Scan barcode
ladybedivere's review
Nothing wrong with it, but it wasn't jivving with the kind of noir I wanted and I'm busy anyway. DNF'd a little over halfway through.
bearofsand's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.75
I just moved away from San Francisco a couple of weeks ago and this compilation of short noirs really hit home with landmarks and bars I recognize as my old stomping grounds. It was a little bittersweet.
This is a fun book for anyone knowledgeable of SF and the surrounding areas. I wouldn't classify everything in here as "noir" however. Some authors really stretched what the definition; there are a few gems hidden in here though. Some are bad, some are good, most are average. You can definitely find better examples of SF noir out there but the modern stories are fun in their own way.
This is a fun book for anyone knowledgeable of SF and the surrounding areas. I wouldn't classify everything in here as "noir" however. Some authors really stretched what the definition; there are a few gems hidden in here though. Some are bad, some are good, most are average. You can definitely find better examples of SF noir out there but the modern stories are fun in their own way.
alanfederman's review against another edition
3.0
Pretty good collection of hard-boiled stories all set in different neighborhoods in and around SF. Some better than others, some gorier than others.
audreyintheheadphones's review against another edition
4.0
15 black beauties set in the city by the bay. Of them, a majority are good. Six are very good and three are balls-out fantastic, gamechangers that make you look at short stories entirely differently ever afterward: Michelle Tea's "Larry's Place", Eddie Muller's "Kid's Last Fight" and "Deception of the Thrush" by Will Christopher Baer. Simply amazing.
Three are just so-so and three are terrible. That's a pretty good ratio for an anthology and San Francisco looms large in all of them. Solid, bleak and psychedelic entry in the series.
Three are just so-so and three are terrible. That's a pretty good ratio for an anthology and San Francisco looms large in all of them. Solid, bleak and psychedelic entry in the series.
More...