Synopses & Reviews
One of
Texas Monthly's "5 Things Youll be Talking about in November"
"All in all, the stories in Dallas Noir have an unsettling, slightly creepy presence that is not just appropriate but completely necessary for a collection of noir fiction. If you think Dallas is boring or white-bread -- well, perhaps you havent gotten out much and seen the dark edges of Big D for yourself. And if you havent, maybe you dont even want to."
--Dallas Morning News
"If you want to delve into the creepier sides of Dallas, this is a good start."
--Lakewood/East Dallas Advocate
"Dallas Noir is a fiction mosaic, showing a city of class divisions precariously held together by money, land, and false love. It also shows the expanse of noir and its power."
--MysteryPeople.com (MysteryPeople Pick of the Month)
"The latest entry in Akashic Books award-winning noir anthology series doesnt disappoint, featuring a Texas-sized serving of writings heavy hitters and satisfying short fiction."
--Criminal Class Press
"There are two reasons why you should buy Dallas Noir...Reason No. 1: youll enjoy reading it. Reason No. 2: the publisher, Akashic Books, has published these noir series all over the country."
--D Magazine/FrontBurner
"November 22 looms, and as the watershed nears, a new anthology of short stories sets out with a noble purpose: to make Dallas known for something more than the place where President John F. Kennedy was assassinated."
--Dallas Culture Map
"Yet, Dallas almost-fleeting presence, the glaring contrasts of the stinking rich and the hapless poor, its buxom women and its Texan masculinity teamed with Hispanic folklore, all find their way into each of these 16 short stories."
--The Mercury (UTD Student Newspaper)
"If we are going to commemorate the milestone anniversary of the worst crime ever committed in Big D, why not precede it with a few tales of bad luck, bad choices, and bad timing?"
--M. Denise C.
"A great collection of brand new short stories."
--Kick Ass Book Reviews
Featuring brand-new stories by: Kathleen Kent, Ben Fountain, James Hime, Harry Hunsicker, Matt Bondurant, Merritt Tierce, Daniel J. Hale, Emma Rathbone, Jonathan Woods, Oscar C. Peña, Clay Reynolds, Lauren Davis, Fran Hillyer, Catherine Cuellar, David Haynes, and J. Suzanne Frank.
From the introduction by David Hale Smith:
My favorite line in my favorite song about Dallas goes like this: Dallas is a rich man with a death wish in his eyes / A steel and concrete soul in a warm heart and love disguise . . . The narrator of Jimmie Dale Gilmores perfect tune Dallas” is coming to town as a broke dreamer with the bright lights of the big city on his mind. Hes just seen the Dallas cityscape through the window of his seat on a DC-9 at night. Is he just beginning his quest? Or is he on his way home, flying out of Love Field, reminiscing after seeing the woman who stepped on him when he was down?
In a country with so many interesting cities, Dallas is often overlookedexcept on November 22 every year. The heartbreaking anniversary keeps coming back around in a nightmare loop, for all of us. On that day in 1963, Dallas became American noir. A permanent black scar on its history that will never be erased, no matter how many happy business stories and hit television shows arise from here. In a stark ongoing counterweight to the JFK tragedy are those two iterations of the TV show. Dallas is not a TV show. Its a real city . . . For the past forty years, my capacity to be surprised by it has not diminished one bit. I hope the stories in this collection will surprise you too.
Review
"Where do you go after youve sold your house to the president of the United States? Laura and Dan Boeckman sold their previous home to a couple named Laura and George W. Bush and relocated to a pretty swell Cole Smith-designed contemporary on a residential lake in Preston Hollow. And that was where things got all Raymond Chandler-esque at the recent launch party the Boeckmans hosted for the new book
Dallas Noir."
--Dallas Morning News (event spotlight)
Synopsis
Texas's ultimate noir town reveals its unseemly underbelly.
Synopsis
One of Texas Monthly's "5 Things You'll be Talking about in November"
"This collection of crime stories takes its inspiration from the darker corners of everyday life in a city that many associate only with a historic assassination--or a glitzy TV show about oil fortunes and family feuds. All of the authors are Dallas natives and have written stories, both contemporary and historical, that run from the sublime to the ridiculous, from the factual to the fantastical."
--CrimeReads, included in Kathleen Kent's Dallas round-up
"All in all, the stories in Dallas Noir have an unsettling, slightly creepy presence that is not just appropriate but completely necessary for a collection of noir fiction. If you think Dallas is boring or white-bread--well, perhaps you haven't gotten out much and seen the dark edges of Big D for yourself. And if you haven't, maybe you don't even want to."
--Dallas Morning News
"If you want to delve into the creepier sides of Dallas, this is a good start."
--Lakewood/East Dallas Advocate
"Dallas Noir is a fiction mosaic, showing a city of class divisions precariously held together by money, land, and false love. It also shows the expanse of noir and it's power."
--MysteryPeople.com (MysteryPeople Pick of the Month)
"The latest entry in Akashic Books' award-winning noir anthology series doesn't disappoint, featuring a Texas-sized serving of writing's heavy hitters and satisfying short fiction."
--Criminal Class Press
"There are two reasons why you should buy Dallas Noir...Reason No. 1: you'll enjoy reading it. Reason No. 2: the publisher, Akashic Books, has published these noir series all over the country."
--D Magazine/FrontBurner
"November 22 looms, and as the watershed nears, a new anthology of short stories sets out with a noble purpose: to make Dallas known for something more than the place where President John F. Kennedy was assassinated."
--Dallas Culture Map
"Yet, Dallas' almost-fleeting presence, the glaring contrasts of the stinking rich and the hapless poor, its buxom women and its Texan masculinity teamed with Hispanic folklore, all find their way into each of these 16 short stories."
--The Mercury (UTD Student Newspaper)
Featuring brand-new stories by: Kathleen Kent, Ben Fountain, James Hime, Harry Hunsicker, Matt Bondurant, Merritt Tierce, Daniel J. Hale, Emma Rathbone, Jonathan Woods, Oscar C. Pe a, Clay Reynolds, Lauren Davis, Fran Hillyer, Catherine Cuellar, David Haynes, and J. Suzanne Frank.
From the introduction by David Hale Smith:
My favorite line in my favorite song about Dallas goes like this: Dallas is a rich man with a death wish in his eyes / A steel and concrete soul in a warm heart and love disguise...The narrator of Jimmie Dale Gilmore's perfect tune "Dallas" is coming to town as a broke dreamer with the bright lights of the big city on his mind. He's just seen the Dallas cityscape through the window of his seat on a DC-9 at night. Is he just beginning his quest? Or is he on his way home, flying out of Love Field, reminiscing after seeing the woman who stepped on him when he was down?
In a country with so many interesting cities, Dallas is often overlooked--except on November 22 every year. The heartbreaking anniversary keeps coming back around in a nightmare loop, for all of us. On that day in 1963, Dallas became American noir. A permanent black scar on its history that will never be erased, no matter how many happy business stories and hit television shows arise from here. In a stark ongoing counterweight to the JFK tragedy are those two iterations of the TV show. Dallas is not a TV show. It's a real city...For the past forty years, my capacity to be surprised by it has not diminished one bit. I hope the stories in this collection will surprise you too.
Synopsis
"This collection of crime stories takes its inspiration from the darker corners of everyday life in a city that many associate only with a historic assassination--or a glitzy TV show about oil fortunes and family feuds. All of the authors are Dallas natives and have written stories, both contemporary and historical, that run from the sublime to the ridiculous, from the factual to the fantastical." --CrimeReads, included in Kathleen Kent's Dallas round-up
"All in all, the stories in Dallas Noir have an unsettling, slightly creepy presence that is not just appropriate but completely necessary for a collection of noir fiction. If you think Dallas is boring or white-bread--well, perhaps you haven't gotten out much and seen the dark edges of Big D for yourself. And if you haven't, maybe you don't even want to." --Dallas Morning News
Akashic Books continues its groundbreaking series of original noir anthologies, launched in 2004 with Brooklyn Noir. Each story is set in a distinct neighborhood or location within the city of the book.
Brand-new stories by: Kathleen Kent, Ben Fountain, James Hime, Harry Hunsicker, Matt Bondurant, Merritt Tierce, Daniel J. Hale, Emma Rathbone, Jonathan Woods, Oscar C. Pena, Clay Reynolds, Lauren Davis, Fran Hillyer, Catherine Cuellar, David Haynes, and J. Suzanne Frank.
From the introduction by David Hale Smith:
"My favorite line in my favorite song about Dallas goes like this: Dallas is a rich man with a death wish in his eyes / A steel and concrete soul in a warm heart and love disguise . . . The narrator of Jimmie Dale Gilmore's perfect tune "Dallas" is coming to town as a broke dreamer with the bright lights of the big city on his mind. He's just seen the Dallas cityscape through the window of his seat on a DC-9 at night. Is he just beginning his quest? Or is he on his way home, flying out of Love Field, reminiscing after seeing the woman who stepped on him when he was down?
"In a country with so many interesting cities, Dallas is often overlooked--except on November 22 every year. The heartbreaking anniversary keeps coming back around in a nightmare loop, for all of us. On that day in 1963, Dallas became American noir. A permanent black scar on its history that will never be erased, no matter how many happy business stories and hit television shows arise from here. In a stark ongoing counterweight to the JFK tragedy are those two iterations of the TV show. Dallas is not a TV show. It's a real city . . . For the past forty years, my capacity to be surprised by it has not diminished one bit. I hope the stories in this collection will surprise you too."
Synopsis
Featuring brand-new stories by: Ben Fountain, Kathleen Kent, Matt Bondurant, Emma Rathbone, Merritt Tierce, Clay Reynolds, Fran Hillyer, Jonathan Woods, Dan Hale, and many others.
In a country with so many interesting cities, Dallas is often overlookedexcept on November 22 every year. The anniversary keeps coming back around in a nightmare loop, for all of us. In a stark ongoing counterweight to the John F. Kennedy tragedy are the two iterations of that ridiculous TV show. But Dallas is the ultimate noir town.
David Hale Smith is a literary agent based in Dallas, Texas. Along with fourteen Edgar Award nominations, his clients have won the Edgar, Anthony, Agatha, Shamus, Barry, Macavity, Eisner, and Bram Stoker awards, as well as the Los Angeles Times Book Prize.
About the Author
David Hale Smith is a literary agent based in Dallas, Texas. Since 1994, he has represented some of the most beloved authors in crime fiction. Along with fourteen Edgar Award nominations, his clients have won the Edgar, the Anthony, the Agatha, the Shamus, the Barry, the Macavity, the International Thriller Writers Award, the Bram Stoker Award, the
Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Best Thriller and the Eisner Award for Best Original Graphic Novel.