Noir Fatale
The silky note of a saxophone. The echoes of a woman’s high heels down a deserted asphalt street. Steam rising from city vents to cloud the street-lit air. A man with a gun. A dame with a problem . . .
NOIR.
Noir Fatale was released in early May and I’ve been looking forward to this anthology for a long time! I had the good fortune to be invited into this anthology. All those years of wearing hats, pocket squares, and loving film noir finally paid off!
The story I wrote for the anthology (the theme being femme fatales which, if not the main character of the story had to be present) is called A String Of Pearls. It’s about a woman carrying precious cargo on a train barreling into a world of trouble in a near future New Orleans.
The anthology is currently available in multiple formats: hardcover, ebook, and digital audio (it also appears the anthology will be available on CD in July). Links: Amazon Audible I’ve listened to the audio book and the narrators did such a wonderful job bringing these stories to life!
Here’s how the anthology was doing during it’s first couple of days!
From Baen’s website: NEW SCIENCE FICTION, URBAN FANTASY, AND MYSTERY STORIES WITH A NOIR THEME FROM BEST-SELLING AUTHORS LAURELL K. HAMILTON delivering an Anita Blake series story, LARRY CORREIA, penning a Grimnoir series adventure, an original Honor Harrington series tale from DAVID WEBER, AND MORE.
The silky note of a saxophone. The echoes of a woman’s high heels down a deserted asphalt street. Steam rising from city vents to cloud the street-lit air. A man with a gun. A dame with a problem . . .
NOIR.
From the pulpy pages of Black Mask Magazine in the 1920s and '30s, through the film noir era of the 1940s, to today, noir fiction has lured many a reader and movie-goer away from the light and into the dark underbelly of society. Names such as Raymond Chandler, Dashiell Hammett, and James M. Cain; titles like The Big Sleep, The Maltese Falcon, The Postman Always Rings Twice . . . these have inhabited our collective consciousness for decades. Humanity, it seems, loves the dark. And within the dark, one figure stands out: that of the femme fatale.
Here then, Noir Fatale an anthology containing the full spectrum of noir fiction, each incorporating the compelling femme fatale character archetype. From straightforward hardboiled detective story to dark urban fantasy to the dirty secrets of futuristic science fiction—all with a hard, gritty feel.
As Raymond Chandler said, “Down these mean streets, a man must walk who is not himself mean, who is neither tarnished nor afraid.” Because, as these stories prove, doing the right thing doesn’t necessarily mean you get the big bucks or the girl. But you do the right thing anyway.
All new stories by
Larry Correia
Kacey Ezell
Laurell K. Hamilton
David Weber
Sarah A. Hoyt
Robert Buettner
Alistair Kimble
Griffin Barber
Michael Massa
Christopher L. Smith and Michael Ferguson
Hinkley Correia
Patrick Tracy
Steve Diamond
Published: 5/7/2019
Ready Player One
Ready Player One by Ernest Cline is such a fun read (and listen). I enjoyed it so much, I've read and listened to it multiple times. If you're interested in the 1980s at all and like near future science fiction, give this one a try! Oh, and Wil Wheaton does the narration for the audiobook.
I'm a writer, well, that's my job when I'm not at my day job. I'm also a reader (and listener) of many many books, and I should be mentioning the ones I've enjoyed--at least when the mood strikes.
The book I'm beginning with is Ready Player One, by Ernest Cline. I enjoyed this book so much that not only did I read it two times, but also listened to it two times.
I held off reading this for so long, and then was so pissed I hadn't tried it earlier.
Why do I enjoy this book? There are a few reasons I wouldn't--it's set in a dystopian near future, and I typically don't like that sort of thing. And then it gets sort of preachy for a few pages, but once I got beyond that section I was hooked. This one kept me turning pages long after I should have gone to sleep, and when I listened to it, I found myself lingering in the car for a few extra minutes.
The renaissance the 1980s enjoys in the book hooked me, and the story resonated with me because of all the references to things I enjoyed when I was a kid and teenager (the 80s took me from the age of 10 to 19). And while I didn't get every single reference, I got most of them. And the stuff I didn't know I looked up and found new TV shows to watch or books to read, or video games and toys to investigate.
The 1980s references are mainly from science fiction and fantasy movies and television shows, books, video games (Atari 2600, Pac Man, Joust, Infocom text adventures), tabletop roleplaying games (Dungeons & Dragons), toys, and music. Nearly the entire book is set in a virtual world (called the Oasis) where most of the population spends its time, and involves an "easter egg" hunt designed by the inventor of the virtual world that will grant the winner a prize reminiscent of Charlie winning the factory in the Willy Wonka story. Ready Player One provided a sense of wonder I rarely feel in books (or movies) these days.
If you grew up in the late 70s and early to mid 80s you have a pretty good chance of liking this book a lot. If you're younger, but are of geekdom, you'll likely enjoy the book as well.
The Audible version benefits from the Wil Wheaton narration.
Maybe I'm a fool, but I have this book on Audible, e-reader, and paper. It's been a few months since I've read the book, but now I want to go and read it or listen to it again!