This is an quite interesting story about a man's desperate love for a girl that is out of his reach. It also contains some psychological aspects which give an even more thrilling touch to the novel. Patricia Highsmith perfects the art of transporting the reader into a dangerous, double-edged world of crime and lies. It's absolutely worth reading.

This Sweet Sickness is a short yet accomplished work by Patricia Highsmith which chronicles the life of a young man obsessed with a former (and now married) girlfriend. He is completely delusional in thinking their relationship lives on, and his mental state degrades rapidly with rather disturbing (and violent) consequences. As usual, Patricia Highsmith unveils the 'sickness' of her main character very slowly. This allows the reader to really judge matters from the main character's perspective, regardless of his/her mental state.

The only negative aspect with This Sweet Sickness is how the police force are viewed, in general, as incompetent in solving a murder (..I won't say who is killed, nor divulge whom the killer is). Other Highsmith novels portray the police as cold yet extremely capable. This mistreatment of the police force almost turned me off from This Sweet Sickness completely. However all is forgiven with the novel's ending, which is truly beyond belief (let's just say the main character's mental state is completely shattered). It is perhaps one of the most memorable endings to any novel I have read.

So This Sweet Sickness is a worthy read overall.

again, another wonderful patricia highsmith book, she is a genius at the understatement in writing. her books are slow to getinto, its true but once you are there you are there, right inside the characters minds and the twisty plots and the ever so slightly change of reality she proposes. an excellent little french movie of the same name, starring gerard depardu is a good follow up to the story. and read mr ripley the ultimate psycopath and ever so nice man.

would be interesting only to people, who study scripts seriously, who love Minghella's art, and who love the film itself. This particular script was not meant to stand on its own, unlike some scripts from other great films. It was only meant to be Minghella's subjective and brief overview of what he is going to create for the screen. I bought it because I was curious to compare written word with what I have seen on the film. This book has lyrics of "Lullaby for Cain" and full cast list, though, which is a nice touch...

The book was better than the movie. I think the movie was too soapy. The ending was not conclusive

After seeing this film I was quick to jump to the conclusion that the screenplay would be just as good. I am pleased to report that I was correct!

As a read, Ripley is captivating and diabolical. The words finely link together the voices and faces that I loved in the film. Anthony Minghella has such a remarkable gift! First English Patient, now Ripley!

All I really have to say about this screenplay is that it is honey--rich, sweet, and easy to swallow. You'll love it!

It's so fascinating most of the way through, but the ending is a bit of a blunder.

The book opens with murder; a woman is lured into the woods after dismounting from a bus that is making a brief stop on a long trip. The murderer would appear to be a husband, or lover, arguing with his intended victim right up til the last. Then, the story jumps to sometime later, when the murder depicted has become just an unsolved crime in the "Forgotten" bin. Enter Walter and his hectoring wife, Clara. Their tumultous relationship has reached what looks to be the final stages of bickering, accusing, and total disrespect. But Clara won't let Walter go. No easy divorce here, because when Walter tries to leave, Clara does a moany about-face and acts(?) suicidal to keep Walter from abandoning her. Walter, meanwhile, gets intrigued by Melchior Kimmel, husband of the murder victim at the beginning of the book. Kimmel walks free, but Walter's casual reading of the case convinces him that Melchior might have eliminated his wife and gotten away with it...and it seems that Walter thinks that Melchior just might be onto something.

While his professional life is falling apart, and his friends are avoiding him because they can't abide Clara, Walter does a strange thing and manages to get his life entangled with Melchoir Kimmel, a possible wife-killer who is no longer expecting anyone to come snooping around. Things get weird when Clara has to take a bus-trip out of town, and Walter, after dropping her off at the station, makes an instant decision to follow the bus.

Shortly thereafter, Clara has died out beyond some trees, where the bus stopped off. Walter's bickering with Clara is officially over, but he has linked himself to Melchior Kimmel in certain dangerous ways, and that's when an intrepid detective named Corby comes calling. On Walter. And Kimmel.

This is great stuff, up until the slipshod final act, where Corby stops using his brain, and becomes this toughguy cop who's solution to all problems is to brutalize suspects. Plus, the final confrontations between Walter, Melchior Kimmel, and Corby, will not be satisfying to any reader who enjoyed the psychological mazeworks that form the bulk of the novel. I don't mind a violent ending, but there's not much else to it. The book loses all its sophistication in its brawny resolution.

I recommend this book to anyone who doesn't mind a terrific story that ends with formerly interesting characters settling up their complicated difficulties with the literary equivalent of a tagteam wrestling match.

For Highsmith fans, The Blunderer has just been re-released in a new series put out by Norton press. (Norton is also planning to re-release other Highsmith books for which they have publishing rights.)

My review of the book isn't as positive as those by others who have written before me, but I think this is because I read, just before The Blunderer, The Cry of The Owl, which is similar in plotline but far better written and without the unnecessarily violent ending found in The Blunderer. (Highsmith wrote The Blunderer in 1954 and The Cry of The Owl in 1962; my guess is that in the intervening years Highsmith had time to improve on the plotline.)

Still, The Blunderer is a good read. Highsmith did a great job of showing how two people's lives can suddenly intwine in ways neither individual would ever conceive of if not in the middle of Highsmith's weird, twisted, amoral universe. Highsmith also continues her close-up examination of our inner obsessions that, on occasion, can creep to the surface and wind up completely derailing life as we knew it before.

I recommend The Blunderer for readers who are well familiar with Highsmith's works beyond the well-known Mr. Ripley series. Gain appreciation of Highsmith's "high notes" before taking a look at her earlier works which foreshadow the mystery writer genius of future years.

This is a superbly crafted novel. It gets under your skin, and like a test for allergies, it makes you aware of sensitivities you never knew you had. I couldn't put it down, I often laughed out loud, and was haunted. She makes an improbable situation most probable. In another writer's hand this could've been dreadful. How did she do it? I am not sure. But that is the magic of Highsmith, and she spins her spell wonderfully in this masterpiece. It has an existential power, a nightmarish texture, and the bite of the best dark comedy.

A Dog's Ransom is classic Patricia Highsmith - that is, it is a study of how feelings of apprehension and fear overwhelm the guilty (or persons suspected of guilt). Despite its title, the book has little to do with dogs or ransom really ... although this is where the story begins.

In this novel we have a middle-aged couple in Manhatten whose little poodle is kidnapped by a mentally disturbed loner. Having reported the crime, the police are unattentive with the exception of a "do gooder" rookie. However soon this rookie, due to incompetence and personal weaknesses, gets over his head ... and soon finds himself in big trouble. Despite its slow (and somewhat contrived) beginning, the tension builds very nicely. And the ending is rather ... upsetting.

Bottom line: amongst Highsmith's better works despite a relatively low "wow!" factor. Strongly recommended for Highsmith fans. Highsmith neophytes are advised to first read her more famous works (The Talented Mr Ripley, Strangers on a Train, ..).

Familiar to most readers via her Ripley books and Strangers on a Train, Patricia Highsmith specialized in creepy portraits of sociopaths as their paths crossed and destroyed the lives of ordinary folk. This less well known little gem starts out innocently enough with a wealthy Manhattan couple and their missing dog, but gets ugly fast as the dognapper proves to be obsessed with teaching them a lesson and the young cop investigating the case turns out to be equally obsessed with protecting the couple and imposing justice.

With the kooks on both sides of the law this time there's an even more claustrophobic effect, as she shows just how frightening the people around us may be and how dangerous every day life is, but it's all offset by a dark sense of humor. It's not as good as her best, but it's worth seeking out.

GRADE : B

The Sunday Times said of Highsmith, "She makes books that you really can't put down." This is one of them. After 25 or 30 pages, I defy any crime & suspense fan to stop reading.

All the usual Highsmith elements are here -- smooth, accomplished writing, an absorbing plot, eerily believable characters, and an authentic feeling for locale (in this case, 1970s Manhattan); on the whole, however, the book isn't nearly as successful as many other Highsmith works. The ending is something of a shock, and leaves one wondering just what she was trying to say and accomplish; the thematic material also -- though never overt in Highsmith -- is especially hard to assemble, and creates a suspicion that, in this book, there wasn't any.

Though it's well worth reading for the page-turning suspense, I wouldn't pay too much for some rare copy -- esp. as there are plenty of other Highsmiths that are very exciting and work quite well on other levels too ("Cry of the Owl," which is still in print; "This Sweet Sickness," which isn't; and "Strangers on a Train," which has been out of print for years but will be re-issued by Norton in August 2001).

Not bad, but if you're not a Highsmith fan, trying something else first.

I bought this book for the same reason you are thinking about buying it. You're tired of the [stuff] that's being churned out by the major publishers and want a quick list of 'classics' that will rock your world.

That being said, if you just want the list, go to a book store, pick up this book, and memorize the list, then put it back. You're wasting your money if you think this book is going to give great insight into the mystery genre.

The best way to find new authors/books to read is to do a little research. You like mysteries, right? What would one of these detectives do to solve the problem? Read up on the authors you really admire and you'll run across numerous references to their greatest influences.

Also, I'm not a profressional critic, but some very notable mystery/crime novelist were conspicously left off the list. James Ellroy was one of the most notable. Oh well...

Like many, I like to read new mysteries and thrillers. They're easy to find and easy to get review info on -- especially on the Web. But what if you want to read some older but still great novels? It's a bit harder to get recommendations you can trust.

Keating -- himself a celebrated mystery writer -- puts together a list of 100 books worth checking out. As noted in other reviews here, some are out of print, but I've found many of them at the local library, at used-book stores and even here at Amazon.

If you only like to read contemporary works, this isn't the book for you. It was originally written in the '80s, I believe, so it doesn't include authors who have made the scene in the past 10 or 15 years. However, if you like to read works that are a bit off the beaten path, Keating's recommendations are a real boon. His capsule reviews read like a shot, and he does a good job of giving you the flavor of each cited novel in just a few pages. Very cool.

You'll find many of the usual suspects here -- Christie, Sayers, Queen, Chandler, Hillerman, Westlake, MacDonald, Stout, James, etc. But you'll also find some great tips on authors you probably wouldn't stumble upon unless you've read this book. I had never read any works by Nicholas Blake, Peter Lovesey, Margaret Millar, Arthur Upfield or Jacques Futrelle until buying Keating's book, and I've enjoyed reading all of these authors.

A fine book to have on hand whenever you're wondering what to read next.

(FYI: Patricia Highsmith wrote the intro only, so don't expect to get any of her recommendations here.)

This is a remarkably balanced and highly entertaining collection of essays reflecting one writer's ideas about what constitutes the best in crime and mystery fiction. The two-page essays extend from Poe's Tales of Mystery and Imagination through P.D. James's A Taste for Death , forming a sort of history of the genre. Each essay contains a synopsis of the plot or theme, a critical assessment, and a list of first and recent editions. Keating, a prolific mystery writer, seems an ideal choice to compile such a work, and his wit and intelligence make these essays as much fun as they are informative.

'The Two Faces of January' is one of many Highsmith's lesser known works written after her early great successes ('The Talented Mr Ripley', 'Strangers on a Train') and before her decline in the 1980s. It follows the formula often used by Highsmith: two men, guilty or accused of murder, playing a psychological duel until either party breaks down. However in this novel the formula didn't work that well for me.

The story is about an American couple (hubby is a crook, wife is unfaithful) on vacation in Greece who 'accidently' kill a cop. Another American, a stranger to them, helps in covering up the crime. Of course they don't get off that easy, and the adventure begins. The relationship amongst these Americans takes odd turns, and ... you'll need to read the rest.

I suppose I found the book 'only entertaining' (versus enthralling) because I felt the main characters were generally unlikable. I had no empathy, let alone sympathy, for their plight. However perhaps the best part of the novel is the perfect capture of early 1960s vagabond European travelling (ie, before the era of jet travel and package tours) to be fascinating. So for this (probably unintentional) reason I found 'The Two Faces of January' to be a very fast read.

Bottom line: an enjoyable romp of mystery and old-fashioned European travel. No, not a Highsmith classic. But even her 'so-so' efforts are better than most.

If you are already a Patricia Highsmith fan, I would highly recommend this book next.

While the book starts out somewhat slowly, I think this pacing helps set the overall mood of the book and allows the reader to settle into a Highsmith "high" in anticipation of another skillfully written book. At any rate, by chapter two, everything starts to wind/unwind as the book settles into typical Highsmith high-gear which, if you're like me, will soon leave you physicially and mentally breathless in an attempt to keep up!

The foreign setting of the book is also a delight, and the reader quickly becomes a part of the story, shadowing the 3 main characters in and out of the various cities, hotels, towns, and nefarious deeds that happen. There is also this undercurrent of very fine wit and humor throughout the book.

The ending is, of course, the best part. It's been many, many years since I was last compelled to rush to the last page, as I neared the end of the book, to find out what happened. The ending is also prime Highsmith and a bit of a surprise--not, perhaps, for the characters in the book or the storyline, but certainly for Highsmith during this particular period of her writing.

A great holiday/vacation read for anyone with a few days of peace to settle into the book--and to savor it from start to finish!

This may not be her best book, but it is good. All the work by Patricia Highsmith is good. Her writing is excellent, no matter what. Some stories may be less interesting than others, but usually all are great. This story for example, a bit sluggish in the beginning, but that doesn't matter. The text is rich and flows anyway. And gets more exciting further ahead. Also, her created characters are really convincing and they remain in your memory after the book is finished. I remember almost all characters by P. Highsmith because she had the gift of giving them life. You feel like the people she created really EXISTED sometime.

Hello? Where is the nervous, insecure, most probably insane pathological liar we met in the excellent "Talented..." This book is a weak sequel, with an improbable plot, and a house full of guests that has Ripley running back and forth like a character in a 1930's comedy. How stupid are the police? A seasoned detective can't tell the guy's wearing makeup and a fake beard from a few feet away? The ending is just ridiculous: the cop takes Ripleys word about some very strange goings on in the middle of the Salzburg woods, and that's the end of it. If it were this easy to get away with murder, I would have tried it myself.

This was a really slow read. Although I love the Tom Ripley character it was hard to enjoy this book as I already knew he was an evil, deceitful character. It wasn't as suspenseful as "The Talented Mr. Ripley" when the reader wasn't quite sure about Ripley's character yet. Still, it is a good mystery novel and worth the time.

"Ripley Under Ground" is the first book in the Ripley series to follow the talented Mr. Ripley. It establishes Tom Ripley as a married man living on a French estate and explains much of his transition from parasitic murderer to suave psychopath. This novel is possibly the most psychological one in the Ripley series since it endows Ripley with a tremendous artistic sensibility that often validates his homicidal choices.

In this novel, Ripley has evolved from a sponger and a drifter to a country gentleman. In true aristocratic fashion, he shuns professional life and devotes his energy to painting, gardening, language study, and--well--forgery. Ripley plays a pivotal role in setting up a forgery ring in England that produces the work of a dead painter whom the world believes is still alive. Unfortunately, an art aficionado discovers some of the forgeries and begins an investigation that threatens to expose the ring. In an effort to validate the forgeries, Ripley disguises himself as the dead painter and holds a press conference. The investigator attends the conference but remains unconvinced. As a result, Ripley (in his own guise) invites him to his estate and subsequently murders him. This puts Ripley in an ironic predicament since the police approach him not only in search of the missing investigator, but also in search of the dead painter who, thanks to Ripley's impersonation, they believe is still alive. To complicate matters more, the forger himself appears at Ripley's estate in a state of agitation ready to confess his crime to the world. Somehow Ripley must avoid incrimination, subdue the distraught forger, and prevent the police from searching for the dead painter whom he inadvertently brought back to life.

The most fascinating aspect of this novel is the artistic sensibility that seems to govern Ripley's homicidal choices. For example, the investigator whom Ripley murders is more concerned with commercial authenticity than artistic value. He ignores Ripley's argument that the successful forger is as great as the artist he imitates and retorts that building a reputation on forgery is like stealing another person's bank account. When Ripley murders him, one wonders if he does so out of artistic revolt rather than self-preservation. This idea is reinforced by Ripley's refusal to kill the forger even after the forger attempts to murder him. Despite the enormous danger posed by the forger, Ripley is affectionate and nurturing toward him.

Is this thriller really an assault on middle class values? I think so. Ripley the art connoisseur loves his forged paintings and his genuine ones equally. Unlike the investigator, he feels no need to distinguish between them as long as they are of the same aesthetic caliber. While Ripley despises the business concerns of his forgery partners, he admires the forger who paints for passion rather than profit.

Equally as interesting is the attitude of Ripley's wife. Ripley confesses his murder to her and indicates that she knew of his homicidal past even before marrying him. He frequently alludes to her amoral tendencies which, no doubt, are quite compatible with his own.

I recommend "Ripley Under Ground" as a thriller, a psychological study, and a novel of ideas.

In this short book, Patricia Highsmith offers her opinions on writing suspense stories. She addresses story ideas, using personal experiences, story development and plotting, first and second drafts, revisions, and other dimensions of the writing craft. Highsmith is honest up front, stating that "This is not a how-to-do-it handbook." After giving writers the somewhat despairing advice that "It is impossible to explain how a successful -- that is readable -- book is written," she goes on to describe her own methods, describing failures as well as successes. There are some useful hints in here, but much of the material is too personalized to be of general use. Suspense writers need a better handbook than this one.

I have never read Patricia Highsmith's work, but I have seen Talented Mr. Ripley on DVD. I picked up this book in order to get a better feel of what writing suspense fiction is all about. This book provided me with the essentials of suspense without going on and on about the mechanics of it.

You won't find exercises or lists or specific techniques. Reading this book is similar to reading a novel, or just sitting down with a cup of coffee while an esteemed author tells you her experiences. If you want a book that goes more deeper into plotting, I would recommend more technical how-to books like PLOT (ELEMENTS OF FICTION WRITING) or SCENE AND STRUCTURE (also from ELEMENTS OF FICTION WRITING SERIES).

The reason why I enjoyed this book so much was because it offered insight into the craft that most writing books lack. She talks about some of the obstacles she had to overcome as a writer (such as the "foggy area three quarters into the book")and I found myself with more direction after reading. I also picked up some handy tips on organization and focus, as well as crafting a good hero-criminal.

I read this book after experiencing a couple of Patricia Highsmith's Tom Ripley novels. Since I liked her mysteries so much I thought this book would provide interesting insite into the mind and technique of the author, which it did. In terms of revealing the brain child behind the Ripley books it was quite revealing.

ALthough I am not a professional writer of fiction, I found the advice in this book interesting and helpful because it was suplemented with real life examples. Highsmith fills this book with examples of what she did right and what she did wrong throughout her career. She explains the general--and fairly sensible--principles that guide her writing as well as the little details that can enhance or ruin a novel. If I were an aspiring author, I think I would derive useful and interesting information from this book.

Patricia ("The Talented Mr. Ripley") Highsmith has written many wonderful psychological thrillers. After having enjoyed many of these I had high expectations of 'A Game for the Living'. Sadly, I was disappointed.

Unlike Highsmith's successful formula of writing tense thrillers about accused murders undergoing extreme apprehension about being caught, 'A Game for the Living' is a simple whodunnit-type murder mystery. It involves the murder of a "loose" young Mexican woman, and the friendship of her two lovers as they try to locate the killer. I found the story to be banal, with no suspense build up. It is hard to imagine this book was written by Highsmith.

Bottom line: skip this book, buy one of Highsmith's (much) better works such as 'The Blunderer', 'Strangers on a Train', and 'This Sweet Sickness' (..to name a few).

It seemed that Highsmith was interested in exploring the psychology of the two main characters -- Theodore and Ramon -- and their unlikely relationship. To do so, Highsmith packaged a murder mystery around the two. As a result, something is lost both in the mystery and the exploration of the characters.

The two men are vastly different. Teo is a wealthy German, reserved, cool, an artist. Ramon is a poor Mexican workingman, fiery, tempramental, a devout Catholic, a furniture mender. And they happened to share the same woman, who has been brutally murdered.

Told from Teo's point of view, the bulk of the book grapples with Teo's suspicion of Ramon as the killer and his efforts to understand his friend's mental state, which is, at best, somewhat shaky. They travel through Mexico together, trying to chase down suspects of the crime.

But ultimately the book fails to deliver. It never attains the level of tension that Highsmith usually brings to her books with austere prose and the exploration into the psychology of brutally flawed protagonists.

But, still, it's better than 95% of the mysteries out there. It's not a great place to start with Highsmith, but it's a interesting if not enthralling ride on the Patricia-train...

I tend to go for the harder edge of mystery and noir (Andrew Vachss, Chester Himes, etc.), but whenever I can afford it, I buy a new Highsmith novel. Why? Because she creates believeable characters and absorbing settings, and her books are more than just the mystery that's a segment (sometimes, as in this case, a small one) of the plot. Unlike the chilling "Cry Of The Owl", this novel is more about Theodore and Ramon than it is about the murder that it opens with. This isn't a wild ride, edge-of-your-seat book. Instead it lures you in by making you care about the characters. Highsmith seems almost to forget about the murder, in fact, and explores these two men, and their relationship, at some depth. The mystery is paid attention to...but the novel ends on a note that implies maybe it isn't as neat as the characters think. If you're looking for an out-and-out mystery, or a suspense thriller, "The Cry Of The Owl", an equally good book, is probably more for you. But if you like psychodrama, definitely pick up "A Game For The Living."

I consider myself a Highsmith fan (about halfway through all of her published books), and even I was profoundly disappointed in this one.

The plot trods along at a maddingly slow shuffle which does little except build the world of the protagonist, Arthur, a teenager who graduates from high school, finds a girlfriend, and starts college during the book's progression.

Over the course of 340 pages, though, we find out little about the father (who converts to Born-Again Christianity without any explanation), younger brother Robbie who commits the crime of the book (why was he driven to do it?), a group of older men who take Robbie in (why did they do this? who are they?), the mother (why did she stand on the sidelines as the plot unfolds? how does she feel about things?), or the grandmother who seems so unlike the rest of Arthur's family. Development and positioning in the storyline are haphazard and lack direction/purpose.

And, ultimately, we learn and understand little of Arthur, even after the methodical and careful building of his character and world. Perhaps more attention and time to the book's other characters would've addressed this lack.

My impression of this book is that Highsmith went through the motions of writing, and it seems almost as if someone else wrote the book using a template of sorts in an attempt to write a Highsmith-esque work. Unfortunately, the book and Highsmith's effort both disappoint and there is no reason to read the book, regardless of your Highsmith fan status.

This is an interesting work, if you're familiar with other Patricia Highsmith novels - and by "interesting," it is that it's not technically a crime novel (i.e., it's not the major theme of the novel), it's another display of the range of her capabilities, rather; also, that when the crime is committed, it's not from the person from whom we're watching the events through - it's sort of a third-person crime, in this way. And not for the usual reason. (I'll leave it there so that, even though another reviewer has told you who the killer is, the novel hasn't been completely blown for you.)

"People Who Knock on the Door" is still a very readable novel, since the differences don't really detract from the reading - it has the same storytelling style of other Highsmith novels, and is not a labor to read for it.

If you're looking for a "Deep Water"/"This Sweet Sickness"-esque suburban psychopath tale, you may find it slow and ultimately disappointing.

But if you aren't, read on!

Patricia Highsmith pulls a one-two punch on readers with her disturbing "People Who Knock on the Door." The first punch aims at modern Christianity. The second aims at every reader who thought the first punch was aimed at modern Christianity.

The story is centered around Arthur, a recent high-school graduate, and the problems he has concerning his family. His father has recently become a Christian - a Bible-thumping, "Amen"-shouting believer. Because his children have not been raised in a Christian home, the father's conversion tears the family apart, and traditional Highsmith violence ensues.

Is Highsmith praising or satirizing modern Christianity? Her opinion is seemingly obvious, because the book is almost completely one-sided...or is it? It, in fact, is not one-sided at all. Patricia Highsmith brilliantly pokes fun at herself - and at everyone ready to criticize her - by ultimately making the novel a farce. A very dark farce, mind you, but a farce nonetheless. The "villain" character is extremely one-sided, as is the protagonist. And because of how the book ends, the reader tends to view Highsmith as one-sided, also.

In the end, neither side wins: If you're the Christian, Highsmith has pulled the wool over your eyes by getting you to read the book in the first place - you should be reading the Bible, you hypocrite. If you "agree" with her supposed views toward Western Religion, she pulled the wool over your eyes, too - you have become the cynical Arthur...it's easy to point fingers when you're the protagonist, huh?

I have come to expect sharp thrillers from Patricia Highsmith. "People Who Knock on the Door" is more than a thriller...it is a razor-sharp dark comedy that succeeds on every level.