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The Slanted Gutter
Take a roller coaster ride through the gutter in this gripping pull-no-punches thriller from S. Craig Zahler He knows what you'll do - including what you'll sacrifice for protection.
Darren Tasking is an entrepreneur whose business is people, and when it comes to people he specializes in risk, pleasure, and fear.
He knows what will break you - before you even feel a second of pain.
Tasking has everything and everyone, in his orbit, under control. If there's something he wants he will alter your life, elaborately and maliciously, until you yield to his wishes.
He knows what makes the Machos tick - and how to keep them in the dark.
The police tried to keep Tasking down with their macho modus operandi, sent him away long ago, but they couldn't keep him incarcerated forever. Now he's older, uncommonly careful, and keeps the machos oblivious to his enterprises. But when he meets a dancer named Erin Green at the Cherry Red strip club everything changes.
He knows the streets of Great Crown, Florida can only be dominated by the remorseless insights of a relentless slick like him.
The brothels and gambling parlors secreted behind iron doors keep the slick autonomous and successful, but Erin proves to be the variable that could put him on a collision course with unrepentant sadists, machos, and a trap created by the slick's own extortionist machinations.
The Slanted Gutter is a devastating character study painted with the darkest shades of noir, penned by a hand as unflinching as Tasking's steely-eyed pursuit of his large dollar goal, as unforgiving on the reader as those who seek retribution against the slick for his nocturnal misdeeds.
Step into this gutter at your own risk.
Darren Tasking is an entrepreneur whose business is people, and when it comes to people he specializes in risk, pleasure, and fear.
He knows what will break you - before you even feel a second of pain.
Tasking has everything and everyone, in his orbit, under control. If there's something he wants he will alter your life, elaborately and maliciously, until you yield to his wishes.
He knows what makes the Machos tick - and how to keep them in the dark.
The police tried to keep Tasking down with their macho modus operandi, sent him away long ago, but they couldn't keep him incarcerated forever. Now he's older, uncommonly careful, and keeps the machos oblivious to his enterprises. But when he meets a dancer named Erin Green at the Cherry Red strip club everything changes.
He knows the streets of Great Crown, Florida can only be dominated by the remorseless insights of a relentless slick like him.
The brothels and gambling parlors secreted behind iron doors keep the slick autonomous and successful, but Erin proves to be the variable that could put him on a collision course with unrepentant sadists, machos, and a trap created by the slick's own extortionist machinations.
The Slanted Gutter is a devastating character study painted with the darkest shades of noir, penned by a hand as unflinching as Tasking's steely-eyed pursuit of his large dollar goal, as unforgiving on the reader as those who seek retribution against the slick for his nocturnal misdeeds.
Step into this gutter at your own risk.
404 pages, Paperback
First published June 20, 2020
24 people are currently reading
746 people want to read
About the author
S. Craig Zahler
27 books1,354 followers"S. Craig Zahler is certain to become one of the great imaginers of our time." ― Clive Barker
Novelist and cartoonist S. Craig Zahler is also the screenwriter, director, and musical co-composer for the movies, Bone Tomahawk, Brawl in Cell Block 99, and Dragged Across Concrete. His second graphic novel Organisms from an Ancient Cosmos was released by Dark Horse Comics as an oversized hardback in December 2022. He wrote and illustrated this large-scale sci-fi work.
"What a fantastic read!" ― Patton Oswalt
"I had the best time reading this graphic novel. I never knew where it was going or how." ― Brian Michael Bendis
His debut graphic novel, Forbidden Surgeries of the Hideous Dr. Divinus and his crime book The Slanted Gutter came out in 2021.
Praise for his other books:
"Whether writing westerns, science fiction, or crime, Zahler (Corpus Chrome, Inc., 2013) always manages to bring something new to the genre. [We fell] completely under Zahler’s spell... A bravura literary performance.” —Booklist, Starred Review
"Zahler tells a gripping story." ― Kirkus Review
"Five-plus stars to Hug Chickenpenny. Complex, well-drawn characterizations, compelling imagery and a well-ordered story..." ― Publishers Daily Reviews
"Zahler’s mean streets are bizarrely mean. But Mean Business is often mordantly funny, too—and not to be missed." Booklist, starred review
“CORPUS CHROME, INC describes one of the weirder post-singularity futures. The characters are very much alive. I was entertained throughout.” —Larry Niven, Hugo & Nebula award winning author
"Zahler's a fabulous story teller..." Kurt Russell, star of Escape from New York, Tombstone, and Stargate
My dark western Wraiths of the Broken Land is also available in trade paperback, hardback and ebook editions. Below is some praise from Joe R. Lansdale, Booklist, Jack Ketchum, and Ed Lee:
"If you’re looking for something similar to what you’ve read before, this ain’t it. If you want something comforting and predictable, this damn sure ain’t it. But if you want something with storytelling guts and a weird point of view, an unforgettable voice, then you want what I want, and that is this." –Joe R. Lansdale, author of The Bottoms, Mucho Mojo, and Savage Season
"It would be utterly insufficient to say that WRAITHS is the most diversified and expertly written western I’ve ever read." –Edward Lee, author of The Bighead and Gast.
"[C]ompulsively readable…. Fans of Zahler’s A Congregation of Jackals (2010) will be satisfied; think Quentin Tarantino’s Django Unchained. [C]lever mayhem ... leads to a riveting climax." –Booklist
"WRAITHS always rings true, whether it's visiting the depths of despair, the fury of violence, or the fragile ties that bind us together for good or ill. It's a Western with heart and intelligence, always vivid, with characters you will detest or care about or both, powerfully written." –Jack Ketchum, author of Off Season and The Girl Next Door
Novelist and cartoonist S. Craig Zahler is also the screenwriter, director, and musical co-composer for the movies, Bone Tomahawk, Brawl in Cell Block 99, and Dragged Across Concrete. His second graphic novel Organisms from an Ancient Cosmos was released by Dark Horse Comics as an oversized hardback in December 2022. He wrote and illustrated this large-scale sci-fi work.
"What a fantastic read!" ― Patton Oswalt
"I had the best time reading this graphic novel. I never knew where it was going or how." ― Brian Michael Bendis
His debut graphic novel, Forbidden Surgeries of the Hideous Dr. Divinus and his crime book The Slanted Gutter came out in 2021.
Praise for his other books:
"Whether writing westerns, science fiction, or crime, Zahler (Corpus Chrome, Inc., 2013) always manages to bring something new to the genre. [We fell] completely under Zahler’s spell... A bravura literary performance.” —Booklist, Starred Review
"Zahler tells a gripping story." ― Kirkus Review
"Five-plus stars to Hug Chickenpenny. Complex, well-drawn characterizations, compelling imagery and a well-ordered story..." ― Publishers Daily Reviews
"Zahler’s mean streets are bizarrely mean. But Mean Business is often mordantly funny, too—and not to be missed." Booklist, starred review
“CORPUS CHROME, INC describes one of the weirder post-singularity futures. The characters are very much alive. I was entertained throughout.” —Larry Niven, Hugo & Nebula award winning author
"Zahler's a fabulous story teller..." Kurt Russell, star of Escape from New York, Tombstone, and Stargate
My dark western Wraiths of the Broken Land is also available in trade paperback, hardback and ebook editions. Below is some praise from Joe R. Lansdale, Booklist, Jack Ketchum, and Ed Lee:
"If you’re looking for something similar to what you’ve read before, this ain’t it. If you want something comforting and predictable, this damn sure ain’t it. But if you want something with storytelling guts and a weird point of view, an unforgettable voice, then you want what I want, and that is this." –Joe R. Lansdale, author of The Bottoms, Mucho Mojo, and Savage Season
"It would be utterly insufficient to say that WRAITHS is the most diversified and expertly written western I’ve ever read." –Edward Lee, author of The Bighead and Gast.
"[C]ompulsively readable…. Fans of Zahler’s A Congregation of Jackals (2010) will be satisfied; think Quentin Tarantino’s Django Unchained. [C]lever mayhem ... leads to a riveting climax." –Booklist
"WRAITHS always rings true, whether it's visiting the depths of despair, the fury of violence, or the fragile ties that bind us together for good or ill. It's a Western with heart and intelligence, always vivid, with characters you will detest or care about or both, powerfully written." –Jack Ketchum, author of Off Season and The Girl Next Door
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 77 reviews
November 23, 2023
Horrifying.
But hell, it’s Craig Zahler’s most recent. What did I expect- rainbows & unicorns?
The first two thirds of the novel read like something from an episode of the 1960s Warner Brothers TV series 77 Sunset Strip or Hawaiian Eye or Surfside Six.
Except our protagonists are pimps who run a half dozen or more brothels & casinos in a thinly disguised Miami, Florida.
But these guys work under a slender code of conduct.
Typical swinging dick quasi-gangsters who avoid bloodshed at all cost. Mostly.
These guys are brainy and don’t see themselves as villains.
But soon they’re surfing on an entirely different tide.
The last third of this novel is a special Zahler sort of series of horrors.
Could not put this novel down. Gripping suspense and no infliction of pain or horror is avoided by the author.
He’s out to punish you -the reader.
Why?
I can only guess: kicks.
HIGHEST POSSIBLE RECOMMENDATION
But hell, it’s Craig Zahler’s most recent. What did I expect- rainbows & unicorns?
The first two thirds of the novel read like something from an episode of the 1960s Warner Brothers TV series 77 Sunset Strip or Hawaiian Eye or Surfside Six.
Except our protagonists are pimps who run a half dozen or more brothels & casinos in a thinly disguised Miami, Florida.
But these guys work under a slender code of conduct.
Typical swinging dick quasi-gangsters who avoid bloodshed at all cost. Mostly.
These guys are brainy and don’t see themselves as villains.
But soon they’re surfing on an entirely different tide.
The last third of this novel is a special Zahler sort of series of horrors.
Could not put this novel down. Gripping suspense and no infliction of pain or horror is avoided by the author.
He’s out to punish you -the reader.
Why?
I can only guess: kicks.
HIGHEST POSSIBLE RECOMMENDATION
March 19, 2021
Darren “Task” Tasking aka “the slick” (get used to this nonsense - EVERYONE’S got multiple names in this baby!) is a pimp of a brothel who tricks his sex workers into working for him. But when he recruits Erin Greene, aka “the butterfly”, her complicated life complicates his life and soon shit starts falling right into the gutter - the SLANTED gutter (aka S. Craig Zahler’s latest novel)!
I don’t mean (business on north ganson street) to come off as too snarky on this one because I quite liked the novel. BUT, holy satanic cowbells, does Zahler need an editor to rein in his literary diarrhea - The Slanted Gutter did not need to be over 400 pages long.
The “story” is essentially the day-to-day of a gangster scumbag and the people in his orbit. Not a whole helluva lot happens. It boils down to Task plotting against a couple of hookers and a loan shark called Chester Fredericks, aka “the redneck”, and then later getting into some more shenanigans with Chester as things go “to Alaska” in a spectacularly gruesome finale.
One thing you will learn, whether this is your first experience with him or your nth, is that Zahler is a storyteller who will not be rushed. He will take his damn time telling you what happened, however unremarkable it all adds up to be, and, while you’re waiting for that, he will describe every single movement his characters make, every thought they have, as well as every item in every room they’re in, and every scrap of clothing they’re wearing.
Nothing is taken as a given - if there’s a waste bin in the room, even if it’s irrelevant, he’s mentioning it, and the colour of it, and anything it contains. You can’t just assume that a character, upon waking up, will do a bunch of tedious things before getting into the car and carrying on with the story - he has to walk you through it, step by step, so you know EXACTLY what they’re doing, whether or not that’s relevant too (so many protein bars...).
Yeah - it’s not surprising that the end product is a flabby 400+ pages if that’s your approach!
This style goes from frustrating to gross towards the end where one character is being tortured by another and you have to read every horrendous thing that character does to the other. It’s a bit too much and makes me wonder why Zahler needs to be so graphic - I guess to make the violence seem more real to the reader?
The characters are really well-written - Task, Erin and Chester are all distinct and memorable, unlike the story - and that’s no small thing, so zudos Mr Kahler. But that effect wasn’t achieved through telling me what type of footwear they were wearing or what jaunty outfit they had on!
The staggering and persistent verbosity was my biggest gripe about the novel because, in between all the mundanity, the various episodes were actually quite entertaining. How Task gets the first two butterflies to work for him were both imaginative and surprising. The best was how badly Task messes with Chester, both times. It’s clever, it’s funny, it’s totally unpredictable and insane - it’s kind of like a real-life Tom and Jerry cartoon but definitely not for kids!
That business with the Mexican lowlifes interfering with Task and Task finding a husband for the old Chinese dumpling chef felt like unnecessary additions to an already questionably lengthy narrative. I love Zahler’s movies, which is what he’s probably best known for, but, like this book, his last one, Dragged Across Concrete, also needed heavy editing (there’s a lot of sandwich eating in The Slanted Gutter too). That’s the problem with great creators getting success - they have more power in saying what gets cut, they’re often not the best judges, and they’re usually convinced it’s all gravy (aka the Tarantino effect).
I’m glad I read it, both as a fan of Zahler’s and a fan of fun Elmore Leonard-esque crime fiction. The Chester sections alone are worth it, just because he’s such a wonderful shitheel and I loved seeing things going so badly for him, but there’s a lot of original, entertaining stuff here too. Still, it felt oddly insubstantial for the page count and I was left wondering what the point of it all was. A modern-day, smaller-scale retelling of the Hatfield and McCoy feud?
It’s easy to put down because the pacing is practically non-existent and anything resembling a plot took a walk before the first page, but so long as you have the patience to settle in for the long haul, there’s enough here to make The Slanted Gutter just about worth the effort. For all that, Zahler remains a unique talent.
I don’t mean (business on north ganson street) to come off as too snarky on this one because I quite liked the novel. BUT, holy satanic cowbells, does Zahler need an editor to rein in his literary diarrhea - The Slanted Gutter did not need to be over 400 pages long.
The “story” is essentially the day-to-day of a gangster scumbag and the people in his orbit. Not a whole helluva lot happens. It boils down to Task plotting against a couple of hookers and a loan shark called Chester Fredericks, aka “the redneck”, and then later getting into some more shenanigans with Chester as things go “to Alaska” in a spectacularly gruesome finale.
One thing you will learn, whether this is your first experience with him or your nth, is that Zahler is a storyteller who will not be rushed. He will take his damn time telling you what happened, however unremarkable it all adds up to be, and, while you’re waiting for that, he will describe every single movement his characters make, every thought they have, as well as every item in every room they’re in, and every scrap of clothing they’re wearing.
Nothing is taken as a given - if there’s a waste bin in the room, even if it’s irrelevant, he’s mentioning it, and the colour of it, and anything it contains. You can’t just assume that a character, upon waking up, will do a bunch of tedious things before getting into the car and carrying on with the story - he has to walk you through it, step by step, so you know EXACTLY what they’re doing, whether or not that’s relevant too (so many protein bars...).
Yeah - it’s not surprising that the end product is a flabby 400+ pages if that’s your approach!
This style goes from frustrating to gross towards the end where one character is being tortured by another and you have to read every horrendous thing that character does to the other. It’s a bit too much and makes me wonder why Zahler needs to be so graphic - I guess to make the violence seem more real to the reader?
The characters are really well-written - Task, Erin and Chester are all distinct and memorable, unlike the story - and that’s no small thing, so zudos Mr Kahler. But that effect wasn’t achieved through telling me what type of footwear they were wearing or what jaunty outfit they had on!
The staggering and persistent verbosity was my biggest gripe about the novel because, in between all the mundanity, the various episodes were actually quite entertaining. How Task gets the first two butterflies to work for him were both imaginative and surprising. The best was how badly Task messes with Chester, both times. It’s clever, it’s funny, it’s totally unpredictable and insane - it’s kind of like a real-life Tom and Jerry cartoon but definitely not for kids!
That business with the Mexican lowlifes interfering with Task and Task finding a husband for the old Chinese dumpling chef felt like unnecessary additions to an already questionably lengthy narrative. I love Zahler’s movies, which is what he’s probably best known for, but, like this book, his last one, Dragged Across Concrete, also needed heavy editing (there’s a lot of sandwich eating in The Slanted Gutter too). That’s the problem with great creators getting success - they have more power in saying what gets cut, they’re often not the best judges, and they’re usually convinced it’s all gravy (aka the Tarantino effect).
I’m glad I read it, both as a fan of Zahler’s and a fan of fun Elmore Leonard-esque crime fiction. The Chester sections alone are worth it, just because he’s such a wonderful shitheel and I loved seeing things going so badly for him, but there’s a lot of original, entertaining stuff here too. Still, it felt oddly insubstantial for the page count and I was left wondering what the point of it all was. A modern-day, smaller-scale retelling of the Hatfield and McCoy feud?
It’s easy to put down because the pacing is practically non-existent and anything resembling a plot took a walk before the first page, but so long as you have the patience to settle in for the long haul, there’s enough here to make The Slanted Gutter just about worth the effort. For all that, Zahler remains a unique talent.
August 19, 2020
It is my opinion that Mr. Zahler's storytelling is masterful. His ability to make one care about characters who should rightfully be considered despicable, and then force them on a downward spiral of increasingly terrifying and unimaginable conditions is an incredible trick of the ear. This seems to be the consistent structure in all his stories, at least the novels I've read and the films I've watched, and 'The Slanted Gutter' is no different (the title referring to the inevitable downfall of being "south," or living a life of crime).
Handsome entrepreneur (read: pimp) Darren "Task" Tasking runs a network of elite brothels in the hot and rainy mega-sprawl of Great Crown City, and is saving up for the day he can quit his criminal ways and escape to a life of early retirement down south of the border. Task is not a moral man; he uses clever but often vile schemes to get what he wants, both from the women he manipulates into working for him as prostitutes and from anyone he views as a potential professional threat. But Task is not without his limits. He has never killed in the name of business, and he views his work only as a means to an end. As soon as he meets his financial goal, he will get out. But things begin to turn for Task when his hand is forced to seek the help of a criminal organization far more powerful than his own...
Upon finishing 'The Slanted Gutter' - which, after I finally picked it up and got started, took about three days - I was left with two major impressions. No one writes crime thrillers with more pathos and visceral detail than Mr. Zahler. Following that, nobody is better at humanizing characters who are, objectively, irredeemable villains the reader ought to hate. But the only part of this story I hated was that it had to end.
'The Slanted Gutter' is a horrific, mesmerizing joyride. In my opinion it is Mr. Zahler's best yet.
(I received an advanced reading copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.)
Handsome entrepreneur (read: pimp) Darren "Task" Tasking runs a network of elite brothels in the hot and rainy mega-sprawl of Great Crown City, and is saving up for the day he can quit his criminal ways and escape to a life of early retirement down south of the border. Task is not a moral man; he uses clever but often vile schemes to get what he wants, both from the women he manipulates into working for him as prostitutes and from anyone he views as a potential professional threat. But Task is not without his limits. He has never killed in the name of business, and he views his work only as a means to an end. As soon as he meets his financial goal, he will get out. But things begin to turn for Task when his hand is forced to seek the help of a criminal organization far more powerful than his own...
Upon finishing 'The Slanted Gutter' - which, after I finally picked it up and got started, took about three days - I was left with two major impressions. No one writes crime thrillers with more pathos and visceral detail than Mr. Zahler. Following that, nobody is better at humanizing characters who are, objectively, irredeemable villains the reader ought to hate. But the only part of this story I hated was that it had to end.
'The Slanted Gutter' is a horrific, mesmerizing joyride. In my opinion it is Mr. Zahler's best yet.
(I received an advanced reading copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.)
June 1, 2021
I received an ebook copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley.
What a wild ride!
If you've seen any of Craig Zahler's films (and enjoyed them), this is the book for you. I've seen two, Bone Tomahawk and Dragged Across Concrete, and I do hope that Zahler makes a film out of his latest novel, as I could picture the scenes in my head.
What a wild ride!
If you've seen any of Craig Zahler's films (and enjoyed them), this is the book for you. I've seen two, Bone Tomahawk and Dragged Across Concrete, and I do hope that Zahler makes a film out of his latest novel, as I could picture the scenes in my head.
June 18, 2025
Riveting crime novel. One you won’t soon forget.
February 25, 2021
Slanted Gutter is one brutal and bloody trip — no surprise when the man behind the wheel is perhaps the most audacious author writing today. Hold on tight, because no matter how shocking you expect it to be, S. Craig Zahler will leave you scarred and shaken at the end. His best work yet.
January 5, 2023
As a huge fan of Zahler, I had been highly anticipating this one, and while I was initially taken aback it’s slower pace, the novel pays off expertly. This is one of the nastier pieces of pulp noir that I’ve read in a good bit, and it’s all the better for it. Reads like the bastard love child of Jim Thompson and George V. Higgins, but with the violence amped up to a nonexistent number.
September 15, 2023
This novel sucked me in with its snap, crackle, and pop lines and then knocked me the fuck out.
Typically Zahler. Makes you love morally gray characters and then horrifically breaks your heart.
I honestly think Zahler may be one of the greatest writers we have at the moment judging by his career in literature so far.
The man can’t write a mediocre book.
Highly, highly recommended
Typically Zahler. Makes you love morally gray characters and then horrifically breaks your heart.
I honestly think Zahler may be one of the greatest writers we have at the moment judging by his career in literature so far.
The man can’t write a mediocre book.
Highly, highly recommended
December 31, 2023
I’ve loved everything I’ve read from this guy. He clearly has plenty of protein in his brain pan, wink wink.
My only hope is he doesn’t leave book writing for Hollywood.
My only hope is he doesn’t leave book writing for Hollywood.
December 20, 2023
I feel like I'm being a bit generous with my rating - but it was pretty unique, which makes it somewhat interesting. The author has an unusual way of writing; like, instead of saying the he turned the car left, he'll say he dialed the wheel counterclockwise or something similar. And he uses slang I've never heard, which sometimes takes me a while to figure out. Like, he refers to people being north or south; at first, I though it was geographical, but apparently it refers to their lawfulness or lack thereof. If you're south, you don't care so much about breaking laws.
It was a strange story, and got very gory at times. Most of the characters were not good people, and a lot of people died or got beaten up. The main character, Darren "Task" Tasking seemed like a pretty likable guy who considered himself to be an entrepreneur. But he was definitely south. And the author began calling him "the slick" out of the blue. I think it may have been a long joke with a punchline near the end of the book.
Task seemed pretty harmless, except for being a con man, and when his chips began to come due, I hoped he'd win - at least for much of the book, but by the end, I decided he deserved whatever he got.
Anyway, it was pretty interesting, and maybe even memorable, but I don't think I feel like reading any more of the author's works.
It was a strange story, and got very gory at times. Most of the characters were not good people, and a lot of people died or got beaten up. The main character, Darren "Task" Tasking seemed like a pretty likable guy who considered himself to be an entrepreneur. But he was definitely south. And the author began calling him "the slick" out of the blue. I think it may have been a long joke with a punchline near the end of the book.
Task seemed pretty harmless, except for being a con man, and when his chips began to come due, I hoped he'd win - at least for much of the book, but by the end, I decided he deserved whatever he got.
Anyway, it was pretty interesting, and maybe even memorable, but I don't think I feel like reading any more of the author's works.
September 12, 2023
Another incredible novel by S. Criag Zahler; it's a testament to his ability as a storyteller that he makes one care for such morally flawed and sometimes downright terrible people and it is most evident in The Slanted Gutter. It has all of the classic Zahler quirks while still staying fresh and rewarding. There were points that genuinely disturbed me but it never felt over the top or unearned. This is by far his most dense piece and I would compare it most to his film Dragged Across Concrete as both take their time just observing the characters. I was completely immersed in the story and I could not put it down. I highly recommend it to any Zahler fan!
December 18, 2023
Intricately plotted, wildly entertaining and one of the most violent books I’ve read in recent memory. I’m a huge fan of Zahler’s films and have read most of his un-produced screenplays that are floating around online so it was high time I picked up a copy of one of his novels. One of the best things about Zahler (this is true for all of his work I’ve engaged with) is that he constantly SURPRISES YOU. You think you know where something is going and then he completely reorients you and takes you to a place you never thought possible (it’s quite fitting that grand acts of manipulation and subversion are the modus operandi of The Slanted Gutter’s main character, Darren Tasking). Highly recommend this book if you’re partial to the darker edges of genre fiction. It’s like one of the good Elmore Leonard Miami novels meets Saw meets Sweet Smell of Success.
January 15, 2024
I hope Zahler adapts this eventually. Violent, brutal, lots of fun. Definitely on brand.
October 17, 2024
Hell of a read. Instant favorite.
December 18, 2024
SPOILERS
The films of S. Craig Zahler enthralled me with their patient, incisive character work, their unflinching attitude of interest in the dark side of life, and those moments of sentimentality, warmth, and beauty which enliven these cruel tales into tragedy. The man is judgmental of his characters, but sensibly so, and lets their actions damn them. Each work builds to a protracted sequence of exploitative ultraviolence where nobody is safe.
The Slanted Gutter is a lot of fun. Almost half the book consists of creatively vile schemes run by Darren Tasking, mastermind entrepreneur, and his team of associates, intended to manipulate anybody who stands in the way of the boss' Mexican retirement. These schemes are incredibly creative, and I love how much Zahler clearly enjoyed coming up with them. Task is almost completely amoral, concerned almost only with achieving this goal, but it is clear that his amorality is a form of dissociation. In the back half of the novel, he is wracked with guilt, and achieves a kind of sympathy from the reader beyond his basic charisma. Until the final hundred pages or so, the themes don't always seem to hang together, but the novel finds a thread in that home stretch and the messiness of the first part becomes more enjoyable worldbuilding.
The book could have wrapped up cleanly from this point. Task could have taken Erin and Diego's help, killed Chester, gotten AIDS meds, and died in Mexico. But this is a Zahler tale. Task bites the hand that feeds him, and succumbs to his personality disorder, which was the only reason he was involved in any of this to begin with. This is the sort of interesting choice that a writer as sentimental as Zahler must have trouble making, but always does. We want to see Task get better. But just as the weight of his failures are a mark of his nature, so too does their weight push him into these final acts of evil. He fully becomes himself on that porch.
The prose of the novel is on occasion cumbersome, and, a couple times, laughable. You can tell he thinks he's a slick and cool writer, and he can be, but when you can tell he thinks he is, he rarely is. Nevertheless, it is often quite beautiful, and consistently attains that pithy hard-boiled loveliness that makes a person read these sorts of books in the first place. The man isn't that cool, but he is eloquent. The focus on one's resonance or dissonance with these qualities, however, belies a deeper analysis of its mechanics. It is, in a word, psychedelic, with decentered, relativistic movement of objects (including humans and their actions) blending into a sort of thematic elementalism, or essentialism. I would need to read more of this stuff to get a more precise idea, but it reminds me quite a bit of Eastern thought.
Fuck, I want to talk to this guy.
I also think that, though Zahler clearly has a slightly anti-woke perspective, and certainly a Gen X understanding of masculinity, the worlds he creates are very much how woke people see things. Power is force, and disposed to evil, to exploitation. Nowhere is without prejudice and criminality - in fact such qualities are nigh-ubiquitous among most examples of the human race, and when they really take root in one of his characters, their rhetoric and violence are some of the ugliest you'll ever watch or read. Given the casting of Mel Gibson in his film Dragged Across Concrete, which deals with police brutality, one might think that he takes a different view, and he likely does. But it is a credit to his art that this, like his sentimentality, does not interfere with his unflinching devotion to honesty in character. Perhaps, in a world of politically correct art (liberal and conservative), this attitude (from the right and the left) is precisely what we need.
The films of S. Craig Zahler enthralled me with their patient, incisive character work, their unflinching attitude of interest in the dark side of life, and those moments of sentimentality, warmth, and beauty which enliven these cruel tales into tragedy. The man is judgmental of his characters, but sensibly so, and lets their actions damn them. Each work builds to a protracted sequence of exploitative ultraviolence where nobody is safe.
The Slanted Gutter is a lot of fun. Almost half the book consists of creatively vile schemes run by Darren Tasking, mastermind entrepreneur, and his team of associates, intended to manipulate anybody who stands in the way of the boss' Mexican retirement. These schemes are incredibly creative, and I love how much Zahler clearly enjoyed coming up with them. Task is almost completely amoral, concerned almost only with achieving this goal, but it is clear that his amorality is a form of dissociation. In the back half of the novel, he is wracked with guilt, and achieves a kind of sympathy from the reader beyond his basic charisma. Until the final hundred pages or so, the themes don't always seem to hang together, but the novel finds a thread in that home stretch and the messiness of the first part becomes more enjoyable worldbuilding.
The book could have wrapped up cleanly from this point. Task could have taken Erin and Diego's help, killed Chester, gotten AIDS meds, and died in Mexico. But this is a Zahler tale. Task bites the hand that feeds him, and succumbs to his personality disorder, which was the only reason he was involved in any of this to begin with. This is the sort of interesting choice that a writer as sentimental as Zahler must have trouble making, but always does. We want to see Task get better. But just as the weight of his failures are a mark of his nature, so too does their weight push him into these final acts of evil. He fully becomes himself on that porch.
The prose of the novel is on occasion cumbersome, and, a couple times, laughable. You can tell he thinks he's a slick and cool writer, and he can be, but when you can tell he thinks he is, he rarely is. Nevertheless, it is often quite beautiful, and consistently attains that pithy hard-boiled loveliness that makes a person read these sorts of books in the first place. The man isn't that cool, but he is eloquent. The focus on one's resonance or dissonance with these qualities, however, belies a deeper analysis of its mechanics. It is, in a word, psychedelic, with decentered, relativistic movement of objects (including humans and their actions) blending into a sort of thematic elementalism, or essentialism. I would need to read more of this stuff to get a more precise idea, but it reminds me quite a bit of Eastern thought.
Fuck, I want to talk to this guy.
I also think that, though Zahler clearly has a slightly anti-woke perspective, and certainly a Gen X understanding of masculinity, the worlds he creates are very much how woke people see things. Power is force, and disposed to evil, to exploitation. Nowhere is without prejudice and criminality - in fact such qualities are nigh-ubiquitous among most examples of the human race, and when they really take root in one of his characters, their rhetoric and violence are some of the ugliest you'll ever watch or read. Given the casting of Mel Gibson in his film Dragged Across Concrete, which deals with police brutality, one might think that he takes a different view, and he likely does. But it is a credit to his art that this, like his sentimentality, does not interfere with his unflinching devotion to honesty in character. Perhaps, in a world of politically correct art (liberal and conservative), this attitude (from the right and the left) is precisely what we need.
November 19, 2023
I really enjoyed this. A new favorite for sure. I’m a big fan of Zahler’s films and it’s good to see he’s an excellent novelist as well. His writing is vivid and the story is so dang entertaining. I don’t say this often but it was hard to put down.
October 20, 2021
All because of a nosey dairy truck driver.
What trips me up about this novel is that Task is not an anti-hero, not quite a sociopath, and not quite
a villain either. I think the closest in character would be Al Swearengen from Deadwood, but Task is not given quite the time to breathe more "likeable" aspects into his character or to give him a redemption arc (although by now expecting a redemption arc in a Zahler book feels a bit foolish). Owing to this, I never know what to think about Task or even why he does some of the things he does and that makes everything feel less substantial and impactful. I don't feel sympathy for the characters but rather what gets done to the characters in general. It comes across as exploitative.
I like the tried and true hardboiled aspects of the book like viewing the seedy underworld of AAA criminals and a plot that hinges on a single unpredictable event that spirals out of control due to other plots already set in motion.
The gallows humor is largely missing except for a few scenes dedicated to really tasty dumplings, but the violence knob is cranked way up into sadistic levels. All in all it is an uneven read, sound and fury, you know the rest.
What trips me up about this novel is that Task is not an anti-hero, not quite a sociopath, and not quite
a villain either. I think the closest in character would be Al Swearengen from Deadwood, but Task is not given quite the time to breathe more "likeable" aspects into his character or to give him a redemption arc (although by now expecting a redemption arc in a Zahler book feels a bit foolish). Owing to this, I never know what to think about Task or even why he does some of the things he does and that makes everything feel less substantial and impactful. I don't feel sympathy for the characters but rather what gets done to the characters in general. It comes across as exploitative.
I like the tried and true hardboiled aspects of the book like viewing the seedy underworld of AAA criminals and a plot that hinges on a single unpredictable event that spirals out of control due to other plots already set in motion.
The gallows humor is largely missing except for a few scenes dedicated to really tasty dumplings, but the violence knob is cranked way up into sadistic levels. All in all it is an uneven read, sound and fury, you know the rest.
August 4, 2020
Classic Zahler, dialogue heavy with a twisting narrative that builds as the book progresses into an explosive but not over the top finale. I dug it, but that's no surprise given that I am a fan of almost everything he's done.
September 18, 2023
excellent
Just have to read this one. Violent for sure and not the most politically correct book you’ll read but for dark hard boiled crime that’s different from any book like this you’ve read—it can’t be beat. And its well written too and funny.
Just have to read this one. Violent for sure and not the most politically correct book you’ll read but for dark hard boiled crime that’s different from any book like this you’ve read—it can’t be beat. And its well written too and funny.
Read
August 16, 2025stuffed w great detail and tone... needed a little more time in the oven.... did not enjoy the last-third swerve into splatterpunk adjace territory. but i did love the characters overall
November 21, 2022
3.5
The Slanted Gutter starts off well enough. We follow entrepreneur (upscale pimp) Darren Tasking (aka Task aka The Slick - everyone here has multiple titles) as he goes about his day to day. He cheats at poker to ensure men are indebted to him, he terrorizes working girls to make them think they need him, and he picks up cash from his brothels.
When Task meets stripper Erin Green he does what's needed to bring her into the fold and make her one of his "butterflies" and at some point things go sideways.
When I say "at some point" it takes about half the novel to pick up pace and only 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 gets going at 75% of the way in. I know, I checked.
His main characters were all well fleshed out, interesting, and morally ambiguous (which is something I love about Zahler's writing). Sadly, they did a lot of nothing for much of the book. Reading about Task and his cohorts driving around, getting in and out of cars, having lunch, and picking up money took up the vast majority of my time. And even when a pivotal moment happens, I never really felt for any of them.
Zahler NEEDS an editor! Or he needs to let an editor do their job. His addiction to words/phrases make me feel like I'm chewing sand. For example he uses 'circumvented' instead of 'walked around' repeatedly. And Erin's hair was always 'chestnut curls'. Those are just two.
Another thing that super annoyed me was that he repeatedly referred to a character with "seven and two-thirds fingers" but only mentioned that his left hand was missing the pinky and a third of his ring finger. That would mean he had EIGHT and two-thirds fingers. If he was missing another finger somewhere or on his other hand, it was never explained and it drove me fucking nuts. Unless I missed something. But I don't think that I did.
Anyway, the last 25% are the reason I keep coming back. Just a torrent of brutal, violent, and surprisingly creative revenge killings. I have an affinity and incomprehensible loyalty to Mr Zahler. I will continue to read his books despite knowing the pitfalls because I love his gritty characters and when he's good, he's SO GOOD.
The Slanted Gutter starts off well enough. We follow entrepreneur (upscale pimp) Darren Tasking (aka Task aka The Slick - everyone here has multiple titles) as he goes about his day to day. He cheats at poker to ensure men are indebted to him, he terrorizes working girls to make them think they need him, and he picks up cash from his brothels.
When Task meets stripper Erin Green he does what's needed to bring her into the fold and make her one of his "butterflies" and at some point things go sideways.
When I say "at some point" it takes about half the novel to pick up pace and only 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 gets going at 75% of the way in. I know, I checked.
His main characters were all well fleshed out, interesting, and morally ambiguous (which is something I love about Zahler's writing). Sadly, they did a lot of nothing for much of the book. Reading about Task and his cohorts driving around, getting in and out of cars, having lunch, and picking up money took up the vast majority of my time. And even when a pivotal moment happens, I never really felt for any of them.
Zahler NEEDS an editor! Or he needs to let an editor do their job. His addiction to words/phrases make me feel like I'm chewing sand. For example he uses 'circumvented' instead of 'walked around' repeatedly. And Erin's hair was always 'chestnut curls'. Those are just two.
Another thing that super annoyed me was that he repeatedly referred to a character with "seven and two-thirds fingers" but only mentioned that his left hand was missing the pinky and a third of his ring finger. That would mean he had EIGHT and two-thirds fingers. If he was missing another finger somewhere or on his other hand, it was never explained and it drove me fucking nuts. Unless I missed something. But I don't think that I did.
Anyway, the last 25% are the reason I keep coming back. Just a torrent of brutal, violent, and surprisingly creative revenge killings. I have an affinity and incomprehensible loyalty to Mr Zahler. I will continue to read his books despite knowing the pitfalls because I love his gritty characters and when he's good, he's SO GOOD.
January 4, 2024
Devoured this book or maybe it devoured me because it was too hard to put down. A filthy, mean-spirited, hilarious and complex tale that I won’t soon forget.
February 4, 2021
A real shame to see Zahler thrash about in noir waters and have no idea what to do in them. As Clint Eastwood said, a man's got to know his limitations. Apparently lurid Jim Thompson-esque noir is one of Zahler's. Which seems odd, given that his two crime films (DRAGGED ACROSS CONCRETE and BRAWL IN CELL BLOCK 99) explore similar material with pathos and human intensity amid all the carnage.
No, THE SLANTED GUTTER has him telling the story of Darren Tasking, a ludicrously named pimp with delusions of grandeur. Nothing is appealing about this guy, but worse, almost nothing about him is interesting except for the ornate nature of his schemes. And those grow tiresome quickly. When the story briefly tries to show a human side of him, it just doesn't work, in no small part due to cartoonishly puerile sex scenes. (Noir traffics in sex and arguably needs it, but if I never have to read another sex scene by Zahler it'll be too soon. At least if the next one is in a movie other artists will be involved in its creation.) When Tasking's undoing comes, you don't give a shit. And this is a story by the guy who made you understand the motivations of a raging bigot in CONCRETE. Zahler is talented, which makes the failure more frustrating.
2 stars, really more like 1.5; mostly for the chutzpah that motivated an attempt to write like Jim Thompson (or Stokoe, depending on how you look at it) in 2020 and for the moments of snappy dialogue. Zahler will probably be best off sticking to script prose for the foreseeable.
No, THE SLANTED GUTTER has him telling the story of Darren Tasking, a ludicrously named pimp with delusions of grandeur. Nothing is appealing about this guy, but worse, almost nothing about him is interesting except for the ornate nature of his schemes. And those grow tiresome quickly. When the story briefly tries to show a human side of him, it just doesn't work, in no small part due to cartoonishly puerile sex scenes. (Noir traffics in sex and arguably needs it, but if I never have to read another sex scene by Zahler it'll be too soon. At least if the next one is in a movie other artists will be involved in its creation.) When Tasking's undoing comes, you don't give a shit. And this is a story by the guy who made you understand the motivations of a raging bigot in CONCRETE. Zahler is talented, which makes the failure more frustrating.
2 stars, really more like 1.5; mostly for the chutzpah that motivated an attempt to write like Jim Thompson (or Stokoe, depending on how you look at it) in 2020 and for the moments of snappy dialogue. Zahler will probably be best off sticking to script prose for the foreseeable.
July 8, 2021
S. Craig Zahler is a unique writer with a style that reminds me somewhat of Cormac McCarthy. His books reach into those dark recesses of the human mind that serve up an array of abnormal and sometimes distasteful stories of behavior. In short, he borders on the edges or fringes of normality. One might find the contents disturbing to say the least, but the reality is there is an element of human depravity out there that exists. This book has all the elements of a story going towards a perhaps happy ending then the reader is lifted into a violent and sadistic end. Expect the unexpected !
May 9, 2021
I'm thinking about starting a Church of Zahler, of which I shall be the Pope.
We can gather around candlelight together, all of us, and bask in our Lord's magnificent prose, storytelling, and character-writing.
That sounds pretty weird, I know, but don't worry; so is Zahler's writing -- and this book is perhaps the finest exemplar of that.
Thank you, Great Zahler.
We can gather around candlelight together, all of us, and bask in our Lord's magnificent prose, storytelling, and character-writing.
That sounds pretty weird, I know, but don't worry; so is Zahler's writing -- and this book is perhaps the finest exemplar of that.
Thank you, Great Zahler.
May 25, 2021
This review is also available in video form: https://youtu.be/Y7YXlsZ02t0
There will be absolutely NO spoilers for The Slanted Gutter in this review whatsoever.
I became a fan of S. Craig Zahler through his films before doubling back to his novels. It was right after reading my first Zahler novel— which happened to be Mean Business on North Ganson Street— that I first started working on what would become my debut novel. Before then, I had been focused solely on writing screenplays. Seeing Zahler excel at both, helped me realize that it was possible to write in both mediums simultaneously and the benefits that can arise from jumping back and forth between the two.
So, of course, I was excited for the release of The Slanted Gutter, and that anticipation kept building as it was delayed for a couple of months. I grabbed my copy of The Slanted Gutter at the same time as I picked up Zahler’s debut comic, The Forbidden Surgeries of the Hideous Dr. Divinus, which I have already reviewed.
The Slanted Gutter follows Darren Tasking, an ex-con who rejects the titles of pimp, gangster, and con man in favor of the more palatable label of entrepreneur, although Task’s entrepreneurial enterprises center mostly around illegal gambling and prostitution. He’s highly intelligent and extremely cautious. And, he’s a master manipulator. Some of the best parts of the book are the ingenious ploys Task devises in order to get others to do what he wants. Though he has a number of heavies on his payroll, he sidesteps violence whenever possible, preferring to solve problems— as he puts it— “Obliquely”. So much creativity goes into Task’s social engineering to guide the hands of those around him with or without their knowledge. His methods are distinctive, and Task is a fascinating character to follow, if not always a likable one.
I’ve found that many writers seem afraid to let their protagonists be anything other than wholly likable 100% of the time, and one of my favorite aspects of Zahler’s writing is that he does not have that fear. His characters are who they are. They behave truthfully to their core and they never feel sanitized. Darren Tasking is not a good man and, in fact, he does almost exclusively terrible things throughout the narrative, but that doesn’t mean he can’t make for a grade-A protagonist. He has a core set of principles and he sticks to them no matter the context. You understand who he is as a person and, even when he crosses the line, you understand exactly why he does. And, I should make clear, he’s not someone you hate, he’s not contemptible or without merit. He has a handful of redemptive moments and shows just enough genuine thought and caring towards some of his associates that you can get on his side, root for him, and feel bad for him. Plus, he’s extremely clever, and any conversation with him is bursting with wit. There’s no shortage of Zahler’s fantastic, witty dialogue that twists language in a manner akin to the old noir greats but without the antiquated vocabulary.
Without spoiling anything, there was a point of no return for me with Task. Towards the end of the book, he does something that made him a person I could no longer comfortably root for, but I always understood why he did the things he did, even if I didn’t agree with them. Everything he does is always true to the character. It’s a particularly decisive (and potentially divisive) moment that I think could generate a ton of discussion in the right environment; I would love to chat with others who’ve read the book about the third act as I can imagine an extremely wide range of reactions and responses to the events in the latter third of The Slanted Gutter.
All of the side characters are distinctive, memorable, and fall at all different points along the morality spectrum. This story is dark and, at times, depraved, in a way you may be expecting if you’re familiar with Zahler’s other work. His trademark violence and brutality continue to stun.
Zahler describes his writing process as trying to surprise himself every day. He comes up with characters and goals and then lets them drive the story without any narrative rails or overarching thematic goal at the start of the piece. It’s a writing mantra I live by now: “surprise myself.” So few stories genuinely surprise, and I’m not talking about a twist ending, I’m talking about the story as a whole being something you cannot predict from the outset. So many stories, you hear the logline or read the little blurb and you can pretty guess exactly what will happen and in what order and you’ve almost already experienced the story before even getting into it. Keeping overall stories surprising in this way is a priority in my writing, and it’s one of the things I admire the most about Zahler’s storytelling abilities.
There’s a point where you might think you’ve got The Slanted Gutter all figured … but you don’t. I could not flip through the last 120 pages or so fast enough. The whole book is a great read, but the third act, if you want to call it that, is especially engrossing as things really heat up and everything established throughout the previous 280 or so pages all comes to a head. The climax of this book is incredible; It’s violent, shocking, and builds to an almost poetic crescendo of bloodshed.
The third act does something perfectly that I’ve only seen pulled off a couple of times in storytelling, Max Payne 3 is another example of it that springs to mind oddly enough. It’s the recontextualizing of the actions of the protagonist from another viewpoint long after the fact. We were on board with the protagonist in the moment, but when these events are cast in a new light later on in the story, it brings a whole new meaning and response to them and causes an almost profound questioning and reflective period in the reader. The way you might have felt about something at one point in the book might be at odds with the way you feel about that same event or action by the end of the book, and I think that’s a great thing; certainly a rarity.
The Slanted Gutter features Zahler’s most contemporary, grounded setting for a novel yet. While it is true that Mean Business on North Ganson street also made use of a contemporary setting, it also took place in the fictional and heightened city of Victory Missouri, the worst city in America, a place where violence and death grace every street corner. The Slanted Gutter also uses a fictionalized city, as I believe all of Zahler’s stories do for the most part. In this case: Great Crown Florida, but there is no heightening this time around, and the location feels true-to-life. I went to college in Florida, so I spent a couple of years there and I can say that Zahler really nails the rather particular Florida weather, as I would expect seeing as he was born there; the specific feel of the humidity and the constant bursts of rain.... This might seem like a little detail, but it adds to the overall feel of the story’s world, and it’s plain to see how important world-building is to Zahler, even his Metal band is called Realm-Builder. Maybe the weather just stuck out to me in particular because one of my screenplays is set in Florida, and it was important to me to capture Florida’s specific weather authentically since the vast majority of movies and TV shows set in Florida— of which there are many— never seem to get it right. It's always just sunny.
With the added sense of authenticity to the setting comes a naturally slower pace than some of Zahler’s other stories. I’ve seen plenty of criticism of Zahler’s films calling them slow, especially Dragged Across Concrete, but they never feel that way to me. Those who do consider the pacing in Dragged Across Concrete “too slow” will likely feel the same about this story. Personally, I love the pacing of both. With Zahler, any slowness is always purposeful and in service of the overall story and character development. The Slanted Gutter is his longest novel to date at 401 pages, and this added page count both seen and felt in what I would consider a good way, but others might consider it a bad thing.
Time plays a more important role in The Slanted Gutter than in Zahler’s other stories. For large swaths of text, we follow the day-to-day, moment-to-moment happenings of Darren Tasking and his entrepreneurial endeavors. We’re with him as he drives from place to place, we’re with him as he waits in a room for hours on end, and we’re with him as he uses the bathroom probably a dozen or more times throughout the book, which is a realistic detail you don’t often see. This added focus on time as a factor becomes more and more important as the story progresses and it’s used in some interesting and clever ways.
One thing I absolutely loved but that might turn some readers away, is that there is a certain point in the book where it feels like the plot is pretty much wrapped up; like the narrative is over… but then it keeps going for another 200 or so pages. What seems like the main conflict of the book gets resolved, and then we’re left in a period of something close to wandering and wondering where the plot could possibly go from here. It’s unconventional, but I found it deeply compelling.
I highly recommend The Slanted Gutter. It’s a gripping read from start to finish and stands with the very best of Zahler’s material.
There will be absolutely NO spoilers for The Slanted Gutter in this review whatsoever.
I became a fan of S. Craig Zahler through his films before doubling back to his novels. It was right after reading my first Zahler novel— which happened to be Mean Business on North Ganson Street— that I first started working on what would become my debut novel. Before then, I had been focused solely on writing screenplays. Seeing Zahler excel at both, helped me realize that it was possible to write in both mediums simultaneously and the benefits that can arise from jumping back and forth between the two.
So, of course, I was excited for the release of The Slanted Gutter, and that anticipation kept building as it was delayed for a couple of months. I grabbed my copy of The Slanted Gutter at the same time as I picked up Zahler’s debut comic, The Forbidden Surgeries of the Hideous Dr. Divinus, which I have already reviewed.
The Slanted Gutter follows Darren Tasking, an ex-con who rejects the titles of pimp, gangster, and con man in favor of the more palatable label of entrepreneur, although Task’s entrepreneurial enterprises center mostly around illegal gambling and prostitution. He’s highly intelligent and extremely cautious. And, he’s a master manipulator. Some of the best parts of the book are the ingenious ploys Task devises in order to get others to do what he wants. Though he has a number of heavies on his payroll, he sidesteps violence whenever possible, preferring to solve problems— as he puts it— “Obliquely”. So much creativity goes into Task’s social engineering to guide the hands of those around him with or without their knowledge. His methods are distinctive, and Task is a fascinating character to follow, if not always a likable one.
I’ve found that many writers seem afraid to let their protagonists be anything other than wholly likable 100% of the time, and one of my favorite aspects of Zahler’s writing is that he does not have that fear. His characters are who they are. They behave truthfully to their core and they never feel sanitized. Darren Tasking is not a good man and, in fact, he does almost exclusively terrible things throughout the narrative, but that doesn’t mean he can’t make for a grade-A protagonist. He has a core set of principles and he sticks to them no matter the context. You understand who he is as a person and, even when he crosses the line, you understand exactly why he does. And, I should make clear, he’s not someone you hate, he’s not contemptible or without merit. He has a handful of redemptive moments and shows just enough genuine thought and caring towards some of his associates that you can get on his side, root for him, and feel bad for him. Plus, he’s extremely clever, and any conversation with him is bursting with wit. There’s no shortage of Zahler’s fantastic, witty dialogue that twists language in a manner akin to the old noir greats but without the antiquated vocabulary.
Without spoiling anything, there was a point of no return for me with Task. Towards the end of the book, he does something that made him a person I could no longer comfortably root for, but I always understood why he did the things he did, even if I didn’t agree with them. Everything he does is always true to the character. It’s a particularly decisive (and potentially divisive) moment that I think could generate a ton of discussion in the right environment; I would love to chat with others who’ve read the book about the third act as I can imagine an extremely wide range of reactions and responses to the events in the latter third of The Slanted Gutter.
All of the side characters are distinctive, memorable, and fall at all different points along the morality spectrum. This story is dark and, at times, depraved, in a way you may be expecting if you’re familiar with Zahler’s other work. His trademark violence and brutality continue to stun.
Zahler describes his writing process as trying to surprise himself every day. He comes up with characters and goals and then lets them drive the story without any narrative rails or overarching thematic goal at the start of the piece. It’s a writing mantra I live by now: “surprise myself.” So few stories genuinely surprise, and I’m not talking about a twist ending, I’m talking about the story as a whole being something you cannot predict from the outset. So many stories, you hear the logline or read the little blurb and you can pretty guess exactly what will happen and in what order and you’ve almost already experienced the story before even getting into it. Keeping overall stories surprising in this way is a priority in my writing, and it’s one of the things I admire the most about Zahler’s storytelling abilities.
There’s a point where you might think you’ve got The Slanted Gutter all figured … but you don’t. I could not flip through the last 120 pages or so fast enough. The whole book is a great read, but the third act, if you want to call it that, is especially engrossing as things really heat up and everything established throughout the previous 280 or so pages all comes to a head. The climax of this book is incredible; It’s violent, shocking, and builds to an almost poetic crescendo of bloodshed.
The third act does something perfectly that I’ve only seen pulled off a couple of times in storytelling, Max Payne 3 is another example of it that springs to mind oddly enough. It’s the recontextualizing of the actions of the protagonist from another viewpoint long after the fact. We were on board with the protagonist in the moment, but when these events are cast in a new light later on in the story, it brings a whole new meaning and response to them and causes an almost profound questioning and reflective period in the reader. The way you might have felt about something at one point in the book might be at odds with the way you feel about that same event or action by the end of the book, and I think that’s a great thing; certainly a rarity.
The Slanted Gutter features Zahler’s most contemporary, grounded setting for a novel yet. While it is true that Mean Business on North Ganson street also made use of a contemporary setting, it also took place in the fictional and heightened city of Victory Missouri, the worst city in America, a place where violence and death grace every street corner. The Slanted Gutter also uses a fictionalized city, as I believe all of Zahler’s stories do for the most part. In this case: Great Crown Florida, but there is no heightening this time around, and the location feels true-to-life. I went to college in Florida, so I spent a couple of years there and I can say that Zahler really nails the rather particular Florida weather, as I would expect seeing as he was born there; the specific feel of the humidity and the constant bursts of rain.... This might seem like a little detail, but it adds to the overall feel of the story’s world, and it’s plain to see how important world-building is to Zahler, even his Metal band is called Realm-Builder. Maybe the weather just stuck out to me in particular because one of my screenplays is set in Florida, and it was important to me to capture Florida’s specific weather authentically since the vast majority of movies and TV shows set in Florida— of which there are many— never seem to get it right. It's always just sunny.
With the added sense of authenticity to the setting comes a naturally slower pace than some of Zahler’s other stories. I’ve seen plenty of criticism of Zahler’s films calling them slow, especially Dragged Across Concrete, but they never feel that way to me. Those who do consider the pacing in Dragged Across Concrete “too slow” will likely feel the same about this story. Personally, I love the pacing of both. With Zahler, any slowness is always purposeful and in service of the overall story and character development. The Slanted Gutter is his longest novel to date at 401 pages, and this added page count both seen and felt in what I would consider a good way, but others might consider it a bad thing.
Time plays a more important role in The Slanted Gutter than in Zahler’s other stories. For large swaths of text, we follow the day-to-day, moment-to-moment happenings of Darren Tasking and his entrepreneurial endeavors. We’re with him as he drives from place to place, we’re with him as he waits in a room for hours on end, and we’re with him as he uses the bathroom probably a dozen or more times throughout the book, which is a realistic detail you don’t often see. This added focus on time as a factor becomes more and more important as the story progresses and it’s used in some interesting and clever ways.
One thing I absolutely loved but that might turn some readers away, is that there is a certain point in the book where it feels like the plot is pretty much wrapped up; like the narrative is over… but then it keeps going for another 200 or so pages. What seems like the main conflict of the book gets resolved, and then we’re left in a period of something close to wandering and wondering where the plot could possibly go from here. It’s unconventional, but I found it deeply compelling.
I highly recommend The Slanted Gutter. It’s a gripping read from start to finish and stands with the very best of Zahler’s material.
September 7, 2022
Ok. This is almost definitely my #1 book of the year. Zahler is, I think, my favorite person doing it right now. He's such a riveting storyteller.
I've almost worked my way through his entire public oeuvre (2 books and a comic left) and I think I'm starting to realize exactly what really makes me vibe with his work. It's not the gritty violence, it's not Zahler's provocateur stylings, it's not the modern day exploitation sensibilities (is MAGAxploitation a thing? Because this is definitely that), but something much simpler.
If there's one consistent theme or through-line in his work it's probably systemic violence against characters trying to reach above their station. It's smart, ambitious characters who are too smart and too ambitious for their own good in an unfair world where the status quo refuses to be bucked. Zahler's morally ambiguous (besides Hug Chickenpenny, that boy is a fucking saint) protagonists look above them and want what they see. They see the tactics used by the powerful and use those tactics thinking the same rules apply to everyone. This works out for a time until the world takes notice and the jaws of reality snap shut in a black hole of blind violence sucking in everyone in the vicinity. This reaffirms my view of reality.
Now... Congregation of Jackals or Mean Business on North Ganson Street next?...
I've almost worked my way through his entire public oeuvre (2 books and a comic left) and I think I'm starting to realize exactly what really makes me vibe with his work. It's not the gritty violence, it's not Zahler's provocateur stylings, it's not the modern day exploitation sensibilities (is MAGAxploitation a thing? Because this is definitely that), but something much simpler.
If there's one consistent theme or through-line in his work it's probably systemic violence against characters trying to reach above their station. It's smart, ambitious characters who are too smart and too ambitious for their own good in an unfair world where the status quo refuses to be bucked. Zahler's morally ambiguous (besides Hug Chickenpenny, that boy is a fucking saint) protagonists look above them and want what they see. They see the tactics used by the powerful and use those tactics thinking the same rules apply to everyone. This works out for a time until the world takes notice and the jaws of reality snap shut in a black hole of blind violence sucking in everyone in the vicinity. This reaffirms my view of reality.
Now... Congregation of Jackals or Mean Business on North Ganson Street next?...
October 2, 2024
Enjoyable but nothing special for the first 300 pages and then the book fucking goes for it. Jim Thompson-like in adding on a bizarre, twisted, pay for all your sins here on this hellish earth final quarter of the story. Funny and a jolt - wakes you up and reminds you how stale most other books are.
June 9, 2022
I read a lot—to the point that it likely isn’t healthy. Part of the reason for this is because my job requires that I read—but mostly I read a ton because I learned that reading helps me control my ADD and associated symptoms.
Anyway, when you read as much as I do, you find that you end up digesting a lot of garbage. Some books and authors are obviously worse than others. However, I wouldn’t keep reading as much as I do if there weren’t some diamonds buried in the trash. When I do discover a new author I like, I literally feel like I did as a kid on Christmas morning. Craig Zahler is one of those authors. He is a genius—really. His level of creativity blows me away. Reading Slanted Gutter is akin to smoking a bag of Harlem-sourced PCP and visiting an abandoned funhouse (in the best of ways). And I can do this sitting in my living room...no 16$ toll to drive to Harlem. No chance for arrest or giving beat bags. And no need to find a vacant funhouse...
I’m really interested to see where Craig’s career will bring him. Every new piece of art that he shares with us brings him one step closer to worldwide popularity and mainstream acceptance—for better or worse. Either way, I’m right there with him on his journey because I don’t have a choice—I was hooked from the first page of Wraiths of the Broken Land...and I wouldn’t have it any other way.
I recommend Slanted Gutter to one and all. Actually, I recommend anything he has worked on—if you have not read one of his books, or seen a film with a screenplay written by him, you are missing out. You could definitely do worse.....much worse.
Anyway, when you read as much as I do, you find that you end up digesting a lot of garbage. Some books and authors are obviously worse than others. However, I wouldn’t keep reading as much as I do if there weren’t some diamonds buried in the trash. When I do discover a new author I like, I literally feel like I did as a kid on Christmas morning. Craig Zahler is one of those authors. He is a genius—really. His level of creativity blows me away. Reading Slanted Gutter is akin to smoking a bag of Harlem-sourced PCP and visiting an abandoned funhouse (in the best of ways). And I can do this sitting in my living room...no 16$ toll to drive to Harlem. No chance for arrest or giving beat bags. And no need to find a vacant funhouse...
I’m really interested to see where Craig’s career will bring him. Every new piece of art that he shares with us brings him one step closer to worldwide popularity and mainstream acceptance—for better or worse. Either way, I’m right there with him on his journey because I don’t have a choice—I was hooked from the first page of Wraiths of the Broken Land...and I wouldn’t have it any other way.
I recommend Slanted Gutter to one and all. Actually, I recommend anything he has worked on—if you have not read one of his books, or seen a film with a screenplay written by him, you are missing out. You could definitely do worse.....much worse.
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