Street Smart Series
The Street Smart Series of Short Fiction for People on the Go presents short fiction of “novelette” length (between 10,000 to 20,000 words – a work that is longer than a short story, but shorter than a novella). These stories, presented in a handy 5-by-7-inch format, are long enough to tell a good story, but brief enough to be read on a short train journey or long commute. They feature contemporary urban settings, well-drawn characters, and engaging plots.
Get the Latest! Street Smart Series Nos. 4 and 5 Now Available!
Stealing MacGuffin
Matthew Kastel December, 2019 70 p., 3 b&w illustrations ISBN: 9781642510171 Street Smart Series, No. 4 Price: $6.50 (print) A failed screenwriter turned private detective has his life turned upside-down when he’s talked into stealing MacGuffin, an unusual Tinseltown memento, from the home of one of Hollywood’s most infamous directors. This odd piece of memorabilia has had a storied and deadly chain of custody since the silent era and is prized among some of Hollywood’s elite. Along the way there is murder, a beautiful woman, and a colorful cast of characters all playing their roles in the theft. Set in present-day Baltimore, Stealing MacGuffin pays homage to the likes of Dashiell Hammett and the hard-boiled detective story, while at the same time spoofing Hollywood both past and present. |
Pele's Domain
Albert Tucher December, 2019 50 p., 3 b&w illustrations ISBN: 9781642510195 Street Smart Series, No. 5 Price: $6.50 (print) The eruption of Kilauea on the Big Island of Hawaii tests Officer Jenny Freitas like nothing else in her young police career. It’s not enough that she finds a murder victim in a doomed house just seconds before the lava overwhelms it. A second victim draws Jenny back to the danger zone again and again. Maybe the goddess Pele isn’t satisfied with owning the islands. Maybe she, and the killer, want Jenny too. "Tucher made a good choice in setting the story in the midst of Kilauea’s eruption. It is not only an unusual adversary, akin to a hurricane or an avalanche, it adds an overlay of dread to the story – things are out of control. . . . Pele’s Domain is a quick fun read!" -- Vicki Weisfeld in Crime Fiction Lover |
Special Deal! Street Smart Series Nos. 4 and 5
Get both new stories at a special price! Stealing MacGuffin by Matthew Kastel Pele's Domain by Albert Tucher Price: $11.05 15% off prices sold separately Special deal available only from Frayed Edge Press! |
Collect 'em all! Street Smart Series 1, 2, and 3...
Full Fare
Jean-Bernard Pouy English language edition, 2019 62 p., 7 b&w illustrations ISBN: 9781642510096 Street Smart Series, No. 1 Price: $6.50 (print) As the temperature drops, Paris authorities make a plan to prevent deaths of the homeless: house them in disused train cars on the outskirts of the city. This unintentionally creates a social and political experiment that leads to a new form of society—and causes the police and authorities to clash with the homeless train dwellers and the anarchists who’ve come to support them. Jean-Bernard Pouy is a popular French author, best known for the Le Poulpe (“the octopus,” also a play on words evoking pulp fiction) series of detective stories, featuring the distinctively anarchistic sleuth, Gabriel Lecouvreur. Full Fare is the first English translation of anything Pouy has written. It is hoped that this will be a first taste for English-language readers of what Francophone readers have been enjoying for years. |
Down and Out in Paris, with Cat
R.A. Bolo October, 2019 50 p., 3 b&w illustrations ISBN: 9781642510133 Street Smart Series, No. 2 Price: $6.50 (print) The trials and tribulations of an American anarchist abroad: an American ex-patriot leads a life that many would envy, living and working in Paris. But all is not well for him in the beautiful “city of lights”—his French girlfriend has left him, he’s fallen off the wagon after decades of sobriety, and a homeless cat is now tugging at his heartstrings. |
The Accidental Anarchist
A.R. Melnik October, 2019 58 p., 3 b&w illustrations ISBN: 9781642510157 Street Smart Series, No. 3 Price: $6.50 (print) Middle-aged English professor Caroline Wilson has a good job and a good husband in Philadelphia, but a restless need for a change of scene and a little excitement has her impulsively boarding a commuter bus to New York one morning. A turn down a New York City alley unexpectedly plunges her into a world she never could have imagined, where young anarchists are battling against human traffickers—and they need Caroline’s help. |
Special Deal! Street Smart Series Nos. 1, 2, and 3
Get all three stories at a special price! Full Fare by Jean-Bernard Pouy Down and Out in Paris, with Cat by R.A. Bolo The Accidental Anarchist by A.R. Melnik Price: $16.57 15% off prices sold separately Special deal available only from Frayed Edge Press! |
Coming soon...
Next up in the Street Smart Series -- more stories for your reading pleasure!