Published in 2015 by
All Due Respect Books, Crooked Roads: Crime Stories by Alec
Cizak features fifteen previously published short stories. Published in print
and online the tales reflect flawed characters, crimes of various types, and situations
where there are no easy answers.
“The Space Between”
starts readers off with a very short tale about the relationship, as well as
the lack of one, between the cashier and the customer. She spoke in clichés,
but for the narrator, his life is also full of clichés.
The guy known as “Bump”
had never seen somebody die until Kristos put the shotgun deep into Hector’s
mouth and pulled the trigger. Now it is supposed to be Bump’s turn to kill in
“Columbus Day.” All that was supposed to happen was the three of them, if you
counted in Sophia who is about as crazy as Kristos, were to bust into a cook
house, grab the latest batch, and go back home to watch The Vikings on Monday Night
Football. At least, that had been the plan just a couple of hours ago.
Dad always said to
never underestimate just how stupid some folks can be and then proved it
himself. Living in a trailer park, Neptune Park, isn’t that great. He knows his
girlfriend’s dad, Mr. Vaughn, is not happy at all that he is intimate with his
daughter, Missy. Sure, she might be working out her issues, but Dwayne likes
her a lot and knows the score in “No Hard Feelings.”
It is January and the
rains have come to Wilshire Boulevard. For Rex Burris, who relies on the
generosity of others, the rains are a bad thing because folks don’t give when
it rains. In “American Chivalry” Rex has a plan for the Korean wives on the 20 bus
if he can get enough space change to get on the bus in the first place.
The short Mexican is
in the wrong place at the wrong time. Though he doesn’t know it yet as “Dumb
Shit” begins. Donny and his friend, Smitty, lost their roofing jobs to Mexican
workers that worked far cheaper for the contractor, Jimbo Pincer. Donny is mad
at everyone in the world. It never is a good thing when Donny is mad.
She’s alone, drinking,
and has a .32 in her purse. She also has a story to tell in “Spare Change.”
Bud Gorski has a wife
he can’t make happy and a night job at Liberty Steel that does not pay
enough. The strike has not helped things at all. Ron feels bad for him in
“Sate Road 53” though he does not feel bad enough to stop seeing Bud’s wife,
Lynn.
Stan Dillon does not
normally go for blondes and then she walked into the bar. As a cop, he knows a
hooker when he sees one. In “Patience,” the hooker of the same name has a
friend, Finesse, and a place, if he is willing. Off duty and male, he is
definitely willing to go with her to the Ramada on Wilshire.
The two guys that are
friends of Katy’s dad showed up wearing ski masks. They gave her a blindfold
and put her in their car. She wanted to see Billy get his in “Katy Too.”
“My Kind Of Town” features
Jenna and Tom who have a plan for their future. Tom’s wife Maggie is not part
of that plan. Neither is his gas station.
Enrique Paz has been
trailing the guy on foot for a while now in “A Matter Of Time.” Paz was
supposed to be meeting a couple of white guys from West Hollywood to sell them
some meth before this guy earned his attention. The fact went he into a church
isn’t going to save him.
Debbie had seemed
fine when she left after having drugs and sex with Ethan though she did not
tell him where she was going. In “Methamphetamine And A Shotgun” Ethan has decided
to go outside and see the day. He has also decided it is a good idea to take
his shotgun.
She needs a payphone
and that has proved to be a bit of a problem in “Little People.” She could use
her cellphone, but that would create a record. A record of the call could link
her to the guy in the trunk of her silver Lexus.
Harold showed up early
at Nicole’s place in “A Moral Majority.” He has a problem and a sin to confess.
If the congregation finds out, they won’t be happy. He needs advice and a
solution to a terrible problem he has created.
“The Ralphs At Third
And Vermont” used to exist before the riots. It burned. What happened to
Charlie, who used to carry folks groceries, is the point of this tale that
shifts back and forth in time.
The tales in Crooked
Roads: Crime Stories are all good ones. These previously published
stories feature a range of characters, emotions, and situations that create a
dark atmosphere full of vengeance and violence. Nothing is simple in these
tales whether it is the plan for survival, the reason for the situation, or the
actions by anyone involved. Published by All Due Respect Books, the short
stories contained in Crooked Roads: Crime Stories by Alec
Cizak live up the title and then some. In a number of cases, the road is
not just crooked, but pulverized into sharp channels that rip your soul.
Crooked Roads: Crime Stories
Alec Cizak
All Due Respect Books
May 2015
ASIN: B00XLQ9XHG
eBook (print format available)
184 Pages
$0.99
Material was purchased in August 2015 to read and review by
way of funds in my Amazon Associate account.
Kevin R. Tipple ©2016
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