Peter Farrelly’s story “The Saturday Night Before Easter Sunday” has been nominated for an Edgar Award for Best Short Story!

Named a Favorite Book of 2015 by Scott MacKay at Rhode Island Public Radio

“Even Providence’s signature public art has a dark side in Providence Noir (Akashic), which includes a story called ‘WaterFire’s Smell Tonight’ by Pablo Rodriguez. Each tale in this anthology edited by Ann Hood is set in a different part of the city. Pulitzer Prize winner Elizabeth Strout’s story takes place at Trinity Repertory Company. Thomas Cobb, whose novel Crazy Heart was made into a movie with Jeff Bridges, tees up at Triggs Memorial Golf Course, and Dumb and Dumber co-writer and co-director Peter Farrelly, a graduate of Providence College, sets his story in the Elmhurst neighborhood, near his old college stomping grounds.”
—Boston Globe

“Providence, of course, has a history of crime, the mob, corruption and other goodies. In this collection of 15 stories . . . we are given a darkly hued tour of the city in all its nooks and crannies by such excellent writers as Hood herself, John Searles, Bruce DeSilva, Peter Farrelly, Elizabeth Strout, Hester Kaplan and others, each with their own style, tone and sly approach that will keep you reading, waiting for the sudden murder, the end of troubled relationships, the discovery of bones. . . . [A] wonderful collection.”
—Providence Journal

“John Searles’s ‘The Pig’ combines a touching examination of pathos and mystery. Robert Leuci’s ‘The Vengeance Taker’ is a powerful and ultimately creepy story of earned revenge. LaShonda Katrice Barnett’s ‘Waltz Me Once Again’ is a compelling story of violence and tragedy. Thomas Cobb performs the remarkable feat of making a simple round of golf into a surprisingly suspenseful tale, ‘$1,000 Nassau.’ And Peter Farrelly’s ‘The Saturday Night Before Easter Sunday’ closes out the volume with a superb—and hilarious—inside look at the world of novelists, phonies, publishers, and schemers.”
—Publishers Weekly

“If you like short stories set in Providence, check out Providence Noir, edited by Ann Hood.”
—Providence Journal, Bill Reynolds’s column

A Rhode Island Monthly Rhody Reads pick!

“The stories are about as diverse and self-destructive cast of characters throughout Providence of varied classes, race, and educational backgrounds . . . . Peppered throughout the book and sometimes even the driving aspect of a story are complex contemporary hot button topics like gentrification and racial profiling with haunting echoes of some of the dark episodes in the past few years . . . . It’s a reminder that reality can feel as helplessly tangled as noir films and stories.”
—New York Daily News

“It’s hard to imagine a better setting for a crime story than Providence . . . . there is no doubt it provides ample backdrop for stories without heroes or happy endings. Thanks to the partnership between Akashic Books, an independent Brooklyn-based publisher, and local writer Ann Hood, we now have Providence Noir—a collection of gritty, hard-boiled short stories that are set within different neighborhoods throughout the city.”
—Providence Monthly

“Providence Noir is teeming with muscular, gritty, hard-boiled short stories alongside borderline modern-day gothic tales. Damaged characters, flawed plans of bloody retribution, double-crossing ambitions, and pure murder in mind make it a must-read. You won’t find better noir stories this year.”
—New York Journal of Books

“This is a perfect summer read. It’s Providence with an edge, written by 15 writers who know how to shape stories that lead us down unexpected paths of a city that we love. Out of towners may see it as make believe tales of suspense. To most of us, it’s just home.”
—East Side Monthly

“You get Alzheimer’s, lesbians, Mafia and more as you read along. This is a very good collection of stories that will stay with you after you close the book. They are stories to think about.”
—Journey of a Bookseller