Tolog Review: The Postman Always Rings Twice

The Postman Always Rings Twice
by James M. Cain
reviewed by Chase Hayes

Inside James M. Cain’s The Postman Always Rings Twice you are brought into a world full of romance and mystery. The novel starts out with a man named Frank Chambers, who is always on the move. He makes a stop in Southern California at a diner and tells the owner, Nick Papadakis that he won’t be able to pay for his food if the people he’s expecting don’t show up. He then lands himself a job there. Frank meets Nick’s wife, Cora and is instantly attracted to her. Over time, their feelings for each other grow and the only thing holding them back from getting together is, of course, Nick Papadakis, who has no idea they even like each other. They plan to kill Nick so they can spend the rest of their lives together, but will they be able to go through with it?

If you love a good mystery, this book is for you. It’s a quick read and always leaves you wanting more. Cain does an amazing job of creeping you out, but at the same time you won’t be able to put the book down. He makes the conflicts chaotic to create more emotion, making you feel the panic and tension throughout the book. He uses exclamation marks and has Frank yell to create more urgency as he shouts, “There was a state cop out there, and he saw the stepladder! Phone for the doctor!” (Cain 20). Cain uses similes to describe characters and to give you a clear image of what they look like. Cora says to Frank, “You turned white as a sheet” (60). Cain compares Frank to a sheet of paper, meaning he was super pale and can give us an image in our mind.

At the beginning of the book, I was confused as to what was happening and who the characters were. I had to reread some paragraphs for clarification. After I understood what was going on, I was intrigued and wondered when the next surprise was going to sneak up on me. I couldn’t get enough of this book. I loved how suspenseful it was and it grew more interesting with each plot twist. I ended up enjoying the book and would recommend it to anyone interested in mystery books.