If you like mysteries told from a killer's perspective and don't mind a lot of blood and murder you may want to look into a little known subgenre called "noir fiction". These crime novels often combine obsessive passion with murder and always involve evil, weaving together just enough of the dark side to make one wonder. Most recently I came across an entertaining mystery that included all the noir characteristics, "Bad Thoughts" by Dave Zeltserman. I was so enticed by the tense, fast pace I immediately wanted another like it. Looking up the subject "noir fiction" I found we have at least 13 recent novels that you might also like to try. If you run out of recent material try the old classics gathered together in our short stories section, "Crime novels: American noir of the 1950s" and "Crime novels: American noir of the1930s and 40s".
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It was a nice surprise finding Bad Thoughts mentioned here.
ReplyDeleteMy own favorite noir books are:
Hell of a Woman by Jim Thompson
Savage Night by Jim Thompson
Swell-Looking Babe by Jim Thompson
Pop. 1280 by Jim Thompson
Double Indemnity by James M. Cain
The Name of the Game is Death by Dan Marlowe
Anyone's My Name by Seymour Shubin
The Woman Chaser by Charles Willeford
How Like a God by Rex Stout
Robbie's Wife by Russell Hill
I look at Bad Thoughts as more as a crime/horror thriller than noir, but "noir characteristics" is a good way to describe it. My first book, Fast Lane, is very noir, as is my third book, Small Crimes, out next March.
Thanks again for giving Bad Thoughts a read and a mention.