THE DARKEST SHADOWS OF A CITY: HAMBURG NOIR edited by JAN KARSTEN

Hamburg Noir, the latest in the Akashis anthology series.does little to diminish the stereotype that Germans are intense (In all fairness, editor Jan Karsten recruited some authors who emigrated from other countries.) This proves to be one of the darkest collection of stories of the series. The writers don't blink or flinch as they travel down the city's streets and to the bleakest spots of the human soul.

It kicks off with what may be my favorite story in the book, "Ant Street" by Nora Luttmer She follows a Vietnamese noodle shop owner as she struggles with the thugs running a protection racket. Luttmer lyrically taps into the noir atmosphere and style with a unique and winning protagonist who proves to be easily underestimated by her foes.

Other writers use the traditional elements or noir and mystery as a jumping off point. Till Raether's "I'll Be Gone In A Minute" utilizes the desperate man in need of quick cash and takes us through the murky world of crypto-currency. Matthias Wittekindt takes what seems like a standard entertaining policer about a Berlin detective transferred to the city and catched the case of a downed woman and uses it examine class and marriage in "Under Blackthorn". The interrogation scenes are incredibly executed, revealing character on both sides of he table.

Some use the noir trope of random encounters and fate. In Brigitte Helbing's "Aikido Diaries" a woman's martial arts study leads to a fateful night. Bela B. Felsenheimer shows how the murder of a drug dealer spins out ripples that affect several denizens of St, Pauli in "Who'll Look After Our Women If We Won't".

Timo Blunck provides some pitch black humor with "Angel Fricasse".The main character is a cad who uses his pet to pick up women at a Niendorf dog park.His latest conquest proves to be a woman of questionable taste. Get ready to crings and squirm for this one.

Hamburg Noir has the usual Akashic fourteen stories that include one written as a screenplay by Zoe Beck. Many have flourishes of experimentation, but always give a nod to the genre. The authors look into their city's past and present with elements that their country contributed to noir.