So Akashic has finally put together BOSTON NOIR, a crime-fiction collection dealing with Beantown. With Dennis Lehane handling the editing, I had high hopes. Then when I scanned the list of writers included, my enthusiasm seriously dropped. It’s glaring that certain writers were not included or, I’m guessing, even asked to contribute.
First of all, Lehane does a serious no-no right away in his introduction by giving away the ending to what he calls the quintessential Boston crime novel: THE FRIENDS OF EDDIE COYLE. He also rips apart the idea of noir in general — great way to start a noir book! Over and over, the thing I kept saying to myself while reading was, “This is not noir, has barely anything to connect it with Boston, and what is the point of this being included?”
But there are three standouts that definitely need to be pointed out. The best story — and truly noir and Boston-centric — is Brendan DuBois’ “The Dark Island.” Taking place in the noir high point of the time after World War II, it deals with Detective Billy Sullivan, who is hired by a Seattle woman to retrieve a box of belongings from her now-dead fiancé from one of the Boston Harbor islands. It totally nails the old days of crime-ridden Boston, and I hope DuBois expands on his Sullivan character; this is a detective I would love to read more of.
Lehane’s own story, “Animal Rescue,” seems like a riff of the type of story George V. Higgins would write. In it, a con man named Bob makes his living tending bar in what used to be the stronghold of the old crime days. He discovers a beaten dog, which he rescues only because of a potential reward. It’s not full-on noir, but definitely gives the vibe of old-school Boston and why people would not screw with certain people.
Finally, we have the closing story, Russ Aborn’s “Turn Speed,” about a group of screw-ups who think they are well on their way to big-time crime back in the day. The only problem is that their grand scheme has the misfortune of stealing from the wrong person. Abron not only nails everything in the sense of it taking place in Boston areas, but throws in references that will please a certain crowd of beer drinkers. It’s a nice surprise,especially after reading most of the stories before it.
Some of those do get the whole idea of using Boston in them, but being set way back in colonial days is not noir. Telling some dark comic tale about a pedophile priest just doesn’t belong, either. Like previous anthologies in the series, there are three diamonds that should be checked out, while the rest feel like cubic zirconia. —Bruce Grossman
OTHER BOOKGASM REVIEWS OF THIS AUTHOR:
• CORONADO by Dennis Lehane
OTHER BOOKGASM REVIEWS OF THIS SERIES:
• BALTIMORE NOIR edited by Laura Lippman
• LAS VEGAS NOIR edited by Jarret Keene and Todd James Pierce
• MANHATTAN NOIR 2: THE CLASSICS edited by Lawrence Block
• PORTLAND NOIR edited by Kevin Sampsell
• ROME NOIR edited by Chiara Stangalino and Maxim Jakubowski
• SEATTLE NOIR edited by Curt Colbert
• TRINIDAD NOIR edited by Lisa Allen-Agostini and Jeanne Mason
