Pariah, which is now for the first time available as a kindle book, was originally published by Serpent's Tail in 2009 and was named that year by the Washington Post as one of the best crime and mystery novels of the year. Here's what critics and authors said about it then:
"A doom-laden crime story that not only makes merry with the justice system, but also satirizes those bottom feeders in the publishing industry who would sign Osama bin Laden to a six-figure contract for his memoirs, if only they could figure out which cave to send their lawyers into. If there's any other young writer out there who does crime noir better than Zeltserman, I don't even want to know... I'd say Zeltserman can't top Pariah for its sheer diabolical inventiveness, but he probably will. And given that the corrupting vision of his work is so powerful, I ought to know better than to read the next novel he writes. But I probably will anyway." -- Maureen Corrigan Washington Post
'as nasty and clever as noir can get" NPR
'Darkly enjoyable' Boston Globe
'Pariah is a terrific blast' Metro (UK)
'Pariah is at turns brutal, violent, and a funny, scathing satire of our celebrity obsessed consumer culture and publishing industry. Really couldn’t put the book down, I poured through it in one day.' Paul Tremblay
"Pariah is the perfect pitch of reality, history crime, celebrity, plagiarism, and sheer astounding writing... If every writer has one great book in them, then Dave can rest easy" -- Ken Bruen
"Mean like bad whiskey and sophisticated like good scotch, Pariah is a rare find and a scorching read" -- Cortright McMeel
"This is a masterpiece" -- Seymour Shubin
"This fusion of hardboiled and bitter satire is brand new territory for noir and I suspect that it will be one of the most talked about novels of 2009" -- Ed Gorman
"This is a book that anyone with even the slightest interest in crime or thriller genres simply must get their hands on, as it's bound to have a huge impact on you" -- The Bookbag
"Small Crimes got a lot of attention for Dave Zeltserman in 2008. This year, Pariah should get even more. If you like hardboiled noir, this book's for you. ..(Pariah) is is fast, furious, and funny. If you have any interest in tough-guy noir, you'll want to get hold of this one as soon as you can" -- Bill Crider's Pop Culture Magazine.com
"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
"White-knuckle ride... a cracking piece of hard-boiled noir... different kinds of venality are put wittily under the microscope as the book rattles along to its terrific conclusion Metro Its noir, its satire, and its Boston that you don't see on Cheers. Nicely done follow-up to SMALL CRIMES." -- BookBitch
"For readers looking for edgy crime fiction, PARIAH fills the bill." -- Booklist
"Dave Zeltserman's Pariah is my pick for crime novel of the year. Tough, relentless, and packed with blunt force trauma... Like the late noir king Jim Thompson, and contemporary crime lords Jason Starr, Allan Guthrie, and Ken Bruen, Zeltserman takes readers on an uneasy ride inside the mind of a homicidal maniac. The story storms, pummels and stomps its way to a nasty ending, but it's the amoral, ruthless voice of Kyle that gives the book such outstanding quality. Pariah is a real winner." -- Hardfeelings
"Pariah is a suspense novel at its very best with a protagonist who is far, far over on the other side of the law. Zeltserman has outdone himself with this depiction of a near-psychopathic personality that is driven by its own strange set of moral principles. The portrayal rings too true." -- John A. Broussard, "I Love a Mystery blog,
"Best mystery of the year? Naaah -- crime writing is so diverse that handing out prizes is beside the point. But we can say this: If you like your crime so hard-boiled you need to bring a chainsaw to breakfast, if you like your morbidity wrapped in a witty and satirical package, if you like your noir (or neo-noir, okay) so black that the pages feel sooty -- then Dave Zeltserman is tops." -- B&N.com
"...just think about Dave Zeltserman, and what a fine addition to the local literary scene he's become Boston Globe Zeltserman's talents as a noir writer rise above the genre's conventions...Pariah is a page-turner, even more so than his earlier novel, Small Crimes Boston Globe Clear crisp prose; fearless portrait of amorality; smart plotting" -- Ed Siegel Boston Globe
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