The Disassembled Man -- Nate Flexer

New Pulp Press is a new venture by Jon Bassoff (aka Nate Flexer). The books from New Pulp Press "focus on off-center crime fiction and neo-pulp. Veering away from the assumption that a protagonist must be a sympathetic character, our books are centered around con-men, losers, and sociopaths."

Frankie Avicious, the narrator of The Disassembled Man, is a far cry from a sympathetic character. He slaughters cattle for a living, and before long he moves on to slaughtering people, maybe at the urging of the enigmatic salesman named Jack Marteau, maybe not. The murders are graphic and bizarre, but then that's the point. By the end, Frankie's narrative turns almost surreal, and the punishment that waits for Frankie is as frightening and disturbing as the rest of the book.

This is strong stuff, definitely not the kind of thing that you're going to find from a mainstream publisher. Besides the mayhem, there's also a good bit of gruesome humor to sort of lighten the proceedings. If you have a taste for the offbeat, out-of-the-mainstream fiction, this might be just what you're looking for. If you're planning to stick to the safe and familiar, it's not. You can read the first two chapters on Al Guthrie's Noir Originals. That might be enough to let you know what you're in for. Check it out.