I’ve been reading and reviewing a book a day, and I just crashed on that this weekend. I’m reading two books, but neither of them are pageturners. So, I welcomed Kevin Tipple’s review. And, I love the title of this anthology edited by Michael Bracken and Stacy Woodson. It’s actually called Scattered, Smothered, Covered & Chunked: Crime Fiction Inspired by Waffle House.

Edited by Michael Bracken and Stacy Woodson, Scattered, Smothered,
Covered & Chunked: Crime Fiction Inspired by Waffle House is a fun
crime fiction read. Some of the tales are noirish in style while others are
more middle of the road crime fiction reads. There is humor, plenty of food
references, and a number of folks who really should have known better
than to do what they did.

There are sixteen short stories in the read. Every one of them is a good
one. The short stories referenced here with my brief comments are those
that really resonated with me. Your choices, no doubt, would vary.

It should also be noted that I am one of those people who just reads an
anthology straight through from front to back. I don’t poke around reading
people I know first or anything like that. So, the listing below is in the order
that I came across them as I read and not any implied ranking of my
favorites.

Alan Orloff’s “Well Done” features a place in a bad way, a need for money,
and an arsonist that is willing to work cheap. Of course, the arsonist’s name
is “Scorch.” It had to be his name and there is also one heck of a fire.

Win’s Waffles, owned and operated by Winfred Perkins III, is also having a
hard time of things. The long running family business is going under in “The
Price of Blood” by Nils Gilbertson. He knows the legacy is almost dead. He
also knows that Duncan Dudley is an idiot who is constantly involved in
failed money-making schemes. But, his latest venture is just crazy enough
that it could work.

Editor Michael Bracken’s “Windfall” takes three characters and, on one
hand, drops them in the exact right place at the right time. Another way of
looking at it is that the three are in the wrong place at the absolute worst
time. An armored car robbery and human nature is at work in this tale.

Lucie Heinz has always tried to keep her brother safe, not that he has
listened very well over the years. Her brother, Carson, has made it very
hard in “The Ham & Egger” by J. D. Allen. They have been hiding, for good
reason, and big sister thought that she could indulge her brother’s desire to
get out after being house bound for days. She thought they could safely go
out to the Silver Saddle Saloon for a couple of hours. What had seemed
like a good idea, clearly wasn’t. Hindsight won’t help them now.

“The Heart of Darkness” by Tammy Euliano also features a sibling who was
expected to do everything to protect the younger brother. When he left, Dad
took it hard, and told him to never come back home. Mom is dead so he is
back for the funeral and trying to figure out what happened during her last
days.

Like when Jim Cantore of the Weather Channel shows up in your town,
when the Waffle House closes, you know things are really bad. That has
happened in Donna Andrew’s “When Even Waffle House Closes.” The
winter storm is causing havoc and she is in trouble as the storm could kill
her. So could the robbers who are as deadly as the southern snowstorm.

The sixteen short stories that are present here are all entertaining reads.
The detailed bios at the end of the book help readers in their quest to read
more by these authors.

Scattered, Smothered, Covered & Chunked: Crime Fiction Inspired by
Waffle House is an interesting and highly entertaining crime fiction read. It
incorporates a premise that could easily be used again and again for
additional volumes in a potential series. This reader hopes that happens as
Scattered, Smothered, Covered & Chunked: Crime Fiction Inspired by
Waffle House, edited by Michael Bracken and Stacy Woodson is a mighty
good read. It also might make you hungry.

Published by Down & Out Books, my reading copy was a digital edition and
purchased by yours truly using funds in my Amazon Associate Account.

Kevin R. Tipple ©2025