Welcome and Introductions

[Steve]

Melki wrote: "Welcome to the group, Steve.
Best of luck with your latest book."

Thanks, Melki. I appreciate it.

[Charles]

I don't think I ever bothered to introduce myself. I barged in here with a question about noir and hardboiled because I'd written about it in an academic book, and then disappeared. I will read just about everything from Defoe right up to Mankell and Atkinson, except for the more recent cozies and thrillers. At one point in my life I sat a library reference desk and occupied my down time reading Barzun and Taylor's Catalogue of Crime, and then as many of the books in it as I could find. I also write them -- In Uz,As Told To, and most recently The Sea are all crime novels. It's hard to find a face-to-face mystery discussion group which wants to talk about the old ones. I hope to pop up from time to time, when roused from torpid lurking.

[Melki, Femme fatale]

Well, I'd like to officially welcome you, Charles. Lurking is fine, but we're happy to see you chime in now and then.

[Phil]

Hi everybody! My name's Phil. I usually read hard-boiled, noir, and pulp in general. Tarantino's Pulp Fiction and Bukowski's Pulp are the works I love most. I'm sure there'll be plenty of food for thought and fun here.

[Melki, Femme fatale]

Welcome to the group, Phil.

[Anastasia]

Hi all, been a fan of hardboiled and crime fiction in general for quite a while(Mickey Spillane, Raymond Chandler, Lawrence Block etc.) I'd still love to think I have a lot more coming up my way.

And I do hope it doesn't sound like a start of an AA speech ;)

[David]

Hi,

I'm Dave and have been an avid sf - fantasy and thriller/crime fiction reader for years.

During the past two to three years I've discovered pulp fiction in most of the genres - adventure, detective, Western, horror, superhero, Aviation, Sports, etc.

My appetite has been fed through publishers such as Radioarchives and Altus a Press. Both publish ebooks and Altus press paperbacks and hardbacks.

I have enjoyed the reprint of stories from pulps such as Dime Mystery Magazine, Terror Tales, The Spider, Operator 5 etc.

I hope that thus group will provide an opportunity to share thoughts and recommendations.

Dave

[Adam]

Hi, I've only recently joined Goodreads because someone on here was kind enough to review one of my books, so I figured it was a friendly place. I came across your group and I must say it looks amazing.

I got into pulp novels through Edgar Rice Burroughs (whose crime fiction includes the Efficiency Expert and the wonderful Girl From Farris's) but didn't properly get into the genre until I discovered the Hard Case Crime books, which reprint the likes of Gil Brewer and Donald E Westlake, while printing new books from modern-day masters.

Flicking through your group it's amazing seeing how many people here are throwing these same names about, so I'm quite excited about joining.

Thanks for setting up such a large group for crime pulp. Now I think I might go see if I can find a similar one for fantasy romance pulp.

Happy New Year!
Adam

[Nancy]

Hello everyone
I'm Nancy and I'm addicted to quality crime fiction from all eras, although I read widely across different types of books and never limit myself. I've recently finished Nightfall, by David Goodis, and am planning on reading his Dark Passage here very shortly. I've also started a sort of project for myself this year, reading the works of obscure or forgotten women crime writers.

Happy to be here!

[Algernon (Darth Anyan), Hard-Boiled]

Welcome Nancy, I am interested also in reading some of these titles by women written in the forties and fifties. If you have some suggestions, they will be appreciated.

[Nancy]

Algernon wrote: "Welcome Nancy, I am interested also in reading some of these titles by women written in the forties and fifties. If you have some suggestions, they will be appreciated."

thank you for the welcome. So far, with the exception of A Dark Corner by Celia Dale (written in the 1970s), most have been interwar or directly postwar, and so far all have been from the UK.

[William]

Here are some you may want to check out: "The Blank Wall" by Elizabeth Sanxay Holding, a woman Raymond Chandler once called “the top suspense writer of them all;” "Stella Dallas" by Olive Higgins Prouty; Both of those are oldies: "Blank Wall" was written in 1947 and "Dallas"-- which is definitely noir, but without crime driving the plot -- was written in 1923. Crime author Jake Hinkson (The Big Ugly, The Posthumous Man) has compared Holding to Thompson, Goodis and Woolrich. There are a number of women working the contemporary noir genre who are as talented as any of the men, in my opinion: Bonnie Jo Campbell has a fine collection of rural noir in "American Salvage;" Vicki Hendricks did James M. Cain one better in "Miami Purity,"a novel about love, jealousy and premeditated and accidental homicide that has some of the best lines in it I have been lucky enough to read, Vicki also wrote a truly twisted collection of short stories, "Iguana Love," that borders precariously on Southern Gothic and noir. Some of Hillary Davidson's best noir has been her short stories for publications such as All Due Respect, Twist of Noir, Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine and Thuglit, but she has also written some fine hardboiled novels, including "The Damage Done" and "Blood Always Tells." And Patti Nase Abbott wrote a terrific "novel in stories" about a family of petty criminals called "Home Invasion." It is really first rate -- as good in many ways as any of Patricia Highsmith's work.

[Nancy]

Thanks! I have Elizabeth Sanxay Holding on tap but not that one -- I have whichever one is her first novel before I decide to read another.

Right now I'm getting ready to read The Punt Murder, by Aceituna Griffin -- another one from the UK but much more traditional.

[Bryan]

This is a great group! I can't believe how many books are on my radar just looking through this forum. I've always been drawn to noir and hardboiled themed books and movies and can't wait to wade through all the great information here. I just started my Blog about noir, I will be looking at books, movies and T.V. on that site and would love input from everybody here! Check out http://everythingnoir.com/.

[Mike]

Hello, folks. Just joined group and looking forward to reading through the past posts to add to my TBR list. Thank you! (I love Raymond Chandler, John MacDonald, Robert Parker.)

[Josh]

Algernon wrote: "Welcome Nancy, I am interested also in reading some of these titles by women written in the forties and fifties. If you have some suggestions, they will be appreciated."
Troubled Daughters, Twisted Wives: Stories from the Trailblazers of Domestic Suspense is great collection of women pulp writers. Sarah Weinman did a grand job editing it and giving the stories context. It was up for an Anthony Award this year,

[Algernon (Darth Anyan), Hard-Boiled]

thank you, Josh, I am definitely interested.

[Nancy]

Josh wrote: "Algernon wrote: "Welcome Nancy, I am interested also in reading some of these titles by women written in the forties and fifties. If you have some suggestions, they will be appreciated."
[book:Tro..."

Thank you!

[Robert]

Hello

Two of my all-time favorite authors are Chandler and Hammett, and No Country for Old Men introduced me to Cormac McCarthy.

My novel Descending Memphis is a detective/coming-of-age story set in 1956 Memphis and will be out in April 2015.

I look forward to getting recommendations on more books to read from the group.

Best,

Rob

[Jonesmikey]

Hi all, I love the LA Quartet by James Ellroy, and of course his American Underworld trilogy blew my freaking mind. Like Robert above me, it was the Coen brothers flick that introduced me to Cormac McCarthy. I've read all his novels, I suppose I could try his screenplays. Is Suttree noir?
I read Mildred Pierce a number of years ago because of a Sonic Youth song, not knowing anything of noir except for Calvin's alter ego: Tracer Bullet.

[Robert]

Hello Jonesmikey,

Cormac McCarthy writes about the dark side of life and violence but I wouldn't call his stories noir. At least not in the way Raymond Chandler's are. Suttree and Blood Meridian are my two favorite McCarthy novels. They're as much about writing and words as they are about plot and character (some would say even more so).

If you enjoyed Mildred Pierce you'll also like Postman. But in looking at your list, try reading Chandler if you are open to recommendations. Start with The Big Sleep and Farewell, My Lovely.

Best,

Rob

[Rach]

Hello everyone, my name is Reenie and I'm quite new here, I can't wait to discover more in this forum!
I first discovered this forum because of the Hard Case Crime books, so I'm a relative newbie, do you have any suggestions of must reads in this genre?
Many thanks!

[Mark]

Hard Case provides such a spectrum of genre that it would be hard to boil it down! If you prefer something contemporary, you might enjoy Dennis Lehane, Gillian Flynn, or some of the Hard Case authors who are still publishing - Lawrence Block, etc..

If you want the must reads, definitely check out Caine's "Postman Always Rings Twice" or anything by Raymond Chandler; both of those I recommend for extremely unique voice.

Hope this helps!

[Eden]

Hi there, I've recently published my hardboiled crime thriller, The Breaks, which is book one of an intended series and I'm currently working on the second (GET9). My intention was to prove a female protagonist could fulfil the loner convention of the genre something that literary critics have argued is not possible. I'll let readers decide if I was successful. I also teach fiction writing (novels, shorts, screenplays) and publishing at SSU.

My favourite authors include Andrew Vachss, Michael Connolly, Robert Crais, Dennis LeHane, Lee Child and Barry Eisler and I'm currently reading Nightmare Alley by William Gresham.

I look forward in taking part in some discussions with the group.

Best wishes,
Eden

[[deleted user]]

Hi All,

I just wanted to introduce myself. I'm a huge fan of noir, which is why I not only read it voraciously, but I also write it. My debut novel came out yesterday (I think I added it to this post, I'm new, so not sure) and I also have a noir short story that got nominated for an Anthony yesterday, so I'm still in The Twilight Zone. If anyone's interested, you can read the story for free or hear the podcast here. At any rate, I hope to be active here since this is my first Goodreads group and you seem like my peeps.

Cheers,

Craig Faustus Buck




Go Down Hard

[Mel]

HI everyone!

I'm Mel ...short for Melody.

I'm a crime fiction writer (short story publications only so far) and I just love pulp/crime works. Gil Brewer is one of my favorites.

Anyone want to add me as a friend and/or follow me on Facebook I'll follow back. https://www.facebook.com/pages/Mel-Cl...

[Melki, Femme fatale]

Hi, Mel. I'm a Melody, too - a name so unlike ME that even my mother started calling me Mel at an early age.

Welcome to the group and best of luck with your writing.

[Nik]

Hi all,

I'm a very small writer and can boast only 1.5 book self-published and probably even less sold, but genre wise I guess I belong here.

Nik Krasno

[Melki, Femme fatale]

Welcome. Nik. There are no small writers, only small readers or readerships, or something like that.

[Nik]

Thanks, Melki, I guess you got what I mean -:)

[Brian]

Humility will get you everywhere ;-O

[Nik]

Brian wrote: "Humility will get you everywhere ;-O"

Hi Brian, thanks for advice.
I'm not trying to get anywhere, I just co-wrote and wrote 2 books -:)
I think "small" is a pretty accurate estimate of where I stand at the moment as a writer until readers, experts, etc gave their feedback about my work. Anyhow, in my opinion it's more honest with myself and the others than ungrounded pretentiousness

[Robyn Russell]

Hello All! I'm Robyn, and I'm really happy that I stumbled across this group. Noir and Classic Detective Fiction are some of my favs, so this is going to be great!

[Melki, Femme fatale]

Glad you found us, Robyn. Welcome to the group.

[kohey]

Hello to everyone from Japan.
I'm very happy in joining you.
I'll be reading the Big Clock by Kenneth fearing after I'm through with Pop.1280.

[Melki, Femme fatale]

Welcome, Kohey.

The Big Clock has been highly recommended by several group members, so it looks like you're in for a great read.

Hope you're liking Pop. 1280. Thanks for reading along with the group.

[Bradford]

Hi all! Newbie here from Brighton on England's south-coast. Been reading pulp stuff for years now, yes it was Bukowski's Pulp that got me hooked, and now I've turned writer too. Just agreed a deal with New Pulp Press to do my first novel sometime before 2017 and thought it about time I make some friends online who may like my stuff. Anyway, introductions aside, hello!

[Melki, Femme fatale]

Welcome to the group, Bradford. That's great news about your book.

[Nisansala]

Hi, I'm Nisansala from Australia but currently in the UK. I've always been a fan of mystery, crime and action but only recently discovered Raymond Chandler's books, which I really love! I'm also reading The Maltese Falcon at the moment.

[Bradford]

Should also add that http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/19... is one of the greatest books ever written in any genre and arguably is Jim's greatest work in my humble opinion. The only one I can think comes close would be Hell of a Woman which is just uniquely brilliant. Also welcome Nisansala, where in the UK are you currently?

[Nisansala]

Bradford wrote: "Should also add that http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/19... is one of the greatest books ever written in any genre and arguably is Jim's greatest work in my humble opinion. The only..."

Thanks, Bradford. I'm nowhere near you - I'm way up in Northern England. :-)

[Nicole]

Greetings everyone. I'm Nicole Givens Kurtz and I write the futuristic pulp series, CYBIL LEWIS. I also enjoy reading mystery and thrillers and other pulp noir classics.

I'm glad I found this group.

[Melki, Femme fatale]

Welcome to the group, Nicole. We're glad you found us, too.

[Nicole]

Melki wrote: "Welcome to the group, Nicole. We're glad you found us, too."

Awesome. I write diverse spec so this is truly a good place to be. :)

[Matthew]

Hi Im Matthew from Southern California. Most of the books I read fall into the horror or dark lit genres, but I do enjoy pulp and noir as well. I'm here looking to be pointed in the right direction towards finding some great pulp authors since I'm relatively new to the genre. There's a lot of stuff out there that I have yet to discover. Anyway hello everyeone!

[Melki, Femme fatale]

Welcome, Matthew. You'll pick up many great suggestions reading through the topics here in the group, or you can click on our bookshelf to see the books we've read. I'm glad you decided to join us.

[Jon Ander]

Hi everybody! I'm Jon, from western Massachusetts. I just got into reading hard-boiled novels by the hand of Raymond Chandler, Dashiel Hammett and James M. Cain. Besides these classic and obvious choices, my experience doesn't go very far, so I'm thrilled to find some newer authors here!

[Melki, Femme fatale]

Welcome, Jon. You'll find plenty of titles to add to your to-read list by hanging around with this group.

[Shawn]

Hi to everyone. I'm Shawn, I enjoy hard-boiled and crime fiction. I still haven't read much of the genre, but there are so many books out there that I can't wait to read. My favourite Is Dashiell Hammett's Red Harvest. I've also read a few Mike Hammer novels by Mickey Spillane and am currently reading Spillane's The Deep as well as Hammett's The Thin Man. Aside from liking the books of this genre, I am also fascinated with movies, TV Shows and Graphic Novels, as well. I look forward to meeting like-minded crime fiction fans as well as joining in the book of the month discussions!



Greetings From British Columbia.

Shawn

[Algernon (Darth Anyan), Hard-Boiled]

Welcome Shawn, you've come to the righ place: he have a lively discussion on movies, as well as novels, and we plan to have a group read on comics in the following months.

Spillane is an author I haven't yet tried, thinking it will be to violent for my own tastes, but since I enjoyed Sin City, I guess he can't be much darker than Miller.