The saddest revenge story ever written? Johnny Marr, an almost anonymous young man in middle America (think Our Town), must find the man who killed his fiancée and make the killer suffer as he has suffered. But there are five possible killers, so they must all suffer. The plots that Johnny executes against them require near-omniscience on his part. Never mind that Johnny could have identified the actual killer much more easily--for better or for worse, Woolrich demands that you grant him absurdities. Grade: A-
I've found Woolrich's work flawed, but entertaining. Those coincidences and plot absurdities are common to all of Woolrich's novels and stories.
ReplyDeleteWoolrich is way too dark for my taste. Give me Nero Wolfe any day.
ReplyDeleteI have this one on my TBR. So far I have loved the ones I read.
ReplyDeleteThis is, so far, the only full length book by Woolrich that I've read. I will certainly be reading more.
ReplyDeleteThis is my favorite Woolrich novel. It's a reprise of THE BRIDE WORE BLACK and in my opinion a better book. The death of Johnny's fiancee is probably Woolrich's most flamboyant depiction of the mindless, cruel forces of fate.
ReplyDeleteLogic never plays a big role in Woolrich and he can become maudlin and even downright silly at times. But I love his set pieces--Johnny waiting on the street for his fiancee and the wonderful description of the black train of death carrying caskets with dead soldiers coming home from the war.
But the wonder of this novel is how the reader begins with the utmost sympathy for Johnny but as the plot moves from episode to episode that changes. The reader (at least this one) begins to root against Johnny with growing anxiety and even anger. Woolrich never backs away from the pitiless fate he knows rules the universe.