WARNING: Adult content...Today I'm well chuffed to welcome my good friend Al' - a 'Brit Grit' cockney geezer, who's a dab hand with pen & ink... little cockney rhyming slang joke there... no? Okay. Over to you Al...
Alan Griffith's Crime Fiction ChoiceHARD BITE by
ANONYMOUS-9 -
Beat to a Pulp, Dec.2008.
Recently I’ve been privileged to be one of the few hot-off-the-press readers to peek at Anonymous-9’s completed novel length manuscript of Hard Bite. And, in my humble opinion, a humdinger of a novel it is. Tightly plotted and twisty narrative, great characters, a page turner….
But I digress because today I’d like to beg a few minutes of your time to acquaint you with the original, award winning short story.
When Col kindly asked me to write a few words for this feature I immediately thought of
Hard Bite. Why? Well, when I first read this story it just struck a chord. Had me thinking, Hell, I wish I could write like that. And, whenever I re-read this story (which I do) it inspires me to try…
I like to kill people.
It's important to admit the truth to yourself, even if you lie to others, and I do a lot of lying in my line of work. Inside my head, I try to keep the truth black and white, no grey area: I like to kill. I love to kill, people.So starts Anonymous-9’s
Spinetingler award winning short story
Hard Bite; published online at
Beat to a Pulp and in print within the
BTAP Round One anthology.
Did the voice get your attention? Grab you by the throat and shake you a little? Mulling over a decision: Should I connect with this nut job and keep reading?
I think it did.
Because for me it is the voice of A-9’s wise-cracking protagonist that is the key to this brilliantly told story.
As the piece unfolds you realise that this is not just a cold hearted, deranged and cynical psychopath but, after a cruel blow by fate, a wheelchair bound cripple. Who is hell-bent on bringing righteous vengeance to evil people.
What do you do with your life motherfucker???? ..........Sorry, I rant sometimes. Sorry, buddy. Keep reading. Please.The killer is talking to you. Calling you buddy so you will set aside any preconceived ideas or prejudice; engage and listen to his story.
And, what an original tale it is.
A Los Angeles rock n roll ride: A hardboiled narrative, pared to the bone; sprinkled with deliciously dark and tragic humour. Spiced with a thirteen-year-old capuchin monkey helper with a porn habit, a rental chic that lets our killer hero have his wicked way free once a week, a transsexual surprised in the shower and a fight-dog execution scene.
I kill for extremely personal reasons. Starting with the individual who hit me with his black BMW, carrying me ten blocks on the grille, braking so I'd fall off, and gunning over top of me, shattering my neck, crushing my left arm and feet, and squashing my large intestine to mush. I can't digest much of anything, but my dick still works. Go figger.But for me it is all about the voice.
Don’t just take my word for it; check it out. And when you have been blown away by
Hard Bite check out
M-N-S (n): murder-necrophilia-suicide at Plots with Guns and
The Master Bedroom also at Beat to a Pulp.
Hard Bite is not just a one off. Anonymous-9 is a seriously talented writer, transcending the Crime and Horror genres. This mysterious lady has been nominated for a Spinetingler award for Best Short Story on the Web twice over (2009 & 2010); winning it once (2009).
My hat is doffed to you, A-9 and thanks for the entertainment!
And thank you, Al!
BIO:
Alan Griffiths, a rookie writer, hails from the badlands of South London, England. His fictional crimes can be found on websites such as: A Twist of Noir, Thrillers, Killers n Chillers and Radgepacket Online. His story, ‘Concrete Jungle’, features in the e-book anthology Discount Noir published by Untreed Reads. ‘Say Hello, Wave Goodbye’ will be published in the forthcoming Byker Books anthology: Radgepacket – Tales from the Inner Cities Volume 5. His literary hero is Ernie Wise and when the mood takes him he blogs at: http://britgrit.blogspot.com/
I'm also honoured to be involved in the new 'Brit Grit' series, which started last Sunday with Alan Griffith's superb short, 'Two Fingers of Noir'. Thanks to writer/editor, Elaine Ash for setting the whole thing up over at AshEdit. As you can see, my name didn't quite make the promo poster, but I'm in good company with Ian Ayris... One day, Ian, one day... :-)
