A review by pennyaimes
Things Get Ugly: The Best Crime Fiction of Joe R. Lansdale by Joe R. Lansdale

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Taut, vicious noir and crime stories with the occasional splash of fantasy. Unlike a lot of people who write in this genre I don't feel like the sadism or ugliness leaks into the authorial viewpoint; it's a dispassionate narration of an ugly world. Shockingly light on various genre-typical prejudice; not absent, but rarer than I expected, and rooted in character, not voice. The God of the Razor scares the shit out of me.