Montana Noir

By Akashic Books

Eric Heidle's "Ace in the Hole" nominated for a 2018 Edgar Award for Best Short Story!

A Parade magazine pick, included in "Books We Love" section

"What could be a more unlikely breeding ground for noir fiction than Montana, whose wide-open landscapes seem the polar opposite of the mean streets of Los Angeles? Yet certain noir standbys prove both malleable and fertile in these 14 new stories...If Montana has a dark side, is anywhere safe from noir?"
--Kirkus Reviews

"Terrific...Montana Noir is one of the high points in Akashic's long-running and justly celebrated Noir series...Editors Grady and Graff's selections...are all sharply attuned to their settings and to the ways those varying landscapes reflect the darkness within the people who walk the streets or drive the country roads."
--Booklist

"14 stories set in Big Sky Country. Much like a travel map that divides Montana into regions, this volume is partitioned into four sections that reflect the geography of the state: Copper Power, The Hi-Line, Custer Country, and Rivers Run...Montana, and others live in the state; all the authors have strong emotional ties to the area's particular lifestyle. The editors tout this book as the first-ever anthology of Montana-set noir short stories. Fans of the genre and regional fiction will be intrigued."
--Library Journal XPress Reviews

"There's no shortage of misbehavior in this book. But there's also no shortage of excellent writing by some of Montana's finest authors. The book included work by Thomas McGuane, Jamie Ford, Walter Kirn, Debra Magpie earling and eight others. Thwey're all Montanans, every one, and their subjects are as varied and unique as the state itself."
--Montana Quarterly

"Even though Montana's beauty makes the idea of dark alleys and neon lights seem incongruous, noir also represents struggle, and doing the wrong thing for the right reasons...There can never be a happy ending in noir but there can be the possibility of redemption. It's the little guy against big forces and as Montanans, we can all appreciate that fight."
--Billings Gazette

Akashic Books continues its award-winning series of original noir anthologies, launched in 2004 with Brooklyn Noir. Each book comprises all new stories, each one set in a distinct location within the geographic area of the book. Grady and Graff, both Montana natives, masterfully curate this collection of hard-edged Western tales.

Brand-new stories by: David Abrams, Caroline Patterson, Eric Heidle, Thomas McGuane, Janet Skeslien Charles, Sidner Larson, Yvonne Seng, James Grady, Jamie Ford, Carrie La Seur, Walter Kirn, Gwen Florio, Debra Magpie Earling, and Keir Graff.

From the introduction by James Grady and Keir Graff:

This anthology is a road trip through the dreams and disasters of the true Montana, stories written by authors with Montana in their blood, tales that circle you around the state through its cities and small towns. These are twenty-first century authors writing timeless sagas of choice, crime, and consequences...You'll meet students and strippers, cops and cons, druggies and dreamers, cold-eyed killers and caught-in-their-gunsights screwed-up souls.

But mostly, through all our fiction here, you'll meet quiet heroes and see the noir side of life that makes our Montana as real as it is mythic. No doubt the state's beauty will still make the very idea of Montana Noir seem incongruous to some. Noir is black-and-white. Streets and alleys. Flashing neon lighting a rain-streaked window. But while noir was definitely an urban invention, it knows no boundaries. Noir is struggle. It's doing the wrong thing for the right reasons. It's being trapped. It's hubris. It's being defeated yet going on. Sometimes it's being defeated and not going on.

That's life everywhere. This is our Montana.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Akashic Books
• Release date: Aug 21, 2017
• ISBN: 9781617756054

Reviews for Montana Noir

[jolynne-4 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

My first of the Akashic Noir Series, this one showcasing the dark side of Montana. Interesting stories for sure. I was glad to see two Indigenous (Montana Natives also) authors included in the series.

[charlottem_63 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

You can never go wrong with Thomas McGuane. Another really good Akashic Noir

[nickknight_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Another great anthology from Akashic Noir. Montana would not be the first place to come to mind as the setting for a noir anthology, but the authors of the 14 stories in this book do an amazing and fantastic job of proving that statement wrong. I highly recommend getting this or any other anthology in the noir series. You will not be disappointed.

[emscape · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This collection of darkly themed stories that take place in various parts of Montana was mostly okay. There were a few that I really didn't understand what was happening, even at the end. For the most part, I didn't care for the protagonists of the stories, although I'm pretty sure that's common in noir. I did appreciate learning more about Montana geography and history, particularly the history of the treatment of Native people. I see quite a few of these noir collections offered on LT Early Reviewers and thought I would try one out. I don't think they're for me.

[seeword · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Another great anthology from the Akashic Noir series. While I preferred some stories to others, there are no duds in this one. We have a returning vet, a stripper, an ex-con, naive con men, teenagers on the brink, oldsters with dementia, bullies--all out for mayhem, a fast buck, and, of course, revenge. It's all there under The Big Sky.

[chazzifrazz · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I received this through the Early Reviewers Giveaway for July. I have previously read "Oakland Noir"."Montana Noir" is a collection of short stories by authors that may not be on the top reading lists, but really can create a strange and dark look into life. Their abilities to work words into glimpses of life in the worlds of people down on their luck by choice or the whim of life, can leave you thinking of the characters for a good bit after reading.Montana may be the state of the Big Sky but there is also a darkness and harshness to be found under that sky.War heroes who return, dead or alive, with horrific stories to tell. Carla "Train Wreck" Lewis, the female boxer who refused to take a dive and came back home to recuperate and find another fight to face. Benson, the student who lied his way into college to impress a friend only to be found out and wind up living in a trailer trash world. The pizza delivery guy who works the night shift high on pills and what he discovers about "Crush," the fellow driver who trained him in all the tricks to make big tips. All take place in various locales in the state and not all the narrators give their names. It is just what they have done that is important.I find that I do find myself thinking and rethinking some of these stories. If noir is a genre you like, then this is a book you should read.

[sean191 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Another win in the Akashic Noir series. This series has proven time and time again that anthologies don't have to be a mixed bag of bright spots and dark spots. In this case, every story - even though they're dark...are bright spots. The only reservations I have with a full endorsement is that the stories are dark...not overly gruesome or graphic in violence, especially if you were to compare to say, Chuck Palahniuk. But still, probably disturbing enough to make some people a little uncomfortable.

[sigmundfraud · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

As my readers know I like setting in fiction and what could be better than the Akashic Books Noir series. I love the Montana scenery and Montana Noir has it all in spades. Mountains, plains, deserts, smelters, mines, oil rigs, small towns with low rent people. It is all there and all wonderful.If Montana intrigues you you will enjoy this book as much as I did. For me the best story in the book was the first one, RED, WHITE AND BUTTE by David Abrams.

[bradkautz · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Montana Noir is a collection of fourteen short stories of the noir variety. They are set in places scattered across the Montana landscape, and having myself spent a bit of time in that state and visiting the general areas of each story I thought they did great work in capturing something distinctly Montanan in their writing. The authors of each story also do a wonderful job in weaving the threads of their particular tale together, drawing the reader in with a story that, once begun, must be read until the end. I greatly enjoyed this collection.

[rhbouchard_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

The best part of the book was the Introduction. Except for Tom McGuane's story, I didn't find the other stories too interesting. Some had an interesting premise, but then kind of wound down like a balloon deflating. The noir in most of these stories is about the bleakness of Montana and everyone wishing they were out of there. I've never been to Montana, so I can't speak from experience.

[diana.hauser · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

MONTANA NOIR is one of the latest titles in Akashic Books Noir series. It is edited by James Grady and Keir Graff.My copy was an ‘Advance Reading Copy’ sent to me by Akashic Books for an unbiased and honest review.I have enjoyed all the Noir titles that I have read. The stories are true noir - dark, dreary, raw, cynical and reeking of moral ambiguity. I once read noir described as “whiskey neat” and that phrase has always stayed with me.My favorite part of every Noir (series) title is the introduction by the editor(s). The introduction sets the tone and the very important sense of place. I love the map, the information about the authors and the table of contents.The big, blue Montana sky is a prominent main character in this anthology of short stories.The snappiest story title in MONTANA NOIR is “Red, White and Butte” by David Abrams. This story also wins the snappiest first sentence prize, “Marlowe was dead and that was fine by me”.The saddest, dreariest story (for me) was “Bad Blood” by Carrie La Seur - not because of the writing (that was superb) but because of its cynicism and fatalism.MONTANA NOIR’s book jacket says “this anthology is a road trip through the dreams and disasters of the true Montana”. I would agree, especially with the disaster part.Run - don’t walk - to your closest Akashic Books Noir title. You will be glad you did. But beware - the anthologies are very addictive.

[jfurshong · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Montana is the newest addition to the much-loved and geographically varied “noir” series that began with “Brooklyn Noir and continued with such popular titles as “New Orleans Noir”, “Havana Noir” and “Delhi Noir”. Montana! As a Montana native and resident, I think it is only fitting that Montana take its place among this group of exotic and storied locations. The tourism view of Montana is one of glacier-studded peaks, rivers teeming with trout and buffalo herds grazing all under one “big sky”. But, the crop of Montana authors who skillfully pull back the scenic veneer reveal the seamier side that is of course existent everywhere. All of these authors, ranging from nationally known writers such as James Grady, Thomas McGuane and Jamie Ford to much-loved emerging writers such as Carrie La Seur, Gwen Florio and Debra Magpie Earling to relatively unknown (to me) writers who are beginning to make their mark. The settings also range, from the grit of Montana’s “cities” (Billings and Butte) to smaller towns along Montana’s “hi-line (in a string running below the Canadian border) to rural settings where a less than robust economy makes life just a little tougher. All get the sense of place just right and provide pithy insights into the less savory aspects of life in Big Sky Country.So, give yourself a break from Stockholm and Brooklyn and sink into Montana noir.