Noir Anthology

A starlet's plot to blackmail a film-studio executive results in her murder. Only the "trouble chaser" can clear her volatile lover and solve the crime.

A society matron's life is threatened after she engineers the theft of her own priceless jewelry to pay off a gambling debt. Only a debonair connoisseur of crime can save her and recover her gems. For a price.

An eccentric boarding house denizen winds up dead; his presumed killer, a fellow boarder, has vanished. The baffling case unfolds through the testimony of witnesses, who are themselves suspect.

A Manhattan gumshoe pursues a convict to St. Louis, where he gets mixed up in a cop killing and nearly loses his own life at the hands of a B girl.

A big-city tough guy comes to a small Minnesota town to settle a deadly fight between the local crime boss and his chief rival - his son.

Can’t you feel the warm velvety wings of a butterfly opening in your chest as the bourbon slides down your throat? Or maybe you feel the rasp developing in your voice from all those cigarettes. Ever been burnt by a dame, not knowing which end was up when it was all over? The rich history of pulp stories are pure Americana. Written like a script from film noir movie, you are to be transported to a time in the '30s, '40s or '50s, where the liquor flowed freely and there was always a Crosley radio playing in some room off in the distance, just barely audible.

Quattro racconti mozzafiato per gli amanti del noir: Scuola guida - La Caccia - Tutta colpa della diossina - La via dell'amore. Sugarpulp è il movimento letterario nato dalle menti di Matteo Strukul e da Matteo Righetto sul finire del 2008. In questo primo volume sono raccolti 4 racconti inediti dei giovani autori che per primi hanno partecipato a questa nuova avventura letteraria.

A 30-something-year-old man, unhappy with his lot in life, once again, enters an old trail to meet a young attractive trick. Over time, the two men developed a unique relationship. After having received some life-changing news from his fiancée, the man plans to give his friend a new lease on life. This changes, however, when he stumbles upon a mysterious killer in the woods. The man must escape with his life before he experiences the fate that befell the victims before him.

In "Frostbitten Secrets: Unmasking the Architect," join detective Nora Larsen as she witness her race against time to unmask the elusive Architect and bring him to justice before he strikes again. Then, venture to the "Whispers of Vágar: Unveiling the Faroese Enigma" where detective Haldur Johansen must confront his own demons as he unravels a series of chilling murders, each with a cryptic symbol that holds the key to the town's dark past. Finally, set sail on a perilous voyage in "The Phantom Passenger: Voyage of Shadows," where a mysterious figure haunts the decks of a ferry.

This story originally appeared in the anthology Protectors 2, edited by Thomas Pluck. It is based loosely upon several cases I worked during my years riding with Bikers Against Child Abuse. The influence of my mentor, Andrew Vachss, is clearly evident. It is about a member of a motorcycle club similar to BACA who went above and beyond, throwing it all away for a girl under his protection, who died when he was prevented from helping her. This is a hard story to hear and will leave a lasting impact.

Cette nouvelle inédite met en scène Polly qui a coutume de voler les gens qui l'ont contrariée. Jusqu'au jour où, humiliée et épouvantée par un parfait inconnu, elle réagit comme elle l'a toujours fait. Mais jamais elle n'aurait pu imaginer que son désir de vengeance aurait des conséquences aussi terrifiantes.

"Public Transportation" is a short story from the collection Phoenix Noir. Brand-new stories by: Diana Gabaldon, Lee Child, James Sallis, Luis Alberto Urrea, Jon Talton, Megan Abbott, Charles Kelly, Robert Anglen, Patrick Millikin, Laura Tohe, Kurt Reichenbaugh, Gary Phillips, David Corbett, Don Winslow, Dogo Barry Graham, and Stella Pope Duarte.Patrick Millikin is a bookseller at the Poisoned Pen Bookstore in Scottsdale.

Juni is dying to meet Hunter, Chad’s husband. Seems like it’s easy to be married to Hunter. He plays squash and makes bank. As far as awkward meetings go, where somebody ends up dead, this one’s #goals. Chad’s shadow, Beck, is now his best student, as Juni slowly hands over the reins of Home’s daily operation - and indoctrination - to her ex. She’s slightly jealous of Chad’s ability to mindshare with "our kids", - a talent Juni lacks. Pop’s passing brings Juni to a decision point. Is Chad ready to know the truth? Yes. Is Chad ready to know the whole truth?

The dark strains of madness that permeate many of the works of Edgar Allan Poe make their way through this macabre story. This memorable short story bears a resemblance to Poe's Tell Tale Heart. In both stories guilt leaves a murderer with a singular choice.

"Taking on PJ" is a short story from the collection Dublin Noir. Brand new stories by: Ken Bruen, Eoin Colfer, Jason Starr, Laura Lippman, Olen Steinhauer, Peter Spiegelman, Kevin Wignall, Jim Fusilli, John Rickards, Patrick J. Lambe, Charlie Stella, Ray Banks, James O. Born, Sarah Weinman, Pat Mullan, Gary Phillips, Craig McDonald, Duane Swierczynski, Reed Farrel Coleman, and others.Irish crime-fiction sensation Ken Bruen and cohorts shine a light on the dark streets of Dublin.

"Newark Black" is a short story from the collection New Jersey Noir, featuring brand-new stories (and a few poems) by: Joyce Carol Oates, Jonathan Safran Foer, Robert Pinsky, Edmund White and Michael Carroll, Richard Burgin, Paul Muldoon, Sheila Kohler, C.K. Williams, Gerald Stern, Lou Manfredo, S.A. Solomon, Bradford Morrow, Jonathan Santlofer, Jeffrey Ford, S.J. Rozan, Barry N. Malzberg and Bill Pronzini, Hirsh Sawhney, and Robert Arellano.

"Leave Luther's body right where we flung him," Bates said. "You aren't burying him today." After Sally Mae Webster phoned me up to tell me that my Korean War buddy Luther Webster had been shot and killed by the Bates brothers, I knew that I wasn't going to stop until I had righted that wrong. I wondered just how many graves I was going to have to dig today.