The fun thing about the Akashic Noir series is seeing the local character present itself through the various stories in each book. I've read a handful of these now, and there a some distinct flavors: Atlanta and Austin bounce around relatively young and rapidly growing cities, with most of the focus on the here and now and the stressors being growth and disparate economic fortunes; Alabama gave some distinctly southern spin to both urban and rural locales, which kept things lively; meanwhile Cleveland joins New Orleans in showcasing cities with pasts perhaps more glamourous than current times, which bleeds into the stories in each book - there are ghosts that haunt these cities and these pages.

The other key feature of these collections (like most anthologies with multiple artists) is that one's mileage may vary in regards to which stories hit home most effectively. For me, there are a few here that feel either unfinished, or as if they were written as part of a larger project. They we're necessarily less enjoyable, but the hint of missing pieces did leave me a little less satisfied with those particular stories. Not necessary to name them specifically (don't want to seem negative here), but worth noting this represents only 2-3 stories out of the whole, so not a big drag for me.

Standouts, on the other hand, do make up 4-6 stories in my opinion. Susan Patrone's "The Silent Partner" was a fun one early in the collection with a tone markedly different from most of the others (which isn't to say that it doesn't feature some of the haunting mentioned earlier). "Bus Stop" by Dana McSwain was a nice creepy number to close out Part I "City Center." D.M. Pulley's "Tremonster" offered a somewhat surprising climax to a gentrification tale, and editors Miesha Wilson Headen and Michael Ruhlman also contributed stories that playfully turned tables on the characters within them.

Overall, another enjoyable stop in a city I am only passingly familiar with, but which I feel I know a bit better after letting these writers give us a tour of the seedier people and/or sides of town. ( )

Another entertaining collection in the Akashic noir anthology series. You don't have to know Cleveland to enjoy these "dark love stories" from its varied neighborhoods. From crime drama to black humor to horror, the tales depict themes of desire, loss, morality, racism, alienation, and love, sometimes romantic, often tainted and misplaced. Damaged characters seek to improve their lot in questionable ways. Twist and turns and double-crosses provide surprises to welcome or mourn.

The haves and have-nots, deceivers and the deceived, criminals and victims, even the living and the dead interchange in an amorphous metaphysical grey area. As the protagonist in Paula McLain's "Love Always" says, "No one gets to stay the same." Cleveland Noir is well-written glimpses of one city's humanity.
( )

Finally. I’ve been waiting for a Cleveland collection and it was everything I hoped it would be. Many of these stories caught the spirit of the city where I live. For instance, Cleveland is a baseball town and there’s “The Sweet Partner,” a very good noir story. Another very Cleveland story is “Tremonster.” It sent chills up my spine and I was reading it in the daylight. “Bitter” was one of the best stories about revenge I’ve read in a long time, “Sugar Daddy” was very good, and although I figured out “Bus Stop,” it was still one I really liked. These are just a few of the excellent selections included in Cleveland Noir and it was worth waiting for. It’s definitely a 5 star read. ( )

I have read many of the books in this series, but I was not engaged by these stories. ( )

Cleveland is a city I've never visited, unlike the cities featured in previous Akashic Noir collections I have read. After reading this book, I have a sense of Cleveland as a gritty place where race and class are still important issues. I also see Cleveland as a city with both a past and a promising future. And I enjoyed everyone of the pieces in this collection! ( )