Femme fatales, femme sleuths, femme all kinds of things that aren't stereotypically femme. This collection of short stories by 20 excellent writers is at times sexy, unsettling, heroic (heroinic?) and poetic. Some characters I loved, some I really couldn't stand. It's varied and entertaining, and finishes up with a section where each author explains the motivation behind her story. I'll definitely be seeking out these authors and their other work. ( )

I read four, maybe five of the stories in the collection and didn't like any of them. It's not that they were badly written, I just didn't care for them. Even Sparkle Hayter, whose novels I love, didn't do so well. I'm not sure what it was, but the stories were too depressing, too emotional, too much about sex. Which is a ridiculous thing to say about a book called Tart Noir, I know. ( )

This books gets a collective 2 thumbs down from Novelwomen. ( )