Throughout the years countless wordsmiths have produced their own story collections, but the book you are now holding is a love letter to the great anthologies of yesteryear, assembling stories by a variety of talents, packaged neatly and often connected by a singular theme.
Authors include:
Joe R. Lansdale
Richard Chizmar
Richard Christian Matheson
Max Allan Collins
John A. Russo
Stewart O'Nan, and more…
Violence has always been and always will be a constant product of human existence. Either as nations or individuals we continue to excel in its expression. Some very good authors have contributed to the A Time for Violence anthology and the editors have described it as “a love letter to the great anthologies of yesteryear.” I don’t really see it paying homage to any previous era as it has a right and relevance to current interpretation, although a violent love letter is a tantalising abstraction. I also don’t think of it as a celebration of violence but quite a diverse exploration of the range of scenarios and motivations violence can manifest itself.
The short stories in this anthology provide stylish writing from 28 assorted authors, including some well-known names in the crime genre. They each take a different tack to interpret the central theme in unpredictable fashion. You can’t be certain that fate won’t deal any of the protagonists fatal slap in the face – that’s the fun of the short story. We’re less invested in the characters and the writer isn’t tied to a novel-length narrative. So absolutely anything might happen…
A Time of Violence: Stories with an edge by multiple authors. Well, here we have it! I have finished this book of approximately 28 short (ish) stories. A gripping read with a variety of crime fiction. This anthology has been gathered from authors with varying degrees of success under their belts and I would say this is going to be very popular. Many of the authors have co-written their stories with other well-known authors and screenwriters. The authors include Max Collins, Joe Lansdale, John Russo, Richard Matheson, Bev Vincent, Stewart O’Nan and it has been edited by Chris Roy and Andy Rausch. Below is a short rundown of all the stories in this anthology to give you a little taster. It’s a thumbs up from me.
