Cynthia Swanson

This is a noir-ish, gothic-ish family saga/mystery that takes place in the early 1960s. It involves a pair of brothers, their wives, and their children. The narrative jumps back and forth between the current time and the past, in order to illuminate more of the mysteries behind the characters, their relationships to each other, and the events that are currently unfolding. I found the writing engrossing, with chapters leaving off very often on a cliffhanger of sorts, which made me read show more breathlessly on. The narrative actually varies between 3 perspectives: that of Angie from the first person, Ruby, her husband's niece, from the third person, and then Ruby's mother, Silja, also in the 3rd person. The varying perspectives slowly reveal the stories and histories, and it makes for very suspenseful reading at times. It's not a fast-paced novel, but there is a build-up of stories and characters that comes to a head quite satisfactorily. The writing is atmospheric and unsettling. show less

Denver Noir brings this iconic series back to its roots in the mean streets of Everywhere, this time in Denver, Colorado. I am always intrigued when the Noir Series features a city from a place that has no noir tradition, where the invited writers are, in a way, inventing a new genre. But I love coming back to books edited and written by authors who understand noir in their bones. That is what puts Denver Noir near the top of my Noir list.

It’s not that Cynthia Swanson, the writer who show more edited Denver Noir, avoided risk-taking. She include a graphic (illustrated) short story by R. Allan Brooks, that was quite wonderful. I’ve only read a couple graphic novels and usually get tired by the format, but as a short story, it hits the sweet spot for me.

There are fourteen stories in three sections. The first section has stories from “the longest, wickedest street in America.” These are stories of people on the downside of power, struggling to make ends meet, to live their lives with what dignity they can, and the grifters, cons, and miscreants that always, always kick down. The middle section is about the Colorado-ness of it all, they outdoors, the urban counterculture, the influx of people, gentrification, and surely the bleakest story of them all, “No Gods” that takes place one night at a local bar being forced out of business. The third part is innovative in that the focus is stories with youth. Editors find different ways of filters stories into sections, but I’ve read most in the Noir series, and I think this is the first time I’ve come across that focus. It worked. Sometimes I think our teen years are the most noir years of our lives, the uncertain future, the scramble to fit in, the hierarchies, and the lax permission structure for bullying. It’s great to see that captured.

I loved Denver Noir. Swanson did an excellent job of including diverse voices, not just ethnic diversity, but also age, from young people to retirees, from the right and the wrong side of the law and the ambiguous who are neither. The stories are well-written, demonstrating the short story writers’ skills at saying a lot with a little.

I have probably become tedious in my admiration for and proselytizing about Akashic Noir books, but I remain as enthusiastic as ever. When I went to Spain in high school, my friend and I got lost in Cordoba with very little cash because the bank had closed and we couldn’t cash our travelers’ checks (long ago) we were wandering around looking for a place that looked cheap, got lost, and met two women who took us to a commissary for the Guardia Civil where our $3 between us bought a huge meal and the soldiers bought us lots of beer. We became friends with the women and the took us to the Mosque though it was closed for repairs, snuck in by a friendly guard. We went to Spanish Drivers’ Ed, taught by one of them. It was the best experience and the closest thing to “travel tourings” was our late night illicit tour of the Mosque. Akashic Noir is like that. It takes you to a place and shows you what is under the surface, what is not on postcards. And I love the series for that.

I received a copy of Denver Noir from the publisher through Shelf Awareness

Denver Noir at Akashic Books
Cynthia Swanson author site

https://tonstantweaderreviews.wordpress.com/2023/08/06/denver-noir-ed-by-cynthia... show less

Kitty Miller is single. She owns a business with her best friend, Frieda, and she is pretty contented with her independent life and her cat. Then she falls asleep one night and finds herself in an alternate reality in which she is Katharyn, a married woman with children, a loving husband, and a much more complicated but fuller life. Dreaming of this life once is like taking a trip, but Kitty dreams of this life over and over again and the line between reality and dreaming begins to blur.

I show more adore authors who can take unbelievable, incomprehensible concepts and make them seem possible and real. Kitty as a character is interesting, believable and sympathetic. I began to care what happened to her and worry that she would be stuck in one of these lives when she wanted to live in the other. The plot and the tension build and when Swanson gives us the key to the puzzle, she does not cheat her reader with the manner in which she resolves this dichotomy.

I thought this novel was well-written and great fun. I could not figure out what would prove to be true until the last reveal and I liked that it wasn't a choice between one good life and one bad life, but a choice between two worlds in which something would be lost on either side. Kudos to Cynthia Swanson for a story well-told. show less

The Bookseller is a first-time novel for Cynthia Swanson. And a glorious one it is! I was really intrigued by this book's blurb, so I waited for my turn to read it at my local library's Wilbor page. I finished this novel, cover-to-cover, in nearly one sitting. I couldn't put it down, no matter how hard I tried. Katharyn/Kitty was calling me the moment I tried to walk away. She pulled me in and held on until the very last page.

'What if...?' This question has always tantalized us all. In the show more Bookseller, Swanson takes us on a startling journey where a woman is thrust into an alternate world that might have been, if she had made different decisions. The Bookseller is a wonderful exploration of identity, love and loss. The 1960's tone is elegant, slightly mysterious, and thoroughly engrossing.

The concept of what is truly real and what isn't has always fascinated me, and this book delivered. Well written and sharp, it's the story of a woman who has a life as a single woman living that bohemian freedom of the 60's, and she also runs a bookshop with her best friend. But she keeps having recurring dreams of being married with children. They are so real, the emotions so alive...her reality begins to blur.

What is real and what isn't? The two conflicting realities just keep you reading, and yes the ending did surprise me! (You know, this would definitely make a GREAT movie.) The novel, in many subtle ways, really captured a generation I never thought I would miss but I do. I guess that's what growing older does to you. I would like to say that I had it figured out all along, but I'd be lying. The twists and turns had me glued to the pages. I thought I had it all figured out, several times, but I was wrong. The journey Katharyn/Kitty is on is like nothing else I've read. The concept is so unique and intriguing. An alternate reality, where she mixes her dreams with her real life... This just makes me want to start reading this novel, all over again.

This is a story of a woman coming to terms with who she is. And she, and the novel, are beautiful. Five stars, an excellent piece of work, and one of my favorites this year. show less