A Bland Noir Knock-Off

Liar’s Kiss by Eric Skillman. Illus by Jhomar Soriano (Top Shelf Productions, 2011, 120pp.)

Tragedy and melodrama abound in this less than capable noir tribute. Nick Archer, the Sam Spade figure of the piece, is a shabby, wise-cracking private eye who’s been hired by a rich art gallery owner, Johnny Kincaid, to spy on his sultry, unfaithful wife, Abbey. Instantly attracted to one another, Nick and Abbey begin an affair right under Kincaid’s nose. All runs smoothly until Kincaid is found murdered, and the police decide to name Abbey as the prime suspect. As Nick struggles for clues alongside hostile police detectives, he discovers that the key to solving the crime lies in a botched burglary at Kincaid’s art gallery years ago. What could very well have been a great homage to the noir genre if handled properly is instead botched by its well-meaning author. The killer’s motivation feels a bit forced, the story itself is unremarkable, and the characters lack substance. Skillman would have done better had he tried a more satirical approach to the story, and focused more on characters than plot. A bland noir knock-off that’s good for one read, nothing more. Recommended for mature readers.