Fire in the Hole: Stories [Paperback]

Elmore Leonard (Author)

Book Description

Release date: January 3, 2012

“[Leonard’s] most satisfying book since Out of Sight….Top-notch work from one of our most gifted and consistently entertaining writers.”
—New York Times Book Review

“Vintage Leonard….Nine stories with booze and shotguns and lowlifes…and lots of scenes that ought to be in movies.”
—Detroit Free Press

Originally published as When the Women Came Out to Dance, Elmore Leonard’s extraordinary story collection, Fire in the Hole reconfirms his standing as the “King Daddy of crime writers” (Seattle Times)—a true Grand Master in the legendary company of John D. MacDonald, Dashiell Hammett, and James M. Cain. These nine riveting tales of crime and (sometimes) punishment—including the title story starring U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens, which was the basis for the smash hit TV series Justified—feature all the elements that have made the great Elmore Leonard great: superb writing, unforgettable characters, breathtaking twists, and the sharpest, coolest dialogue in the mystery-thriller genre.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“If Leonard were a new kid instead of a past master, this fiction collection would make his name.” (People )

“Rummaging through Leonard’s attic via these nine stories revives some fond memories and turns up a couple of forgotten treasures.” (Kirkus Reviews )

“Elmore Leonard’s 39th book ...finds one of America’s most accomplished novelists presenting his most accomplished female characters in years.” (USA Today )

From the Back Cover

In this superb short fiction collection, Elmore Leonard, “the greatest crime writer of our time, perhaps ever” (New York Times Book Review), once again illustrates how the line between the law and the lawbreakers is not as firm as we might think. In the title story, the basis for the hit FX series Justified, U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens meets up with an old friend, but they’re now on different sides of the law. Federal marshal Karen Sisco, from Out of Sight, returns in “Karen Makes Out,” once again inadvertently mixing pleasure with business. In “When the Women Come Out to Dance,” Mrs. Mahmood gets more than she bargains for when she conspires with her maid to end her unhappy marriage.

These nine stories are the great Elmore Leonard at his vivid, hilarious, and unfailingly human best.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks; Reprint edition (January 3, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0062120344
• ISBN-13: 978-0062120342
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.2 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (36 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #12,576 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

56 of 60 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Money for old rope January 4, 2012

By Noel TOP 1000 REVIEWER

Format:Paperback

This book has actually been printed before under a different title a few years ago "When the Women Come Out to Dance". Stories are exactly the same, in the same order, with nothing new added, just a different title "Fire in the Hole".

I read "When the Women..." a while back but I remember liking it, so if you haven't read that then picking that up or this new edition of it is worth it. It includes the short story that led to the Tim Olyphant FX series "Justified" if you're a fan of that.

But for fans of Elmore Leonard, don't be fooled by the title, the master has not written a new book here, it's just the publisher trying to make a quick buck.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars True excellence, throughout January 25, 2012

By Michael Chaney

Format:Paperback

I've read and re-read each story in this collection 3 or 4 times. Each is a gem. I can't remember a short story collection as well done.

Today, and for the last 20 years or so, crime fiction is all about plot. Guys who write poorly--who fill page after page with cringe-inducing phrases and dialogue unlike the way anyone actually speaks--become the biggest sellers, while a guy like Elmore Leonard, America's best writer, wows the critics and sells far fewer books. Still always on the Best Seller list, but with modest sales relative to his genius, a sad fact that says a lot more about American readers than it does about Leonard.

If you want Hemingway-caliber writing, but with humor and pitch perfect dialogue, Elmore's your man. And this short story collection is a good place to start.

I can't find a cut and paste-able version of the collection from which to post an excerpt, but for those unfamiliar with Leonard, here's a small taste from his book Pagan Babies.

<< THE CHURCH HAD BECOME a tomb where forty-seven bodies turned to leather and stains had been lying on the concrete floor the past five years, though not lying where they had been shot with Kalashnikovs or hacked to death with machetes. The benches had been removed and the bodies reassembled: men, women and small children laid in rows of skulls and spines, femurs, fragments of cloth stuck to mummified remains, many of the adults missing feet, all missing bones that had been carried off by scavenging dogs. >>

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars WARNING--not a new collection! March 4, 2012

By David

Format:Paperback

This same volume of stories--some of which are excellent--was previously issued (and not very long ago) as When the Women Come Out to Dance. The new title is to cash in on the success of the tv show Justified by highlighting the one story (of 9) involving the lead character of that show, Raylan Givens. I think that is somewhat unethical, despite the small print reference to the prior title on the edge of the cover (compared to the much more prominent reference to "Featuring Raylan Givens from the FX Series Justified", as if he were in more than 1 story).