A story from the first volume received a Thriller Award and another story was nominated for a Thriller, so I felt some pressure to ensure that the stories selected for Volume 2 were of equal quality. Additionally, this is the second volume of an annual series. 2, so I had to make hard decisions about which stories to include and which to leave out. I received far more great stories than I could fit into MICKEY FINN: 21st Century Noir, Vol. The biggest challenge came from having an open call. What was the biggest challenge this book presented? What about the biggest opportunity? I’ve long been a fan of noir, and am especially drawn to stories of the little guy who makes bad decisions despite good intentions, and how those decisions lead to even worse decisions and worse consequences. I hope readers take away an appreciation for the dark side of mystery fiction, and a realization that unhappy endings can be as powerful-sometimes more powerful-than happy endings. What do you hope readers will take away from this book? At the same time, a protagonist with a cellphone may be tracked 24/7 and, thus, find it more difficult to hide. A protagonist who has to find a landline telephone to make a call faces different stresses than someone who is connected 24/7 via a cellphone. So many of the tropes of, and the suspense inherent in, classic noir rely on the limited technology of the time. 2, is an anthology, so what came first was wondering what would happen if writers set noir stories in the 21st century. Which took shape first: plot, character, or setting? Walker, Sam Wiebe, and Stacy Woodson.Įditor and writer Michael Bracken recently spent some time with The Big Thrill discussing his latest anthology, MICKEY FINN: Hearn, Janice Law, Hugh Lessig, Gabe Morran, Rick Ollerman, Josh Pachter, Robert Petyo, Stephen D.

Barker, John Bosworth, Michael Bracken, Scott Bradfield, S.M. The 19 contributors, including some of today’s most respected short-story writers and new writers making their mark on the genre, include Trey R. Like any good cocktail, MICKEY FINN is a heady mix of ingredients that packs a punch, and when you’ve finished reading every story, you’ll know that you’ve been “slipped a Mickey.” And they do all this in contemporary settings, bringing noir into the 21st century. MICKEY FINN: 21st Century Noir, Volume 2, the second entry of the hard-hitting anthology series, is a crime-fiction cocktail that will again knock readers into a literary stupor.Ĭontributors push hard against the boundaries of crime fiction, driving their work into places short crime fiction doesn’t often go, into a world where the mean streets seem gentrified by comparison, and happy endings are the exception rather than the rule.

Eddie bracken michael bracken