Synopsis/blurb…
The Fast Women and
Neon Lights anthology is a wild criminal romp inspired by eighties crime movies
and television shows, as well as the wacky, over-the-top eighties style and
aesthetic.
These eighteen hard-hitting, emotional, and often-hilarious stories
written by some of today's top neo-noir authors will disturb you, make you
laugh, and most of all, keep you highly entertained from cover to cover! Car
thieves, down-on-their-luck Karate guys, out-of-control valley girls, Air
Jordan-obsessed clutz robbers, professional opponent wrestlers, aspiring female
wrestlers, Oingo Boingo-obsessed cocaine fiends, vice cop mashups, high-stakes
gamblers, and heroin-addicted punk rock managers are just a taste of what
you'll find in these dark pages!
An impressive collection of 80s themed short stories which were
enjoyed over the course of the past couple of months, rather than binge reading
them.
There’s 18 stories in the collection as well as an enjoyable
foreward by Will Viharo. I wonder how many people can drop the bomb “Mickey
Rourke bought me my first car” into a conversation.
I’ve enjoyed longer works by just under half the
contributors to the anthology, so my expectations were high
VALLEY GIRL by Kat Richardson
…… reminded me of Little Britain’s Vicky Pollard. I’m not sure if that’s the
voice Richardson was striving for, but she nailed it if it was.
ALONE NOW by Patrick
Cooper ….trainer (or sneaker) crime
BIG SHOTS by S.W.
Lauden …music scene, drugs, crime, consequences
THE DEEP END by
Dietrich Kalteis …. insurance investigator turns rogue and gets the girl
PARTS UNKNOWN by Sam
Wiebe … wrestling, bright lights and pain
BESTIES & BLOW by
Sarah M. Chen ….BFF as long as the drugs don’t run out
IT’S MORNING AGAIN IN
LAKE CASTOR by Eryk Pruitt …… revisiting the scene of Pruitt’s Dirtbags
WIDOWMAN by Matthew
J. Hockey ….vengeance in Tokyo
THE ENVELOPE by Linda
L. Richards …… hard choices – head or heart?
MEANTIME by Will
Viharo … Miami Vice revisited
BIG HAIR, BANANA
CLIPS, AND THE FIGURE-FOUR LEGLOCK by Nina Mansfield …. wrestling dreams
and a bout with a predator
DUTCH by C.S. DeWildt
… a cross and double-cross, falling for the wrong girl
IN THE SWIMMING POOL
by Jen Conley … Grandpa puts a bully in his place
GETTING SECONDS by
Greg Barth … robbery and a ruined life, back for seconds and some fixing
getting done
CAUGHT ON VIDEO by
Brian Leopold … cameras, sex tapes, blackmail and a sting
FLECKMAN’S FIX by
Preston Lang … gambling and some sore losers
LAST DANCE AT THE
GLIMMER LOUNGE by S.A. Cosby … a drug deal, a rip-off and getting played by
the girl
NIGHT THIEF by
Michael Pool … a professional car thief and his last job, things don’t
quite go to plan
A top class collection with each story delivering on the 80s
theme.
Favourites were Jen Conley's In the Swimming Pool and The Envelope by Linda L. Richards. Not a dud in the collection.
4.5 from 5
Michael Pool (editor) also puts out the Crime Syndicate Magazine, the 3rd issue just went live
this weekend. His website is here.
His short novella - Midnight at the San Franciscan was recently enjoyed - thoughts here.
Read in September, 2017
Published – 2016
Page count – 222
Source – review copy from the editor
Format - Kindle
Oh, this does sound good, Col. This collection has an interesting theme, too. And sometimes, a short story collection is just the thing.
ReplyDeleteMargot I really liked the stories here. Nice to take a stroll back to when I was a young man!
DeleteSounds fun! And a welcome reminder, struggling as I am through the current swamp of book work, that once I finally get out of it there's a couple of noirish stories I want to write. Easy to forget such promises-to-self when engulfed in deadlines. So you've cheered me up!
ReplyDeleteI might even buy the antho by way of thanks . . .
Oops: forgot to tick the little "Notify Me" box . . .
ReplyDeleteJohn, hopefully you emerge from the quagmire soon! This one might be a good pick-me-up as a diversion. I hope the story writing goes well once you get there.
DeleteThis does sound like a good collection. I have read one book by Linda L. Richards and have a few more. I noticed that some of the authors are Canadian. Are all of them from there?
ReplyDeleteI never really considered the nationalities of the line-up. Dietrich Kalteis and Sam Wiebe are Canadian. I'm fairly sure Michael Pool is Texan and Sarah Chen from California. Eryk Pruitt and Preston Lang I think are US also. I'm intrigued now and am going to have to check them out. Is Linda L. Richards Canadian then?
DeleteYes she is. I don't know if she has written anything set in Canada, though.
Delete3 out of 18 so far. Not had time to do any digging on the others.
DeleteCol – This is one I need to buy. I’ve read a few of the authors and I’ve heard good things about the others. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteI think it's a really strong collection.
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