VARIETY is reporting that Joe R. Lansdale will be feted by Italy’s Noir in Festival.

Lansdale, who will receive the fest’s Raymond Chandler Award, is expected to make the trek to the Italian Alps to tubthump his new book “Honky Tonk Samurai,” the latest in a series which is the basis for upcoming six-episode SundanceTV skein “Hap and Leonard.”

James Purefoy and Michael K. Williams as the titular characters in SundanceTV’s HAP AND LEONARD

“Honky Tonk Samurai” will hit Italian bookstores this month, Italy being the first country where the book is being released, published by Einaudi which is the country’s second-largest imprint.

Previous recipients of the fest’s Raymond Chandler Award, established in tandem with the Raymond Chandler estate, include Elmore Leonard, Scott Turow, and John le Carre.

The unique fest’s lineup of movies and books will be announced on November 18.

The 25th edition of the Courmayeur Noir in Festival will run December 8-13.

Read the rest of the coverage at VARIETY.

For more info on HAP AND LEONARD, visit the Tachyon page.

For more info about HAP AND LEONARD RIDE AGAIN, visit the Tachyon page.

Covers by Elizabeth Story