The Orange Spotlight

The Taste of Penny by Jeff Parker (Dzanc Books, 4/20)

In the follow-up to his debut novel, Ovenman, Jeff Parker brings the reader a series short stories that are wild, dark, adventurous, and strangely compelling. Even as Parker is describing the sensation of biting of the tip of his tongue or caving through the carcass of a roadkill moose (same story!) you are drawn in to the drama, tragedy, action, and comedy.

"Her body explodes. But James doesn't stop there. He pounds again and again and again until she is a bloody nothing."

The car wreck of a collection culminates with a series of stories about a man named James. It kicks off with a tale of how and why James killed a bird with a hammer. It's so wrong, but so hard to put down. The collection ends with a series of e-mails between a lonely guy and a series of his past flings. It adds a bit of humor, and a little sadness to this heavily layered collection. This collection is the perfect way to escape and live a life (or lives) a little more dangerous and adventurous for awhile.

The Taste of Penny was released by Dzanc Books on April 20th and Jeff Parker is reading tonight at The Whistler for those of you in Chicago.

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