What do you think?
Rate this book
Dragon Eye
Weird Noir
On the gritty backstreets of a crumbling city, tough dames and dangerous men trade barbs, witticisms and a few gunshots. But there’s a new twist where urban decay meets the eldritch borders of another world: WEIRD NOIR.
Featuring thugs who sprout claws and fangs, gangsters with tentacles and the occasional succubus siren. The ambience is pure noir but the characters
aren’t just your average molls and mugs—the vamps might just be vamps.
It’s Patricia Highsmith meets Shirley Jackson or Dashiell Hammett filtered
through H. P. Lovecraft. Mad, bad and truly dangerous to know, but
irresistible all the same.
Featuring thugs who sprout claws and fangs, gangsters with tentacles and the occasional succubus siren. The ambience is pure noir but the characters
aren’t just your average molls and mugs—the vamps might just be vamps.
It’s Patricia Highsmith meets Shirley Jackson or Dashiell Hammett filtered
through H. P. Lovecraft. Mad, bad and truly dangerous to know, but
irresistible all the same.
- GenresShort StoriesHorrorNoir
272 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 29, 2012
7 people are currently reading
133 people want to read
About the author
K.A. Laity
76 books114 followersProfessional dilettante, arcane artist, all-purpose writer, Fulbrighter, uberskiver, medievalist, Sister in Crime, History Witch at Pagan Square, Pirate Pub Captain ☠ currently anchored in Dundee, Scotland · http://www.kalaity.com
Works include WHITE RABBIT, EXTRICATE, the HARD-BOILED WITCH series, A CUT-THROAT BUSINESS, LUSH SITUATION, OWL STRETCHING, CHASTITY FLAME, UNQUIET DREAMS, ROOK CHANT, PELZMANTEL, DREAM BOOK, CON-EIRE as well as editor of MY WANDERING UTERUS, DRAG NOIR, WEIRD NOIR and NOIR CARNIVAL. Writer of a wide variety of stories, essays, plays, and humour pieces. Also writes as Kit Marlowe (historical romance) & Graham Wynd (noir). Music as Victoria Squid & Higora,
Works include WHITE RABBIT, EXTRICATE, the HARD-BOILED WITCH series, A CUT-THROAT BUSINESS, LUSH SITUATION, OWL STRETCHING, CHASTITY FLAME, UNQUIET DREAMS, ROOK CHANT, PELZMANTEL, DREAM BOOK, CON-EIRE as well as editor of MY WANDERING UTERUS, DRAG NOIR, WEIRD NOIR and NOIR CARNIVAL. Writer of a wide variety of stories, essays, plays, and humour pieces. Also writes as Kit Marlowe (historical romance) & Graham Wynd (noir). Music as Victoria Squid & Higora,
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
February 1, 2013
I will be the first to admit that I am not normally a huge fan of the short story form, so this was a jolly good wake-up call to my previous avoidance of them, maybe having read too many bad ones- so thank you contributors! What strikes me most about this collection is the sheer quality of writing on display, and the imaginative mix of ideas on show, to fulfil the remit of crossing genres in such a condensed writing form. I have a personal mission this year to read more ‘crossover’ crime so found this collection a perfect start to my year of discovery, and the neat con-struction of these strange and satisfying tales will certainly encourage me to read more short fiction. A tales of the unexpected for a new generation…
It is hard to single out the best of this collection, as I genuinely enjoyed the dark depths of all these stories,and the clever manipulation and resonance of classic noir, melded with supernaturalism. If pinned to the floor by a raging succubus in fear of my very life, I may concede that the ones I particularly enjoyed were ‘Black Moon Rising’ by Paul D. Brazill, featuring werewolf P.I. Roman Dalton, Andrez Bergen’s ‘East of Ecarte’ which made me feel that I’d wandered into the darkest recesses of Raymond Chandler’s imagination, and Hector Acosta’s ‘Across The Border’ which tapped in perfectly to my morbid fascination with anything to do with border crossings from Mexico. Overall, a brilliantly tough talking, visceral and disturbing collection, and what’s even better a whole batch of, certainly to me, new authors that I will be keen to read again.
Weird?
Oh yes.
Disturbing?
That too.
But in an insanely enjoyable way…
It is hard to single out the best of this collection, as I genuinely enjoyed the dark depths of all these stories,and the clever manipulation and resonance of classic noir, melded with supernaturalism. If pinned to the floor by a raging succubus in fear of my very life, I may concede that the ones I particularly enjoyed were ‘Black Moon Rising’ by Paul D. Brazill, featuring werewolf P.I. Roman Dalton, Andrez Bergen’s ‘East of Ecarte’ which made me feel that I’d wandered into the darkest recesses of Raymond Chandler’s imagination, and Hector Acosta’s ‘Across The Border’ which tapped in perfectly to my morbid fascination with anything to do with border crossings from Mexico. Overall, a brilliantly tough talking, visceral and disturbing collection, and what’s even better a whole batch of, certainly to me, new authors that I will be keen to read again.
Weird?
Oh yes.
Disturbing?
That too.
But in an insanely enjoyable way…
November 23, 2012
This anthology was recommended to me as something I might enjoy and if not for that I may have missed this title altogether. I am more than grateful for the recommendation as it is an extremely well put together book.
The introduction by the editor pretty much explains the criteria for the stories to be accepted into the anthology and she does a great job of enticing readers to check out all the stories with her passionate description of the cross-genres of "weird" and "noir".
I found myself quite enthusiastic as I finished one story and went onto another as I never quite knew what to expect which made for an exciting read.
There is a diverse range of writing styles yet all somehow capture the essence that makes each tale "noir-like" and there is definitely an element of strangeness or in some cases the supernatural which make this title something a bit different.
I was already a fan of some of the authors that feature in this book and since reading it I will certainly be paying more attention to several of the other writers that I have not come across before.
I have given this 5 stars for several reasons, firstly is that it was such a good read obviously but also for the reasons that it has introduced me to new authors and that the editor has done a fantastic job of getting stories that are intriguing and interesting, at least I found them so.
I would highly recommend this title to anyone who likes a bit of intelligent quirkiness, a bit of mystery and a bit of the unknown.
The introduction by the editor pretty much explains the criteria for the stories to be accepted into the anthology and she does a great job of enticing readers to check out all the stories with her passionate description of the cross-genres of "weird" and "noir".
I found myself quite enthusiastic as I finished one story and went onto another as I never quite knew what to expect which made for an exciting read.
There is a diverse range of writing styles yet all somehow capture the essence that makes each tale "noir-like" and there is definitely an element of strangeness or in some cases the supernatural which make this title something a bit different.
I was already a fan of some of the authors that feature in this book and since reading it I will certainly be paying more attention to several of the other writers that I have not come across before.
I have given this 5 stars for several reasons, firstly is that it was such a good read obviously but also for the reasons that it has introduced me to new authors and that the editor has done a fantastic job of getting stories that are intriguing and interesting, at least I found them so.
I would highly recommend this title to anyone who likes a bit of intelligent quirkiness, a bit of mystery and a bit of the unknown.
December 20, 2012
This one is worth the price of admission for Jan Kozlowski's "Corkscrewed" and Christopher L. Irvin's "Charred Kraken with Plum Butter" alone. Other stand outs for me were Hector Acosta's "Across the Border and "Train Tracks" by W.P. Johnson. This is great stuff if you like it dark and weird (and who doesn't?).
March 2, 2013
Chris Irvin is a great up and coming writer! The world of the Underbelly that Irvin creates in his story, “Charred Kraken with Plum Butter”, is incredibly vivid with rich detail and characters. I am secretly hoping for future stories from Irvin that feature the harsh Underbelly lit by moon slugs and fake stars.
I also really enjoyed W.P. Johnson's "Train Tracks".
I also really enjoyed W.P. Johnson's "Train Tracks".
June 8, 2013
I really enjoyed these tales of vampires, werewolves and other strange creatures. Some were spine-tingling, others humorous. The great thing about short-story collections is that you dip into them at any time and read them in any order you choose.
January 1, 2013
Awesome collection of short stories. Great read for any occasion, and best of all-I'm an author in it! Proud to list this book as one I contributed to!
February 2, 2018
An uneven collection, but hard-boiled weirdness abounds. You may have to wade through a silly Godzilla-as-detective story to get to, say, the Wonder Woman and Dracula in a bar story that you do like, but if you persist, the Good Stories, like the Truth, are Out There. Recommended for the idea more than the execution.
August 9, 2022
I love Noir and I adore Weird. Kate Laity and company dish out a fantastic collection that tweaks the tropes and injects fun and frightening new life into an old genre.
September 6, 2016
Bought this book because it's hard to find, and I'm glad it's mine, and wish it was more readily available. Laity pulled the collection together and I'd love to read the Call for Entries. The stories in the book are scifi/fantasy with pulp fiction leanings. I have favorites which I'm not going to list here, because you'll want to find your own. I wrote/drew a collection of noir cards years ago and those writings are still among my favorites. Quirky, funny, dark, highly entertaining.
July 15, 2013
LOVELY IF SCARY !
December 24, 2013
Love the stories especially the one by Christopher Irvin!
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews