Akashic Books: 356 books

“Evocative, emotional . . . Readers looking for something different will appreciate this work.” —Library Journal   During the later days of her life, Margaret Kroftis is a writer, living alone. As she experiences a personal tragedy, the narrative of this novel moves forward in an emotionally...

From Hollywood starlets to downtown taxi dancers, and from Central Avenue speakeasies to clapboard Venice Beach shacks to Depression-era hobos riding the rails, this volume brings you the masters of the genre penning tales of love, lust, and loss in the City of Angels. Includes classic stories...

“In a thrilling tilt-a-whirl of crime and drama . . . Smith has carefully chosen writers concerned with the true nature of the small suburban borough.” —Electric Literature   Staten Island may be New York City’s forgotten borough, but it ranks high up on the list of places known for organized...

From the award-winning author of The Boy Detective Fails: A novel of two brothers growing up on the other side of the tracks.   “A trailer park in the Plains town of Tenderloin is the setting of this crusty coming-of-age debut, which features some of the liveliest characters just this side of believable...

A tale of political downfall from “an exceptional creative talent perfectly in tune with his own rapidly changing times” (Robert Coover, bestselling author of The Public Burning).   In 2002, real-life mayor of Providence, Rhode Island, Vincent “Buddy” Cianci was convicted of extortion. This...

Editor Tim Hennessy lives in Milwaukee and writes for Crimespree magazine. Features brand-new stories from: Jane Hamilton, Reed Farrel Coleman, Valerie Laken, Matthew J. Prigge, Shauna Singh Baldwin, Vida Cross, Larry Watson, Frank Wheeler Jr., Derrick Harriell, Christi Clancy, James E. Causey,...

“Haunting” stories about crimes that are “often submerged in the greater tragedy of a beautiful city constantly torn within and without by violence” (Publishers Weekly). Beirut is a city both urban and rural, a city of violence and forgiveness, memory and forgetfulness, war and peace....

A hustler searches for truth in a dystopian Boston, in this novel of “comically elaborate twists and turns of plot [and] broad social satire” (Robert Coover, bestselling author of The Public Burning). An abandoned child hustles on the streets of a dystopic, near-future Boston in the aftermath...

"The seeming inevitability of cruel fate juxtaposes the triumph of the spirit in this remarkably rich and powerful novel, Glorious. Bernice McFadden's fully realized characters are complicated, imperfect beings, but if ever a character were worthy of love and honor, it is her Easter Bartlett....

Publicize to major dailies, weeklies, literary publications, alternative publications. Major radio and television push.

McFadden's last novel was a hit with book clubs, and this new novel should have an even stronger reception. McFadden has a strong appeal to African American women, while also appealing to a broader literary audience. Prominent reviews expected.

"McFadden's reissued second novel takes an unflinching look at the corrosive nature of alcoholism . . . This is not a story of easy redemption . . . McFadden writes candidly about the treacherous hold of addiction." --Publishers Weekly "Riveting. . . . So nicely avoids the sentimentality...

An “entertaining” novel about a family of three women “navigating relationships, a half-dozen lovers and innumerable dogs” (Publishers Weekly).   Alice Hunter is a thirty-six-year-old professional gambler living in Queens, New York. She is modestly successful as a horseplayer and enjoys her...

By the author of Waiting in Vain: “A sparkling gift, the tale of a meager, shoeless, raggedy abandoned Cinderella whose hardships make her all the wiser” (The Washington Post).   Set in 1942 on the imagined island of San Carlos—a cultural cocktail of Trinidad, Cuba, and Jamaica—this is the...