There were a couple of reviews of SuperNOIRtural Tales posted over the holiday break. Ted E. Grau over at The Cosmicomicon had this to say:

Rogers’ style is a perfect fit for this sort of fiction, as his writing is clean and straight ahead, without a lot of jazz hands, while also dashing the stew with a necessary amount of sarcasm and bone dry, black humor.  But there is also a depth of character, and a firm respect for what makes both good Horror and good Crime Fiction.  Like a mellow scotch, Rogers’ writing is the ideal blend of the spooky and the restrained, the shocking and the procedural, striking a balance that serves this sort of mash-up perfectly.

Ted also interviewed me for his website, which you should definitely check out because Ted is a big a fan of horror and noir as I am. Here’s an excerpt:

Do you have any more stories percolating that take place in or around the Black Lands?

My first non-Felix Black Lands story was recently published in the anthology Chilling Tales 2, edited by Michael Kelly. It’s called “Day Pass,” and it deals with a kind of halfway house for shapeshifters. People who have been infected by a Black Lands virus that’s basically the supernatural equivalent of rabies.

I’ve got a new Felix Renn story called “Eyes Like Poisoned Wells” that’s currently making the rounds.

And I’m currently working on a short story featuring Jerry Baldwin, the haunted house realtor from “The Brick.” It’s a tale of demons and exorcism called “Possession is Nine-Tenths of the Law.” Jerry’s stories tend to be a bit lighter. Not outright comedies, but less dark than the rest of my Black Lands stories. I like them because they let me explore not just another character, but another view of the world. Jerry’s outlook is very different from Felix’s. He doesn’t like the way the Black Lands is intruding on our world, but he’s trying to make the most of it. Even more, he’s trying to make money out of it.

You can read the whole review and the rest of the interview at The Cosmicomicon.

Josh Black also reviewed the book for Hellnotes:

The Brick is easily the highlight of the collection. It’s a creepy and effective haunted house tale, a terrifying monster-battling romp, and a strikingly poignant family saga that asks some probing questions regarding self-sacrifice. This one had me laughing, tearing up and nearly jumping out of my chair in equal measure.

Read the full review

Thanks to both of these fine gents for the excellent reviews.

Derek Newman-Stille over at Speculating Canada reviewed SuperNOIRtural Tales. Here’s a little of what he had to say:

Rogers plays with the juxtaposition of the ordinary and the extraordinary, illustrating how ordinary people can learn to cope with the introduction of the Weird into their everyday lives… Ian Rogers ‘Weirds’ the home, disrupting the safe blanket of domesticity that has become the foundation for Western modernity. Houses become things that can attack people, that can kill, that can be possessed… and even the bricks of the home itself can become infused with the ‘Weird’. They can be tainted spaces, infused with the miasma of the Black Lands.

Read the full review at Speculating Canada.

The first collection of Felix Renn stories, SuperNOIRtural Tales, is now available for sale!

Featuring all three Felix Renn chapbooks — “Temporary Monsters,” “The Ash Angels,” “Black-Eyed Kids” — as well the short story “My Body,” and a brand-new, 50,000-word novella called “The Brick.” As well as story notes, a history of the Black Lands, and an introduction by Mike Carey, author of the Felix Castor novels and writer for the DC/Vertigo comic book series Lucifer, Hellblazer, and The Unwritten.

If you’re curious about the book and the series, you can check out the first novella, “Temporary Monsters,” for free!

My bud, Rio Youers, tagged me to be a part of this online q&a called The Next Big Thing. The idea is to answer ten quick fire questions on your blog, and then tag five other writers, and so on. It’s a good idea, and a nice way to drum up interest in your latest work. Rio tagged me and you can read his answers on his website. Here are mine:

1. What is the working title of your next book?

My next book is titled…. UNTITLED FIRST FELIX RENN NOVEL. Actually, I know the title of the book, but I’m not ready to reveal it here. If you really want to know, I mentioned it in the story notes in my Felix Renn collection, SuperNOIRtural Tales. It just came out, so let’s talk about that book instead, okay?

2. Where did the idea come from for the book?

SuperNOIRtural Tales is a collection of five stories featuring a recurring private detective character named Felix Renn. I don’t recall where the idea for Felix came from, except that I’ve always enjoyed supernatural fiction and detective fiction, and thought it would be fun to combine them in one story.

3. What genre does your book fall under?

I suppose some people would say it’s urban fantasy, but UF has become synonymous with paranormal romance these days, so I tend to refer to these stories as supernatural noirs, or supernoirturals (hence the title of the book).

4. What actors would you choose to play the part of your characters in a movie rendition?

I think Ryan Gosling could make an interesting Felix. And I think Alicia Witt would do well as Felix’s ex-wife/assistant, Sandra.

5. What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?

Felix Renn is a private detective in a supernatural world.

6. Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?

The book was published by Burning Effigy Press.

7. How long did it take you to write the first draft of the manuscript?

The collection is the culmination of three years’ worth of stories. The longest story, “The Brick” at 50,000 words, took about three months to write.

8. What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?

Hmm. Tough question. I think of Felix as more Harry D’Amour than Harry Dresden, so I’m reluctant to compare the book to others in the field of urban fantasy. The Felix Renn stories actually owe more to detective fiction than horror, so while I would compare the story to something like Everville, by Clive Barker, I’d also include the Lew Archer series by Ross Macdonald and the Spensers books by Robert B. Parker.

9. Who or what inspired you to write this book?

My love for detective/supernatural fiction mash-ups.

10. What else about the book might pique the reader’s interest?

Well, I think Felix Renn and the Black Lands series stands out among others in its subgenre, if only because I don’t self-identify as an author of urban fantasy. It’s not about marketing. I think if you read these stories (and you can read the first one in the series, “Temporary Monsters” for free), you’ll see that they stand very much on their own.

So there we go. Quick and painless. Unfortunately, I’ve only managed to tag one other author so far. Orrin Grey is up next in the hot seat one week from today.

Okay, folks, it’s time to get your Felix fix! SuperNOIRtural Tales, the first collection of Felix Renn stories, is now available for pre-order!

Featuring all three Felix Renn chapbooks — “Temporary Monsters,” “The Ash Angels,” “Black-Eyed Kids” — as well the short story “My Body,” and a brand-new, 50,000-word novella called “The Brick.”

With an introduction by Mike Carey, author of the Felix Castor novels and writer for the DC/Vertigo comic book series Lucifer, Hellblazer, and The Unwritten.

Pre-order it now!

There’s a lot of Felix Renn stuff going on over the next few months, enough that I’ve declared this the Fall of Felix! (To be spoken in the same boisterous tone as George Constanza saying “The Summer of George!”)

Here’s the rundown:

In the next week or so, Supernatural Tales #22 will be out, featuring the Felix Renn vampire story, “Midnight Blonde.” (Speaking of vampires, swing over to Speculating Canada and read an article I wrote on Black Lands vampires called “Vamping Things Up.”)

On October 1st, SuperNOIRtural Tales will be available for pre-order from Burning Effigy Press. A very cool preview will be available for electronic download at the same time (more on that later). SuperNOIRtural Tales will include the three Felix Renn novellas (“Temporary Monsters,” “The Ash Angels,” and “Black-Eyed Kids”), the short story “My Body” (featured in the Chilling Tales anthology), and a brand-new, 50,000-word novella called “The Brick.” Other extras include story notes, a history of the Black Lands, and an introduction by Mike Carey. The book will be out in November, just in time for the World Fantasy Convention in Richmond Hill, which I will be attending.

And finally, coming out in December (yeah, technically it’s winter not fall, so sue me), the anthology Fungi will include the story “Out of the Blue,” which features Felix Renn and his haunted real-estate selling foil Jerry Baldwin.

There’s some other cool stuff coming later this year and early next year — a new Black Lands story in Chilling Tales 2, as well as Felix’s first foray into electronic self-publishing — but this should be enough to hold you for the time being.

Thanks to everyone for their continued support of my work. There’s going to be a lot going on this fall (“The Fall of Felix!”), in terms of book launches, readings, and conventions. If you live in the area, I hope you’ll come out and say hello.

Coming this November from Burning Effigy Press…

Felix Renn is a private investigator in a supernatural world, an alternate reality where a dark dimension called The Black Lands co-exists alongside our own. Travelling to and from The Black Lands is dangerous — and illegal — but that doesn’t stop some of the creatures that reside there from crossing over into our world from time to time.

In this collection of stories, Felix encounters a variety of terrifying entities, including ghosts, vampires, werewolves, and the dreaded Black-Eyed Kids.

In a world where paranormal has become the norm, each new case may be his last.

* * *

SuperNOIRtural Tales collects all of the Felix Renn stories published to date, as well as a brand-new 50,000-word novella, “The Brick.”

Featuring an introduction by Mike Carey, author of the Felix Castor novels and writer for the DC/Vertigo comic book series Lucifer, Hellblazer, and The Unwritten.

Praise for the Felix Renn Series:

“Wry and stylishly bizarre… Felix Renn has entered the weird and wild urban fantasy front; I hope he’s on the job for years to come.”
— Laird Barron, author of The Croning and Occultation

“…an evocation of the classic, hardboiled detective that skirts the edge of parody without ever falling into it.”
— John Langan, author of House of Windows

“…a fast-paced entertaining story that gleefully mashes up all-things-supernatural with his hardboiled PI.”
— Paul Tremblay, author of Swallowing a Donkey’s Eye

“…there’s a lot of shading to Renn — the humour, the regrets, the resourcefulness… the chilly isolation of the human soul is felt throughout… Truly, this is one of the most chilling horror stories I’ve read in years. Make that, that I’ve read period.”
— Jeffrey Thomas, author of Punktown

“[Rogers] understands the rat-a-tat-tat language of the best noir, and uses it to explore the interpersonal relationships of his characters… Felix Renn has a lot of life in him, and a lot of distance to travel.”
— Simon Strantzas, author of Nightingale Songs

PRE-ORDER INFORMATION TO COME