Welcome and Introductions

[Lawrence]

Welcome, Andrew!

[Raistlin]

Hello everyone,

My name is Raistlin Skelley, I'm a neo-noir crime writer from Southwestern Pennsylvania. Most of my favorite writers are dead and every book I read makes me think I'm less and less well read. I have self-published a few books but that's a separate matter. I'm also brand new to Goodreads and kind of feel like I'm on a spaceship.

Thank you for having me.

[Melki, Femme fatale]

Welcome, Raistlin. Joining groups is a good way to connect with fellow readers, and grow your expanding to-read list. Best of luck with your books.

[Jack]

Jack from Texas.

Love good NOIR whether books or movies. There are a number of solid new authors of detective series in addition to the established classics of the 1930's, 1940's, and 1950's. All great fun!

[[deleted user]]

Evening,

Just discovered this group.

I am an author of a variety of books and my new one is a Sci-fi Noir series set in a Dystopian future, once I can get the link fixed to GR that is.

So anyway glad to hear Noir is alive and well!

[Tia]

Michael wrote: "Welcome, I've started this group because I'm addicted to Goodreads and I wanted a good place to talk about my favourite genre; pulp. I'm sure as the group grows it will evolve into more crime style..."

Greetings.

I love pulp so I joined your group as Pulp, like other genres of crime fiction, now get a bad rap if they aren't G-rated Jessica Fletcher tales.

Now check out my group - "Be A Fucking Adult: Uncensored Fiction With No Warnings" https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/...

We'd love to have a dedicated conversation about uncensored adult pulp on there.

[Elen]

Hello Everyone,
I'm Elen. I write paranormal mystery/romance but I like reading hard boiled crime. I'm suffering from a dearth of anything worth reading and hoping this group can help😊. Every time I try a new crime author I just can't believe how naive and gormless the detectives are *rolls eyes*, so I'm looking forward to seeing what you guys read.
Cheers

[David]

Hi Everyone,

I'm David. I love Noir Films and Hardboiled Mysteries. Looks like a really great group!

[RJ - Slayer of Trolls, Private Eye]

David wrote: "Hi Everyone,

I'm David. I love Noir Films and Hardboiled Mysteries. Looks like a really great group!"

Welcome David!

[Patrick]

Pocket bio: Retired humanities teacher, residing in Tlaxcala, Mexico, with two dogs and six indoor cats. Passionate about literature, history, philosophy, classical music and opera, cinema, and similar subjects. Nostalgic guy. Politically centrist. BA in American Studies from Yale; MAs in English and Education from Boston University. Born in northern New Jersey. Have lived and worked in San Francisco, Chicago, northern Nevada, northeast Wisconsin, South Korea. More detail at Goodreads profile.

[Melki, Femme fatale]

That's quite the resume, Patrick. Welcome to the group.

[Will]

Greetings everyone. I recently joined and wanted to say hello. Relevant to this group, I'm a big fan of hardboiled, noir, neo-noir, and gangland/gangster stories. It can be pulpy or more on the "literary" end of the spectrum (which, I'd say, are not always mutually exclusive categories). Some favorite authors across these interrelated genres include Jim Thompson, Cornell Woolrich, Mickey Spillane, Raymond Chandler, Max Allan Collins, Richard Stark (Donald E. Westlake), Martina Cole, Barry Gifford, James M. Cain, and a host of others.

I might pop in to the discussion threads now and again.

I hope everyone is getting some good reading time in, and enjoying themselves.

Thanks for having me.

[Melki, Femme fatale]

Will wrote: "Greetings everyone. I recently joined and wanted to say hello. Relevant to this group, I'm a big fan of hardboiled, noir, neo-noir, and gangland/gangster stories. It can be pulpy or more on the "li..."

Welcome, Will. I hope you decide to pop in frequently. You have excellent taste in authors.

[Will]

Melki wrote: "Welcome, Will. I hope you decide to pop in frequently. You have excellent taste in authors."

Thank you, Melki. That is kind of you to say.

[Melki, Femme fatale]

As his reward (or punishment, depending on how you look at it) for commenting so much in the group, RJ - Slayer of Trolls (aka Henry Bemis) has been made a moderator. Please feel free to congratulate or sympathize with him. Your choice.

[Lawrence]

Welcome Will, i'll find a dark fedora for you.

And congratulations RJ-Slayer of Trolls. I have kidded you about Bemis, though I hope your significant other doesn't scribble on the pages of your books preventing you from reading them.

[Will]

Lawrence wrote: "Welcome Will, i'll find a dark fedora for you.

That, and a blued Smith & Wesson Model 10 .38 Special. ;-)

[RJ - Slayer of Trolls, Private Eye]

Melki wrote: "As his reward (or punishment, depending on how you look at it) for commenting so much in the group, RJ - Slayer of Trolls (aka Henry Bemis) has been made a moderator. Please feel free to congratula..."

Thank you Melki for showing me the Secret Moderator Handshake. I am still waiting for my Moderator Decoder Ring to arrive; in might have been delayed in the shipping process due to Tropical Storm Hillary's recent visit to southern California, but I'm hoping it gets here soon.

Thank you as well, Lawrence. And welcome to the group, Will.

I'm especially happy to be named a Moderator for this group, not only because I have such a soft spot in my heart for Detective Fiction (and other genre stories) from the pulp magazines, but also because of all the wonderful and insightful group members here. I've enjoyed meeting folks and discussing books here for a few years now, and I've learned a lot too. Most importantly, I don't recall a lot of bickering or arguing during my time here - everyone is respectful of each other and able to accept dissenting opinions and viewpoints, which is rare at Goodreads (or anywhere else) these days. So I'm looking forward to this very much.

A little about me, if anyone is interested: I live in southern California, I'm a single dad with a daughter who plays Division I College Basketball out of state, and - like most of you I suspect - I love to read. I usually have several books working at once from a mix of several different genres - general fiction/classics, non-fiction, mystery/crime, science-fiction, fantasy, horror/weird and I love to read short stories too.

I look forward to helping Melki and Algernon and Michael continue to make this group the best home in Goodreads for those who enjoy Pulp Fiction.

By the way, is it weird if I've gone around all day singing "New Moderator" to the tune of "Smooth Operator" by Sade? I hope not...

[Algernon (Darth Anyan), Hard-Boiled]

Congratulations RJ,
I'm thinking myself right now of the Butcher from the Diablo games, and his catchphrase:

Fresh Meat!

[RJ - Slayer of Trolls, Private Eye]

Algernon (Darth Anyan) wrote: "Congratulations RJ,
I'm thinking myself right now of the Butcher from the Diablo games, and his catchphrase:

Fresh Meat! "

Thanks Algernon. I have flowers for you. ;-)

[Melki, Femme fatale]

RJ - Slayer of Trolls wrote: "Thanks Algernon. I have flowers for you..."

[Will]

Melki wrote: "As his reward (or punishment, depending on how you look at it) for commenting so much in the group, RJ - Slayer of Trolls (aka Henry Bemis) has been made a moderator. Please feel free to congratula..."

Congratulations, RJ - Slayer of Trolls!

[RJ - Slayer of Trolls, Private Eye]

Will wrote: "Congratulations, RJ - Slayer of Trolls!"

Thank you, Will.

[Chad]

Hi all. My name is Chad and I’m from New Jersey. I’m glad that I found the group. I read a fair amount but never really dipped much into crime or noir. I have read a few by Raymond Chandler and liked them very much but I never went much further. In the past two weeks I read both The Hunter and Killer Inside Me and decided that I want to read more. I’ve been poking around the threads here and it looks like I am in the right place.

[RJ - Slayer of Trolls, Private Eye]

Chad wrote: "Hi all. My name is Chad and I’m from New Jersey. I’m glad that I found the group. I read a fair amount but never really dipped much into crime or noir. I have read a few by Raymond Chandler and lik..."

Welcome, Chad! This sounds like the right place for you if you like Chandler, Stark and Thompson. It just so happens I'm currently reading Chandler's The Little Sister right now and enjoying it very much.

[Adrian]

Hi guys. I’m a huge fan of crime novels, thrillers and hardboiled fiction of all kinds. I’m also a television writer — I created the syfy series ASCENSION, worked on many others, and directed the divisive indie thriller EAT ME. I’ve recently written my first novella, BITE THE BULLET, a stylish street crime noir and I am actively looking for ARC readers to give it an honest review here on GoodReads if anyone is interested. It comes out May 14th 2024 from NEOTEXT, so if you have the time to read and review in the next 2 weeks hit me up! I’d be super grateful — it’s like the unholy offspring of Elmore Leonard, Dylan Thomas and just a touch of Eminem’s lyrical flare.

[RJ - Slayer of Trolls, Private Eye]

Adrian wrote: "Hi guys. I’m a huge fan of crime novels, thrillers and hardboiled fiction of all kinds. I’m also a television writer — I created the syfy series ASCENSION, worked on many others, and directed the d..."

Hi Adrian, thank you for joining us. It's always great to meet another fan of crime novels and hardboiled fiction. Next month's group read will be Hard Rain Falling by Don Carpenter. I hope you will join us for the discussion. Our poll for the June group read should be posted by tomorrow so drop by and vote for your favorite choice.

As an author, you are welcome to promote your own writings in the Writer's/Blogger Corner section, which you can find here: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/group...

We look forward to talking about books with you!

[Chad]

Hey all. I’ve been here for a bit. I wasn’t sure where to ask this so I’ll ask it right here. Can anyone recommend anything pulpy and crime ridden that is “safe” for a 13 year old boy? My one 13 year old nephew actually loves reading. None of my other nephews or nieces do. I’d like to get him something in the genre that he will enjoy but will not make his mom (who could take me in a fight) angry with me.

[Algernon (Darth Anyan), Hard-Boiled]

Chad wrote: "Hey all. I’ve been here for a bit. I wasn’t sure where to ask this so I’ll ask it right here. Can anyone recommend anything pulpy and crime ridden that is “safe” for a 13 year old boy? My one 13 ye..."

Safe is a relative word. I was already reading Chandler and Cheney at 13. I think a good start would Dashiell Hammett: the classic Maltese Falcon or my personal favorite Red Harvest.
for Pulp. I just finished recently a novel Alistair MacLean - he is probably one of the safest with mostly testosterone filled action in his earlier and better novels. For something easier and fun, the Dortmunder series by Donald Westlake.

[Chad]

Thank you, Algernon. I’ll take at look at those.

[a.g.e. montagner]

I realised I haven't introduced myself yet.

I'm Alessandro, from Italy. I'm a graduate student of Anglo-American and Spanish American literature and I teach in the field. Recently I've been trying to expand my Goodreads membership into more unfamiliar genres, and this group enticed me.

[Daniel]

Hey all, Dan here. I'm a musician who's written a novel, kind of a rock and roll noir. I've found a great indie publisher for the book and we're getting it in shape. Thanks for having me.

[RJ - Slayer of Trolls, Private Eye]

Daniel wrote: "Hey all, Dan here. I'm a musician who's written a novel, kind of a rock and roll noir. I've found a great indie publisher for the book and we're getting it in shape. Thanks for having me."

Welcome, Daniel!

[Derek]

Howdy everyone,

Like all here, just a big fan of the pulps and noir fiction. Got started listening to Old Time Radio detectives in my youth, picked up some Chandler, middle middle middle and here we are. I'm currently about to crack open "Five Decembers" by James Kestrel, and also listening to "March Violets" by Phillip Kerr (with a fantastic narration from John Lee, might I add).

Hoping I might hop into the next monthly book discussion here as well, happy to be here!

[RJ - Slayer of Trolls, Private Eye]

Derek wrote: "Howdy everyone,

Like all here, just a big fan of the pulps and noir fiction. Got started listening to Old Time Radio detectives in my youth, picked up some Chandler, middle middle middle and here ..."

Hi Derek, and welcome! You found the right place for Chandler and Kerr, not to mention Hard Case Crime books. I'll be interested to hear what you think of the Kestrel book. As for March Violets, that's one of my all-time favorites. I've read it and listened to the audiobook and, you're right, Lee does a terrific reading.

I'll look forward to hearing your thoughts on your reads. Hope to see you in some of our monthly book read discussions also.

[K.]

Longtime fan of noir and thrillers and my first noir novel releases in a few weeks. Love Raymond Chandler grit and sardonic attitude and Mick Herron's characters and dialog.

Looking for a few ARC readers for the book, but didn't want to overstep the rules of the community.

Thanks!

[RJ - Slayer of Trolls, Private Eye]

Welcome to the group, K.

Feel free to promote your book in our "Writer's/Blogger's Corner" section which can be found here: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/group...

[Mikhail]

I'm happy I found this group, where have you been all my life! I enjoy all good fiction, but I have a soft spot for classic detective novels. Rex Stout hooked me on the genre! I'm writing a detective noir series and I would love feedback from people who like this genre. I post chapters as I complete them, so signup on my website if you're interested. Threecrowbooks.com

[Jennifer]

Hi, I'm Jennifer.
I live in Phoenix, where we have a great indie bookstore called The Poisoned Pen. It specializes in crime and thrillers, and has gotten a lot of my money.
My favorites are Woolrich, Jim Thompson and Hughes.

[RJ - Slayer of Trolls, Private Eye]

Mikhail wrote: "I'm happy I found this group, where have you been all my life! I enjoy all good fiction, but I have a soft spot for classic detective novels. Rex Stout hooked me on the genre! I'm writing a detecti..."

Hi Mikhail! I'm glad you found us. Feel free to promote your work in the Writer's/Blogger's Corner section of our club.

[RJ - Slayer of Trolls, Private Eye]

Jennifer wrote: "Hi, I'm Jennifer.
I live in Phoenix, where we have a great indie bookstore called The Poisoned Pen. It specializes in crime and thrillers, and has gotten a lot of my money.
My favorites are Woolri..."

Hi Jennifer! I grew up in Mesa and went to ASU. I'm always happy not to be in Arizona anymore when the calendar flips to July and August. It got to 122 F once when I lived there and they had to close down the airport because the jets weren't certified to take off in temperatures over 120 F.

Woolrich, Hughes and especially Thompson are among my favorites as well.

[Franky]

Jennifer wrote: "Hi, I'm Jennifer.
I live in Phoenix, where we have a great indie bookstore called The Poisoned Pen. It specializes in crime and thrillers, and has gotten a lot of my money.
My favorites are Woolri..."

Hi Jennifer, welcome to the group! A lot of good books here and discussion. I am a big fan of Woolrich also.

[Jennifer]

RJ - Slayer of Trolls wrote: "Jennifer wrote: "Hi, I'm Jennifer.
I live in Phoenix, where we have a great indie bookstore called The Poisoned Pen. It specializes in crime and thrillers, and has gotten a lot of my money.
My fav..."

Thank you! I'm looking forward to exploring this group more.