New Pulp Press in NYM Again

New Pulp Press has gotten the attention of the folks at New York Magazine again. First, Bad Juju shows up on the approval matrix, and now Dave Zeltserman's 21 Tales has been singled out.

The Sinners

I've been on a bit of a graphic novel streak lately, and my most recent read was Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips latest Criminal trade, The Sinners. This one picks up the story of Tracy Lawless, the hardass military deserter who came back to the city to find his little brother's killer, only to discover some ugly truths and end up working as a hitman for the city's chief crime boss. Turns out Tracy's heart isn't in paid killing, so crime boss Sebastian Hyde asks him to look into a string of killings of made men. Tracy is relieved to have some non-homicidal work, but he's also got the military on his tail, and he's been having an affair with Hyde's wife. After the last storyline, Bad Night, and its predecessor, The Dead and the Dying, both of which were innovative, touching and horrifying in their own ways, The Sinners feels a bit rote.

Lawless is your average antihero, the killer with the broken heart of gold who lives by his own moral code, even if society disapproves, and the story was also a bit of a disappointment. The identity of the killers felt like a stretch, and the choice of bad guys is hardly unique.

(Spoiler Alert)








A priest who corrupts youth isn't exactly original, even if sex isn't involved (and really, hasn't the Catholic Church been kicked around enough? I'm no fan of Catholicism. I could expound on my criticisms at length but I won't. This blog is about crime fiction not religion.) Criminal usually tells unusual stories (Coward or Bad Night), or tells more conventional stories in unconventional ways (The Dead and The Dying). This particular story arc did neither. There was no big twist or ending that provoked sympathy for the lost souls Brubaker creates so well. I think this stems from the fact that Lawless just isn't that interesting of a character. His first story arc was saved by the ending, which was quite the punch in the gut for both the character and the reader, but now that he's found out the truth about his brother, and quit romanticizing his past, he's just another big man with a gun and an attitude. Hopefully the next story arc will be a little more engaging.

The Outfit

Darwyn Cooke's follow-up to his adaptation of Richard Stark's The Hunter, hit shelves this month. The book glosses over much of what happens in The Man With the Getaway Face, the second Parker novel, in favor of the more exciting third novel. While this choice makes artistic and economic sense, it does, however, leave the book feeling a bit stuffed.

The Outfit was a book which had a lot going on, and the book described many different robberies by many different thieves. Cooke cheats a bit when it gets to this bit of the story, which feels like a bit of a gyp, since the description of clever heists is part of the appeal of the Parker stories. At one point, Cooke merely excerpts an account of a crime directly from the novel, disguising it as a newspaper article. This little trick doesn't work because Stark's prose doesn't feel like a newspaper article, and because this is a graphic novel. I've already read the novel. I own it. I can read it any time I want. The entire purpose of a graphic novel is to see as well as read. The other crimes, however, are presented in unique visual styles of their own, separating them from the rest of the book, which is a good trick, even if the entire section feels a bit perfunctory. Fortunately, the book is just as gorgeous as the first one, and is, overall, faithful to Stark's famous character. The three color artwork, and Cooke's obvious attention to period detail make the book a pleasure to read. I just finished it, and I think I'm going to go back and read it again, just to pick up any details I may have missed.

BiblioPulp

Rare book dealers, The Helfond Book Gallery, have some pretty neat posters based on vintage paperbacks at their website Bibliopulp. You can also search for rare books, if you want to.

Plots with Guns #10

The latest issue of Plots with Guns, featuring my story "Bugs" is now online. Anthony Neil Smith has done a good job with this one. Not only are the stories of their usual caliber, but he's made the site look good. The pictures of me up there were taken by my colleague and buddy Janssen Robinson. The Glock was generously provided by zombie Charlton Heston. And this issue is dedicated to David Thompson of Busted Flush Press and Murder by the Book. RIP.

Blood Will Out

Blood Will Out - Book Trailer from Darren McNaney on Vimeo.

The trailer for Allan Guthrie's latest effort.

RIP David Thompson

I realize it's bad form to be late to a wake, but it wasn't until I checked my email this afternoon that I found out about the death of David Thompson, the publisher behind Busted Flush Press, and assistant manager of Murder by The Book in Houston. I never met David in person, but I've ordered books from Murder by the Book, and I had corresponded with him a few times about crime fiction matters. He always seemed like a nice guy, and, from reading about his life, it seemed like he had everything going his way, which makes his passing all the more depressing.

Thompson had just sold his own indie imprint, Busted Flush Press to Tyrus Books, another good indie publisher. David did a great job of bringing books he believed in back into print. He's been championing underrated writers like Reed Farrell Coleman for a long time, refusing to let Coleman's Moe Prager books go out of print. He was also a tastemaker in his position as a manager at Murder by The Book, and I have no doubt he introduced many readers to many great books over the years.

My heart goes out to his friends and family.

Tyrus and Busted Flush Press Merge

Tyrus Books has acquired Busted Flush Press. From the press release:


MADISON, WI— August 26, 2010 — Tyrus Books, Inc. today announced the acquisition of Busted Flush Press, LLC., in a move that brings together two of crime fiction’s most recognizable independent presses. “We’re very excited to add the Busted Flush brand to Tyrus Books. David Thompson is a dedicated and tireless advocate of crime fiction and I look forward to seeing the Busted Flush brand continue to grow,” said Benjamin LeRoy, Publisher and President of Tyrus Books.Thompson, Publisher of Busted Flush Press, will continue in his current role, selecting approximately twenty titles a year for publication. The combined companies will have approximately 45 books in print by the end of 2010 with another 20 titles scheduled for spring 2011.

I wonder if Thompson will continue to focus on reprints now that his press has been bought by Tyrus, or whether we'll see more new material.

The Rap Sheet Gets Poetic About Stark

I've done my share of writing about the Stark reprints from U of Chicago. Now JKP at The Rap Sheet has his thoughts, which are well worth reading.

Hard Case Goes Hardcover

While Hard Case may be looking for a new publisher for some of its titles, Charles Ardai is still moving forward with other projects, including the first Hard Case title(s) in hardcover. Next year, Subterranean Press will publish a double by Lawrence Block featuring his old titles 69 Barrow Street and Strange Fruit as a hardcover with new Robert McGinnis cover art.