A review by noonjinx
The Postman Always Rings Twice by James M. Cain

adventurous challenging dark emotional sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

A quick read but a great one. It was written nearly a century ago but rattles along like a modern thriller. The dialogue is terrific and the prose is wonderfully bare and straightforward. It’s a noir tale of sex, murder, betrayal, love, redemption, tragedy and justice. The main characters are thoroughly weak and immoral but I ended up rooting for them.
They come tantalisingly close to a happy ending before it is torn away from them.
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