Reviews

4 stars

Packs a punch in its short length, The Postman Always Rings Twice does read quite vintage and of its time (I definitely guessed my way through some dated slang in its dialogs), but the actual beats of its narrative is surprisingly gripping, considering it was published nearly 90 years ago.

At its core we follow two characters as they try to outsmart their circumstance; and I particularly appreciate their depiction as ordinary people (making mistake, rushing to decision, and relying on dumb luck), rather than skilled con artists with precise planning. The writing is very task-oriented and objective, leaping from action to action (which is how we manage to fit murder, romance, and courtroom drama in less than 150 pages). Sometimes I wished the book has slowed down a little to fill in the emotional, psychological aspect of its characters, but at the same time I did find its efficiency pretty refreshing. If this was to publish today, it will have dual POVs, at least double the length, along with a merrier ending (the conclusion here is bleak) — often named as a crime noir classic, and I fully agree!

sidharthvardhan's review against another edition

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3.0

"This is a free country. You don’t have to stay out of jail, if you don’t want to."

The title is a non-sequitur. There is no postman except the metaphorical fate. Cain's message to criminals (this could be first crime-noir ever written) is clear - you have to escape justice twice; first when brought by legal hands and second when brought by your own luck. The anxiety brought by expectation of that second ring in a guilty mind is what makes that last one-third part so interesting. The characters are all likable in that they are all so unlikable and I enjoyed it more than I thought it would ... but really those amateurs had no chance whatsoever of getting away with crime. A perfect crime needs a lot of sophisticated planning and a very careful execution... *smiles wickedly* thank you, which they were lacking.

A car can teeter before it goes over, can't it? And a woman can grab her handbag before she jumps, can't she? That don't prove any crime. That just proves she's a woman."