Patricia Abbott: Short Story Wednesday: MUTTER, Esther Yi from the New Yorker

 Patricia Abbott: Short Story Wednesday: MUTTER, Esther Yi from the New Yorker  

Jerry's House of Everything: SHORT STORY WEDNESDAY: GHOST IN C-MINOR

Jerry's House of Everything: SHORT STORY WEDNESDAY: GHOST IN C-MINOR: "Ghost in C-Minor" by Richard Sale  (first published in Detective Fiction Weekly , June 12, 1937: reprinted in  The Saint Detectiv...

Patricia Abbott: Short Story Wednesday: Deal-Breaker, Allegra Goodman, From the New Yorker

 Patricia Abbott: Short Story Wednesday: Deal-Breaker, Allegra Goodman, From the New Yorker

Gravetapping: Review: "BAE-I" and "Room E-36" by Douglas Corleone

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Gravetapping: Review: "Little Old Ladies" by Simon Brett

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Gravetapping: Review: "High Stakes" by John Lutz

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Gravetapping: Review: "To Florida" by Robert Sampson

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Little Big Crimes: Mall Cop Christmas Parade, by Joslyn Chase

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Jerry's House of Everything: SHORT STORY WEDNESDAY: THE CAT'S PAJAMAS by Ray Bradbury

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Short Story Review: 13 Shots Of Noir by Paul D. Brazill

From the massively magnificent archive here at Casa Tipple and Home Eatery Library….

 

As noted in the subtitle of 13 Shots of Noir the e-book contains 13 short, sharp stories of booze, bullets and bodies. The read fully delivers on those aspects and plenty more. This collection of dark tales by Paul D. Brazill opens with “The Tut.” While comparisons to Edgar Allen Poe’s The Tell-Tale Heart are obvious, Oliver Robinson has his own particular version of the nightmare in his west London home. So much so he killed his wife, Gloria, just making things worse.

 

If you need “Anger Management” you could see a therapist. Or, you could channel it by joining up with “The Squad” which featured guys by the name of “Tubeway, Slammer” and Col. They go

 

beyond the idea of football hooliganism by adding mugging to the mix.  The four guys are so good at it they begin to get paid by Mr. Bettis who assigns them a specific job each month to accomplish.

 

Charlotte lives in East London in “The Friend Catcher.” The title of the story is also her name for a rather creepy neighbor who has tale of the past and a job for her.

 

When you are a serial killer sometimes you need an assistant. Even better if the assistant has a dog as made clear in “The Ballad Of The Kid.”

 

Though she came to the idea early, it took a long time for Carole Parker to actually plan to kill her husband in “The Man Behind The Curtain.” At least, that was her initial plan.

 

There are scores to settle at the party after the screening in “The Final Cut.” The public drama on film only hints at private situations.

 

Freddy in obsessed with a celebrity known as “M.” In the story by the same name Freddy is finally going to meet his obsession.

 

“Mr. Kiss and Tell: A Peter Ord Investigation” is one of the longer tales in the book. Told in five short parts, it follows the case of Billy Kirby, who wants to find his missing wife and son. They had good reason to flee all those years ago. Not that this private detective can’t be too choosy as he doesn’t have that many cases as it is.

 

Father Tim thought he was done hearing confessions at the end of one hot August day until Mad Mack showed up. Mad Mack has bloody feet, a busted lip, and other issues as well as quite the tale to tell. He wants to confess in “Sins of The Father.”

 

When you wake up after a night of heavy drinking with torn and bloody clothes and your bedroom is trashed you know things are not good. The fact that this sort of thing and more happens to one guy on a fairly regular basis is the point of the tale “Drunk on The Moon.”

 

Brendan Burke was well known for his regularity of a lifetime of habits. In “Everyday People” his regular schedule isn’t easy to maintain after being run down by a scooter. He is going to need some help once he gets home from the hospital.

 

Alison Day kept to herself and stayed out of things. That is until a stranger in the street collapsed at her feet in “Stamp Of A Vamp.”

 

“Thump” might mean somebody is in the pub in the ground floor. It might be her as she has not been around in a while. Or it might be something or someone else.

 

The 13 tales presented in 13 Shots Of Noir first appeared in 2009 and 2010 on a variety of websites. Some are mystery related, some are more super natural type tales, but all are good flash fiction or a little bit longer stories that are highly entertaining. At 63 pages this is a fast read and a good introduction to the work of Paul D. Brazill author of A Case Of Noir, Gumshoe, and Guns Of Brixton, among other works. Published by Untreed Reads, this is a quality read well worth your time.

 

 

Material was recently picked up to read and review during one of the author’s free read promotions. 

 

Kevin R. Tipple ©2015, 2023

Little Big Crimes Review: For a Better City by Peter W.J. Hayes

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Little Big Crimes Review: Chinook by Thomas King

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Bitter Tea and Mystery: Short Story Wednesday: Reader, I Buried Them and other stories by Peter Lovesey

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Jerry's House of Everything: SHORT STORY WEDNESDAY: AN OAK COFFIN

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Jerry's House of Everything: WEDNESDAY'S SHORT STORY: THE DEATH'S HEAD

Jerry's House of Everything: WEDNESDAY'S SHORT STORY: THE DEATH'S HEAD: "The Death's Head" by "F. Laun" (Friedrich August Schuler) (first published in German in 1811 as 'Die Todtenkopf...

Little Big Crimes: Frank Scarso Finds His Life by Doug Crandall

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Short Story Wednesday Review: Nobody’s Business by John Floyd

Running from the cops had worked so far, but for how much longer no one knows. He is getting closer to his target deep in the woods around Long Boat Creek. Hopefully, the shack that was his late uncle’s place, set up for these kind of situations, is still standing deep in the woods. It would also really help if nobody has been messing with the old place.

 

First, he has to get there with nobody seeing him. The problem he has at the moment is one Libby Freeman. She is also in the woods. She has a shotgun. She has questions. So many questions.

 

The very good “Nobody’s Business” short story appears in the Strand Magazine Issue LXII 2020 along with tales by Shirley Jackson, David Marcum, Thomas Perry, and various other features. Available by subscription and single issues at https://strandmag.com/

Patti Abbott: Short Story Wednesday: "The Return of the Argentine Tango Masters" from The Lies of the Saints, Erin McGraw

Patti Abbott: Short Story Wednesday: "The Return of the Argentine Tango Masters" from The Lies of the Saints, Erin McGraw

Short Story Review: "Silent Witness" by B. K. Stevens

While she has experience in family court as well as small claims, Jane Ciardi has never before interpreted in the criminal court. That will change today as her skills sign language interpreter are urgently needed as the usual interpreter is out because her husband had a heart attack. Sandra Blackmore, the remaining interpreter, plans on handling the deaf witnesses so she will voice as well as sign for them. She wants Jane to handle the witnesses that can hear. It will be a little easier on Jane as all she has do is sign when those witnesses testify so that those in the courtroom that are hearing impaired can understand what is happening in the trial.

The case is emotionally charged as the assistant vice principal of the Cleveland School for the Death stands accused of the murder of the recently hired principal. While the assistant principal is deaf, the now deceased principal was not. The fact that somebody who was not deaf was hired to lead the school generated a lot of controversy with students and staff. That controversy resulted in intense media coverage. The situation has further escalated with the murder and subsequent trial as the media, as they usually do, are having a field day with the details of the murder case.

A complicated murder case where everyone has their role to play in the short story Silent Witness by B. K. Stevens. This is a tightly woven intense read that was originally published in December 2010 in Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine under the title Interpretation Of Murder. Not to be confused with the upcoming novel of the same name published by Black Opal Books, this short story is a Derringer Winner and a very good read. 

Silent Witness

B. K. Stevens

http://www.bkstevensmysteries.com

Amazon Digital Services

ASIN: B00VGVZBY2

March 30, 2015

E-Book

29 Pages

$0.99

Material was picked up during the author’s recent free read promotion.

Kevin R. Tipple ©2015

Via Little Big Crimes: Milk and Tea, by Linda Michelle Marquardt

Little Big Crimes: Milk and Tea, by Linda Michelle Marquardt: "Milk and Tea," by Linda Michelle Marquardt, in Prison Noir, edited by Joyce Carol Oates, Akashic Press, 2014. We are back for ...