We had the idea to do this one a good while ago, but it’s taken some time to get it off the ground – as these things do sometimes.
When thinking about subjects for crime anthologies, honestly this kept coming back to us again and again. After all, what better motive for criminal activity than this one – everybody experiences feelings of jealously and anger in their lives, often directed at someone who’s wronged them (not that we’re advocating doing anything about it in real life, obviously). But the scope is pretty huge for it fiction-wise, as we certainly found out when we began getting the stories in.
Whether it’s lost loves, family members causing trouble or cheating spouses, there’s always a great crime story to be found based on revenge of one sort or another. As we mention in the introduction to the book: ‘From Medea taking her revenge on Jason by murdering their children and his new bride in Greek mythology, and the ancient Chinese mythical tale of the Jing Wei bird, to the many examples throughout The Bible. From Shakespeare’s Hamlet, to Dumas’ The Count of Monte Cristo and Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë, where both passion and long-term revenge are crucial themes… That most basic of human urges has always made for a cracking tale!’
The authors we contacted were all very enthusiastic about the topic as well, which just goes to show how popular it is. And the stories we received from the blind submissions process were excellent, reflecting how much people want to write and read about fictional revenge.
And we’re delighted that Flame Tree felt the same way. After doing a couple of previous anthologies for them in their ‘Beyond & Within’ series – one on Folk Horror, another about Witchcraft – we thought we’d shake things up a bit and pitch a crime book to them. As for the title, well everyone knows that revenge is a dish that’s Best Served Cold, don’t they.
We’ve put together a terrific list of bestselling authors and talented newcomers, each writer giving their own personal spin on retribution. Hopefully you’ll enjoy every single one, but there’s something for every kind of crime reader whatever your tastes. There are also some surprises in store, jaw-dropping moments and quite simply chef’s kiss inventive criminal acts. We say this a lot about our anthologies, but it’s true, and the same goes for this one: they’re books that we would read ourselves for pleasure, and that’s after having read them many times for work! Not only that, the Beyond & Within series comes in embossed/foil deluxe hardcovers with sprayed edges and each has a unique, themed illustration.
So, if this all sounds like your cup of tea – and frankly if you’re reading Crime Time, why wouldn’t it? – then we’d love it if you could join us and pick this gorgeous publication up. You won’t be disappointed.
Paul Kane & Marie O’Regan
Best Served Cold is published by Flame Tree
