The anthology Top Suspense: Favorite
Kills features 12 very strong suspense tales. Assembled and published
in 2011 by Top Suspense Group the short stories are ones that were previously
published in various places. Due to their length as short stories one can’t go
into too much detail without giving away spoilers, but much is at work in each
one of them. They all are good ones and a couple are downright creepy bordering
on the horrific.
The award
winning story, “Archie’s Been Framed” by Dave Zeltsman gets things going. Julius
has plenty of money in the bank and can enjoy the finer things in life for a
while. He has no reason to work until Archie is framed for the murder of 27 year old Denise Penny. If the nature of
Archie’s existence were revealed that is not an option. Julius does not have a choice – he has to
investigate and clear Archie.
Bordering on the horrific in this
reader’s opinion is the next story by Harry Shannon titled “Night Nurse” by
Harry Shannon. Bud is in the hospital and suffering big time. The only one who
seems to have any compassion is his ongoing medical drama is his night nurse.
Several of the Solomon and Lord series
by Paul Levine are on my e-book tbr pile. In this anthology, Solomon and Lord
appear in “Solomon and Lord Drop Anchor.” Steve Solomon plans to go out to sea on
a boat with Manuel Cruz ostensibly to go fishing. The same Miguel Cruz they are
about to sue after he embezzled three million from a local car dealership
nearly making the elderly owner bankrupt. Victoria Lord knows her law partner
isn’t telling her everything and she intends to attend the deep sea business
meeting as well to protect her partner and their interests.
The Korean women that perform the
massages at the spa in Korea Town seem to be uniform in appearance and
anonymity. Ann’s masseuse goes by the name “Number 19” and is supposed to
get a $20 tip. But, will she actually get that money and more is questioned in
“Number 19” by Naomi Hirahara.
The two elderly women live in Davis,
Florida when they can garden a bit, feed some cats, and once a month go to the
beach for a swim. They also smoke pot a bit and fantasize about trip to
Hawaii. Then, a homeless guy by the name of Henry becomes part of their
lives in “Sweet Dreams” by Vicki Hendricks and things evolve from the normal
routine.
Larry
and Marge Falls took the trip to Vegas in “House Rules” because Marge desperately wanted to do something new
and different. But the trip is not going well and the side trip to Red Rock
Canyon hasn’t helped. It’s time for change.
Doing the crime is one thing. Making
sure the cover up stays intact is another. That is the premise behind “Angie”
by Ed. Gorman. One seriously creepy story with lots at stake for all involved.
For Travis Runnels every single day
is a knife fight. Being in jail is just an occupational hazard for him. It is a
public defender like Alex Stone who Travis is going to have to rely on to get
him out of a death penalty murder case. The fact that she is a Jew and lesbian
doesn't impress him any more than the fact he is an African-American impresses
her in “Knife Fight: An Alex Stone Short Story” by Joel Goldman.
If you remember or ever saw “Dragnet” starting Jack Webb you will get
a kick out of this one titled “Jack Webb’s Star” by Lee Goldberg. If you
haven’t, go check out at least a couple of episodes first before you read this
dark and funny twisted tale. You need the frame of reference.
Holly has had a rough night. At
least the kids are okay. But, she really needs to get out of the emergency room
in “Restraint” by Stephen Gallagher. She also needs to get her car from the
bottom of the embankment before the cops start poking around it too much. This
is another dark tale, but nothing funny is at work here.
Texas author Bill Crider is up next
with his tale “Top Of The World.” Thanks to Sam Cobb he met Vicky. It might
have been better for everyone if they had never crossed paths. She is dangerous
and just might get him killed. Or kill him herself.
The final tale is “A Matter Of Principal:
a Quarry Story” by Max Allan Collins. Quarry knows he recognizes the guy in the
convenience store in the middle of the night. It has been ten years since they
last ran into each other and though the guy does not recognize him, Quarry
knows him and knows something is up. The only option is to tail him and get
some answers and maybe just a little payback.
12 short stories bios of the author
involved bring the read to a close.
Published in 2011 by Top Suspense
Group, the 12 tales here are all good ones. These are not tales that feature
happy people doing happy things. No, the suspense tales here at times push the
edge into horror as the characters live difficult lives often on the edges of
society. One does what one has to do to survive and that desperation is always
at work in Top Suspense: Favorite Kills.
Top Suspense: Favorite Kills
Top Suspense Group
2011
ASIN: B00757WMQQ
E-Book
only
232
Pages
$4.99
According
to Amazon I picked this up on March 8, 2014. I have no idea now if I bought it
by way of funds in my Amazon Associate account, because it was a free read on
that date, or because it was given to me. I had forgotten I even had it until
Barry Ergang, who was reading it awhile back, mentioned it to me and I hunted for
it.
Kevin
R. Tipple ©2016
Posts
2 comments:
Yes, I read this one a couple of months ago, and it's definitely worth one's time.
Good stuff. Thank you for reminding me about it. Things tend to get lost in the kindle.
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