OVERNIGHT by Philip Fracassi

This time around Fracassi takes us on a noir ride through the after-hours of a film set, where a night security guard meets a mysterious stranger and contends with temptation and an offer he can't refuse. I love how simple the story was, and how relatively innocent it all is at first. In the beginning I can see anyone agreeing to what Pete does. But as we all know, that's how it all starts. It's a short novelette with n anxiety-ridden ending and I love how much is left unsaid, but there are enough nuggets and details dropped for the reader to glean character motivations. I actually just got off set myself and said bye to the security guard and thought about this story; wondering what will happen after-hours!

GRADE: B+

SCALPED: BOOK THREE by Jason Aaron

"Been down so goddamn long that it looks like up to me."

Jeez, this thing just keeps getting better and better. By the climax of this installment, the tension is so high you can almost smell it coming off the page. Bad Horse is getting in WAAAYYY too deep and Red Crow is getting closer and closer to losing everything. And I want to see them both find some sort of peace. If you're a crime fiction fan and not reading Scalped, it's not too late to make a change and get your life together!

"I want to take you away from here. I want to tell you my secrets and I want you to love me for them."

 GRADE: A

HERETICS by Greg F. Gifune

Told in alternating chapters detailing the events of the past and present, Gifune paints a picture of three outcast friends involved in a terrible tragedy in high school who must confront those events again as adults. The novella is told in Gifune's trademark atmospheric style and is exciting in the way it evolves. Not only does the book maintain a creepy but strangely romantic tone, but Gifune also skillfully doles out backstory slowly so that the feeling of dread grows and grows as we get closer to discovering what happened to these teenagers on that fateful night. I was worried about finding out the details but couldn't look away once it all started to go down. So far, Gifune's work has been pretty consistent in it's quality!

Harry wondered if someone without eyes still produced tears.

GRADE: B+

SCALPED: BOOK TWO by Jason Aaron

"And once we've claimed what's due us, then all those people I shot, stabbed, scalped, hanged, an buried alone the way...all those poor bastards won't have died in vain. And for the first time in far too long, my dreams might again outnumber my regrets."

Book Two in this series improves on the solid first installment in every conceivable way. Not only is the artwork better rendered, the writing seems to have jumped up to the next level as well! While the first book introduces you to the characters and their world, now that all of that is over with, it's time to take a deeper dive, particularly into an exploration of the rich supporting characters. At the same time, as he continues to feel the pressure closing in from all sides, our protagonist Dashiell Bad Horse seeks comfort in every place he shouldn't. I can feel it. This series is going to be great.

GRADE: A-