BLOOD SUGAR is not your usual Hard Case Crime book. It is, for one, an original story, newly written and released, as opposed to the rare, out-of-print and/or long-lost novels that this venerable and indispensable imprint typically publishes. For another, it is not a crime novel, as that term is normally used in the literary world. It most certainly revolves around a crime, or at least the potential for one, and therein lies part of the reason for its presence here.

That said, BLOOD SUGAR makes demands. It is told in a stream-of-consciousness fashion, and the stream is polluted. The particular body of water of the piece is named Jody, who hangs out with Dagmar, Midget and Robbie. It is Robbie who is considered the leader of the club, though Jody may have a thing or two to say about that. They are a group of four somewhat unpleasant but occasionally charming kids approaching adolescence who are up to no good from page one.

"BLOOD SUGAR is...a character study in which Daniel Kraus drops hints and incidents throughout the narrative that explain how these people got together and find themselves on the cusp of engaging in a heinous act..."

The time is Halloween, and the consideration is candy. The plot basically centers on a plan to obtain candy --- stealing it, of course --- and then tainting it before passing it out to (hopefully) dozens of kids who will fall ill, or worse. It is a story full of suspense, given that one of the participants exhibits some hesitation when it comes time to pull the pin on this holiday hand grenade. BLOOD SUGAR is more than a story of maybe/maybe not, though. It’s a character study in which Daniel Kraus drops hints and incidents throughout the narrative that explain how these people got together and find themselves on the cusp of engaging in a heinous act with the potential for far-reaching consequences.

You may not know the author’s name, but you almost certainly have at least a passing familiarity with his body of work, specifically those that he co-authored with Guillermo del Toro, which include the Netflix-adapted “Trollhunters” and the novelization of The Shape of Water. Kraus takes BLOOD SUGAR in a slightly different direction. It’s extremely gritty, and while there isn’t really any sex or violence, there is some cringe-inducing and unblinking focus on bodily fluids and functions that you won’t want to encounter while drinking or eating. There is, however, plenty of suspense of the will-they-or-won’t-they type, and the character development that Kraus whittles out of the vignettes ultimately elevates the book above the street-level situations it describes in nuanced detail before the reader is aware of it.

BLOOD SUGAR is not a long book, and whatever difficulties one might have with the breathless narrative --- it takes a bit of time for the reader to catch up with what Jody already knows --- are balanced by the short chapters and frequent chapter breaks. The cover art, courtesy of Paul Mann, features a fetching broom-riding witch and has absolutely nothing to do with the story, other than that both concern Halloween. It works for me.