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Montana Noir
Brand-new stories by: David Abrams, Caroline Patterson, Eric Heidle, Thomas McGuane, Janet Skeslien Charles, Sidner Larson, Yvonne Seng, James Grady, Jamie Ford, Carrie La Seur, Walter Kirn, Gwen Florio, Debra Magpie Earling, and Keir Graff.
Akashic Books continues its award-winning series of original noir anthologies, launched in 2004 with Brooklyn Noir. Each book comprises all new stories, each one set in a distinct location within the geographic area of the book. Grady and Graff, both Montana natives, masterfully curate this collection of hard-edged Western tales.
From the introduction by James Grady and Keir Graff:
This anthology is a road trip through the dreams and disasters of the true Montana, stories written by authors with Montana in their blood, tales that circle you around the state through its cities and small towns. These are twenty-first century authors writing timeless sagas of choice, crime, and consequences...You'll meet students and strippers, cops and cons, druggies and dreamers, cold-eyed killers and caught-in-their-gunsights screwed-up souls.
But mostly, through all our fiction here, you'll meet quiet heroes and see the noir side of life that makes our Montana as real as it is mythic. No doubt the state's beauty will still make the very idea of Montana Noir seem incongruous to some. Noir is black-and-white. Streets and alleys. Flashing neon lighting a rain-streaked window. But while noir was definitely an urban invention, it knows no boundaries. Noir is struggle. It's doing the wrong thing for the right reasons. It's being trapped. It's hubris. It's being defeated yet going on. Sometimes it's being defeated and not going on. That's life everywhere. This is our Montana.
288 pages, Paperback
First published August 21, 2017
62 people are currently reading
935 people want to read
About the author
James Grady
91 books194 followersJames Grady is a longtime author of thrillers, police procedural and espionage novels. He graduated from the University of Montana School of Journalism in 1974. During college, he worked for United States Senator Lee Metcalf of Montana as an staff member.
From 1974 - 1978 he was an investigative journalist for the famous muckraker Jack Anderson. Best known as the author of Six Days of the Condor , which was adapted to film as Three Days of the Condor starring Robert Redford in 1975.
James Grady has gone on to write almost a dozen more novels in the thirty-eight years since Six Days of the Condor was published.
In the past James Grady has written under the pseudonyms of James Dalton and Brit Shelby.
From 1974 - 1978 he was an investigative journalist for the famous muckraker Jack Anderson. Best known as the author of Six Days of the Condor , which was adapted to film as Three Days of the Condor starring Robert Redford in 1975.
James Grady has gone on to write almost a dozen more novels in the thirty-eight years since Six Days of the Condor was published.
In the past James Grady has written under the pseudonyms of James Dalton and Brit Shelby.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews
October 29, 2017
I thoroughly enjoyed being part of this anthology.
My favorite story was RED, WHITE, and BUTTE, by David Abrams.
I suspect he has a bright (dark?) future in noir.
My favorite story was RED, WHITE, and BUTTE, by David Abrams.
I suspect he has a bright (dark?) future in noir.
November 1, 2017
Even though there were a few stories that I didn't love every bit of, and one I just didn't like (Downtown Billings, looking at you, but maybe I'm missing something), I still LOVED this collection. It is such a RELIEF to read a book that really makes an effort to get Montana right. Sure we have cowboys and all that, but we're just as varied here as many other places. It's hard to pick a favorite, but maybe Debra Magpie Earling's Polson-set story is it. The pacing, the details, all of it: perfection.
Other highlights include David Abrams, Caroline Patterson, Eric Heidle, Keir Graff, Jamie Ford, and Janet Skeslien Charles' stories. Also, if you get a chance to see Yvonne Seng read aloud, do so, because that woman's voice is magnificent.
Full disclosure: I do know some of the authors personally, but we're a state of only a million people. It would be weird if I didn't.
Other highlights include David Abrams, Caroline Patterson, Eric Heidle, Keir Graff, Jamie Ford, and Janet Skeslien Charles' stories. Also, if you get a chance to see Yvonne Seng read aloud, do so, because that woman's voice is magnificent.
Full disclosure: I do know some of the authors personally, but we're a state of only a million people. It would be weird if I didn't.
August 9, 2021
Excellent collection. Several standout stories, especially by Walter Kirn and of course Tom McGuane. A few slack stories as to be expected but overall, really enjoyed this book. My reservations are really about how difficult it is to rise above the cliches of the mystery/thriller genre. That said, this collection has plenty of gritty realism for this Grit Lit lover.
September 5, 2017
"Montana Noir" reveals that even Big Sky Country works just fine as a landscape for downbeats and deadbeats, cynics and gamblers, posers and schemers. This is a diverse collection with many hits. I’m going to touch only on a few.
David Abrams ("Fobbit," "Brave Deeds") starts things off with a cracking yarn in “Red, White and Butte.” The opening line sets the mood: “Marlowe was a dead and that was fine by me.”
Marlowe, it turns out, “lay in pieces in a coffin” waiting for his hero’s welcome parade and related festivities. “Next to Evel Knievel Days, everyone said it would be the highlight of Butte’s summer.” Marlowe isn’t the only one who is dead—or even badly wounded. Many of the scars in Montana Noir are found on human skin. But Montana soil bears its share as well. In Abrams’ story, Butte’s Berkeley Pit is the environmental wound. “The gouge of earth glowed orange in the late light. It was the oozing wound of the city, both its pride and shame.” The pit was abandoned and “the pit began to fill with water laced with arsenic, sulfuric acid, and eleven other essential vitamins and minerals.” Abrams’ narrator knows secrets about Marlowe’s alleged reputation. He also knows how to follow a “skunky smell” and how to get what he wants. Or, at least, to try.
Eric Heidle’s “Ace in the Hole” starts with a guy named Chance getting off a Greyhound bus in Great Falls. He hits a bar for a drink and tastes the whiskey, “a first delicious violation of parole.” Chance goes to a bar in a motel with indoor pool and a mermaid. “Her metallic tail chased behind, drawing gorgeous curlicues with each wondrous pelvic kick.” The sight is about as much pleasure as Chance is going to experience. Being out of prison is not the end of Chance’s troubles. There are debts to pay and car batteries aren’t the only thing that die. Again, industry’s legacy plays a role. Chance contemplates the giant smelter where he was grandfather had worked “as a blacksmith in the war, forging one link in a great chain bringing bright nuggets of copper from the bleeding earth of Butte to Nazi brainpans in France.” Yikes. What a grim line in a great story.
I nearly emptied a pen underlining all the great lines in Janet Skeslien Charles’ “Fireweed.” I read it twice, waited a week, and read it again. Charles’ style is poetic, brisk, and unique. It’s hard to pick one passage, but here goes:
“”We survey our land, we survey our life. We hear what you won’t say. Nothing escapes us. Nothing escapes. If you were born here, you will die here. I think of the stranger. Even if you weren’t born here, you’ll die here. We know everything. We know that Nancy Mallard loves her horses more than her husband John Junior. We figure her brother Davey might be gay. We know the hospital administrator resigned because he got caught embezzling. (He’s not from here.) Knowledge moves through us, around us, with us, against us. So why don’t we know who killed the stranger?”
A man is dead, our narrator tell us. “There has to be a reason.” And it’s clear the killer is local. As a result, solving the murder matters more. Suspects abound. Charles’ story shifts from first person to third. She speaks for the collective “we” (the town) and, at times, the narrator speaks for herself. We’re in “farm country” somewhere up near the Canadian border. To repeat, “nothing escapes us.” Even simple –and deadly—misunderstandings.
And then there’s “Motherlode” by Thomas McGuane. Another one to read and ponder. It’s so matter-of-factly slice-of-life that it could have grown out of the Scobey Clay Loam (it’s the unofficial “state soil”). To me, one of McGuane’s signature styles is the ease with which he gets a story up and running. “Motherlode” is no exception. McGuane has a way of not trying too hard. He also sees (or hears or smells) unusual details, like gloppy dressing dripping off a leaf from the salad.
David Jenkins is a traveling cattle geneticist who is forced at gunpoint into a wild detour by a guy named Ray who needs a ride to go meet a woman named Morsel, a woman he met online with an overblown claim about his work. Dave is impressed with the success of the con man who has kidnapped him, in a way, and soon Dave is calculating new possibilities and adjusting his dreams. Brilliant, vivid, compelling.
It’s probably sucking up to laud the stories of James Grady ("Six Days of the Condor") and Keir Graff ("The Price of Liberty") but both “The Road You Take” and “Red Skies Of Montana” are among the highlights in this volume. Both feature good people searching for new directions. Both feature characters searching for their true identity and their true spot in the world in the face of darker choices. And both leave us hanging with the next moment perfectly in question.
Yes, Montana. Yes, Noir. Cynicism, fatalism, moral ambiguity—"Montana Noir" offers a big old bucket of the stuff, arsenic and acid and blood dripping from the bucket. Noir isn’t confined to a place. It’s a state of being. It follows humanity wherever humanity wanders. And "Montana Noir" gives the genre more definition.
David Abrams ("Fobbit," "Brave Deeds") starts things off with a cracking yarn in “Red, White and Butte.” The opening line sets the mood: “Marlowe was a dead and that was fine by me.”
Marlowe, it turns out, “lay in pieces in a coffin” waiting for his hero’s welcome parade and related festivities. “Next to Evel Knievel Days, everyone said it would be the highlight of Butte’s summer.” Marlowe isn’t the only one who is dead—or even badly wounded. Many of the scars in Montana Noir are found on human skin. But Montana soil bears its share as well. In Abrams’ story, Butte’s Berkeley Pit is the environmental wound. “The gouge of earth glowed orange in the late light. It was the oozing wound of the city, both its pride and shame.” The pit was abandoned and “the pit began to fill with water laced with arsenic, sulfuric acid, and eleven other essential vitamins and minerals.” Abrams’ narrator knows secrets about Marlowe’s alleged reputation. He also knows how to follow a “skunky smell” and how to get what he wants. Or, at least, to try.
Eric Heidle’s “Ace in the Hole” starts with a guy named Chance getting off a Greyhound bus in Great Falls. He hits a bar for a drink and tastes the whiskey, “a first delicious violation of parole.” Chance goes to a bar in a motel with indoor pool and a mermaid. “Her metallic tail chased behind, drawing gorgeous curlicues with each wondrous pelvic kick.” The sight is about as much pleasure as Chance is going to experience. Being out of prison is not the end of Chance’s troubles. There are debts to pay and car batteries aren’t the only thing that die. Again, industry’s legacy plays a role. Chance contemplates the giant smelter where he was grandfather had worked “as a blacksmith in the war, forging one link in a great chain bringing bright nuggets of copper from the bleeding earth of Butte to Nazi brainpans in France.” Yikes. What a grim line in a great story.
I nearly emptied a pen underlining all the great lines in Janet Skeslien Charles’ “Fireweed.” I read it twice, waited a week, and read it again. Charles’ style is poetic, brisk, and unique. It’s hard to pick one passage, but here goes:
“”We survey our land, we survey our life. We hear what you won’t say. Nothing escapes us. Nothing escapes. If you were born here, you will die here. I think of the stranger. Even if you weren’t born here, you’ll die here. We know everything. We know that Nancy Mallard loves her horses more than her husband John Junior. We figure her brother Davey might be gay. We know the hospital administrator resigned because he got caught embezzling. (He’s not from here.) Knowledge moves through us, around us, with us, against us. So why don’t we know who killed the stranger?”
A man is dead, our narrator tell us. “There has to be a reason.” And it’s clear the killer is local. As a result, solving the murder matters more. Suspects abound. Charles’ story shifts from first person to third. She speaks for the collective “we” (the town) and, at times, the narrator speaks for herself. We’re in “farm country” somewhere up near the Canadian border. To repeat, “nothing escapes us.” Even simple –and deadly—misunderstandings.
And then there’s “Motherlode” by Thomas McGuane. Another one to read and ponder. It’s so matter-of-factly slice-of-life that it could have grown out of the Scobey Clay Loam (it’s the unofficial “state soil”). To me, one of McGuane’s signature styles is the ease with which he gets a story up and running. “Motherlode” is no exception. McGuane has a way of not trying too hard. He also sees (or hears or smells) unusual details, like gloppy dressing dripping off a leaf from the salad.
David Jenkins is a traveling cattle geneticist who is forced at gunpoint into a wild detour by a guy named Ray who needs a ride to go meet a woman named Morsel, a woman he met online with an overblown claim about his work. Dave is impressed with the success of the con man who has kidnapped him, in a way, and soon Dave is calculating new possibilities and adjusting his dreams. Brilliant, vivid, compelling.
It’s probably sucking up to laud the stories of James Grady ("Six Days of the Condor") and Keir Graff ("The Price of Liberty") but both “The Road You Take” and “Red Skies Of Montana” are among the highlights in this volume. Both feature good people searching for new directions. Both feature characters searching for their true identity and their true spot in the world in the face of darker choices. And both leave us hanging with the next moment perfectly in question.
Yes, Montana. Yes, Noir. Cynicism, fatalism, moral ambiguity—"Montana Noir" offers a big old bucket of the stuff, arsenic and acid and blood dripping from the bucket. Noir isn’t confined to a place. It’s a state of being. It follows humanity wherever humanity wanders. And "Montana Noir" gives the genre more definition.
December 30, 2018
Excellent collection of short stories. I loved them all except the first and last which didn’t resonate with me the way the rest of the collection did. Longer review on my blog:
http://tailsfromthedogside.blog/2018/...
http://tailsfromthedogside.blog/2018/...
January 1, 2018
Every story in this collection takes place in a different town in Montana and while each story was by a different writer, all featured the unique geography and culture of Montana. True to the "noir" tradition the protagonists of the stories live on the edge of their society, none are completely sympathetic though many find themselves in sympathetic situations even if their ultimate response is one of violence or crime. My favorites from the collection.
"Red, White and Butte" is told by an army vet who returns to Butte for a memorial for a soldier in his unit who was killed when his boot stepped on a bomb. Since it is told from his perspective it begins with sympathy for him and some cynicism towards the fallen hero, but as the narrative continues with flashbacks to what really happened that day in Iraq the perspective completely shifts.
In "Ace in the Hole" Chance returns to Great Falls after being paroled from prison. Chance has some things going for him especially his dad who represents an old school Montana ethic of hard work, second chances, loyalty and few words. Chance also runs into an old girlfriend who continues to care for him despite his past criminal record and current alcohol abuse, but Chance also runs into the drug dealer who is demanding collection on the debt owed to him.
"Fireweed" starts with the discovery of a body found in the middle of an isolated farm in the Hi-Line, close to the Canadian border. It is told by a college bound teen waitressing at the local cafe, her narrative describes the ins and outs of the small wheat farming town and ends with this great paragraph;........You can see the wind today. It whips car antennas in the parking lot, it turns the pasture across the highway into an ocean of light-green waves. Tumbleweeds blow by the gas pumps, through town, on their way to the rest of the world. Won't be long and I'll follow.
"The Road You Take" is about a car load of strippers who go from small town to small town across Montana. The reality of the work, increasing debt to their bosses, their limited freedom and choices belies any romance about their lives. One stop in Shelby when one dancer walks to breakfast and meets one of the Montana "good guys" is the center of this story.
"Bad Blood" is set in the Billings branch office of a Los Angeles law firm. Vera is an associate in the firm and as a Billings native she has a different loyalty than most in the law firm. She is working pro bono for Native Americans who have evidence of ownership of valuable lands around Billings but slowly rebels against the law firm's interest in the PR aspects of the case.
"Red, White and Butte" is told by an army vet who returns to Butte for a memorial for a soldier in his unit who was killed when his boot stepped on a bomb. Since it is told from his perspective it begins with sympathy for him and some cynicism towards the fallen hero, but as the narrative continues with flashbacks to what really happened that day in Iraq the perspective completely shifts.
In "Ace in the Hole" Chance returns to Great Falls after being paroled from prison. Chance has some things going for him especially his dad who represents an old school Montana ethic of hard work, second chances, loyalty and few words. Chance also runs into an old girlfriend who continues to care for him despite his past criminal record and current alcohol abuse, but Chance also runs into the drug dealer who is demanding collection on the debt owed to him.
"Fireweed" starts with the discovery of a body found in the middle of an isolated farm in the Hi-Line, close to the Canadian border. It is told by a college bound teen waitressing at the local cafe, her narrative describes the ins and outs of the small wheat farming town and ends with this great paragraph;........You can see the wind today. It whips car antennas in the parking lot, it turns the pasture across the highway into an ocean of light-green waves. Tumbleweeds blow by the gas pumps, through town, on their way to the rest of the world. Won't be long and I'll follow.
"The Road You Take" is about a car load of strippers who go from small town to small town across Montana. The reality of the work, increasing debt to their bosses, their limited freedom and choices belies any romance about their lives. One stop in Shelby when one dancer walks to breakfast and meets one of the Montana "good guys" is the center of this story.
"Bad Blood" is set in the Billings branch office of a Los Angeles law firm. Vera is an associate in the firm and as a Billings native she has a different loyalty than most in the law firm. She is working pro bono for Native Americans who have evidence of ownership of valuable lands around Billings but slowly rebels against the law firm's interest in the PR aspects of the case.
February 14, 2018
My first of the Akashic Noir Series, this one showcasing the dark side of Montana. Interesting stories for sure. I was glad to see two Indigenous (Montana Natives also) authors included in the series.
October 11, 2017
Some of the best writers in Montana contributed short stories to this collection. I discovered I don't really like noir fiction.
August 26, 2021
Great collection of stories here, many really stood out as excellent.
Among my many favorites:
"Red, White and Butte" by David Abrams
"The Dive" by Jamie Ford
"Trailer Trash" by Gwen Florio
Among my many favorites:
"Red, White and Butte" by David Abrams
"The Dive" by Jamie Ford
"Trailer Trash" by Gwen Florio
August 12, 2017
Montana Noir is the newest anthology joining the outstanding Akashic Noir series. Edited by James Grady and Keir Graff, it includes fourteen stories from all over Montana. It is organized into four sections that are united by their history. Copper Power features stories in Butte, Helena, and Great Falls, the centers of the mining industry. The Hi-Line follows Highway 2 through the rolling prairies and the “Big Sky”, Custer Country ranges from Billings to the southeastern border near the Bakken, and Rivers Run takes place in the mountainous beautiful range along the Continental Divide.
Montana is home to seven reservations and several Indian tribes. Montana is also home to pivotal moments in the Indians Wars, the absolute defeat of General Custer and the surrender of Chief Joseph of the Nez Perce. Montana weaves together many threads of the West’s history, a gold rush, cattle-ranching, sheepherding, extraction industry, tourism industry, Indian wars and oppression, natural beauty and aridity. That gives this anthology a more universally Western aesthetic.
One of my favorite stories is Custer’s Last Stand by Debra Magpie Earling. Custer’s Last Stand is a burger joint along the Flathead Lake, nowhere near Custer Country, but there is a “Custer” of sorts, the racist local sheriff who owns the stand and who abuses his power and yes, he meets his “Sitting Bull” in a satisfying confrontation. I also loved Trailer Trash, a story that made me laugh with its send-up of academic writing groups where the narrator’s factual descriptions of his neighbors are dismissed as cliched.
This is an excellent collection of noir stories. Noir is not just about mystery and suspense. Noir is living on the edge, transgressing the boundaries, and surviving on the downside of power. Noir is desperate striving, scrabbling for purchase in a society that leaves too many behind. Noir is seeking escape from the world that is indifferent and hostile. There is all of that. Many of the protagonists are on the wrong side of the law, looking for money in all the wrong places. Still, the most disturbing story is Bad Blood by Carrie Le Seur following a lawyer representing various Native Americans who are filing suit for land stolen whose deeds are disputed and missing. The lawyer surprises us in the end, but perhaps it is our naivete that makes the story so shocking.
I love the Akashic Noir series and Montana Noir is one of the best in the series. The stories are fast-paced, suspenseful, and capture the essence of Montana. I loved this edition. It is less experimental than others in the series such as Brussels Noir and that is probably one reason I like it so much. I think you can’t go wrong with the Akashic Noir series and it is a far more interesting form of armchair traveling than the hyper-privileged one-upmanship travels of Condé Nast Traveler.
Montana Noir will be released September 5th. I received an e-galley from the publisher through NetGalley.
Montana Noir at Akashic Books
Akashic Noir series
James Grady author site
Keir Graff author
https://tonstantweaderreviews.wordpre...
Montana is home to seven reservations and several Indian tribes. Montana is also home to pivotal moments in the Indians Wars, the absolute defeat of General Custer and the surrender of Chief Joseph of the Nez Perce. Montana weaves together many threads of the West’s history, a gold rush, cattle-ranching, sheepherding, extraction industry, tourism industry, Indian wars and oppression, natural beauty and aridity. That gives this anthology a more universally Western aesthetic.
One of my favorite stories is Custer’s Last Stand by Debra Magpie Earling. Custer’s Last Stand is a burger joint along the Flathead Lake, nowhere near Custer Country, but there is a “Custer” of sorts, the racist local sheriff who owns the stand and who abuses his power and yes, he meets his “Sitting Bull” in a satisfying confrontation. I also loved Trailer Trash, a story that made me laugh with its send-up of academic writing groups where the narrator’s factual descriptions of his neighbors are dismissed as cliched.
This is an excellent collection of noir stories. Noir is not just about mystery and suspense. Noir is living on the edge, transgressing the boundaries, and surviving on the downside of power. Noir is desperate striving, scrabbling for purchase in a society that leaves too many behind. Noir is seeking escape from the world that is indifferent and hostile. There is all of that. Many of the protagonists are on the wrong side of the law, looking for money in all the wrong places. Still, the most disturbing story is Bad Blood by Carrie Le Seur following a lawyer representing various Native Americans who are filing suit for land stolen whose deeds are disputed and missing. The lawyer surprises us in the end, but perhaps it is our naivete that makes the story so shocking.
I love the Akashic Noir series and Montana Noir is one of the best in the series. The stories are fast-paced, suspenseful, and capture the essence of Montana. I loved this edition. It is less experimental than others in the series such as Brussels Noir and that is probably one reason I like it so much. I think you can’t go wrong with the Akashic Noir series and it is a far more interesting form of armchair traveling than the hyper-privileged one-upmanship travels of Condé Nast Traveler.
Montana Noir will be released September 5th. I received an e-galley from the publisher through NetGalley.
Montana Noir at Akashic Books
Akashic Noir series
James Grady author site
Keir Graff author
https://tonstantweaderreviews.wordpre...
November 27, 2017
I picked up Montana Noir because I saw Jamie Ford’s name on the cover. I had read and reviewed Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet, and realized that there were other well-known authors in Akashic’s noir series of books. Each of the authors of stories in the Montana Noir book has a connection with Montana. Jamie Ford, for example, has lived in Montana for seventeen years.
Each story is set in one of the great towns or areas of the state, generally the area where its author is connected. Jamie Fox’s story, for example, takes place in Glendive, Montana. It is a revenge story, not something that you would typically think of as noir, although the gritty characters are very noir-ish. David Abrams story is primarily a military story with a tenuous and edgy ending. Another story I enjoyed was Trailer Trash by Gwen Florio, which takes place in the university town of Missoula. It meets the definition of neo-noir. It is amazing how much plot and character development can happen in a few pages.
One of the joys of the noir books by Akashic is that they are very diverse in theme, characters, and content. What is consistent across all of the books is the setting. Each book has a setting that is unique and colorful. It is quite impressive, actually. Another wonder of the books is that they are easy to pick up, read one or two stories, and then pick it up later.
I have three other Akashic Noir books on my shelf—New Haven Noir, Buenos Aires Noir, and Montreal Noir. All have been very favorably reviewed by both Kirkus and Publishers Weekly. I picked up Buenos Aires Noir the other day and found that, unlike Montana Noir, the editors of Buenos Aires Noir had chosen entries that were more traditional noir. Curious, I wrote an email to my contact at Akashic, and she told me: “We actually make it a point to not define Noir for our Noir Series and allow the editors and authors to define it for themselves in whatever way will best fit their particular series, with the general idea that noir stories generally have a sense of darkness about them.”
Another noir novel I recently read and reviewed for Akashic was The Painted Gun by Bradley Spinelli, which I really liked.
Each story is set in one of the great towns or areas of the state, generally the area where its author is connected. Jamie Fox’s story, for example, takes place in Glendive, Montana. It is a revenge story, not something that you would typically think of as noir, although the gritty characters are very noir-ish. David Abrams story is primarily a military story with a tenuous and edgy ending. Another story I enjoyed was Trailer Trash by Gwen Florio, which takes place in the university town of Missoula. It meets the definition of neo-noir. It is amazing how much plot and character development can happen in a few pages.
One of the joys of the noir books by Akashic is that they are very diverse in theme, characters, and content. What is consistent across all of the books is the setting. Each book has a setting that is unique and colorful. It is quite impressive, actually. Another wonder of the books is that they are easy to pick up, read one or two stories, and then pick it up later.
I have three other Akashic Noir books on my shelf—New Haven Noir, Buenos Aires Noir, and Montreal Noir. All have been very favorably reviewed by both Kirkus and Publishers Weekly. I picked up Buenos Aires Noir the other day and found that, unlike Montana Noir, the editors of Buenos Aires Noir had chosen entries that were more traditional noir. Curious, I wrote an email to my contact at Akashic, and she told me: “We actually make it a point to not define Noir for our Noir Series and allow the editors and authors to define it for themselves in whatever way will best fit their particular series, with the general idea that noir stories generally have a sense of darkness about them.”
Another noir novel I recently read and reviewed for Akashic was The Painted Gun by Bradley Spinelli, which I really liked.
August 27, 2017
MONTANA NOIR is one of the latest titles in Akashic Books Noir series. It is edited by James Grady and Keir Graff.
My copy was an ‘Advance Reading Copy’ sent to me by Akashic Books for an unbiased and honest review.
I have enjoyed all the Noir titles that I have read. The stories are true noir - dark, dreary, raw, cynical and reeking of moral ambiguity. I once read noir described as “whiskey neat” and that phrase has always stayed with me.
My favorite part of every Noir (series) title is the introduction by the editor(s). The introduction sets the tone and the very important sense of place. I love the map, the information about the authors and the table of contents.
The big, blue Montana sky is a prominent main character in this anthology of short stories.
The snappiest story title in MONTANA NOIR is “Red, White and Butte” by David Abrams. This story also wins the snappiest first sentence prize, “Marlowe was dead and that was fine by me”.
The saddest, dreariest story (for me) was “Bad Blood” by Carrie La Seur - not because of the writing (that was superb) but because of its cynicism and fatalism.
MONTANA NOIR’s book jacket says “this anthology is a road trip through the dreams and disasters of the true Montana”. I would agree, especially with the disaster part.
Run - don’t walk - to your closest Akashic Books Noir title. You will be glad you did. But beware - the anthologies are very addictive.
My copy was an ‘Advance Reading Copy’ sent to me by Akashic Books for an unbiased and honest review.
I have enjoyed all the Noir titles that I have read. The stories are true noir - dark, dreary, raw, cynical and reeking of moral ambiguity. I once read noir described as “whiskey neat” and that phrase has always stayed with me.
My favorite part of every Noir (series) title is the introduction by the editor(s). The introduction sets the tone and the very important sense of place. I love the map, the information about the authors and the table of contents.
The big, blue Montana sky is a prominent main character in this anthology of short stories.
The snappiest story title in MONTANA NOIR is “Red, White and Butte” by David Abrams. This story also wins the snappiest first sentence prize, “Marlowe was dead and that was fine by me”.
The saddest, dreariest story (for me) was “Bad Blood” by Carrie La Seur - not because of the writing (that was superb) but because of its cynicism and fatalism.
MONTANA NOIR’s book jacket says “this anthology is a road trip through the dreams and disasters of the true Montana”. I would agree, especially with the disaster part.
Run - don’t walk - to your closest Akashic Books Noir title. You will be glad you did. But beware - the anthologies are very addictive.
August 27, 2017
I received this through the Early Reviewers Giveaway for July on Library Thing. I have previously read "Oakland Noir".
"Montana Noir" is a collection of short stories by authors that may not be on the top reading lists, but really can create a strange and dark look into life. Their abilities to work words into glimpses of life in the worlds of people down on their luck by choice or the whim of life, can leave you thinking of the characters for a good bit after reading.
Montana may be the state of the Big Sky but there is also a darkness and harshness to be found under that sky.
War heroes who return, dead or alive, with horrific stories to tell. Carla "Train Wreck" Lewis, the female boxer who refused to take a dive and came back home to recuperate and find another fight to face. Benson, the student who lied his way into college to impress a friend only to be found out and wind up living in a trailer trash world. The pizza delivery guy who works the night shift high on pills and what he discovers about "Crush," the fellow driver who trained him in all the tricks to make big tips. All take place in various locales in the state and not all the narrators give their names. It is just what they have done that is important.
I find that I do find myself thinking and rethinking some of these stories. If noir is a genre you like, then this is a book you should read.
"Montana Noir" is a collection of short stories by authors that may not be on the top reading lists, but really can create a strange and dark look into life. Their abilities to work words into glimpses of life in the worlds of people down on their luck by choice or the whim of life, can leave you thinking of the characters for a good bit after reading.
Montana may be the state of the Big Sky but there is also a darkness and harshness to be found under that sky.
War heroes who return, dead or alive, with horrific stories to tell. Carla "Train Wreck" Lewis, the female boxer who refused to take a dive and came back home to recuperate and find another fight to face. Benson, the student who lied his way into college to impress a friend only to be found out and wind up living in a trailer trash world. The pizza delivery guy who works the night shift high on pills and what he discovers about "Crush," the fellow driver who trained him in all the tricks to make big tips. All take place in various locales in the state and not all the narrators give their names. It is just what they have done that is important.
I find that I do find myself thinking and rethinking some of these stories. If noir is a genre you like, then this is a book you should read.
January 23, 2020
I'm very happy I started with the Havre story - it was by far my favorite - because the more of this collection I read the less and less I was enjoying the stories. I'm not sure if that was because noir really isn't my bailiwick or if the authors were doing just that good of a job capturing the essence of Montana (and I can assure you beyond a doubt, they did) and that reminded me why I bailed on the state as soon as I could.
I was planning on passing this along to family and friends (and that one co-worker who has developed a massive crush on Montana) but I might hog it to myself lest I fall back into pining for the pretty parts of the state I visit from time to time.
*grumbles* Ok, maybe I'll try to be less greedy and send this along to my peeps as originally planned. Maybe.
I was planning on passing this along to family and friends (and that one co-worker who has developed a massive crush on Montana) but I might hog it to myself lest I fall back into pining for the pretty parts of the state I visit from time to time.
*grumbles* Ok, maybe I'll try to be less greedy and send this along to my peeps as originally planned. Maybe.
October 14, 2021
This was a delicious book.
I ordered it because I had read The Paris Library, by Janet Skeslien Charles, and after I wrote the review I looked at other publications and discovered she had a story in this collection.
Each story in this collection was so different from the others. Each story had unique characters, who all seemed believable. Their situations seemed possible, even when unlikely. Montana is more complicated than we imagine, and these stories, several darkly humorous, reflect the wide variety in Montana.
It cracked me up that the compilers/editors said, essentially, that yes, Montana is gorgeous, it is also cold and muddy and the winters are very long and most of us who grow up there can't wait to leave.
I ordered it because I had read The Paris Library, by Janet Skeslien Charles, and after I wrote the review I looked at other publications and discovered she had a story in this collection.
Each story in this collection was so different from the others. Each story had unique characters, who all seemed believable. Their situations seemed possible, even when unlikely. Montana is more complicated than we imagine, and these stories, several darkly humorous, reflect the wide variety in Montana.
It cracked me up that the compilers/editors said, essentially, that yes, Montana is gorgeous, it is also cold and muddy and the winters are very long and most of us who grow up there can't wait to leave.
December 15, 2023
"No doubt the state's beauty will still make the very idea of Montana Noir seem incongruous to some", the back cover of this Akashic noir collection reads. That's what I thought before I read Montana Noir - but it exposes the seedy underbelly of this beautiful state very well. The book hangs together, canvassing aspects of the state such as its Native American population, environmental degradation by extractive industries and the desperation of life at the minimum wage and below, in a way that not all Akashic collections do. The best story in my opinion is Fireweed by Janet Skieslien Charles, a true noir tale in that it involves a murder and is tightly-plotted, but also includes plenty of descriptions of Montana's landscapes.
February 3, 2018
Most of the stories in this collection focusing on the dark side of life in Montana left me grateful for my sheltered little existence. Having spent some time recently in Big Sky Country, I felt familiar with the various settings. I, however, did not meet any people remotely resembling many of the characters populating these pages. My top three stories are "Constellations" by Caroline Patterson; "The Road You Take" by James Grady; and "Bad Blood" by Carrie La Seur. Tomorrow, I would likely choose three others.
November 1, 2017
As my readers know I like setting in fiction and what could be better than the Akashic Books Noir series. I love the Montana scenery and Montana Noir has it all in spades. Mountains, plains, deserts, smelters, mines, oil rigs, small towns with low rent people. It is all there and all wonderful.If Montana intrigues you you will enjoy this book as much as I did. For me the best story in the book was the first one, RED, WHITE AND BUTTE by David Abrams.
June 26, 2021
Some of these stories were good. Others didn’t have much by way of plot or purpose. It was fun to read about and recognize names and locations of my home.
I would like to say, though: In spite of what the stories might make you think, not all Montanans are criminals, burned-out druggies, or tree-huggers. Most of us are regular people (stories about whom would likely not be as intriguing as some of these were).
I would like to say, though: In spite of what the stories might make you think, not all Montanans are criminals, burned-out druggies, or tree-huggers. Most of us are regular people (stories about whom would likely not be as intriguing as some of these were).
September 28, 2017
I found the stories interesting, certainly well-written, and of consistently good quality. It turns out I don't relate well to the moral ambiguity inherent in the stories, though. That's my issue, and not this collection's.
November 11, 2017
This is a good idea; noir stories set in specific geographic regions. I enjoyed the geographic and regional references. Some of the stories were very enjoyable, others were not. Some of what I disliked was connected to the genre, some was the writing or story.
April 7, 2023
This book of short stories is a way to experience the state by little glimpses into areas and towns across the state. You get a sense of the vastness, the grittiness, and the toughness of the people there.
Some fabulous stories in this.
Some fabulous stories in this.
March 25, 2025
Having grown up in a small rural town in the foothills of northern california, these stories reminded me of those times. The story by Janet Skeslien Charles especially reminded me of that expereience. I like this book.
September 13, 2017
I love the Akashic noir books and this one did not disappoint. I highly recommend this book!
October 21, 2017
Individually, I enjoyed most of the stories, but they were a bit of a downer one after another after another.
November 23, 2017
Excellent collection of noir set in the Big Sky.
September 12, 2019
One of the best short story collections I've ever read!
November 30, 2019
3.5
Loved how all the authors Montana natives. I certainly didn’t love all the stories, but loved how all the stories took place in Montana.
Loved how all the authors Montana natives. I certainly didn’t love all the stories, but loved how all the stories took place in Montana.
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June 21, 2021Another DNF for me. Nothing wrong with the stories; they are well written and evocative. But just not what I want to reading right now.
October 5, 2022
I abandoned this book early on. I was afraid that if I finished it, I would never want to venture into Montana again.
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