What do you think?
Rate this book
Switchblade #4
Switchblade: Issue Four
Switchblade returns with another lethal dose of outlaw fiction. Rage, retribution, revenge—that’s just the tip of the stiletto. Greed, bloodlust, infamy—the more you read, the deeper the laceration; twisting as it mangles. Featuring 14 choice cuts from Pearce Hansen, Nick Manzolillo, J.D. Graves, Keith Rawson, Max Sheridan, Diana Deverell, Peter DiChellis, Henry Brock, A.B. Patterson, Lisa Douglass, Aaron Majewski, Mike Derochick, Tais Teng, and Jeffrey Burton.
Twisted and barbed like your ex; sharp and deadly like the femme fatale you know you can’t resist—Switchblade Issue Four: it ain’t your grandma’s Ellery Queen.
Twisted and barbed like your ex; sharp and deadly like the femme fatale you know you can’t resist—Switchblade Issue Four: it ain’t your grandma’s Ellery Queen.
131 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 12, 2018
3 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
February 6, 2018
Switchblade magazine just seems to get better by the issue. All credit to the great work of its managing editor, Scotch Rutherford. You are doing a seriously good job, mate.
Whilst I’ve loved all the issues so far, 1 through to 4 and the Special Edition of Issue 3, this is a publication which is well and truly finding its feet, and long, long may it keep standing.
As always, in the interests of transparency, I do have a story in Issue 4, joining an exceptional line up, I must say. It is an honour to stand in this line! So I might be a bit biased. Care factor? Zero, my friends. This magazine is great, great crime noir reading by a seriously varied array of talented writers.
The issue opens with a dark as hell poem from Lisa Douglass, and she then later has a short story which is disturbingly unsettling – as great noir should be. I have already noted down to seek out more of Douglass’s work. Her ability to understate takes disturbing to a higher, more invasive and intense level. She rocks, simple as that.
As always, the issue is a mixture of flash and short fiction. The flash contributions provide tight little morsels of twisted noir imagination, from Jeffrey B. Burton with “The Duck Blind” (a lovely little satire on publishing! With “cutting” involved!), Henry Brock with “Cigarettes” (who manages to wrap a truly tragic hard luck story into just 2 pages), Aaron Majewski with “The Dark Gleaming Blade” (almost dystopian, but lesbian pig farmers go down to the wire – yes, that does beg all sorts of questions – so get a copy of Switchblade and read it, my friends!), J.D.Graves with “Oh Sugar” (to be able to create such a screwed up little world of two people with such twists in just under 2 pages is an achievement – I especially loved the little quip, “Hindsight’s for assholes” – love your work, J.D., and will be looking for more!), and Peter DiChellis with “Eternal Love” (they say a sucker and his money always part ways...well so too do suckers and their loves. Great twist here.)
Then we get into the short stories. Pearce Hansen starts with “Seen One, Seen ‘Em All” – 1984 LA and its not-so-honest police force – yeah, corrupt cops are always great for noir, and this doesn't disappoint. Nick Manzolillo follows with “Extreme Hunting” – small-town losers with guns take on mob guys with guns, and it doesn’t turn out as you might expect, but then that’s what noir should be. Oh, and I loved the line “a southern accent that was as fake as a porn star’s tits”. Max Sheridan next with “The Herat Handshake” – seriously this was good! Violence (extreme), sex (all sorts of perverted, as I read it), some justice (of sorts) getting done, and everything unforeseen. Great! Will be urgently seeking out some of Sheridan’s work for more reading pleasure. Tais Teng with “Doch das Messer sieht man nicht” (relax, only the title’s in German) brings a whole new twisted (very, very twisted) take on juvenile crime, along with just a touch of the supernatural. Then along comes Diana Deverell with “Organ Trade Off” – seriously, and without venturing into spoiler territory, it had me clutching at my organs (no, no that one, get back out of the gutter!). This was macabre and twisted to hell, this story – loved it. And I’ve stopped clutching myself, finally! Next is Mike Derochick with “Sunrise at the Devils Pulpit” – his interlacing of thrill killing with rampant sex is chilling and noir at its sordid best. Then, as touched on already, Lisa Douglass with “Tumblr Girls” – a young girl who is screwed up well beyond her years, as the noir genre holds dear. This is seriously good writing by Douglass. And then, having already had corrupt cops (beautifully noir), we now have a corrupt judge courtesy of Keith Rawson in “So Much Love”. And you won’t see this level of corrupt depravity coming, let me tell you! Every aspect of this story worked for me – again, now seeking more by Rawson. And then the set was rounded out by yours truly with “White Powder, Black Leather, Grey Badges” – finishing the set off with more corrupt cops, because I know a thing or sixteen about them! Of course, being a story with my PI Harry Kenmare, there is some filthy sex in there, naturally. Or maybe unnaturally, but then you’ll need to read it to find out!
All in all, Switchblade is delivering top quality hard-boiled and noir short fiction – always a fantastic read and a terrific source of new authors to go and explore.
The editor of Econoclash Review, J.D.Graves (also a noir contributor par excellence to Switchblade), posted a great interview with Scotch Rutherford. This is seriously worth a read, so here is the link:
http://www.econoclash.com/2018/02/int...
I'm looking at a photo of Dirty Harry with his .44 Magnum (it sits on my desk - of course!). So I ask the question: "Do you like hard-boiled and noir? Well, do ya, punk?!!!"
Yes? Then you MUST start reading Switchblade.
No? Then you’d best head off back to cozy and procedural territory, with your cup of cocoa and some choccy biscuits. It’s safer there, sure (no disembowelling, no hard drugs, and no wild sex). But it is as boring as hell!
Cheers,
ABP
Whilst I’ve loved all the issues so far, 1 through to 4 and the Special Edition of Issue 3, this is a publication which is well and truly finding its feet, and long, long may it keep standing.
As always, in the interests of transparency, I do have a story in Issue 4, joining an exceptional line up, I must say. It is an honour to stand in this line! So I might be a bit biased. Care factor? Zero, my friends. This magazine is great, great crime noir reading by a seriously varied array of talented writers.
The issue opens with a dark as hell poem from Lisa Douglass, and she then later has a short story which is disturbingly unsettling – as great noir should be. I have already noted down to seek out more of Douglass’s work. Her ability to understate takes disturbing to a higher, more invasive and intense level. She rocks, simple as that.
As always, the issue is a mixture of flash and short fiction. The flash contributions provide tight little morsels of twisted noir imagination, from Jeffrey B. Burton with “The Duck Blind” (a lovely little satire on publishing! With “cutting” involved!), Henry Brock with “Cigarettes” (who manages to wrap a truly tragic hard luck story into just 2 pages), Aaron Majewski with “The Dark Gleaming Blade” (almost dystopian, but lesbian pig farmers go down to the wire – yes, that does beg all sorts of questions – so get a copy of Switchblade and read it, my friends!), J.D.Graves with “Oh Sugar” (to be able to create such a screwed up little world of two people with such twists in just under 2 pages is an achievement – I especially loved the little quip, “Hindsight’s for assholes” – love your work, J.D., and will be looking for more!), and Peter DiChellis with “Eternal Love” (they say a sucker and his money always part ways...well so too do suckers and their loves. Great twist here.)
Then we get into the short stories. Pearce Hansen starts with “Seen One, Seen ‘Em All” – 1984 LA and its not-so-honest police force – yeah, corrupt cops are always great for noir, and this doesn't disappoint. Nick Manzolillo follows with “Extreme Hunting” – small-town losers with guns take on mob guys with guns, and it doesn’t turn out as you might expect, but then that’s what noir should be. Oh, and I loved the line “a southern accent that was as fake as a porn star’s tits”. Max Sheridan next with “The Herat Handshake” – seriously this was good! Violence (extreme), sex (all sorts of perverted, as I read it), some justice (of sorts) getting done, and everything unforeseen. Great! Will be urgently seeking out some of Sheridan’s work for more reading pleasure. Tais Teng with “Doch das Messer sieht man nicht” (relax, only the title’s in German) brings a whole new twisted (very, very twisted) take on juvenile crime, along with just a touch of the supernatural. Then along comes Diana Deverell with “Organ Trade Off” – seriously, and without venturing into spoiler territory, it had me clutching at my organs (no, no that one, get back out of the gutter!). This was macabre and twisted to hell, this story – loved it. And I’ve stopped clutching myself, finally! Next is Mike Derochick with “Sunrise at the Devils Pulpit” – his interlacing of thrill killing with rampant sex is chilling and noir at its sordid best. Then, as touched on already, Lisa Douglass with “Tumblr Girls” – a young girl who is screwed up well beyond her years, as the noir genre holds dear. This is seriously good writing by Douglass. And then, having already had corrupt cops (beautifully noir), we now have a corrupt judge courtesy of Keith Rawson in “So Much Love”. And you won’t see this level of corrupt depravity coming, let me tell you! Every aspect of this story worked for me – again, now seeking more by Rawson. And then the set was rounded out by yours truly with “White Powder, Black Leather, Grey Badges” – finishing the set off with more corrupt cops, because I know a thing or sixteen about them! Of course, being a story with my PI Harry Kenmare, there is some filthy sex in there, naturally. Or maybe unnaturally, but then you’ll need to read it to find out!
All in all, Switchblade is delivering top quality hard-boiled and noir short fiction – always a fantastic read and a terrific source of new authors to go and explore.
The editor of Econoclash Review, J.D.Graves (also a noir contributor par excellence to Switchblade), posted a great interview with Scotch Rutherford. This is seriously worth a read, so here is the link:
http://www.econoclash.com/2018/02/int...
I'm looking at a photo of Dirty Harry with his .44 Magnum (it sits on my desk - of course!). So I ask the question: "Do you like hard-boiled and noir? Well, do ya, punk?!!!"
Yes? Then you MUST start reading Switchblade.
No? Then you’d best head off back to cozy and procedural territory, with your cup of cocoa and some choccy biscuits. It’s safer there, sure (no disembowelling, no hard drugs, and no wild sex). But it is as boring as hell!
Cheers,
ABP
January 25, 2021
I've been aware of crime fiction magzine culture for a while, but had never delved in until now. Switchblade is eking out it's own corner in the market by being the darkest and most savage of these and the stories herein are not for the faint of heart. I enjoyed much of what was on offer and it's added a few more names to the TBR pile.
Personal highlights from the issue include:
"Cigarettes" by Henry Brock - a flash fiction piece set in the 80s that manages to be both exciting and elicit a bit of social commentary
"Seen One Seen 'Em All" by Pearce Hansen - a stylishy written story set in seedy 1980s L.A.
"Extreme Hunting" by Nick Manzolillo - a couple of young criminals look to steal a prized shotgun from a high ranking mobster on a hunting trip.
"Doch das Meser seiht man nicht" by Tais Teng - a young German immigrant who idolised Mack the Knife looks to make money after his father loses his butcher shop. A real left field story that caught me by surprise and was excellent.
"Organ Trade Off" by Diana Deverell - A millionaire proposes a wager for his kidney that he's unwilling to give to his ill wife.
Personal highlights from the issue include:
"Cigarettes" by Henry Brock - a flash fiction piece set in the 80s that manages to be both exciting and elicit a bit of social commentary
"Seen One Seen 'Em All" by Pearce Hansen - a stylishy written story set in seedy 1980s L.A.
"Extreme Hunting" by Nick Manzolillo - a couple of young criminals look to steal a prized shotgun from a high ranking mobster on a hunting trip.
"Doch das Meser seiht man nicht" by Tais Teng - a young German immigrant who idolised Mack the Knife looks to make money after his father loses his butcher shop. A real left field story that caught me by surprise and was excellent.
"Organ Trade Off" by Diana Deverell - A millionaire proposes a wager for his kidney that he's unwilling to give to his ill wife.
November 28, 2018
Switchblade Magazine consistently provides quality crime poetry, flash fiction, and short stories.
My favorites in this installment include Diana Deverelle’s “Organ Tradeoff,” A. B. Patterson’s “White Powder, Black Leather, Grey Badges,” and “Tumblr Girls” by Lisa Douglass. Deverell’s tale involves a femme fatale with a talent for poker, a weakness for men, and a bum kidney. Patterson’s story features his series PI Harry Kenmare, whose case requires him to act as a voyeur of vengeance for a biker gang. Douglass serves up a jaded, hard-as-nails protagonist, who’s ready to handle just about anything her rough life throws at her, even a perverted clown.
My favorites in this installment include Diana Deverelle’s “Organ Tradeoff,” A. B. Patterson’s “White Powder, Black Leather, Grey Badges,” and “Tumblr Girls” by Lisa Douglass. Deverell’s tale involves a femme fatale with a talent for poker, a weakness for men, and a bum kidney. Patterson’s story features his series PI Harry Kenmare, whose case requires him to act as a voyeur of vengeance for a biker gang. Douglass serves up a jaded, hard-as-nails protagonist, who’s ready to handle just about anything her rough life throws at her, even a perverted clown.
June 11, 2019
A gem of noir
If you like Noir, the Switchblade anthology is for you. Hardboiled, no soft edges with only the hard edges showing. This anthology cannot be missed. Don’t miss this series. Our you will regret it.
If you like Noir, the Switchblade anthology is for you. Hardboiled, no soft edges with only the hard edges showing. This anthology cannot be missed. Don’t miss this series. Our you will regret it.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews