I Bring Sorrow

Praise for I BRING SORROW “A sparkling collection from Edgar-finalist Abbott...This brilliant collection is sure to boost the author’s reputation as a gifted storyteller.” —Publishers Weekly (Starred Review) “(A) stellar collection...Each story packs a wallop, with plots as varied as the characters that inhabit them. Just when the reader thinks they’ve found the best one, they’ll turn the page and fall in love all over again. Strongly recommended for fans of suspense and enthusiasts of the short form.” —Library Journal (Starred Review) "Patricia Abbott's collection of stories are just electric and utterly amazing. The short story form is perhaps the most difficult to achieve artistry in, and in I BRING SORROW, Patricia Abbott joins the very select few like, Frank O Connor, Raymond Carver, De Maupassant, and Dahl who have not only mastered this art but brought something entirely new to the genre. A dark, captivating collection.” —Ken Bruen, author of the Jack Taylor series "Patricia Abbott shows a rare and quiet mastery of the form. Any one of the stories in I BRING SORROW is worth the price of admission.” —Reed Farrel Coleman, New York Times bestselling author of WHAT YOU BREAK “A collection of extraordinary, riveting, and thought-provoking stories that explore the dark side of human behavior.” —Criminal Element “A quintessentially American book: filled with misguided expectations, failed experiences, and empty successes.” —Unlawful Acts Praise for the novels of Patricia Abbott SHOT IN DETROIT “Perceptive…makes some telling points about the sometimes questionable relationship between art and morality.” —Publishers Weekly “An assured mystery centering on artistry and the price that can be paid for it.” —Booklist "A fresh look at the disintegration of Detroit as seen through the lens of a camera...a detailed account of one woman battling her inner demons against the backdrop of a city that is doing the same." —Library Journal "Abbott's ability to create living, breathing characters is nothing short of astounding...A spot-on description of a once proud but now struggling city...a compelling snapshot of the human condition." —Mystery Scene CONCRETE ANGEL "This is a gripping psychological thriller...will draw fans of the late Ruth Rendell as well as Paula Hawkins' The Girl on the Train." —Booklist "With cool, compelling prose, CONCRETE ANGEL reveals the menace that lurks beneath a mother’s charming facade. An absorbing novel by an unusually fine writer.” —Meg Gardiner, Edgar Award-winning author of UNSUB and CHINA LAKE "(An) enthralling, dark debut novel...It’s a potent and at times poignant combination. Those who enjoy suspenseful, atmospheric family drama will find much to love here." —Library Journal (starred review) "Christine's mother Eve is sharp, beautiful, charismatic... and a murderous sociopath. Their complicated and heartbreaking relationship is explored in CONCRETE ANGEL -- a riveting depiction of family ties and how they can bind, ensnare, strangle." —Alison Gaylin, USA Today bestselling author "CONCRETE ANGEL is debut novelist Patti Abbott’s exquisitely rendered character study of a manipulative mother over two decades. Eve is a woman obsessed – but how will our narrator, Eve’s only daughter, respond as her childhood innocence is taken away? Abbott exhibits a pitch-perfect precision with both language and setting in capturing the tragic world of a mid-century Pennsylvania family." —Edgar Award-winning author Naomi Hirahara "A fresh, original voice telling a story that's probably, in broad outline if not detail, more common than we know. But what detail! From the opening sentence, a grabber.” —SJ Rozan, Edgar-winning author (as Sam Cabot) of SKIN OF THE WOLF "The characters in Abbott’s debut novel are fully realized.” —Kirkus Reviews