Hard Case Crime to Publish Harlan Ellison's First Novel, Web of the City

Harlan Ellison may be best known for his works of science fiction, but he is also the author of a considerable body of crime fiction. Two of his short stories have won Edgar Awards — "The Wimper of Whipped Dogs" in 1974 and "Soft Monkey" in 1988 — and now Hard Case Crime will be publishing a new edition of his first novel, Web of the City, in April 2013.

Originally published in 1958 by Pyramid Books under the title of Rumble — Ellison reportedly hated the title — Web of the City is set in Rusty Santaro's neighborhood, where the kids carry knives, chains, bricks. Broken glass. And when they fight, they fight dirty, leaving the streets littered with the bodies of the injured and the dead. Rusty wants out — but you can't just walk away from a New York street gang. And his decision may leave his family to pay a terrible price.

In his early 20s, Ellison — anonymously — became a member of a Brooklyn gang as part of his research for the book.

Hard Case Crime will publish the book together with three of the author's short stories. You can read an excerpt from Web of the City on the publisher's website.

(Hat tip to CrimeSpree Magazine.)