James Mallahan Cain

The sultry young wife of a diner owner conspires with an aimless drifter to murder her husband

The Postman Always Rings Twice

James M. Cain

An amoral young tramp. A beautiful, sullen woman with an inconvenient husband. A problem that has only one grisly solution--a solution that only creates other problems that no one can ever solve. First published in 1934 and banned in Boston for its explosive mixture of violence and eroticism, The Postman Always Rings Twice is a classic of the roman noir. It established James M. Cain as a major novelist with an unsparing vision of America's bleak underside, and was acknowledged by Albert Camus as the model for The Stranger.

Robyn Claridge

We thought we were on top of a mountain that night. That wasn’t it. It’s on top of us, and that’s where it’s been ever since that night.

Tomorrow night, if I come back, there’ll be kisses. Lovely ones, Frank. Not drunken kisses. Kisses with dreams in them. Kisses that come from life, not death.

This collection features three classics from the master of the noir novel--each of which was made into a classic Hollywood film--along with five otherwise unavailable short stories. Ribbon marker.

Syrina Akbari

I fell for you because you were smart. And now I find out you're smart. Ain't that funny? You fall for a guy because he's smart and then you find out he's smart.

Sarah Sammis

The Postman Always Rings Twice is one of a short list of novels my grandmother always described to me as "one of those books" meaning it was infamous, that she had read it and that she was under no circumstances going to describe its contents to me.

Here I am now in my mid 30s and when I saw the book on the library shelf (while looking for something else) I hesitated before grabbing it. Isn't that ridiculous?

The Postman Always Rings Twice is short, around a 100 pages, and no time in the book is wasted. It has all the classic elements of noir but it's so fast paced and well told that I didn't even notice the conventions of the genre.

Frank Chambers, the first person protagonist, gets tossed out the back of truck coming up from Tijuana on a rural road some twenty miles east of Los Angeles (around Pomona or Ontario). He sees the Twin Oaks Tavern and sees if he can con himself a free meal. He ends up with more in the form a beautiful lover, Cora, the wife of the proprietor.

If you're like me an more familiar with Double Indemnity you'll see a lot of the same insurance scam themes (although the scam was not the reason behind the murder of Nick Papadakis). The methods of scamming the insurance companies discussed by the prosecutors are actually tried in Double Indemnity (first published as a short story in 1936 and later as a novel in 1943).

The book is full of sex, cold hearted violence, corruption, racism and completely unlikable people. The only nice person in the entire novel is Nick Papadakis. That being said, I loved the book (as I know my blushing grandmother did too). If you haven't read this classic, go to your library and check it out!

An affair, a murder, a legal battle - The Postman Always Rings Twice has all the components of a scandalous, addictive read. This is a fast-paced novel that draws you in from the offset. I read this in two sittings and couldn’t put it down.

Its readability can be further attributed to its simplistic writing style. For a classic, I liked how Cain strayed away from overly complex, poetic language and opted for more straight-down-the-line storytelling. 

There’s lots to unpack about Frank and Cora’s complex relationship, but I think that only adds to the appeal of the book. There’s something about dysfunctional, flawed couples that make for a good plot. 

Much like Cora and Frank, this book certainly did plenty. But I’ve redacted a star because there’s definitely areas of the book I’d like to have seen more developed. It was a fantastic read nontheless.  

An affair, a murder, a legal battle - The Postman Always Rings Twice has all the components of a scandalous, addictive read. This is a fast-paced novel that draws you in from the offset. I read this in two sittings and couldn’t put it down.

Its readability can be further attributed to its simplistic writing style. For a classic, I liked how Cain strayed away from overly complex, poetic language and opted for more straight-down-the-line storytelling. 

There’s lots to unpack about Frank and Cora’s complex relationship, but I think that only adds to the appeal of the book. There’s something about dysfunctional, flawed couples that make for a good plot. 

Much like Cora and Frank, this book certainly did plenty. But I’ve redacted a star because there’s definitely areas of the book I’d like to have seen more developed. It was a fantastic read nontheless.  

'Nobody has ever quite pulled it off the way Cain does, not Hemingway, and not even Raymond Chandler' Tom Wolfe The torrid story of Frank Chambers, the amoral drifter, Cora, the sullen and brooding wife, and Nick Papadakis, the amiable but inconvenient husband, has become a classic of its kind, and established Cain as a major novelist with a spare and vital prose style and a bleak vision of America.

Maximus

A brilliant short novel. A love story fuelled with violence and sprinkled with a sense of desperation. Vagabond Frank finds himself in a diner and is taken in by Nick and Cora. His passionate lust for Cora is the core incentive for the whirlwind of events that take place in this story.

A magnificently underrated gem from James M. Cain. I can see why this made an impression on Camus and how this influence was wielded within his own novel called "The Outsider"(or if you're American, "The Stranger"). - A great reading recommendation if you find yourself enthralled by Cain's book.

Feels like an old tv show. I felt like I could see the performance as I read it. 

Wynter

A dark and passionate story of two lovers sinking deeper and deeper into crime and amorality. I absolutely loved it! The deterioration of their relationship into that of mistrust and suspicion was perfectly executed by the author. The drama keeps you on the edge the entire time.

Fast-paced, short read. Recommended by 'The Novel Cure' if you're feeling apathetic, and. I can see why!

Doug Belshaw

Carli McNaught

An amoral young tramp. A beautiful, sullen woman with an inconvenient husband. A problem that has only one, grisly solution -- a solution that only creates other problems that no one can ever solve. First published in 1934 and banned in Boston for its explosive mixture of violence and eroticism, The Postman Always Rings Twice is a classic of the roman noir. It established James M. Cain as a major novelist with an unsparing vision of America's bleak underside, and was acknowledged by Albert Camus as the model for The Stranger. Performed by Stanley Tucci

Hannah DCamp

Giada

Alexis V-B

Gabe Cortez

'Nobody has ever quite pulled it off the way Cain does, not Hemingway, and not even Raymond Chandler' Tom Wolfe 'It is no accident that movies based on three [of Cain's novels] helped to define the genre known as film noir' NEW YORK REVIEW OF BOOKS 'The most starkly elemental thing that has been written for years' EVENING STANDARD The torrid story of Frank Chambers, the amoral drifter, Cora, the sullen and brooding wife, and Nick Papadakis, the amiable but inconvenient husband, has become a classic of its kind, and established Cain as a major novelist with a spare and vital prose style and a bleak vision of America.

The Postman Always Rings Twice

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