Corrosion by Jon Bassoff

By Steve Weddle

A couple years back, Keith Rawson of CrimeFactory included a story of mine in an anthology called THE FIRST SHIFT, which ended up published by New Pulp Press, an indie publishing outfit founded by Jon Bassoff.

And now we have Bassoff's own novel -- under his own name -- CORROSION.

CORROSION falls into a broad category called "psycho noir," a dark novel in which a severely damaged protagonist does terrible things, justifying them to himself and to the reader. The stand-out that comes to mind is Jim Thompson's THE KILLER INSIDE ME, which I also enjoyed.

Where CORROSION separates itself from Thompson's book -- and most others -- is in its dealing with individual identity. What shapes a person -- in the case, a man? How does he define himself? What motivates him? How can he change?

This was an amazing book, one that sucked you right in and let you fall through the darkness. You can feel completely unmoored reading this, but never lost. Adrift, but not unguided.

The rhythm of the writing, the lines and characters, the pacing, all these technical aspects assure you that you're in the hands of a talented writer. About that, there can be no doubt.

CORROSION was a painful, brilliant read and I look for more from Bassoff.

Highly recommended.