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21 Tales
21 dark and weird tales from acclaimed writer, Dave Zeltserman, Stories of desperation, treachery, deceit and betrayal, populated by con men, mobsters, psychopaths, dangerous women and life’s losers. Each of these stories with surprise endings and enough twists to leave you dizzy. Brutal life lessons learned over a game of nine-ball… a war veteran who’s been played as a sucker one too many times by his older brother… a salesman who stumbles upon the girl of his dreams only to learn that his dreams have all been nightmares… a con man who gets more than he bargains for when he convinces a wealthy woman to marry him.
252 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 8, 2010
17 people are currently reading
88 people want to read
About the author
Dave Zeltserman
102 books172 followersAuthor of the crime noir novel SMALL CRIMES named by NPR as the best crime and mystery novel of 2008, and by the Washington Post as one of the best novels of 2008, and made into a major film (to be released in 2017) starring Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Molly Parker, Gary Cole, Robert Forster, and Jacki Weaver.
Shamus Award winner for JULIUS KATZ. Ellery Queen's Readers Choice Award winner for ARCHIE'S BEEN FRAMED and ARCHIE SOLVES THE CASE.
PARIAH named by the Washington Post as one of the best books of 2009. THE CARETAKER OF LORNE FIELD (2010) shortlisted by American Library Association for best horror novel of the year and named a horror gem by Library Journal. MONSTER selected by Booklist Magazine for their 2013 list of top 10 horror novels and WBUR for one of the best novels of the year.
OUTSOURCED (2011) and THE CARETAKER OF LORNE FIELD are also currently being developed for film.
Shamus Award winner for JULIUS KATZ. Ellery Queen's Readers Choice Award winner for ARCHIE'S BEEN FRAMED and ARCHIE SOLVES THE CASE.
PARIAH named by the Washington Post as one of the best books of 2009. THE CARETAKER OF LORNE FIELD (2010) shortlisted by American Library Association for best horror novel of the year and named a horror gem by Library Journal. MONSTER selected by Booklist Magazine for their 2013 list of top 10 horror novels and WBUR for one of the best novels of the year.
OUTSOURCED (2011) and THE CARETAKER OF LORNE FIELD are also currently being developed for film.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
May 29, 2014
Here's a fun collection of crime/noir/suspense and paranormal tales.
- A stolen fortune cookie messes up one man's fate.
- A writer takes care of his pest problem for good.
- One man deliberately gives bad advice to his fellow bar patrons.
- The desire to keep a Beacon Hill apartment becomes a treacherous struggle.
- A man attempts to scam the Nigerian Prince internet scammers.
Zeltserman is quite skilled at writing stories about people trying to screw other people. He concocts great dialogue, inserts plenty of laughs and frequently pulls it all together with a delightful twist at the end. Watch a master at work as he manages to pull off a double, triple and even a quadruple cross. The stories keep you on your toes as you're never sure who will end up with the money and who will end up dead. Good stuff!
- A stolen fortune cookie messes up one man's fate.
- A writer takes care of his pest problem for good.
- One man deliberately gives bad advice to his fellow bar patrons.
- The desire to keep a Beacon Hill apartment becomes a treacherous struggle.
- A man attempts to scam the Nigerian Prince internet scammers.
Zeltserman is quite skilled at writing stories about people trying to screw other people. He concocts great dialogue, inserts plenty of laughs and frequently pulls it all together with a delightful twist at the end. Watch a master at work as he manages to pull off a double, triple and even a quadruple cross. The stories keep you on your toes as you're never sure who will end up with the money and who will end up dead. Good stuff!
January 29, 2025
As a bit of a crime noir addict I will say that these 21Tales are in my opinion some of the best crime noir short stories I have ever read. I really enjoyed the author's autobiographical notes and I liked the way the stories were categorized in different groups based on topic and subject. It is almost impossible to pick a favorite because I loved almost everyone of them. I specially enjoyed Forever and Ever, The Broadway Butcher and A Rage Issue. To all my crime noir friends out there, if you haven't read this collection, pick it up you won't regret it!
January 20, 2013
These are short stories of the noir genre. They are categorized in groups such as: The Weird, The Hardboiled, The Manny Vassey stories, the Brutal, etc.
These are pretty well-categorized and while this is not a genre that I often read, these were very readable stories.
I have to say that my favorites were the Manny Vassey stories. I really could have read many more of them beyond the three that were included.
Very descriptive wording by the author and the stories pull you in for the short time that you are involved. This is definitely an author I would give another opportunity to take up my time with his writing.
These are pretty well-categorized and while this is not a genre that I often read, these were very readable stories.
I have to say that my favorites were the Manny Vassey stories. I really could have read many more of them beyond the three that were included.
Very descriptive wording by the author and the stories pull you in for the short time that you are involved. This is definitely an author I would give another opportunity to take up my time with his writing.
December 8, 2012
21 TALES is a great introduction to Zeltserman, early short stories presented in themed blocks - quasi-autobiographic bites taken to a fictional extreme that are embarrassingly close to some of this married man's darker fantasies; hard-boiled tales of tough bastards doing hard-ass things; and a section entitled "brutal" that is aptly named. Quick reads, at times funny, often wince-inducing, engaging and compulsive - more than worth the price of admission.
February 25, 2018
An interesting collection of short stories. This collection of Zeltserman's tales are dark crime stories. most of them are twisted and you never know which character is doing the scamming. Lots of surprises and also lots of laughs. Good reading if you for a book that you can read some quick stories. I read this in between other books when I didn't have enough time to really get into a novel. Going to look for some of Zeltserman's work.
June 4, 2021
Short Story Heaven
In most short story compilations there are good ones and so-so ones. Mr. Zelsterman knocks it out of the park with this collection as I thouroughly enjoyed them all. Highly recommended.
In most short story compilations there are good ones and so-so ones. Mr. Zelsterman knocks it out of the park with this collection as I thouroughly enjoyed them all. Highly recommended.
June 30, 2017
21 Tales is surprisingly a collection of 21 stories written over a sixteen year period ranging from hardboiled crime to science fiction, all a little bit twisted, warped, and odd. They range from a rather tiny piece about a set of birth parents searching for their kid (Danny Smith) to a Nigerian email scam gone horribly wrong when the would-be victim tries to turn the tables (More Than A Scam) to stories about delving into a full-time writing career and what difficulties lie when the wife is not fully supportive (Flies). What could possibly happen when someone takes a fortune cookie meant for someone else? Could that simple act destroy someone’s life –the life they were meant to have? (She Stole My Fortune!)
There are scams and deceptions and double-crosses and spouses who don’t trust each other, brothers who wonder if they can trust each other, horse players, mobsters, redheads, gamblers, thieves, explosions, gunshots, long cons, short cons, bums, weasels, and more.
What’s great about this collection is the matter-of-fact tone of the writing that is so easy to access and so disarming. It almost gives you the sense that these stories could be about just about anybody – that these tales may not be after all so far-fetched.
There are scams and deceptions and double-crosses and spouses who don’t trust each other, brothers who wonder if they can trust each other, horse players, mobsters, redheads, gamblers, thieves, explosions, gunshots, long cons, short cons, bums, weasels, and more.
What’s great about this collection is the matter-of-fact tone of the writing that is so easy to access and so disarming. It almost gives you the sense that these stories could be about just about anybody – that these tales may not be after all so far-fetched.
July 7, 2024
I really like this writer and highly recommend his novels. In this collection of his stories, I especially enjoyed his autobiographical footnotes. The movie that they made of his novel Small Crimes is MUCH better than the rating on IMDb. I think viewers were put off by the very noir nature of the story. Me love noir.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5717492/...
I’ll include one story only if you promise to go out and buy a novel or two that he wrote. It's a heart-warming tale about a man who gets a second chance in life. What's not to like about that?
Danny Smith
This is my shortest story. A mere 247 words long. My goal was to write a story in under 250 words that not only had a full arc, but was a satisfying read. You can be the judge for whether or not I succeeded.
I can’t get Danny Smith off my mind… He was a good-looking kid. Well-mannered, soft-spoken, just an overall good kid. Only twenty-four years old. Six months ago he hired me to find his birth parents. You see, he was adopted, had great parents, but he wanted to know his roots. There was something familiar looking about him, made me think I had seen him before. The reason for that was his birth dad turned out to be Sam Lombardo, top guy in the Boston Mob. It didn’t take me too long to find that out. It turns out Lombardo had a one-night fling with a dancer, never knew he had this other son. When I told him about Danny, he told me what he would do to me if this kid ever bothered him.
That was six months ago.
Two weeks ago I heard Lombardo was on his death bed, dying of congestive heart failure, and word was he was going down fast. His goons brought me to see him. Lombardo wanted to know about Danny. I thought he just wanted to make peace with his son before he died.
A week ago Danny’s parents called me. They were frantic. Danny had disappeared. They had no idea where he was. Three days ago I heard through the grapevine that Lombardo had found a heart donor. A good match, too. Transplant looks like its going to be a success.
I can’t get Danny Smith off my mind…
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5717492/...
I’ll include one story only if you promise to go out and buy a novel or two that he wrote. It's a heart-warming tale about a man who gets a second chance in life. What's not to like about that?
Danny Smith
This is my shortest story. A mere 247 words long. My goal was to write a story in under 250 words that not only had a full arc, but was a satisfying read. You can be the judge for whether or not I succeeded.
I can’t get Danny Smith off my mind… He was a good-looking kid. Well-mannered, soft-spoken, just an overall good kid. Only twenty-four years old. Six months ago he hired me to find his birth parents. You see, he was adopted, had great parents, but he wanted to know his roots. There was something familiar looking about him, made me think I had seen him before. The reason for that was his birth dad turned out to be Sam Lombardo, top guy in the Boston Mob. It didn’t take me too long to find that out. It turns out Lombardo had a one-night fling with a dancer, never knew he had this other son. When I told him about Danny, he told me what he would do to me if this kid ever bothered him.
That was six months ago.
Two weeks ago I heard Lombardo was on his death bed, dying of congestive heart failure, and word was he was going down fast. His goons brought me to see him. Lombardo wanted to know about Danny. I thought he just wanted to make peace with his son before he died.
A week ago Danny’s parents called me. They were frantic. Danny had disappeared. They had no idea where he was. Three days ago I heard through the grapevine that Lombardo had found a heart donor. A good match, too. Transplant looks like its going to be a success.
I can’t get Danny Smith off my mind…
September 22, 2014
Never heard the term "noir genre" until reading this book's reviews. Oh please, be down to earth and call it "dark". On to review.
I must admit I did not finish this book. Not because it wasn't good, simply that I have come to realize, I don't like short stories. I will search out a full length book of Zeltersman to try.
Melki's review was spot on, so I have just pasted it.
Here's a fun collection of crime/noir/suspense and paranormal tales.
- A stolen fortune cookie messes up one man's fate.
- A writer takes care of his pest problem for good.
- One man deliberately gives bad advice to his fellow bar patrons.
- The desire to keep a Beacon Hill apartment becomes a treacherous struggle.
- A man attempts to scam the Nigerian Prince internet scammers.
Zeltserman is quite skilled at writing stories about people trying to screw other people. He concocts great dialogue, inserts plenty of laughs and frequently pulls it all together with a delightful twist at the end. Watch a master at work as he manages to pull off a double, triple and even a quadruple cross. The stories keep you on your toes as you're never sure who will end up with the money and who will end up dead. Good stuff!
I must admit I did not finish this book. Not because it wasn't good, simply that I have come to realize, I don't like short stories. I will search out a full length book of Zeltersman to try.
Melki's review was spot on, so I have just pasted it.
Here's a fun collection of crime/noir/suspense and paranormal tales.
- A stolen fortune cookie messes up one man's fate.
- A writer takes care of his pest problem for good.
- One man deliberately gives bad advice to his fellow bar patrons.
- The desire to keep a Beacon Hill apartment becomes a treacherous struggle.
- A man attempts to scam the Nigerian Prince internet scammers.
Zeltserman is quite skilled at writing stories about people trying to screw other people. He concocts great dialogue, inserts plenty of laughs and frequently pulls it all together with a delightful twist at the end. Watch a master at work as he manages to pull off a double, triple and even a quadruple cross. The stories keep you on your toes as you're never sure who will end up with the money and who will end up dead. Good stuff!
August 11, 2010
In a relatively short period of time Dave Zeltserman has established himself as the most relevant author of dark crime fiction working today. As usual, Dave doesn't pull any punches, and his 21 TALES is inventive, nasty, pulpy fun.
July 26, 2012
link: See my reveiw: I've just finished reading... at blackjayne.wordpress.com
August 22, 2012
Good stories....quick reads. Novice writing, somewhat unpolished.
January 27, 2012
A bunch of good noir short stories. Pretty good read.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews