Lives go off the rails in eighteen short stories written in a propulsive, dialogue-driven style. These tales of jealousy, revenge, and murder depict men and women foundering in an amoral world. David Body's sardonic take on relationships may reveal his admiration for 1940s movies, but his stories are not simply a throwback to that earlier era. Perhaps an apt description might be neo-noir for the 21st century, still darkly humorous and saturated in greed and lust, without the saving grace of big-band music.