Expletive Deleted (Hardcover)

~ editor: Jen Jordan (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

No expletives have in fact been deleted from this nose-thumbing anthology of original stories (and a single reprint, Laura Lippman's mildly profane but clever A Good **** Spoiled). Jordan's selections prove beyond a doubt that expletives are a guarantee of neither success nor failure. Standouts include Ken Bruen's Spit, which proves that his flair for language is undiminished by copious profanity; Olen Steinhauer's grim Hungarian Lessons; Libby Fischer Hellmann's The Jade Elephant, a clever twist on a redemption tale; and Russel D. McLean's awesomely dark Pedro Paul. Unfortunately, they're overshadowed by disappointments like Nathan Singer's incoherent The Killer Whispers and Prays... Or Like a Sledgehammer to a Ribcage and Kevin Wignall's unconvincing The Preacher. The shock value of the language is minimal and the repetition monotonous, and somehow not a single entry manages to be both erotic and explicit. As a tribute to that most banned of all English words, this volume merits only a half-hearted (if not one-fingered) salute. (Nov.)
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Product Description

Crime writing is a dirty business--dealing in death, isolation, ruin and decay--and sometimes it calls for dirty words. In this gritty, gorgeous collection of short stories, new and veteran crime writers alike celebrate that granddaddy of all cusswords; that most adaptable and descriptive grouping of letters; that searing, offensive, musical, perfect sound: fuck.

Contributors include Laura Lippman, Ken Bruen, Charlie Huston, Nathan Singer, Anthony Neil Smith, Jason Starr, Sarah Weinman, John Rickards, Libby Fischer Hellmann, and Reed Farrel Coleman. With an introduction by Mark Billingham. (Soap not included.)

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 375 pages
• Publisher: Bleak House Books; Reprint edition (November 20, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1932557555
• ISBN-13: 978-1932557558
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.9 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #2,762,572 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Filthy Fun, December 28, 2007

By	Rebecca Tatham - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

The genius of any short-fiction anthology lies in its premise. "Expletive Deleted" was conceived as a celebration of the lewd, crude, base, and brutal characters of crime fiction--and, especially, as a raucous "cheers" to the corresponding vulgarity of their vocabularies. The book is cleverly executed so that the milieu flips between foreign and familiar, disturbing and playful, making the total impact energetic, fresh, and obscenely entertaining.

Each of the 21 stories contributes a unique glimpse into depravity. There are enough variations in tone and style to overcome any thematic limitations, and--surprising for any collection--even the weakest stories have punch. This anthology is a must-read for anyone who has fun with filth and likes a little semantic grit with their transgressions.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Bad people use bad words, November 20, 2007

By	Ellen C. Lamb (Gardiner, ME United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Expletive Deleted (Paperback)

It's one of the most baffling phenomena in the world of crime fiction: people who don't mind the most grotesque violence, but object to the use of bad language.

I've seen them at book signings and fan conferences, approaching the author of the latest serial killer thriller. "Oh, I just love your books," they say. "But does your killer have to swear so much?" It's okay that they've just dismembered a body, or raped a woman, or shot someone in cold blood; it's not okay that they used vulgar language while they did it.

EXPLETIVE DELETED is an anthology based on the simple observation that bad people not only do bad things, they also say bad words. And if the use of bad language in the description of crimes offends the reader, perhaps it _should_.

Crime _should_ offend us. Crime fiction walks a fine moral line, using the worst things people do to each other as the basis for entertainment. If bad language reminds us to feel the appropriate sense of outrage, that's as it should be.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars not to bad at all..., December 16, 2007

By	Caleb "Noir" (AL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Expletive Deleted (Paperback)

I really enjoyed the stories from Charlie Huston(Like A Lady) and Ken Bruen(Spit)..all of the stories were pretty damn good though. I'd really like to see a second volume sometime soon!