Birmingham Noir: Urban Tales of Crime and Suspense [Paperback]

Dark-toned urban thrillers that combine graphic realism with emotional poignancy, steeped in the noir spirit of James Ellroy. Includes stories from John Harvey, author of the best-selling Resnick novels and acclaimed novelist Nicholas Royle. Discover the distinctive voices of Wayne Dean-Richards, Simon Avery, John Dalton and many more as life in the second city take a dark and violent turn.

‘LA, New York, London ... and now Birmingham reaches the noir pantheon. The heart of Midlands darkness evoked in a collection of bleak but fascinating stories by British crime authors of a particularly realistic bent. This is Britain today, for good or worse.’ Maxim Jakubowski

‘Birmingham Noir is lightning in a bottle – dark, smoky tales of a city’s underworld lit by starkly illuminating prose and genuine insights into the human condition. A brilliant collection of serious new writing from England’s heartland.’ Joolz Denby

‘Cold, dark and very brutal ... Birmingham Noir gives the mean streets of London and LA a run for their money. At a time when every US writer and film-maker seems obsessed with revealing the dark underbelly of the American dream, it’s an almost-relief to read stories that agree the overside is often as grim as the underside. Almost-relief because it still hurts – sometimes the good guys get away, always they become part of the pain.’ Stella Duffy

‘Dreams, as one of the contributors observes, are dangerous things – and danger lurks within these pages in an impressive kaleidoscope of settings. These are stories of betrayal, of communication breakdown and obsession. Some show the human cost of losing our ethics, while others reveal how madness can lurk in the supposed safety of a shopping mall or cathedral. But there is humour here too, and an awareness that we can make our lives better. Simon Avery’s perfectly observed narrative about moving on from a broken marriage is worth the cover price alone. Birmingham’s criminal underworld and sex industry are laid bare in these entertaining, saddening and shocking pages. Lock up your daughters, sons and the family cat until you’ve learned from these stories of crime in the city.’ Carol Anne Davis

Joel Lane is the author of a collection of short stories, The Earth Wire (Egerton Press, 1994); a collection of poems, The Edge of the Screen (Arc, 1999); and two novels, From Blue To Black (Serpent’s Tail, 2000) and The Blue Mask (Serpent’s Tail, January 2003). He has edited Beneath the Ground, an anthology of supernatural tales (Alchemy Press, 2002).

Steve Bishop writes noir, horror and dirty realist stories. Fronting the unique, award-winning Fix Film Club, he has promoted experimental film events, and also worked for the Fierce Arts Festival. He is currently writing a novel, The Birkenhead Book of the Dead, and is the author of several screenplays.