Over the years Thuglit has provided an outlet for all kinds of tough, gritty hard-boiled fiction. Starting out as an on-line magazine it evolved into publishing a number of print anthologies before disappearing off the scene for a while. In October 2012 it reappeared in both print and electronic magazine format, with the first issue providing an outlet for a set of eight lean, mean, uncompromising hard-boiled stories, edited by Todd Robinson. The best of these is the opening story, the visceral and brutal, but utterly compelling "Lucy in the Pit" by Jordan Harper. This is a down and dirty story of dog fighting, the dogs who're made to fight and the men who fight them. It's full of (authentic sounding) detail, visceral description and is punchily told by Harper. It is a sad, tragic, brutal story but one with a hopeful and (sort of) up-lifting conclusion – a powerful and skilful piece of short storytelling. Equally enjoyable is "Magpie" by Hilary Davidson, which must feature the world's most manipulative, psychotic wife. It is beautifully told and although the ending may have been slightly telegraphed, it is still delivered with style when it arrives. Almost as good is the final tale, "Luck" by Johnny Shaw, which is about a missing lottery ticket. Any story that revolves around two losers called Scrote and Violence has to be good – and it is. Desperate characters, a grubby, greasy milieu and visceral violence, grafted to the blackest of humour make Shaw's story a dark classic. It is a tribute to Todd Robinson's editorial choices and the quality of the writing here that the other five stories in the anthology are almost as good as these three. This is a great return for "Thuglit", every tale here is an absolute winner; this is hard-boiled, noir crime at its amoral, hard-core best. If the subsequent issues of "Thuglit" are anywhere near this excellent quality, then this will fast become a must-read magazine. ( )