Akashic Books Ignition: 146 books

This novel reveals that lunacy is by no means restricted to the village madman. . . . “By far the funniest book I’ve read in a decade” (The Washington Post Book World). In Jamaica, Aloysius is tolerated by his neighbors, but forced to eke out a living by doing odd jobs and use the hospitable...

From the author of Long Train to the Redeeming Sin, “the most jubilant celebration of black African beauty so far seen in the English language” (The Boston Globe). Following in the footsteps of her idols Alice Walker and Toni Morrison, Kola Boof asserts her own literary prowess with a chilling...

“A clutch of early stories from the poet, playwright, and provocateur, infused with jazz and informed by racial alienation” (Kirkus Reviews). “Baraka was, without question, the central figure of the Black Arts Movement, and was the most important theorist of that movement’s expression...

“Plenty of mayhem for fans of dark fiction . . . Suburbia may be even meaner than the big city.” —The New York Times   Long Island may bring to mind quiet middle-class homes among leafy trees and lawns, or the glitzy enclaves of the Gold Coast and the Hamptons. But this gigantic stretch...

“If ever a city was made to be the home of noir, it’s Chicago. These writers go straight to Chicago’s noir heart” (Aleksandar Hemon, National Book Award finalist and New York Times–bestselling author of The Lazarus Project).   Chicago’s rough-and-tumble tough-guy reputation may have been...

In this “charming” and melancholic novel, a former child sleuth “investigates the hard-to-crack case of Lost Innocence” (Entertainment Weekly). A Chicago Tribune, Kirkus Reviews, and Booklist Book of the Year In the twilight of a mysterious childhood full of wonder, Billy Argo,...

This “unique and memorable” blend of futuristic dystopia and dark detective story features “one of the more offbeat characters in fiction” (Booklist).   In this “uncannily original” series, the man known as Dewey Decimal works in a near-future Manhattan decimated by terrorism and plague,...

This Edgar Award–winning crime novel offers “pulp fiction in Castro’s Cuba” (Martin Cruz Smith, author The Girl from Venice). Alicia is a smart, confident, and gorgeous prostitute in Havana. She is not a streetwalker. Rather, she displays her wares on bicycle, seducing men through the...

The dark side of The Lion City is explored in a thrilling anthology that gives “plenty of new and unfamiliar voices a chance to shine” (San Francisco Book Review). The island city-state of Singapore harbors unique customs and traditions largely unknown to the West. A booming economy and...

The first nonfiction volume in the “superb series” —true crime stories from Bushwick to Borough Park to Brooklyn Heights (The Globe and Mail, Toronto). The people who brought you the Brooklyn Noir crime-fiction collections return with another talented literary lineup—this time contributing...

Atmospheric, all-new crime fiction set in this Northern Ireland city—from Lee Child, Arlene Hunt, Steve Cavanagh, Gerard Brennan, and more. During the decades of the Troubles, Belfast was plagued with riots, bombings, and other violence, and armored vehicles patrolled the streets—a daily...

“American Visa is beautifully written, atmospheric, and stylish in the manner of Chandler . . . a smart, exotic crime fiction offering.” —George Pelecanos, award-winning author/producer of The Wire Armed with fake papers, a handful of gold nuggets, and a snazzy custom-made suit, an unemployed...

Gritty all-new crime stories set in the bustling Texas city, by Ben Fountain, Kathleen Kent, James Hime, and many more. In a country with so many interesting cities, Dallas is often overlooked—except on November 22 every year. On that day in 1963, Dallas became American noir. This collection...

“Thoroughly entertaining, with an offbeat sense of humor . . . There’s a solid mystery here, underneath the goofiness” (Booklist). Things have not been going well for journalist Sandy Bloomgarten. Her job went down the drain and her marriage quickly followed. After a lengthy bender, she...