Cast of Small Crimes -- Phil Coakley

A cab was waiting for me, but there was a man bent over, talking to the driver. The cab pulled away, and as the man stood up I recognized him instantly. I’d have to with the way his face was carved up and the thick piece of flesh that was missing from his nose. At one time, he had been a good-looking man, but that was before he had been stabbed thirteen times in the face.

Morris looked a bit uncomfortable. ‘Well, uh,’ he said, ‘it was a pleasure having you as my guest, young fellow. If you ever want to stop by for a lesson on the theory of checkers, feel free.’ Then, seriously, ‘Try to stay out of trouble.’

He gave me a pat on the back and waved to the other man before disappearing back into the building. The other man stood grinning, but it didn’t extend to his eyes. Looking at him was like staring at an open-mouthed rattlesnake.

I nodded to him. ‘I don’t want any trouble, Phil,’ I said.

Tomorrow: Charlotte Boyd

____________________

Small Crimes reviewed on Shots Magazine:

At its heart, the novel is about Man’s relationship with God and the moral choices life throws up. And make no mistake: this is an intensely moralistic fable. The crimes may start small, Zeltserman seems to be saying, but bigger crimes soon follow. Not so much a highway to hell as a full-on rollercoaster ride. Just remember to keep your arms inside the carriage at all times.

To read the whole review, click here.

Cast of Small Crimes -- Joe Denton

When I thought about all the things I did, none of it seemed possible, but all I have to do is look Phil Coakley in the face to prove to myself it all happened. So now I was an ex-police officer, a felon, and a divorced husband. I hadn’t seen or heard from my ex-wife or kids since the day I was arrested. Other than Morris I hadn’t had any visitors or company for seven years, not even my parents. When I thought about all that I’d lost for money I didn’t even want, I could barely believe it.

Tomorrow: Phil Coakley

The Cast of Small Crimes

Before I sold Small Crimes to Serpent's Tail, Jean-Pierre Jacquet and I were proposing Small Crimes as a graphic novel to a French publisher. We went through several editorial board meetings--came close--but in the end the publisher felt Small Crimes was too mature for their audience. In the process of all this, Jean-Pierre drew up sketches of the cast of Small Crimes, which he's graciously allowing me to use. With Serpent's Tail days away from releasing my book in the UK, I'm going to start publishing these sketches here along with small excerpts if I can find appropriate ones early enough in the book.

First, the back cover copy Serpent's Tail came up with, and tomorrow an introduction to Joe Denton.

'Crooked cop Joe Denton gets out of prison early after disfiguring the local district attorney, which doesn't help his popularity. Nobody wants Joe to hang around, not his ex-wife, his parents or his former colleagues. Meanwhile, local mafia don Manny Vassey is dying of cancer and keen to cut a deal with God. He's thinking of singing to the DA if this will set him up for a better afterlife. And he knows stuff that will send Joe down again for a very long time.

Set in the pressure cooker of a very small town, Small Crimes is an explosive thriller that brings the claustrophobic hell of Jim Thompson and James M. Cain right up to date.'

Small Crimes contest

I received my author's copies of Small Crimes today. The book will be out in the UK March 20th, and in the US later in the Fall. Can't tell you how pleased I am to have this book published by Serpent's Tail.

I thought I'd make 3 copies of Small Crimes available to fans of my second book, Bad Thoughts. So here's the deal--act as a Hollywood casting agent and email me at davezelt@rcn.com how you'd cast the major players of Bad Thoughts. Please send me your choices by March 30th, and on April 1st I'll announce the 3 winners (as well as their casting selections), and send off to each a signed copy of Small Crimes.

A Long Time to Die podcast

Alan Vogel, who has a radio show in Northampton MA, recently read my first published short story, A Long Time to Die (New Mystery Magazine '92), over the air. Somewhere along the way, a bit of confusion caused the title for his version to change to "A Long to Die"--but still, it's all very cool, and Alan did a nice job reading it. Here's a link to the podcast for anyone in the mood to listen to a hardboiled crime story about a mob heist and all the double (and triple) crosses along the way.

http://lit1033.com/2008/02/20/a-long-to-die-dave-zeltserman.aspx

Small Crimes--an early look

My publisher, Serpent's Tail, has put the first chapter of Small Crimes on their web-site.

A Hardluck Edgar Congrats

I'd like to congratulate the following authors nominated for Edgars who've been connected to Hardluck--either from allowing us to publish their excellent stories, acting as guest editor, or being profiled on our pages:

Ken Bruen--Priest (Best Novel)
Craig McDonald--Head Games (Best First Novel)
Vicki Hendricks--Cruel Poetry (Best PBO)
Reed Farrel Coleman--Soul Patch (Best Novel)

I'd also like to congratulate both MWA for recognizing such an excellent noir novel as Russell Hill's "Robbie's Wife" for a PBO nomination, and Russell Hill for this well-deserved recognition. This is one of the best pure noir novels I've read in years, and it was great to see something this unrelentingly dark nominated.

Small Crimes--first review

Small Crimes will be released in the UK March 20th, later in the year in the US. In the UK, ARCs were recently sent out, and the book has already received its first review. Barry Forshaw at Crime Time Magazine liked it, saying among other things, "This loamy smorgasboard of salvation and revenge has both a violent and comic edge, marking Zeltserman as a name to watch."

Bad Thoughts one of the best books of 2007...

At least according to the Dover NH Library (and no, I'm not from Dover, NH, or NH for that matter). Here's their eclectic list, which I am honored to be included in:

Librarians’ Choice 2007
The Best Books of the Year

A Three Dog Life by Abigail Thomas
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
Last Wife of Henry VIII by Carolly Erickson
Life & Times of the Thunderbolt Kid by Bill Bryson
The Road by Cormac McCarthy
False Impression by Jeffrey Archer
Book of Lost Things by John Connolly
Boleyn Inheritance by Philippa Gregory
The Uses of Enchantment by Heidi Julavits
When Darkness Falls by James Grippando
Silent in the Grave by Deanna Raybourn
Thirteenth Tale by Diana Setterfield
The Water Devil by Judith Merkle Riley
The Family That Couldn’t Sleep by D.T. Max
World War Z: an oral history of the zombie war by Max Brooks
Burning Bright by Tracy Chevalier
Innocent Traitor by Alison Weir
Ysabel by Guy Gavriel Kay
The Wayward Muse by Elizabeth Hickey
The Dogs of Windcutter Down by David Kennard
Withering Heights by Dorothy Cannell
Red Dahlia by Lynda LaPlante
Savage Garden by Mark Mills
Cocaine Blues by Kerry Greenwood
Dog Days by John Katz
Austenland by Shannon Hale
The Innocence by David Hosp
The Glass Devil by Helene Tursten
Keeping Mum DVD
18 Seconds by George Shuman
Bad Thoughts by Dave Zeltserman
Agnes & The Hit Man by Jennifer Crusie,
Night Birds by Thomas Maltman
Brilliance by Rosalind Laker
Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen
Down River by John Hart
The Abduction by Mark Gimenez
Death Before Wicket by Kerry Greenwood
Cormac: the tale of a dog gone missing by Sonny Brewer
The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox by Maggie O’Farrell
The Guynd: a Scottish Journal by Belinda Rathbone
Mademoiselle Boleyn by Robin Maxwell
In the Woods by Tara French

A Dark Party Going On!

Dark Party Review is a very cool web-site (even though they don't have Blade Runner listed as one of their 8 coolest sci-fi flicks), and for some reason they wanted to ask me five questions about writing crime fiction.