I’M READING AS FAST AS I CAN (JUNE 2012 EDITION)

I write book reports. Isn't that interesting?

JUST FINISHED

The Corpse Wore Pasties by Jonny Porkpie
Jonny Porkpie, the real-life Burlesque Mayor of New York City, takes a page from Kinky Friedman, playing himself caught up in a fictional murder mystery. A burlesque dancer with a reputation for stealing other people’s acts dies onstage after drinking a prop bottle of poison that turns out to be real. With the police looking no further than Porkpie (the show’s host who handed her the bottle during her act) as a suspect, he must turn amateur sleuth to find the real killer. Porkpie’s real-life experience in the burlesque scene gives the story some welcome authenticity (and plenty of double entendres), and while the investigation itself is a bit amateurish, that just makes it more believable. Good fun.

JUST STARTED

Black Glass by John Shirley

Billed as the “lost cyberpunk novel”, Black Glass was an idea developed by Shirley and William Gibson back in the 80s, then shelved and forgotten about for decades until, a few years ago, Shirley dug it out and Gibson said, “It's all yrs.” Check back here next month to see how he did.

( RECENT TITLES: Lewis, Westlake, Barris and Bukowski! )

Bottoms up,

This is dF