Three by Cain: Serenade, Love's Lovely Counterfeit, The Butterfly
4/5
()
Currently unavailable
Currently unavailable
About this ebook
James M. Cain
James M. Cain (1892–1977) was one of the most important authors in the history of crime fiction. Born in Maryland, he became a journalist after giving up on a childhood dream of singing opera. After two decades writing for newspapers in Baltimore, New York, and the army—and a brief stint as the managing editor of the New Yorker—Cain moved to Hollywood in the early 1930s. While writing for the movies, he turned to fiction, penning the novella The Postman Always Rings Twice (1934). This tightly wound tale of passion, murder, and greed became one of the most controversial bestsellers of its day, and remains one of the foremost examples of American noir writing. It set the tone for Cain’s next few novels, including Serenade (1937), Mildred Pierce (1941), Double Indemnity (1943), and The Butterfly (1947). Several of his books became equally successful noir films, particularly the classic 1940s adaptations of Mildred Pierce and Double Indemnity. Cain moved back to Maryland in 1948. Though he wrote prolifically until his death, Cain remains most famous for his early work.
Read more from James M. Cain
The Complete Crime Stories Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Moth Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Los Angeles Noir 2: The Classics Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Career in C Major: And Other Fiction Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Baby in the Icebox: And Other Short Fiction Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Root of His Evil Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Enchanted Isle Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5The Magician's Wife Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsPast All Dishonor Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Sinful Woman Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Institute Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5Cloud Nine Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5Rainbow's End Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsJealous Woman Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Galatea Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5
Related to Three by Cain
Related ebooks
Deep Singh Blue: A Novel Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSecond Best Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsLast Resort: A Novel Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Engaging Rachel Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsEnter the Heart Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMr Marino: Italian Billionaires, #2 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDark Moon Falls: Tucker: Dark Moon Falls, #3 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsKiss Me Hard Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsLittle Rabbit Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Whimsy: a novella Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHow To Eat A Human Being Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Woman Who Pretended To Love Men Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Hatful of Shadows Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Great AMERICAN Novel Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHeal Me: Club Surrender Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMagic in the Swamps Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Adama Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsCafe of Villainy - Chapter One: Non-human Series, #1 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsProtect Me, Cowboy Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Sleepers Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsFake Husband SEAL: SEAL Team Hotties, #3 Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Therapist Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsFirst Feature: An Anthony Carrick Mystery Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsInvisible Sentence Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsRandom: A terrifying and highly inventive debut thriller Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Nick Of Time Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Milo March #12: Uneasy Lies the Dead Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Life Manager and Other Stories Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSplinters Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsTales of Block E Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Mystery For You
The Paris Apartment: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5None of This Is True: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Murder Your Employer: The McMasters Guide to Homicide Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Dean Koontz: Series Reading Order - with Summaries & Checklist Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Life We Bury Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Murder of Roger Ackroyd Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Last Flight: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5False Witness: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Hidden Staircase: Nancy Drew #2 Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Pretty Girls: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Did I Kill You?: A Thriller Novel Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5How to Write a Mystery: A Handbook from Mystery Writers of America Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Summit Lake Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone: A Murdery Mystery Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Hunting Party: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Pharmacist Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Finlay Donovan Is Killing It: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Kept Woman: A Will Trent Thriller Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Ghost of Marlow House Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Eight Perfect Murders: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Sydney Rye Mysteries Box Set Books 10-12: Sydney Rye Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Good Daughter: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Big Sleep Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Club: A Reese's Book Club Pick Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Still Life: A Chief Inspector Gamache Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Going Rogue: Rise and Shine Twenty-Nine Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Night in the Lonesome October Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Woman in the Library: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Complete Short Stories Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Pieces of Her: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Reviews for Three by Cain
29 ratings3 reviews
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I had trepidations about reading Cain because, as one of the first (THE first?) hard-boiled crime writers, he has been copied so many times I thought the original might seem like a parody of itself. You know, like when you go back and watch an early Mafia movie like Mean Streets and it has been ripped off so many times that it seems stale.But, not to fear. The writing pops, the plot zips along, the whole thing is perfect noir. I read all three straight through. Now I feel like drinking rye and socking anyone who cracks wise.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5It took me almost seven years to read all three of these James M. Cain classics, reading The Postman Always Rings Twice in 2010, Double Indemnity in 2014 and Mildred Pierce in 2017. All are excellent and each it distinct from the others. If you have seen any of the movie versions of these books, do not think you know the stories. Summaries:The Postman Always Rings Twice is a steamy story of obsessive passion.Double Indemnity is classic noir, a story of greed with a dangerous fem fatale thrown in.Mildred Pierce is harder to pin down, It tells the story of a strong-willed divorcee who is determined to make it in an unfair world. Her personality makes it easy to think of the book as a noir version of the Scarlett O'Hara story. One can easily hear her vowing to "never go hungry again!"FYI: On a 5-point scale I assign stars based on my assessment of what the book needs in the way of improvements:•5 Stars – Nothing at all. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.•4 Stars – It could stand for a few tweaks here and there but it’s pretty good as it is.•3 Stars – A solid C grade. Some serious rewriting would be needed in order for this book to be considered great or memorable.•2 Stars – This book needs a lot of work. A good start would be to change the plot, the character development, the writing style and the ending. •1 Star - The only thing that would improve this book is a good bonfire.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Just finished reading The Postman Always Rings Twice. I am truly amazed at what an author can do in 87 pages. The Postman Always Rings Twice has suspense, raw emotion, murder, sex. Cain didn’t have to write 200 pages to get his story told…87 was perfect. And believe it or not, Lana Turner and John Garfield look exactly like I pictured Cora and Frank to look. Whoever cast the original movie…bravo. Can’t wait to watch the movie. If you’re a mystery fan or a fan of great writing, read The Postman Always Rings Twice.Double Indemnity is quite the story. Again, in 80 pages, James M. Cain conveyed all he needed to in order to tell a chilling tale of murder and betrayal. It’s the same old story, murder for insurance, but it’s not the same old story in the way that it’s told. It’s the perfect murder, but it isn’t that perfect. What I’ve come to realize, however, is that not only does Cain know how to tell a tale, he also knows how to create an ending that the readers won’t figure out. In both The Postman Always Rings Twice and Double Indemnity, I never in a million years would have conceived of his endings. Totally creative, totally fitting, totally satisfying, totally chilling. There is a reason why these novelettes are considered classics. Now for the movie, which I intend to watch. I know I’ve seen it but don’t remember it. Since I remembered Fred MacMurray and Barbara Stanwyck played the leads, I wasn’t really picturing anyone else in the parts. What startled me was the Barbara Stanwyck’s character in the book is Phyllis Nirdlinger and in the movie is Phyllis Dietrichson. Tell me what director thought that Dietrichson was a better name than Nirdlinger. MacMurray’s character is Walter Huff in the book and Walter Neff in the movie. I’m sure there’s a story behind these and several other name changes, but for the life of me, I can’t imagine what it would be. I’m pretty sure I have an old edition of The Postman Always Rings Twice floating around my apartment somewhere. I’ll soon be on the search to find it. To sum up, if you want to know what a real mystery is like, short, sweet and to the point, I whole-heartedly suggest James M. Cain’s The Postman Always Rings Twice and Double Indemnity.