Season of Ice --Richard Prosch

Let's get this out of the way right at the beginning: Season of Ice is dedicated to me, which makes me feel humble and proud.  I wouldn't feel that way if the book weren't really good, but it is.

As you can see on the cover to the left, Season of Ice is a collection of crime stories, most, but not all, of them set in the present day.  I say that because Prosch is a fine writer of westerns, too, and a winner of the Spur award.  My favorite story is probably the one that gives the book its title both because I always enjoy it when a crime in the past has consequences in the present.  Also this one, lik others in the collection, shows Prosch using the Nebraska weather to great advantage to echo the darkness of the story.  But all the other stories are good ones.  

One of the non-contemporary stories is "The Luck of Frankie Irish," set in a terminal at JFK airport during the blackout of 1965.  The blackout is part of Frankie's luck.  This story gives Prosch an opportunity to write in a different voice, and it's funny.  The other historical story is "The Dead Hand," and it's set much farther back in time, just after WWI.  It's a story of revenge and a good one.  Like many of the stories, it has a good twist at the end.

"#peacerocks" is definitely contemporary, and all too possible in today's world.

The book opens with "Gun Guys."  I love a story where the geezer wins.  It's followed by "Fool Me Twice," a noir tale that lives up to the title.  And you gotta love a tense tale like "Chester Dokes," in which a guy some call Chester the Molester becomes a little bit of a hero.

As I said earlier, all the stories are good ones, so you can't go wrong.  Highly recommended, as it would be even if it were dedicated to Joe Lansdale.