Damn Near Dead: An Anthology of Geezer Noir

What a terrific anthology - kudo's to editor/author Duane Swierczynski for compiling this collection of short stories that define noir - hardboiled gems written with cracked asphalt and broken beer bottles; brown paper bags with cold cash or cheap whiskey or untraceable .38s. I found many of my favorite authors here - Bruen, Burton, Cotterill, Stella, Brewer, Gischler, Doolittle, and of course Swierczynski, but also some vets and new faces I haven't discovered, but will be reading soon. While it's hard to award medals in such a rarefied crowd, Ken Bruen's typically dark, bleak and depressing "Old Gun" will fray the edges of your conscious for weeks to come. Milton T. Burton's honey-smooth prose flows easily from a master story teller in "Encore", in neat contrast to Bruen's lean and jagged writing, even though both carry unshakable images of despair without redemption. Victor Gischler's "Duffers of the Apocalypse" is black humor as clever as it is dark, and Robert Ward's macabre "The Deadsters" could as easily show up in a collection of top notch horror. Colin Cotterill's wily Laotian Dr. Siri Paiboun, protagonist of four outstanding Cotterill novels, makes an appearance in author's typically light, well crafted "Has Anyone Seen Mrs. Lightswitch", and Charlie Stella hones his Brooklyn street smart chops with "Geezer Tricks", a story of the phone sex industry as moving as it is cynically funny. And while most noir crime fiction is about tough guys, Swierczynski's mix is liberally and effectively laced with savvy and calculating old broads - notably Laura Lipman's "Femme Fatale", "Policy" by Megan Abbot, Stuart MacBride's "Daphne McAndrews and the Smack-Head Junkies", and the Hitchcockian "Pros and Cons" by Donna Moore. Being noir, irony takes center stage, and none do it better than Swierczynski's own "Say Goodnight to the Bad Guy", the venerable Bill Crider's "Cranked", Steve Brewer's "Payoff", and Sean Doolittle's "The Necklace", a crafty and well told tale of age and wisdom trumping youth an inexperience which, if pressed, may be the best of this elite bunch. So take it from a bona fide geezer - this is crime fiction in it's finest form - an unbeatable bargain of over two-dozen hard hitting dramas of crime, passion, and poignancy from a gang that may be damn near dead, but are certainly far from over the hill.

And if you don't believe that, then read this fabulous book and have a lesson or two in aging gracefully. When you're younger, you don't think much about what it means to grow old. And then suddenly, one day, you wake up and realize you're now in that age category that automatically brands you as OLD. Like hell. I'm way more alive and with it now than I was 50 years ago! But you don't have to take my word for it. Not when these 27 very gifted writers are just waiting to tell you all about it. Of course, as is the way with anthologies, some of these stories are more equal than others. My very favorite is Bill Crider's `Cranked'. Read it and you'll not wonder why it was nominated for several very prestigious awards and has so far brought home one of them. It's truly marvelous. But then, so is Stuart MacBride's `Daphne McAndrews and the Smack-Head Junkies'. Never heard of `cozy noir?' It's entirely too much, and besides, there's even a recipe included! Honest. Laura Lippman's `Femme Fatale' is my kind of woman, or maybe the one I wish I could be, if I had her kind of guts. Another classy dame lives in `Policy' by Megan Abbott. Or consider Charlie Stella's `Geezer Tricks', or `The Deadsters' by Robert Ward. Trust me, you have to live a reasonably long time to be as smart as these oldsters are! (I mean the characters, not necessarily the authors!) There's deception and loyalty, coupled with love and revenge. There's patience and impetuosity, sometimes both in the same story. But the major ingredient throughout is creativity, amply displayed in these 27 stories. Bravo to the editor, Duane Swierczynski, and Busted Flush Press. More, more! Please, sirs, more!

Every story in this gem of a volume is terrific and that's why the stories are getting nominated for every award in the field. Congrats to Mr. Swierczynski for recruiting such a good group of writers.

It was probably page 250 or so when I resolved that at the last page I would start all-over-again and re-read every one of these stories with more attention to who the authors were. I - at least I thought- I was as well read as some of these authors claim to be, but using the malaprop "irregardless" this book is fantastic.... these authors open a whole new world of fiction and fun. Oh, that there'd be a hardcover with all the authors signatures..... Buy five or six of these cheap paperbacks and give them to your geezer friends... it's the best thing they could enjoy. I'm a 60 year old doctor with many geezer patients to whom I'll be giving this book. Better than Elmore.

Ladies and Gentleman I am here today to let you know of a trip you need to take. Where is it to and how do you get there you ask? Well let me tell you... You need to hop aboard the Busted Flush Express, roll on down to the dark back alleys of the Blvd. of the Broken Hips, and check yourself into the Prune-Fields Nursing Home where the tenants that are Damn Near Dead refuse to go quietly into the night and act as if they are still in there 20's. This trips only required reading is, Damn Near Dead, an Anthology of Geezer Noir that features some of the best short stories in the crime/mystery genre from writers today including: Ken Bruen, Steve Brewer, Jeff Abbott, and Sean Dolittle. This anthology is Damn Near one of the best anthologies I have read in along time. Its highly original and a brilliant idea to have all the main characters being senior citizens, especially in a genre that the main characters are usually in the late 20s on up to the 40s. From gun carrying granpas to cane-wielding grandmas to a 90 year old man getting that one last fling in with another woman to the Senior Citizens just looking to find ways to extend there lives through various forms of transplants these stories will humor you, excite you, and you probably won't look at your grandparents the same way again after reading this collection of stories. Out of 27 stories (all of which were great and perfectly excuted the concept) it was hard to pick out the best one in this anthology. However there were 2 that stuck out in my head once I finished the anthology, David White and Stuart MacBride. Both of these authors are people that mystery fans will want to remember. Congratulations go out to the editor Duane Sweirczynski and to David Thompson of Busted Flush Press you guys did an outstanding job on getting this together. From the authors all the way down to the nicely designed cover. So if you do happen to take this trip as I did you must remember one thing, Respect your elders and you might just survive your trip down the Blvd. of the Broken Hips.