Men from Boys
John Harvey (editor)
Dark Alley, May 2005, $13.95
ISBN: 0060762853

The sixteen short stories and one novella (Andrew Coburn's My Father's Daughter) focus on men coming of age when faced with a crisis that makes each protagonist have to use a path that will hopefully leave them with self-esteem and respect. Interestingly none of the characters are similar in temperament, varying in social or economic class and even age as some boys do not become men until their thirties and older. The settings also vary from Manhattan to the World War I front and obviously differing time periods. What they have in common is that each tale is a superb suspense thriller with the centre being a boy turning into a man trying to cope with difficult situations that mature someone rather quickly and that the authors are all men. John Harvey of Charlie Resnick fame brings together a virtue hall of fame of male suspense writers and each hits a thrilling home run.

Harriet Klausner