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description=Author of Small Crimes, Caretaker of Lorne Field, Julius Katz and more. Discover the mysteries, horror, crime, and thrillers from Dave Zeltserman.;

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ker of lorne field a killer s essence julius katz mysteries the hunted the dame audio books pariah small crimes praise for monster this is juicy material for franken fans and zeltserman is just faithful enough to the original that his many fresh contributions feel entirely normal well abnormal to be accurate but deliciously so daniel kraus booklist starred review this reworking of frankenstein is chilling and captivating a tale of justice true love and ultimate forgiveness this gruesome novel is perfect for fans of stephen king and similar horror stories foreword magazine pick of the week zeltserman keeps the action moving relentlessly forward with minimal padding either in terms of plot or prose the action is tight and there s no shade of purple in his style but there s plenty going on thematically wbur radio a rich and fun response to shelley s classic publisher s weekly magnificently horrific a surprisingly profound reimagining of the mary shelley horror classic frankenstein paul goat allen barnes noble zeltserman follows shelley s roadmap just enough to infuse the proceedings with a degree of familiarity yet his point of view and unique deviations from the original story make every page a joy to read monster is a book that horror fans and literature aficionados can read with equal gusto bookreporter dave zeltserman s monster is an ingenious interpretation of shelley s tale his highly readable style harmonizes beautifully with its 19th century european setting monster is a must read for anyone who enjoys horror stories and shivers when boris karloff s pale fingers twitch back into life historical novels review praise for the caretaker of lorne field superb mix of humor and horror publishers weekly starred review superbly crafted horror story booklist harrowing zeltserman colors it black with the best of them kirkus reviews a very darkly funny dark fantasy locus magazine a nail biter library journal the caretaker of lorne field is a wonderfully weird gritty and pitch dark legend perfect for new england weaved in the compulsively readable narrative is a heavy dose of our current society s meanness unease and ambiguity kind of a nightmare noir zeitgeist the thing of it is the reader is never safe in dave zeltserman s hands i love that you should too paul tremblay praise for 21 tales dave zeltserman is one of the crime genre s most accomplished radical and innovative talents his command of style and personal dark vision of the world are framed in the short form to reach out and shake the reader by the throat i only wish that 21 tales had been 51 tales or 101 tales we need more of his edgy stories to rattle the field tom piccirilli author of shadow season zeltserman s twisty tailed gems drag you deep into pulpland bitch slap you dizzy and leave you begging for more roger smith deadpan and more ruthless than ever zeltserman pulls off one clever shocker after another in classic pulp style not for the faint hearted vicki hendricks in a relatively short period of time dave zeltserman has established himself as the most relevant author of dark crime fiction working today as usual dave doesn t pull any punches and his 21 tales is inventive nasty pulpy fun paul tremblay dave zeltserman s stories demonstrate that he s as masterful with the short story as he is with the novel the same stunning level of craft and the same lacerating vision this is an important collection ed gorman dave zeltserman s 21 stories has enough twists and turns and plot reversals to give o henry whiplash readers should expect the unexpected zeltserman delivers some dark and disturbing fun in these stories lynn kostoff praise for killer spare prose and assured pacing place this above most other contemporary noirs publisher s weekly dave zeltserman is at it again writing about ex con antiheroes with the kind of panache that would make jim thompson king of the psycho killer novels proud boston globe with graphic imagery and exciting twists this novel is impossible to put down and has a surprising ending a brilliant read aberdeen press journal this novel is everything hard boiled fiction should be compact direct and disciplined and concerned with humans rather than stereotypes it is also for all its violent subject matter a quietly told story which makes its tension all the more intense mat coward morning star written in a spare terse style and with chapters alternating between past and present we slowly learn more about march but even then the closing chapters present a devastating twist and shocking conclusion sunday tribune in his latest novel about a man just out of prison following small crimes and pariah dave zeltserman displays a genius for capturing the brute facts of survival on the outside leonard is disarmingly sympathetic which makes the novel s surprise conclusion even more disturbing howard county times finishing off his men out of prison trilogy dave zeltserman delivers killer which does nothing else but prove to readers that he is truly the king of boston crime this is not some overwrought long winded attempt at noir but streamlined punch to the gut writing bookgasm killer is a major novel of crime ed gorman this is vintage zeltserman and that means there s always a tail with a sting be warned roger smith dave zeltserman s killer is simply one of the best crime novels i ve read not in a long time not in ages not this year but ever juri nummelin pulpetti this excellent tale moves along at a great pace as march tries to redefine himself after prison and reconnect with his children the chapters alternate between present day and flashbacks to his days as a hitman there are twist and turns in this novel that will keep you guessing until the last page if crime fiction is at all for you you should check this book out because zeltserman is a new master 410media in a nutshell superbly written with a real twist in the tale killer is a novel which will appeal to lovers of crime fiction and the general readers alike as a reader who usually crosses the road to get away from crime fiction zeltserman has single handedly convinced me that i should rethink my long established custom of shying away from the genre robaroundbooks to put it simply killer is a brilliant character study that will rip the literary rug right out from under the reader s tightly curled toes corey wilde the drowning pool here at the bookbag we ve been very impressed with dave zeltserman s work thus far he uses a wonderful noirish narrative that takes you straight to the heart of the story his story telling is very straightforward not weighing down the story with too much style but sticking to the substance and delivering a hard hitting work every time with killer he has done the same again iain wear thebookgag co uk praise for pariah a doozy of a doom laden crime story that not only makes merry with the justice system but also satirizes the publishing industry washington post best books of 2009 darkly enjoyable clear crisp prose his fearless portrait of amorality and his smart plotting what a fine addition to the local literary scene he s become boston globe pariah is a terrific blast metro uk take dave zeltserman s pariah an entry in what i think of as the whitey bulger sweepstakes fictions based on the fugitive boston irish mobster to date include george v higgins 2000 novel at the end of the day and the oscar winning martin scorsese film the departed zeltserman writing in the pitch black comic tradition of jim thompson or charles willeford deserves to stand in such exalted company chauncey mabe palm beach arts paper with this book zeltserman entrenches his position as the ranking neo noirist putting a contemporary spin on a tradition that goes way back to thompson and james m cain if you like your fiction dark lean and uncompromising pariah has to be at the top of your list roger smith crime beat south africa it s the kind of book that is going to spoil whatever i read next as it s going to be found wanting compared to this the bookbag pariah is sure to catapult zeltserman head and shoulders above other boston authors this is not only a great crime book but a gripping read that will crossover to allow greater exposure for this rising talent bruce grossman bookgasm pariah is one of the most crazed hilarious bitter brutal novels this side of those composed on violent wards ed gorman pariah is all i know of bliss and lament bliss at reading a superb novel and lament at knowing that dave zeltserman has now raised the bar so high we re screwed ken bruen pariah is my pick for crime novel of the year tough relentless and packed with blunt force trauma the book uses a whitey bulger inspired premise as the framework for a disturbing and darkly satirical study of a psychopath hard feelings this book just sucked the air right out of me it s more than great noir this book s got teeth that bite and claws that catch and it s a masterpiece if you revere the dark tales of charles willeford jim thompson and james m cain add dave zeltserman s name to your list i promise you that in years to come when those first three names are mentioned so will the fourth corey wilde the drowning pool this is a masterpiece seymour shubin for those who prefer the darker slice of life pariah will keep you glued to its pages the chain reaction of kyle nevin s release from prison on the world around him is the stuff of nuclear explosions violent sexual and relentless there are no holds barred anywhere in this wonderful launch into evil the meek beware be very ware charlie stella pariah is sharply satirical and mean as a junkyard dog with a burr on its butt bill crider mean like bad whiskey and sophisticated like good scotch pariah is a rare find and a scorching read cortright mcmeel its rare that a meta novel ends up being entertaining as well as clever but dave zeltserman s excellent new novel pariah manages that trick very successfully at once a noir ish kidnap novel and an attack on the nature of celebrity memoir plagiarism and the worst excesses of the publishing industry crime scene scotland praise for small crimes there s a new name to add to the pantheon of the sons and daughters of cain dave zeltserman npr s top 5 crime and mystery novels of 2008 a thing of beauty spare but ingeniously twisted and imbued with a glossy coating of black humor maureen corrigan washington post s best books of 2008 zeltserman s breakthrough third crime novel deserves comparison with the best of james ellroy publisher s weekly starred review a jim thompson mentality on a norman rockwell setting small crimes is a strong piece of work lean and spare but muscular where a noir novel should be with a strong central character whom we alternately admire and despise boston globe small crimes is one of the finest dark suspense novels i ve read in the past few years ed gorman small crimes has plenty of crime but obsession hubris and evil pure and impure are at the heart of this vivid noir booklist thomas gaughan a dark masterpiece crimespree magazine zeltserman masterfully controls the action offering dark noir fiction in the best jim thompson tradition lansing state journal the characterisation and mental torment are reminiscent of the insightful psychological thrillers of jim thompson stunning stuff cath staincliffe tangled web zeltserman creates an intense atmospheric maze for readers to observe denton s twisting and turning between his rocks and hard places denton is one of the best realised characters i have read in this genre and the powerfully noir ish uncompromising plot which truly keeps one guessing from page to page culminates with a genuinely astonishing finale david connett sunday express this loamy smorgasboard of salvation and revenge has both a violent and comic edge marking zeltserman as a name to watch crime time praise for bad thoughts a compellingly clever wheels within wheels thriller an ingenious plot skillfully executed elliott swanson booklist this fast paced gritty psychological tale balances the fine line between mystery and horror library journal bad thoughts is an ambitious genre bender combining the paranoia and existential dread of the best noir with a liberal dash of the twilight zone not to be missed poisoned pen s booknews dark brutal captivating this is one hell of a book the kind of book that doesn t let go of you once you start it dave zeltserman is clearly the real deal steve hamilton dave zeltserman s bad thoughts is a fast moving occult thriller with taut dialogue and smart likeable characters darkness pervades the bay state in the late 1990 s and detective bill shannon will be lucky to solve a standard missing person s case in one piece in fact as the story unfolds we see that death and dismemberment could be the least of bill s worries pour yourself a fifth of scotch get an easy chair grab a protective talisman and enjoy adrian mckinty author of dead i well may be and hidden river praise for fast lane in the last few years there have been a number of writers such as ken bruen and victor gischler who ve taken the classic pi novel and tweaked the hell out of it creating something fresh and unique add dave zeltserman to the list several pages into his debut i knew that i was reading something special poisoned pen s book news hardboiled crime club selection for those of us who believed jim thompson would never be equaled great tidings he s back in the form of dave zeltserman hilarious in the darkest fashion violent bitter psychotic and unputdownable ken bruen what begins as rather standard and chandleresque masks a tale that spirals downward into a pit of noir lies betrayal murder and worse private eye johnny lane helps a woman find her birth parents but things soon get out of hand a likeable pi with a hidden jim thompson darkside that gets out of control and seems to know no depths it s there gary lovisi hardboiled magazine fast lane has everything i relish in a noir novel an ingenious twisting plot characters i took to heart though i wouldn t want to take some of them home and a pace that kept me riveted to a book i couldn t tear away from in one long deep into the night reading seymour shubin fast lane is a wild ride on the darkest noir side of the street zeltserman has updated jim thompson themes of character and situation to forge a private eye novel where everything that can go wrong does with highly entertaining if very grim results jeff gelb blog archive 2026 3 may 1 and the 2026 edgar award for best short story april 1 january 1 2025 48 december 4 november 2 october 1 september 4 august 15 july 3 may 2 march 4 february 6 january 7 2024 12 december 2 november 4 september 1 june 2 may 1 february 2 2023 17 december 2 november 3 october 1 september 2 august 3 july 4 may 1 january 1 2022 3 october 1 august 1 january 1 2021 9 november 1 october 2 august 1 july 3 may 1 april 1 2020 13 december 3 october 1 august 1 july 1 may 2 february 1 january 4 2019 19 december 3 november 1 august 1 july 1 june 1 ...