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Mississippi Noir
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 geographic area of the book.
Brand-new stories by: Ace Atkins, William Boyle, Megan Abbott, Jack Pendarvis, Dominiqua Dickey, Michael Kardos, Jamie Paige, Jimmy Cajoleas, Chris Offutt, Michael Farris Smith, Andrew Paul, Lee Durkee, Robert Busby, John M. Floyd, RaShell R. Smith-Spears, and Mary Miller.
Brand-new stories by: Ace Atkins, William Boyle, Megan Abbott, Jack Pendarvis, Dominiqua Dickey, Michael Kardos, Jamie Paige, Jimmy Cajoleas, Chris Offutt, Michael Farris Smith, Andrew Paul, Lee Durkee, Robert Busby, John M. Floyd, RaShell R. Smith-Spears, and Mary Miller.
288 pages, Paperback
First published August 9, 2016
81 people are currently reading
1359 people want to read
About the author
Tom Franklin
34 books1,078 followersTom Franklin was born and raised in Dickinson, Alabama. He held various jobs as a struggling writer living in South Alabama, including working as a heavy-equipment operator in a grit factory, a construction inspector in a chemical plant and a clerk in a hospital morgue. In 1997 he received his MFA from the University of Arkansas. His first book, Poachers was named as a Best First Book of Fiction by Esquire and Franklin received a 1999 Edgar Award for the title story. Franklin has published two novels: Hell at the Breech, published in 2003 and Smonk published in 2006. The recipient of the 2001 Guggenheim Fellowship, Franklin now teaches in the University of Mississippi's MFA program and lives in Oxford, Mississippi with his wife, the poet Beth Ann Fennelly, and their children.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 66 reviews
June 13, 2018
Welcome to the Bottom
Welcome to Mississippi, where a recent poll shows we have the most corrupt government in the United States. Where we are first in infant mortality, childhood obesity, childhood diabetes, teenage pregnancy, adult obesity, adult diabetes. We also have the highest poverty rate in the county….
In Alabama, where I grew up, we had a saying: Thank God for Mississippi, otherwise we’d be at the bottom in everything.
Welcome to the bottom.
Have fun
Tom Franklin
Oxford, Mississippi
May 2016
Not precisely noir detective, but dark places in a beautiful state.
***********************************************
Sixteen short stories by Tom Franklin (Goodreads Author) (Editor), Ace Atkins, Michael Farris Smith (Goodreads Author), Andrew Paul, Lee Durkee, Robert Busby, John M. Floyd, RaShell R. Smith-Spears , Mary Miller, William Boyle (Goodreads Author), Megan Abbott (Goodreads Author), Jack Pendarvis, Dominiqua Dickey, Michael Kardos (Goodreads Author), Jamie Paige, Jimmy Cajoleas, Chris Offutt (Goodreads Author)
Read by Adenrele Ojo (Narrator), Rebecca Gibel (Narrator), Lloyd James (Narrator), Marguerite Gavin (Narrator), Mirron Willis (Narrator), P. J. Ochlan (Narrator), Ray Chase (Narrator), Traber Burns (Narrator), Tom Franklin - editor (Author)
August 13, 2016
From Tom Franklin's potent introduction , stating the grim statistics that haunt Mississippi's denizens, and of course the title itself, the reader is made fully aware that these stories will be about the downtrodden. Those who live in trailers, drugs, drinking, often their own worse enemies, hooking up with the wrong people, casual sex etc. Franklin also mentions the many fantastic authors who have come from this state, those in the past. and those in the present, maybe because of the many colorful characters they have to draw from.
So some of these stories are from familiar names, Ace Atkins and I loved his story, Combustible, William Boyle, Megan Abbott, Michael Kardos and relative newcomer, Michael Farris Smith, whose story Magnolia was one of my favorites. Another one that sent chills down my spine and make me think twice about where I stop for gas or a restroom is the story, Pit Stop by John M Floyd. Though in this one the heroine manages to have a relatively normal life with a nice twist thrown in. Some of these stories will just be going along but end with an unexpected bang. Where did that come from? So I enjoyed these, a few more than others but actually an amazing grouping of stories from many great or soon to be great southern authors.
ARC from Librarything.
So some of these stories are from familiar names, Ace Atkins and I loved his story, Combustible, William Boyle, Megan Abbott, Michael Kardos and relative newcomer, Michael Farris Smith, whose story Magnolia was one of my favorites. Another one that sent chills down my spine and make me think twice about where I stop for gas or a restroom is the story, Pit Stop by John M Floyd. Though in this one the heroine manages to have a relatively normal life with a nice twist thrown in. Some of these stories will just be going along but end with an unexpected bang. Where did that come from? So I enjoyed these, a few more than others but actually an amazing grouping of stories from many great or soon to be great southern authors.
ARC from Librarything.
October 24, 2016
What you need to know about this is that it's a collection of Southern noir edited by Tom Franklin, and also Megan Abbott and Ace Atkins have stories in it, as do a lot of other great writers who fall later in the alphabet. Akashic won't rest until every corner of the country has an anthology exploring its more desperate residents, and its Mississippi installment is particularly great. (Side-note: hey, Akashic, Kentucky has meth and horse racing, great ingredients for both modern and classic noir. Just saying.)
Mississippi Noir sports a nice combination of plot-driven stories and mood pieces. I'll go on record as saying that Southern regional writing is some of the most gorgeous writing there is, so the moodier and more ambiguous stories here proved to be my favorites. Megan Abbott's "Oxford Girl" is a lush ballad retelling that takes what could be cheap and predictable news fodder--a romance between a frat boy and a sorority girl that ends in murder--and invests it with depth and a kind of heightened sensuality and mysticism; Lee Durkee's "My Dear, My One True Love" does the same thing with a man who seems to always date "crazy women." There are sparer stories here that really work for me, too, like Ace Atkins's modern YA rural noir "Combustible," which also takes on a familiar story, but which achieves its resonance by piling on specificity. It has maybe the best sense of place in the whole collection. I also really loved Mary Miller's ambiguous, unstable "Uphill," which opens a brief window up into one couple's complicity in a crime that they don't have to see through to the end, and Michael Kardos's "Digits," a horror story about a creative writing class where the students grow in skill and profundity as they start lopping off their fingers.
There are stories here that don't quite work for me, as can be expected in any anthology, but the overall quality is very high. In some cases, the setting seems incidental, but it's remarkable how reading a location-themed anthology cues you in to the smaller ways place shapes characters and stories, from the way the backgrounds of the students in "Digits" to the lack of economic opportunity in "Uphill" to the flooding in "God's Gonna Trouble the Water." You wouldn't think a noir collection would work as tourist advertising, but I found myself drawn to Mississippi after reading this: Franklin's selections sell it as a place where profundity grows like a weed and storytelling comes naturally.
Mississippi Noir sports a nice combination of plot-driven stories and mood pieces. I'll go on record as saying that Southern regional writing is some of the most gorgeous writing there is, so the moodier and more ambiguous stories here proved to be my favorites. Megan Abbott's "Oxford Girl" is a lush ballad retelling that takes what could be cheap and predictable news fodder--a romance between a frat boy and a sorority girl that ends in murder--and invests it with depth and a kind of heightened sensuality and mysticism; Lee Durkee's "My Dear, My One True Love" does the same thing with a man who seems to always date "crazy women." There are sparer stories here that really work for me, too, like Ace Atkins's modern YA rural noir "Combustible," which also takes on a familiar story, but which achieves its resonance by piling on specificity. It has maybe the best sense of place in the whole collection. I also really loved Mary Miller's ambiguous, unstable "Uphill," which opens a brief window up into one couple's complicity in a crime that they don't have to see through to the end, and Michael Kardos's "Digits," a horror story about a creative writing class where the students grow in skill and profundity as they start lopping off their fingers.
There are stories here that don't quite work for me, as can be expected in any anthology, but the overall quality is very high. In some cases, the setting seems incidental, but it's remarkable how reading a location-themed anthology cues you in to the smaller ways place shapes characters and stories, from the way the backgrounds of the students in "Digits" to the lack of economic opportunity in "Uphill" to the flooding in "God's Gonna Trouble the Water." You wouldn't think a noir collection would work as tourist advertising, but I found myself drawn to Mississippi after reading this: Franklin's selections sell it as a place where profundity grows like a weed and storytelling comes naturally.
August 11, 2017
I had noticed the "noir" collections of short stories from this publisher for awhile and decided to try one. It was the name of Tom Franklin that drew me to this collection, unfortunately I wasn't paying enough attention to notice that he didn't write any of the stories, just the introduction.
The collection is very uneven. Some of the stories were good, although none rose to the level of great. Many more were so slight that I wondered why they were published. The stories were a melange of tough kids, bad step fathers, sudden violence, murders and drug dealers. Also, it appears that pinky removal is a "thing" in Mississippi. I did enjoy "Most Things Haven't Worked Out" by William Boyle in which a 15 year old boy is befriended by a new woman in town. The boy "got broken by being so close to kindness." I thought that "Digits" by Michael Kardos was interesting and creepy, but I didn't understand it. A dissertation on crazy women "My Dear, My One True Love" by Lee Durkee was different and entertaining. Unfortunately, none of the stories will stick with me.
I received a free copy of the e-book from the publisher, however I wound up listening to the audiobook borrowed from the library.
The collection is very uneven. Some of the stories were good, although none rose to the level of great. Many more were so slight that I wondered why they were published. The stories were a melange of tough kids, bad step fathers, sudden violence, murders and drug dealers. Also, it appears that pinky removal is a "thing" in Mississippi. I did enjoy "Most Things Haven't Worked Out" by William Boyle in which a 15 year old boy is befriended by a new woman in town. The boy "got broken by being so close to kindness." I thought that "Digits" by Michael Kardos was interesting and creepy, but I didn't understand it. A dissertation on crazy women "My Dear, My One True Love" by Lee Durkee was different and entertaining. Unfortunately, none of the stories will stick with me.
I received a free copy of the e-book from the publisher, however I wound up listening to the audiobook borrowed from the library.
did-not-finish
January 3, 2017I get the point of these stories, and feel like they just aren't for me. I'm sensing that I can also abandon the copies I own of Boston Noir and Haiti Noir if it's more of the same. It sounds crazy but the violence got repetitive, to the extent where it felt like the point of each new story. And that in itself grew boring. I guess I like my violence to be part of a richer landscape.
March 9, 2023
3.5 💀💀💀💀 rounded up for the standouts in this collection.
October 14, 2017
It's difficult to rate an anthology because obviously some stories appeal more than others. However, I did find the overall quality of the stories in this collection to be very good, and I would definitely try more in the "Noir" series.
January 7, 2019
Tom Franklin's books epitomize Southern noir for me. In this collection, of which he is editor but only contributes the opening remarks, Franklin has gathered some of the best, dark Southern stories I've read in a long time. Each author from Mississippi takes random events and spins them to dark, thoughtful places set in a variety of locales around the state and in varying time periods. The Lord of Madison County by Jimmy Cajoleas is by far my favorite followed closely by Combustible by Ace Atkins, God's Gonna Trouble the Water by Dominiqua Dickey, and Pit Stop by John M. Floyd. Although there are, as with all collections, a few weaker entries, Digits by Michael Kardos and Jerry Lewis come immediately to mind, this is by far one of my favorite fiction collections I've ever read.
October 12, 2016
3.5/5
A mixed-bag of contemporary stories taking place in Mississippi. Averaging out to a solid 3.5 stars.
1. Combustible by Ace Atkins - An abused girl gets back at her stepfather. Short good read with a dangling ending. (4/5)
2. Lord of Madison County by Jimmy Cajoleas - Wow! I don't even know how to start. This is about rich, white kids. The main character hooks up as a drug dealer out of boredom, fakes getting Jesus, bags the pastor's daughter and ends up in very serious trouble with his supplier. A hardcore story but in the end it's about the pastor who really does practice what he preaches. (5/5)
3. Losing Her Religion by Rachell R. Smith-Spears - Heavy duty story of a woman who gives up everything for the married man who has just broken up with her. Powerful writing. (5/5)
4. Most Things Haven't Worked Out by William Boyle - Fantastic! A rip-roaring exciting read. A crime you could say, but it's about two people who were abused as kids and how they were ruined, one by hate and one by kindness. A very poignant ending. Complex, interesting characters. (5/5)
5. Uphill by Mary Miller - Nothing really happens in this story. A woman with a penchant for loser boyfriends tells about her current situation and ruminates on her past and future. Pretty boring. (2/5)
6. Boy and Girl Games Like Coupling by Jamie Paige - Very short. Narrated by the boy, it's about the moment a girl learns she's dating a psychopath. (3/5)
7. Oxford Girl by Megan Abbott - Brilliant. I loved this story! The narrative switches back and forth between a college couple starting with the girl finding out she's pregnant. Then they each tell the story of their relationship from the beginning to the dark, dark end. (5/5)
8. Digits by Michael Kardos - This is really creepy and I loved it until the end. A college English professor notices that students in the class are missing fingers. It's a great creepy story but ends suddenly and I didn't get it. I still don't get it. I would have given it a five but my rating is reduced because don't like stories to leave me bewildered. (3/5)
9. Moonface by Andrew Paul - A man recounts an event from his youth when he caused someone's death. OK. (3/5)
10. God's Gonna Trouble the Water by Dominiqua Dickey - This is a sad story but has a redemptive ending. A white boy and black girl have a four-year-old daughter. The boy wants nothing but them to be a family, while the girl knows they can ever have a normal life together because of their colour. The boy steals his little girl every now and then to get her mother to come to him. This time, he takes her on the night of a big storm and it's the last time he does. Very good. I love the narrative voice. (5/5)
11. My Dear, My One True Love by Lee Durkee - This is very short, a few pages. So briefly, a man narrates his attraction to crazy women. The ending was as I expected. Not bad. (3/5)
12. Hero by Michael Farris Smith - Just ok, not much really happens. About a boy who doesn't talk and his abusive father narrated by the next door neighbour who takes day labour jobs and has a large psychic-for-hire wife. (2/5)
13. Pit Stop by John M. Floyd - On a road trip, a mother tells her daughter about the time she was attacked by a serial killer. A really good story that had me riveted. Only problem is that the ending was disappointing. (3/5)
14. Anglers of the Keep by Roger Busby - A melancholy tale of a dying man whose daughter has arranged a lung transplant for him. The man tells his secrets to his ex-son-in-law on the journey to the clinic. (4/5)
15. Jerry Lewis by Jack Pendarvis - A guy has a mysterious encounter with a dangerous woman. Short and kind of dumb. (2/5)
16. Cheap Suitcase and a New Town by Chris Offutt - A lonely woman waitressing in a town she recently moved to gives a much younger waitress some advice and then moves on. I don't get the point of this. Boring. (1/5)
A mixed-bag of contemporary stories taking place in Mississippi. Averaging out to a solid 3.5 stars.
1. Combustible by Ace Atkins - An abused girl gets back at her stepfather. Short good read with a dangling ending. (4/5)
2. Lord of Madison County by Jimmy Cajoleas - Wow! I don't even know how to start. This is about rich, white kids. The main character hooks up as a drug dealer out of boredom, fakes getting Jesus, bags the pastor's daughter and ends up in very serious trouble with his supplier. A hardcore story but in the end it's about the pastor who really does practice what he preaches. (5/5)
3. Losing Her Religion by Rachell R. Smith-Spears - Heavy duty story of a woman who gives up everything for the married man who has just broken up with her. Powerful writing. (5/5)
4. Most Things Haven't Worked Out by William Boyle - Fantastic! A rip-roaring exciting read. A crime you could say, but it's about two people who were abused as kids and how they were ruined, one by hate and one by kindness. A very poignant ending. Complex, interesting characters. (5/5)
5. Uphill by Mary Miller - Nothing really happens in this story. A woman with a penchant for loser boyfriends tells about her current situation and ruminates on her past and future. Pretty boring. (2/5)
6. Boy and Girl Games Like Coupling by Jamie Paige - Very short. Narrated by the boy, it's about the moment a girl learns she's dating a psychopath. (3/5)
7. Oxford Girl by Megan Abbott - Brilliant. I loved this story! The narrative switches back and forth between a college couple starting with the girl finding out she's pregnant. Then they each tell the story of their relationship from the beginning to the dark, dark end. (5/5)
8. Digits by Michael Kardos - This is really creepy and I loved it until the end. A college English professor notices that students in the class are missing fingers. It's a great creepy story but ends suddenly and I didn't get it. I still don't get it. I would have given it a five but my rating is reduced because don't like stories to leave me bewildered. (3/5)
9. Moonface by Andrew Paul - A man recounts an event from his youth when he caused someone's death. OK. (3/5)
10. God's Gonna Trouble the Water by Dominiqua Dickey - This is a sad story but has a redemptive ending. A white boy and black girl have a four-year-old daughter. The boy wants nothing but them to be a family, while the girl knows they can ever have a normal life together because of their colour. The boy steals his little girl every now and then to get her mother to come to him. This time, he takes her on the night of a big storm and it's the last time he does. Very good. I love the narrative voice. (5/5)
11. My Dear, My One True Love by Lee Durkee - This is very short, a few pages. So briefly, a man narrates his attraction to crazy women. The ending was as I expected. Not bad. (3/5)
12. Hero by Michael Farris Smith - Just ok, not much really happens. About a boy who doesn't talk and his abusive father narrated by the next door neighbour who takes day labour jobs and has a large psychic-for-hire wife. (2/5)
13. Pit Stop by John M. Floyd - On a road trip, a mother tells her daughter about the time she was attacked by a serial killer. A really good story that had me riveted. Only problem is that the ending was disappointing. (3/5)
14. Anglers of the Keep by Roger Busby - A melancholy tale of a dying man whose daughter has arranged a lung transplant for him. The man tells his secrets to his ex-son-in-law on the journey to the clinic. (4/5)
15. Jerry Lewis by Jack Pendarvis - A guy has a mysterious encounter with a dangerous woman. Short and kind of dumb. (2/5)
16. Cheap Suitcase and a New Town by Chris Offutt - A lonely woman waitressing in a town she recently moved to gives a much younger waitress some advice and then moves on. I don't get the point of this. Boring. (1/5)
August 26, 2016
I adore southern fiction and “Mississippi Noir” did not let me down that is for sure. Mr. Franklin did a wonderful job of putting these stories together. He had established authors as Ace Atkins as well as lesser-known authors who did an excellent job. I look forward to reading more of their work in the future.
I’m a huge fan of “ Noir” books and this publisher has released several to choose from.
I would like to thank Akashic Books and Edelweiss for providing me with an e-galley of this book for my honest review.
I’m a huge fan of “ Noir” books and this publisher has released several to choose from.
I would like to thank Akashic Books and Edelweiss for providing me with an e-galley of this book for my honest review.
August 11, 2016
An interesting collection of stories with something for everyone who enjoys rural noir. My favorites were "Jerry Lewis" by Jack Pendarvis and "Cheap Suitcase and a New Town" by Chris Orfutt, but there are others that could leap out at me on a different day in a different mood. "Digits" by Michael Kardos is kind of stuck in my head, for better or worse.
November 13, 2024
2.75
It’s hard to review a book that’s composed of short stories from different authors. Some of the stories were gripping, and I found myself really invested in what was going on. Others were so short that it felt like nothing was really said at all. One of the stories featured in Part II marked itself as my favorite from how well it utilized second person viewpoint. I read this since I’m from Mississippi, but I think the best part of the book is how every author captured how completely run down this state is.
It’s hard to review a book that’s composed of short stories from different authors. Some of the stories were gripping, and I found myself really invested in what was going on. Others were so short that it felt like nothing was really said at all. One of the stories featured in Part II marked itself as my favorite from how well it utilized second person viewpoint. I read this since I’m from Mississippi, but I think the best part of the book is how every author captured how completely run down this state is.
August 15, 2022
Love this book and this series. I was actually going to Biloxi for a few days for my wife's birthday, so grabbed this book and took it with me. I read it over a few days at night while she was downstairs in the casino gambling. She won, too. And I won, reading these noir tales. Not a bad story in the book, and I've found a few new thriller authors to read further, too.
September 2, 2016
I'm a HUGE fan of short story collections and this didn't disappoint. There are some well respected authors stories, and some I've never heard of. All stories however are of the "southern" variety. If the intro by Tom Franklin doesn't grab you, nothing will. I've never heard until now of the "Noir Series" by Akashic, an independent publisher. I am making it my mission to read ALL of in the series!
September 7, 2016
Recommended by Amazon, has "noir" in the title, how can I go wrong? As it turns out, this is a collection of spine-chilling stories set in Mississippi, suspense of the most suspenseful kind, nothing paranormal, all real life kinds of noir. Nor was it what I expected of Mississippi; these dark stories are very up to date and many focus on adolescence and young adulthood. The problems are very current; the resolutions often jarring.
September 2, 2021
I got this book of short stories because Chris Offut had a story in it. I very much liked his story (it was the last one), but meh to most of the others. Disappointing because I grew up in Mississippi and was looking forward to immersing myself in that world, but these stories just didn't take me there. Makes me realized how hard it is to write a good, solid short story.
June 13, 2024
Some good stories, some not so great. But I’m glad I read it if not for Mr. Mugglewump and the line “She laughed like a sexy crow. The way she talked was also like a sexy crow, one of those crows that can talk. But sexy.”
January 17, 2018
Short stories. These stories were a great companion on a trip through Mississippi. Places like Parchman Prison and Jackson come alive, and kids of people get whacked. Good times
June 2, 2018
Not for me. Did not finish.
September 28, 2022
Short stories, wirtten by many of my favorite authors. Some good. Some not so good. A few really good. Most of them were upsetting in one way or another, but that was expected.
May 22, 2020
Fantastic read from start to finish. Best volume I’ve read in the Noir series thus far. I always think it’s amazing that amidst the poverty Mississippi has always produced a slate of great writers.
June 13, 2017
Very uneven collection. A couple stories were great, most were of middling quality, a couple were simply awful.
"Anglers of the Keep" was a fantastic story, but was more in keeping with the southern gothic tradition than noir. It was sad and melancholic, but hit all the right notes. It reminded me a of a Bobbi Ann Mason story.
For a middling to good story, "Moonface" hit the right notes as a noir confessional.
On the lower scale of okay, there's "God’s Gonna Trouble the Water". It had a good Romeo/Juliet plot with the right characters and a great setting. But it was far too cliched - the writing was mediocre with unrelated details and plodding dialog.
On the awful end of the scale was "Oxford Girl". This was, by far, the worst story in the book. Strangled and overwrought. Told in archaic, ridiculous language that pulled me straight out of the story and left me rolling my eyes. Nobody talks like that. Nobody. Damn, that story was awful. That one is going to stay with me for a long, long time as a horribly written story.
"Anglers of the Keep" was a fantastic story, but was more in keeping with the southern gothic tradition than noir. It was sad and melancholic, but hit all the right notes. It reminded me a of a Bobbi Ann Mason story.
For a middling to good story, "Moonface" hit the right notes as a noir confessional.
On the lower scale of okay, there's "God’s Gonna Trouble the Water". It had a good Romeo/Juliet plot with the right characters and a great setting. But it was far too cliched - the writing was mediocre with unrelated details and plodding dialog.
On the awful end of the scale was "Oxford Girl". This was, by far, the worst story in the book. Strangled and overwrought. Told in archaic, ridiculous language that pulled me straight out of the story and left me rolling my eyes. Nobody talks like that. Nobody. Damn, that story was awful. That one is going to stay with me for a long, long time as a horribly written story.
May 27, 2020
Favorite: “Pit Stop” by John M. Floyd (State Highway 25)
Part I: Conquest & Revenge
“Combustible” by Ace Atkins (Paris)
“Lord of Madison County” by Jimmy Cajoleas (Madison)
“Losing Her Religion” by RaShell R. Smith-Spears (Jackson)
“Most Things Haven’t Worked Out” by William Boyle (Holly Springs)
Part II: Wayward Youth
“Uphill” by Mary Miller (Biloxi)
“Boy and Girl Games Like Coupling” by Jamie Paige (Lauderdale County)
“Oxford Girl” by Megan Abbott (Oxford)
“Digits” by Michael Kardos (Winston County)
Part III: Bloodlines
“Moonface” by Andrew Paul (Thief)
“God’s Gonna Trouble the Water” by Dominiqua Dickey (Grenada)
“My Dear, My One True Love” by Lee Durkee (Gulfport)
“Hero” by Michael Farris Smith (Magnolia)
Part IV: Skipping Town
“Pit Stop” by John M. Floyd (State Highway 25)
“Anglers of the Keep” by Robert Busby (Olive Branch)
“Jerry Lewis” by Jack Pendarvis (Yoknapatawpha County)
“Cheap Suitcase and a New Town” by Chris Offutt (Lucedale)
Part I: Conquest & Revenge
“Combustible” by Ace Atkins (Paris)
“Lord of Madison County” by Jimmy Cajoleas (Madison)
“Losing Her Religion” by RaShell R. Smith-Spears (Jackson)
“Most Things Haven’t Worked Out” by William Boyle (Holly Springs)
Part II: Wayward Youth
“Uphill” by Mary Miller (Biloxi)
“Boy and Girl Games Like Coupling” by Jamie Paige (Lauderdale County)
“Oxford Girl” by Megan Abbott (Oxford)
“Digits” by Michael Kardos (Winston County)
Part III: Bloodlines
“Moonface” by Andrew Paul (Thief)
“God’s Gonna Trouble the Water” by Dominiqua Dickey (Grenada)
“My Dear, My One True Love” by Lee Durkee (Gulfport)
“Hero” by Michael Farris Smith (Magnolia)
Part IV: Skipping Town
“Pit Stop” by John M. Floyd (State Highway 25)
“Anglers of the Keep” by Robert Busby (Olive Branch)
“Jerry Lewis” by Jack Pendarvis (Yoknapatawpha County)
“Cheap Suitcase and a New Town” by Chris Offutt (Lucedale)
July 7, 2018
For this collection editor Tom Franklin has gathered 16 voices who really know the dark side of the Crooked Letter. While you may not like all of the characters written about in these stories, you will most certainly feel the atmosphere as though you are living right along with them. This is one thing the Akashic Noir series does well in each volume - but Franklin does a particularly good job with this lineup. Well known authors like Ace Atkins and Megan Abbott are in top form as usual, but there are plenty of writers here you may not be familiar with that are worth your attention. I discovered quite a few for the first time myself. Stories by Lee Durkee, Michael Kardos, RaShell R. Smith-Spears, and Jimmy Carolers are standouts.
June 24, 2017
Unusually for this series, a lot of the best stories in this collection did not give me a particularly strong sense of place. But there's a lot of captivating and insightful writing within, touching on how people get through the day living unhappy lives through no fault of their own and no hope of anything changing; on our powerful and poisonous desire to be the main character of every story around us; on guilt and mortality; and on the sacrifices required by the creative process. (There's also two damn good, if not especially original, simple crime tales.)
Wouldn't be the first Akashic Noir book I'd hand someone, but if you liked some of the others you're going to like this.
Wouldn't be the first Akashic Noir book I'd hand someone, but if you liked some of the others you're going to like this.
March 2, 2018
My reaction to these was spotty, as can be expected with short stories by different authors. Overall though, it was a good read. However, be forewarned that these are dark, creepy, icky, gross, vulgar ..... as expected with noir, but these are more so than usual. These aren’t for everyone, and weren’t in particular for me.
But if you run across the book, pick it up a few moments and read the brief foreword by Tom Franklin. It is wonderful!
I listened to this audiobook on Hoopla. It used many different narrators, but overall, it was excellent. But please, please, narrators: learn to pronounce Biloxi as the natives do! It’s bill-uhx-ee.
But if you run across the book, pick it up a few moments and read the brief foreword by Tom Franklin. It is wonderful!
I listened to this audiobook on Hoopla. It used many different narrators, but overall, it was excellent. But please, please, narrators: learn to pronounce Biloxi as the natives do! It’s bill-uhx-ee.
August 7, 2018
One book with sixteen short stories by sixteen authors of Mississippi. But a wonderful way to discover a new author, even within a short story. Because these stories are so short, you really are not able to immerse yourself with the characters within the stories.
I won a copy of this book during a Goodreads giveaway. I am under no obligation to leave a review or rating and do so voluntarily. So that others may also enjoy this book, I am paying it forward by donating it to my local library.
I won a copy of this book during a Goodreads giveaway. I am under no obligation to leave a review or rating and do so voluntarily. So that others may also enjoy this book, I am paying it forward by donating it to my local library.
July 7, 2017
My first read in the Noir series which I never knew existed, so... that's exciting. I am a fan of Chris Offutt's writing since Kentucky Straight so when I saw he contributed I had to read him. Also I love short stories and most in Mississippi Noir were entertaining... and a couple were downright frightening. Powerful and solid efforts by a variety of writers. Great quick read, a guilty pleasure.
July 17, 2017
Another quick read, reinforcing my thinking that there was something about Beirut Noir that just did not engage me. I spent some time in Meridian, MS as well as a visit to Lazy Magnolia Brewing so I had an idea of the living circumstances in that part of our country. As other reviewers have said, not all of the stories were of equal quality, but when taken as a whole, it was a worthwhile read. Back to the library tomorrow to see what has come in.
September 20, 2018
Fun read, but slightly disappointing. The reliable people, Megan Abbott, Mary Miller & Jack Pendarvis deliver - Jack Pendarvis’s story being a particular stand out, but I didn’t discover any writers that I wanted to keep track of, like first having my mind blown by Tom Franklin’s “Poachers” in a modern noir collection.
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