Earlier this morning, PUNK NOIR MAGAZINE published my review of John Shirley's latest novel, THE SILVER REVOLVER (Rough Edge Press, 2025). The first two paragraphs follow:
Some people will tell you that the pulp era is long dead, but John Shirley seems to be single-handedly attempting to keep the spirit of that adventurous age alive and well. Indeed, Shirley might be the preeminent pulp writer of the twenty-first century. Of course, I’m using “pulp” in the very best sense of the word. Certain uptight academics associate the word “pulp” with the most lowbrow fiction of the Great Depression, a time when cheaply produced magazines filled with lurid shocks were churned out by a factory system populated with workhorse scriveners scrambling to earn a penny a word by creating rote entertainment for the masses. Though the field was no doubt overpopulated by penny-a-worders who cared more about collecting a paycheck than crafting immortal prose, there were those rare, ambitious dreamers like Ray Bradbury, Raymond Chandler, Philip K. Dick, Dashiell Hammett, Patricia Highsmith, Elmore Leonard, H.P. Lovecraft, Clark Ashton Smith, Donald Westlake, and Cornell Woolrich who contributed influential, foundational literature to the pulp age.
There was a time when a professional writer could remain solvent only by becoming a master of various forms and producing as many words as possible. Perhaps more so than any veteran storyteller living today, John Shirley has evolved into a literary chameleon who appears to be equally comfortable in almost any genre imaginable. In the past six years, he’s published hard science fiction novels (Stormland and SubOribital 7), short horror fiction (The Feverish Stars), fantasy novels (A Sorcerer of Atlantis), westerns (Axle Bust Creek, Gunmetal Mountain, and Blood in Sweet River), and even collections of poetry (The Voice of the Burning House and Ghost Confessions). I’m familiar with dilettantes in academia who equate a high literary output with lackadaisical writing, but such criticism does not apply to Shirley’s legendary career. His 1980 book, City Come A-Walkin’, is widely regarded as the first true cyberpunk novel; his 1998 book, Black Butterflies, won the coveted Stoker Award for Best Story Collection; and his 2023 book, Gunmetal Mountain, won the Spur Award for Best Western Novel. Fortunately for his readers, Shirley appears to be nowhere near finished hopping from genre to genre...To read the entire book review, click HERE.
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