ACL Staff Picks: Gritty Southern/Country NoirLike this list

11 items

• The Legal Limit

  Clark, Martin, 1959-

  Add The Legal Limit to your for later shelf

  Brothers pitted together seems to be a common thread in Southern Noir. This one involves a County Attorney in Virginia and his prisoner brother.

• Bull Mountain

  Panowich, Brian,

  Add Bull Mountain to your for later shelf

  A North Carolina mountain sheriff and his drug-cartel brother go toe to toe.

• The Line That Held Us

  Joy, David, 1983-

  Add The Line That Held Us to your for later shelf

  A horrible accident has unexpected and dire consequences. This is Southern literature at its finest, beautifully written devastation.

• The World Made Straight

  Rash, Ron, 1953-

  Add The World Made Straight to your for later shelf

  True to Southern Noir, this fantastic novel has meth, run-down trailer homes sitting in fields, and young man trying to figure out life.

• Winter's Bone

  Woodrell, Daniel

  Add Winter's Bone to your for later shelf

  While much of Southern Noir takes place in the Appalachians, this one is set in the Ozarks.

• The Ranger

  Atkins, Ace

  Add The Ranger to your for later shelf

  This series is grit at its finest. A war veteran returns to his small hometown in Mississippi and becomes Sheriff, where he has to fight the good 'ole boy network every step of the way.

• A Land More Kind Than Home

  Cash, Wiley

  Add A Land More Kind Than Home to your for later shelf

  A preacher who honed his skills in prison after a meth-lab explosion, a church that handles poisonous snakes, and an autistic older brother give this protagonist a big 'ole headache. Two brothers battle the evil in a small Tennessee town.

• The Quiet Game

  Iles, Greg

  Add The Quiet Game to your for later shelf

  Swiftly moving legal thriller taking place in Natchez, Mississippi.

• The Neon Rain

  Burke, James Lee, 1936-

  Add The Neon Rain to your for later shelf

  Beautifully written series taking place in Louisiana, from the bayous to New Orleans.

• Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter

  Franklin, Tom

  Add Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter to your for later shelf

  Young boyhood friends don't notice the racial tension of Mississippi in the 70's, but 20 years and a missing girl later, it comes into play.

• Iron House

  Hart, John, 1965-

  Add Iron House to your for later shelf

  Orphan brothers, North Carolina mountains, and the Mob. What more excitement do you need?