This is one of the most consistently interesting and rewarding collections of dark fiction/horror/whatever that I've come across. My only complaint is quite a few of what I considered the stronger stories have recently appeared in collections elsewhere. Didn't mind rereading the Evenson, Minor, Stephen Graham Jones, etc though. (I'm generally very negative about multi-author anthologies; this is a notable exception.)

Ok, so, we're calling it. This is going to be one of the best anthologies published in 2014.

What is the best way to read an anthology of short stories? Sometimes I can gobble up three or four stories in one sitting and enjoy the varieties of this and that, put it on the shelf and go back days or weeks later to select again. The New Black, however, is not that kind of anthology. I lived with this book close at hand (on my Kindle) for weeks and read one story a day (a couple of days I read two), which I looked forward to each day. Because the stories are so rich with themes of loneliness...

Received an email telling me I won a copy of this book to review back on 14 Mar 2014 but still nothing. I really would like to read this, if it ever finds its way into my library, home or public.Well it took several weeks to receive my copy but it finally arrived, and as soon as I finished book I was reading at the time, I dove in. I have to say that this book surprised me with some hits and some misses. Most of these authors were not afraid to push boundaries and take that extra step as close t...

Raise high the hems of your dress skirts, ladies. You're about to step in it.I must confess: I've been waiting for this anthology to be published for a long time. Any opportunity to get Craig Clevenger, Nik Korpon, Brian Evenson, Stephen Graham Jones (to name a few) inside one book... whoa. My chief concern was anything getting this much anticipation has got to be a letdown.Nope.From the opening pages, readers find out just what they are in for. "Father Son Holy Rabbit" by Stephen Graham Jones i...

I picked up this collection because it has stories by two of my favorite authors. The stories were consistently good, and there were only two that I didn’t enjoy as much as the rest.

Richard Thomas has compiled and edited a remarkable collection of stories in his anthology The New Black: A Neo-Noir Anthology. I’d long despaired of finding literary writing and good ideas in contemporary ‘horror’ after Ray Bradbury’s Something Wicked This Way Comes written in 1962. Instead, I’ve felt that from then until now the reading public have for the most part been swamped in cliché characters and ill-thought out storylines. If there have been a few good writers of dark stories over this...

The new black is a collection of 20 short stories by some great authors of the horror genre that take the genre to the edge. These authors were all new to me and I hadn't previously read any of their work. The new black has a forward by Laird Barron, he gives a well thought-out explanation of the old black and the new black and where the edges of the genre are. This collection starts with Stephen Graham Jones writing a deep and powerful story of a boy and his father and their fight for survival....

At least two of these stories have scarred me for life. The writing is tremendous and the noir is very much so.

Many anthologies are like cheap buffets filled with all kinds of stuff that doesn’t fit well together and doesn’t seem to fit well inside your stomach either, leaving you a gurgling, dissatisfied mess. This collection is not like that. Collected together here are twenty stories that fit together like puzzle pieces. They belong together. And, it is a gourmet menu with everything on it meriting the highly-regarded five- star rating. Let’s put it more succinctly: Everything in this collection is so...

I suppose Neo-Noir fiction can best be defined as "dark fiction". This anthology edited by Richard Thomas collects stories from amazing authors blurring genre lines.I think most of these stories take that delicious horror tension and use it in a new way.Rebecca Jones-Howe's story, BLUE HAWAII is the perfect example of this. The unreliable protagonist has someone else's infant in her care and this creates this overwhelming sense of dread throughout the entire story. Every turned page feels like Y...

Given that I don't usually go for horror or noir, you can say I went a little out of my comfort zone with this anthology. While some were not interesting and some were too scary for me, I liked the book and will probably check out more from certain authors (Stephen Graham Jones, Benjamin Percy, Roxane Gay and Vanessa Veselka).

http://www.mybookishways.com/2014/04/...What stands out immediately about this outstanding collection of dark fiction, is the contributor list. Suspense fans will see many familiar faces, but so will fans of dark fantasy. I don’t know how you read short story anthologies, but I happened to read this one in order, and I can tell you, it worked.Stephen Graham Jones is well known for his work in horror, and puts his talent to fine use in “Father, Son, Holy Rabbit”. If you’re a parent, this story of...

Awesome! Richard Thomas knows how to put together an anthology.

This is an anthology of what the editor defines as “neo-noir.” I made the mistake when I started of both thinking that it was going to be the Raymond Chandler-type noir and, after reading the introduction, of thinking the stories were horror. I was wrong on both assumptions. This collection doesn’t have a single detective standing outside in the rain thinking about a broad that was more trouble than she is worth. What it does have, however, is a collection of stories that are all dark, and are a...

I've had an advance copy on my Kindle for a while now, and it's....amazing. So good. Chock full of writers I admire, some of whom I'm lucky enough to know. The stories all fall under the loose category of "neo noir," or, "new black." They're dark. They're heady. They're they kind of stories that will reach inside, yank out your heart like Mola-Ram, and then they'll stomp all over it.They're that good. Noir heavyweights like Stephen Graham Jones and Craig Clevenger grace the pages of The New Bla

disclaimer – i received an e-galley of this book from editor richard thomas in exchange for an honest review.i’m a complete anthology addict and the new black has only contributed to my addiction. this collection of twenty stories is described as “neo-noir” and, while i honestly don’t know what that genre classification means, i can tell you that these are fantastic stories. the best thing about this particular collection is its introduction of authors i had never read before but definitely plan...

I received this book as a part of the goodreads first reads program. Wow, this collection of stories was amazing. Right off the bat the collection kicks off with a chilling story that gave me goosebumps and I still think about and shudder every once and a while. From there, things just kept getting better. Every story creates its own creepy world that sucks you in and twists and turns until you're left stunned. My particular favorites were the selection from Roxane Gay and the story "Dollhouse."...