After Dark, My Sweet
Jim Thompson

Hachette Audio
November 1, 2011 / ISBN: 9781611137316
Mystery / Noir /Audiobook
Amazon

Reviewed by Jo Rogers

After Dark, My Sweet is one of Jim Thompson·s best Noir thrillers. It is the story of William Collins, and it begins with Collins walking away from the mental institution to which he·d been confined for some time. He didn·t know why he·d escaped; he just knew he needed to leave before something bad happened.

He walked and hitch-hiked until he found a house in the middle of nowhere. Living there was a beautiful young widow named Faye Anderson. In return for some work, she offered him a place to stay. She had a little apartment over the detached garage where he could sleep. Then, Uncle Bud arrived.

He was not really Faye's uncle, but everyone there called him Uncle Bud. Collins never knew his real name. But, he was glad to meet Bill Collins. He had a project he wanted try and he needed Bill's help with it. Bill had no idea what kind of trouble he was going to have when he did help. What Uncle Bud was going to do was kidnap a rich little boy. He would collect the two hundred thousand dollar ransom, turn the child back over to his parents, and leave the country. They would stay abroad until the police quit looking for them.

This is the wildest tale I·ve read, and I·ve read some doozies. The characters are typical for their kind. Faye is an alcoholic, shy and afraid when she was sober, but a sharp-tongued harpy when she was drunk. Uncle Bud is the pushy motor-mouth, always with a scheme. And there is Bill, whom Fay calls Collie. He is calm and gentle until pushed and then he's violent. The plot is so twisted, you don·t find out what happens to Bill until the very last word. So, pick up this book and get ready for a wild ride.