AUSTIN NOIR

Austin has quite a reputation.

It’s a place where hippies and rednecks came together to listen to Janis Joplin. But just as more people bring more money and more experiences into a city, they bring more crime. Some of the dark deeds this volume chronicles are solid and old-fashioned. Gunplay has its place, as Gabino Iglesias documents in “The Pink Monkey” and Ace Atkins shows in “Stunts.” So do the dysfunctional families in Amanda Moore’s “Reflections” and Jeff Abbott’s quietly creepy “The Good Neighbor.” Con games are another pillar of traditional noir, as Chaitali Sen reminds genre fans in “The Foundation.” But other transgressions are more up to the minute. In “Rush Hour,” Richard Z. Santos shows what can happen when a good Samaritan confronts the TikTok generation. Alexandra Burt’s “Sapphire Blue” is a shocking look at America’s child care crisis. Miriam Kuznets offers a wholly unexpected solution to the high price of prescription drugs in “Saving.” Not to neglect Austin’s status as a university town, editor Odintz’s “Michael’s Perfect Penis” and Amy Gentry’s “Stitches” celebrate those bright college years in a way that feels both nostalgic and new.

A perfect testament to Austin’s ability to look backward while moving forward.