Advanced Review – Uncorrected Proof Issue: September 1, 2009
Bad Karma. Zeltserman, Dave (Author) Oct 2009. 322 p. Five Star, hardcover, $25.95. (9781594147944).
Detective Bill Shannon, introduced in Bad Thoughts (2007), is back, and a welcome return it is. Relocated from Boston to Boulder, Shannon has fled the Boston PD for a low-stress lifestyle, picking up a little work on the side as a private eye. But despite his efforts to find psychic and psychological peace of mind after his horrific encounter with Herbert Winters, the demonic serial killer from the earlier novel, Shannon discovers that putting distance between himself and the old evils doesn’t help him escape the new evils. Zeltserman weaves together elements of both mystery and horror genres, as Shannon again finds himself confronting the darkness that roams the boundary beyond one’s physical senses. It’s as though Zeltserman has aimed a 12-gauge sawed-off at smarmy New Age sensitivities and fired off both barrels. Irony abounds, as Shannon unmasks deviant gurus, evil yoga studios, Russian gangsters, and guys who use their baseball implements in socially unacceptable ways. If you liked the first novel in this series, you’ll love this one. — Elliott Swanson
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5 comments:
Is this a U.S. release? Is it going to precede Pariah over here?
Hey Nathan, this is being published by Five Star in the US, while Small Crimes, Pariah, Killer, Outsourced are all being published by Serpent's Tail. To make things more confusing Overlook Press will be publishing Caretaker of Lorne Field and Essence.
The way this is breaking down Serpent's Tail is publishing my pure crime/noir novels, Overlook Press my books that have supernaturnal elements, and Five Star my Bill Shannon books, which are crime novels with metaphysical and horror aspects to them (Bad Thoughts, which preceded Bad Karma is probably more horror than crime).
Nice! I'm looking forward to October.
Good review, Dave. Thanks for the advance read of Bad Karma -- lotus position will never feel the same again!
Roger, thanks, glad I was able to put yoga in a new perspective. Of course, what I was really trying to do with this book was answer the age old question: who was the better stooge, Curly or Shemp!
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