed. Denise Hamilton)

I seem to recall reading some of the stories in Bronx Noir and Wall Street Noir, but I know I didn't read all of them. Given the quality of many of the editors, I'm sure several of the other volumes are worth digging into.

I didn't care for Chicago Noir -- I don't think it had any actual crime writers in it.

I would recommend picking a city you especially enjoy reading about and starting with that book.

[DJLinus]

Originally Posted by djmont

I would recommend picking a city you especially enjoy reading about and starting with that book.

Thanks for the suggestions. I am definitely going to pick up the Richmond volume and thought about ones from cities that I'm familiar with (DC, Vegas, New Orleans) and some from exotic, not-the-usual noir locales (Moscow, Dublin, Havana, London).

[djmont]

I haven't read Vegas Noir, although I intended to. A couple pals have stories in it, so I'm sure those are good.

Let us know what you find. (Maybe someone should start a thread for this?)

[DJLinus]

Will do. I ordered Richmond Noir, but probably won't get to it for a few weeks.

I put my initial post here because this seems to double as a general crime noir thread at times and also because of the crossover between HCC authors. A new thread would be fine with me, though.

[Geofferson]

Well, I picked up the latest batch of HCC titles at my favorite LBS yesterday (Uncle Edgar's in Minneapolis).

I must say, I'm definitely digging the trade paperback format of the new titles. I wasn't excited at the prospect initially, but I think I'm swayed. Also, the cover art on the Block hardback in person

BTW, Mr. Block: the folks at Uncle Edgar's said your collection of Scudder short stories (THE NIGHT AND THE MUSIC) is on order. Can't wait to pick this up.

[djmont]

The collection of Scudder short stories is terrific. I think I've read all of them before (except for the new one), but I'm having a great time reading through them.

[FunkDaddy J]

I love how these covers are becoming even more lascivious.



JOSEPH KOENIG RETURNS—WITH HIS FIRST NEW NOVEL IN 20 YEARS!

Newspaperman Adam Jordan’s byline ran above two big articles in the early editions. One of them got him fired. The other landed him a job writing true crime pieces for Real Detective magazine. The story he’s working on now—a beauty contestant found strangled on an Atlantic City beach—is one that boardwalk power brokers would rather see covered up then covered. And if Adam keeps digging, he may find that he’s digging his own grave...

First publication ever!
Author was nominated for the Edgar Award for Best First Novel for FLOATER in 1986
Author’s last novel, BRIDES OF BLOOD, was chosen as a New York Times Notable Book

Raves for the Work of Joseph Koenig...

"A crackling piece of work...Don’t miss it."
— New York Times

"The suspense...is sometimes so terrific you have to cover the bottom half of the page with your hand in order to keep from jumping ahead...This is a superior thriller."
— Newsday

"Outstanding...one of the best new crime writers."
— Kirkus Reviews

[djmont]

You think that cover is risque -- check out the art for the new Block reprints:

http://www.hardcasecrime.com/books_bios.cgi?title=69

[CVB]

A new book has been posted on the HCC website.

Quotes from the HCC website are below....

"THE TWENTY-YEAR DEATH"
"Ariel S. Winter"
"August 2012"
"ISBN: 978-0-85768-581-0"
"Cover art by Chuck Pyle"
"First publication ever!"
"Contains three full-length novels—the longest book in Hard Case Crime history"
"Hollywood star Rose McGowan posed for the cover painting"

[FunkDaddy J]

[DJLinus]

Kind of late notice, but earlier Lawrence Block tweeted that many of his back catalog ebooks (including some put out by HCC) are on sale for $2.99 or less all day today:

http://lawrenceblock.wordpress.com/2...le-today-only/

I'm going to pick up a few, but am kind of overwhelmed. Guess I'll read through the plot summaries and reviews. I did already get Afterthoughts since it's only $.40.

Originally Posted by FunkDaddy J

I love how these covers are becoming even more lascivious.

Whenever my sister and/or brother-in-law come over with their young kids, they politely ask me to shut my laptop if I leave it unattended. My screensaver is a slideshow of all of the HCC covers.

[Lawrence Block]

Brilliant idea for a screensaver. Charles, you ought to slap one together and share it with the congoscenti...

[Sean O'Hara]

Originally Posted by DJLinus

I'm going to pick up a few, but am kind of overwhelmed. Guess I'll read through the plot summaries and reviews. I did already get Afterthoughts since it's only $.40.

Don't be deceived by the price. I only made it through the first five chapters before I had to go online to buy those books. This'll probably turn into one of the most expensive books I've ever read.

[Lawrence Block]

Gosh, is Afterthoughts having that effect on people? Gee, we never thought that would happen. Entirely unintentional, I assure you.

[rmorgan]

Originally Posted by DJLinus

Kind of late notice, but earlier Lawrence Block tweeted that many of his back catalog ebooks (including some put out by HCC) are on sale for $2.99 or less all day today:

http://lawrenceblock.wordpress.com/2...le-today-only/

I'm going to pick up a few, but am kind of overwhelmed. Guess I'll read through the plot summaries and reviews. I did already get Afterthoughts since it's only $.40.



Whenever my sister and/or brother-in-law come over with their young kids, they politely ask me to shut my laptop if I leave it unattended. My screensaver is a slideshow of all of the HCC covers.

Thanks for posting - I ended up ordering 5 titles. Will be my first time actually reading Mr. Block's stuff, looking forward to it.

[DJLinus]

Originally Posted by Lawrence Block

Gosh, is Afterthoughts having that effect on people? Gee, we never thought that would happen. Entirely unintentional, I assure you.

Surrrrre. I'm only familiar with your HCC work - which I greatly enjoyed - so this sale is a nice way for me to branch out a little.

I ended up getting Afterthoughts, The Specialists, Candy, Such Men Are Dangerous, and Gigolo Johnny Wells. Now all I need is a Kindle. (Prolonged reading on my laptop gets uncomfortable and I can't imagine reading a book on my phone would be a pleasurable experience.)

[Lawrence Block]

I think you'll be happiest with a Kindle. I find it a very enjoyable way to read. Have to say, though, that my eldest daughter's medium of choice is her iPhone, for which she downloaded a Kindle app. She likes the convenience and portability and always has it with her anyway. The screen is large enough for her. And she does a lot of reading, too.

[Sean O'Hara]

Originally Posted by DJLinus

Surrrrre. I'm only familiar with your HCC work - which I greatly enjoyed - so this sale is a nice way for me to branch out a little.

I ended up getting Afterthoughts, The Specialists, Candy, Such Men Are Dangerous, and Gigolo Johnny Wells.

I did all the $.99 titles, which came out to about twenty bucks, then picked half a dozen $1.99 titles from Afterthoughts that sounded interesting.

[DJLinus]

Wow. That's quite a haul. I look forward to digging into my new reads.

Originally Posted by Lawrence Block

I think you'll be happiest with a Kindle. I find it a very enjoyable way to read. Have to say, though, that my eldest daughter's medium of choice is her iPhone, for which she downloaded a Kindle app. She likes the convenience and portability and always has it with her anyway. The screen is large enough for her. And she does a lot of reading, too.

Oh, I pretty much sold myself on getting one a couple of months ago when the new Kindles were announced. I just want to go to Target or Best Buy and play around with the different models before I pull the trigger. Also, I should probably buy everyone's Christmas presents before I get another present for myself (I got a new laptop a few weeks ago). When I do finally get a Kindle, I'll have plenty of books waiting for me.

HCC books will still be physical purchases. Love those covers!

A friend of mine just came back from a transatlantic trip and said he read a couple of books on his iPhone during the flight. You do what you gotta do; his Kindle was lost in a recent move. My Android's screen is smaller and I doubt I could go that route.

[Sean O'Hara]

Originally Posted by DJLinus

Wow. That's quite a haul. I look forward to digging into my new reads.

Pulp novels like these tend to be short enough that I can knock one out in a Saturday afternoon with time to spare.

[wmermine]

Originally Posted by Sean O'Hara

Pulp novels like these tend to be short enough that I can knock one out in a Saturday afternoon with time to spare.

This is one of my main reasons for being such a fan of pulp novels. For example, I've been reading The Wheel of Time Series. It just took me about 1.5 months to get through the fifth book. When I finished, I immediately started The Hunter by Richard Stark. Finished that one in about one day!

Sometimes it's nice to get engrossed in another world, sometimes its nice to fly through a book driven by dialogue and violence, I guess!

[danfindlay]

I just can't get behind the idea of the e-reader. I've been playing video games and using computers for close to 30 years now but I guess I'm old fashioned when it comes to the tactile sensation of holding a book. Part of it comes from the fact we didn't have a lot when I was a kid and I could always get books from the school library, so perhaps it's like reliving my childhood adventures reading Stephen King and the James Blish Star Trek adaptations. Right now I'm making my way through your Scudder novels, Mr. Block.