Friday, December 15, 2017

Ten essential neo-noir authors

In 2013 Richard Thomas tagged ten top neo-noir authors at Flavorwire. One entry on the list:
Holly Goddard Jones

There are few stories or collections that have left me weeping, but Holly Goddard Jones’s Girl Trouble is one of them. A mixture of Flannery O’Connor and Denis Johnson, with a sprinkle of John Cheever, what Jones does so well is create tension and fear while at the same time whispering in our ear that everything is going to be all right. But it isn’t going to be all right, that’s the problem — it will never be the same again. Her story “Proof of God,” from this very collection, went on to be selected for the Best American Mystery Stories anthology. Jones can take a scene as innocent and common as watching a daughter dive into a pool, taking a little bit too long to come up for air, and make it pulsate with foreshadowing and danger. Her latest novel, The Next Time You See Me, builds on that history, creating a layered tapestry, torn and stained at the edges.
Read about the other entries on the list.

Coffee with a canine: Holly Goddard Jones & Bishop.

--Marshal Zeringue