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The Murder Room #556
The Brass Cupcake
One of the most beloved American thriller writers of the twentieth century kicks off a rip-roaring career with his exhilarating first novel, a hard-boiled classic full of twists and turns, good intentions and bad coincidences, the stench of corruption and the pursuit of justice at any cost.
Introduction by Dean Koontz
Ex-cop Cliff Bartells might be the last honest man in Florence City, Florida. After quitting the force over a crisis of conscience, he takes a job at an insurance company buying back stolen jewelry. Cliff is focused on keeping the bottom line down and staying out of the spotlight.
But when an affluent tourist from Boston is murdered over a hefty collection of jewelry, Cliff finds himself wrapped up in a case that’s making national headlines. With the victim’s beautiful niece, Melody Chance, determined to help retrieve the goods, suddenly Cliff has the partner he never knew he wanted. Now all they need is a suspect: someone capable of cold-blooded murder in the name of profit. And that could mean anyone in this crooked town.
Praise for John D. MacDonald
“As a young writer, all I ever wanted was to touch readers as powerfully as John D. MacDonald touched me.”—Dean Koontz
“To diggers a thousand years from now, the works of John D. MacDonald would be a treasure on the order of the tomb of Tutankhamen.”—Kurt Vonnegut
“John D. MacDonald was a writer way ahead of his time.”—John Saul
From the Trade Paperback edition.
Introduction by Dean Koontz
Ex-cop Cliff Bartells might be the last honest man in Florence City, Florida. After quitting the force over a crisis of conscience, he takes a job at an insurance company buying back stolen jewelry. Cliff is focused on keeping the bottom line down and staying out of the spotlight.
But when an affluent tourist from Boston is murdered over a hefty collection of jewelry, Cliff finds himself wrapped up in a case that’s making national headlines. With the victim’s beautiful niece, Melody Chance, determined to help retrieve the goods, suddenly Cliff has the partner he never knew he wanted. Now all they need is a suspect: someone capable of cold-blooded murder in the name of profit. And that could mean anyone in this crooked town.
Praise for John D. MacDonald
“As a young writer, all I ever wanted was to touch readers as powerfully as John D. MacDonald touched me.”—Dean Koontz
“To diggers a thousand years from now, the works of John D. MacDonald would be a treasure on the order of the tomb of Tutankhamen.”—Kurt Vonnegut
“John D. MacDonald was a writer way ahead of his time.”—John Saul
From the Trade Paperback edition.
258 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1950
233 people are currently reading
424 people want to read
About the author
John D. MacDonald
575 books1,384 followersJohn D. MacDonald was born in Sharon, Pennsylvania, and educated at the Universities of Pennsylvania, Syracuse and Harvard, where he took an MBA in 1939. During WW2, he rose to the rank of Colonel, and while serving in the Army and in the Far East, sent a short story to his wife for sale, successfully. He served in the Office of Strategic Services (O.S.S.) in the China-Burma-India Theater of Operations. After the war, he decided to try writing for a year, to see if he could make a living. Over 500 short stories and 70 novels resulted, including 21 Travis McGee novels.
Following complications of an earlier heart bypass operation, MacDonald slipped into a coma on December 10 and died at age 70, on December 28, 1986, in St. Mary's Hospital in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He was survived by his wife Dorothy (1911-1989) and a son, Maynard.
In the years since his death MacDonald has been praised by authors as diverse as Stephen King, Spider Robinson, Jimmy Buffett, Kingsley Amis and Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.. Thirty-three years after his passing the Travis McGee novels are still in print.
Following complications of an earlier heart bypass operation, MacDonald slipped into a coma on December 10 and died at age 70, on December 28, 1986, in St. Mary's Hospital in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He was survived by his wife Dorothy (1911-1989) and a son, Maynard.
In the years since his death MacDonald has been praised by authors as diverse as Stephen King, Spider Robinson, Jimmy Buffett, Kingsley Amis and Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.. Thirty-three years after his passing the Travis McGee novels are still in print.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 79 reviews
May 27, 2020
The Brass Cupcake is John D. MacDonald's debut novel, and it provides a template for many of the others that would follow. The protagonist is a guy named Cliff Bartells, who might serve as an early version of MacDonald's great series hero, Travis McGee. Bartells was on the police force of the town of Florence City, Florida, but he was basically driven off the force for being too honest. Unlike virtually every other member of the city's totally corrupt police department, he refused to take bribes from the local mobsters for looking away from their illegal activities.
Bartells now works as a claims adjustor for an insurance company. When an elderly woman, visiting Florence City from Boston, is murdered and robbed of $750,000 worth of jewelry insured by Bartell's company, it's his job to get it back. This is somewhat familiar territory for Bartells in which professional thieves rip off somebody's jewels, then use underworld connections to contact the insurance company and sell the jewels back for a fraction of the amount for which they were insured.
Bartells has been the middleman in these sorts of transactions before, but this time it's different because there's a murder involved. Professional thieves don't usually murder people and it throws off the whole equation and makes Bartell's job that much harder and infinitely more dangerous. The local cops, who still hate Bartells, don't want him mucking around in their investigation, and Bartells must also contend with the beautiful blonde heiress who stands to inherit the murdered woman's estate. And, of course, there are a number of other shifty and inscrutable characters as well.
Municipal corruption was a standard theme in a lot of MacDonald's books, most of which are populated by tough, relatively incorruptible protagonists like Cliff Bartells who may bend the rules here and there, but always in the service of a good cause. It's always fun to watch someone like Bartells come up against bad guys of various stripes in MacDonald's novels, and this book sets a high standard in that regard.
As is the case with a lot of MacDonald's work, read forty or fifty (or in this case, seventy) years down the road, some of the sex scenes are pretty awful, and the treatment of the female characters is at times cringe-worthy. Still, this is an excellent hard-boiled novel, and it's very much a book of its time. Over the course of the thirty-five years to follow, MacDonald would write a lot of really great crime novels, and The Brass Cupcake was a great beginning to his career.
Bartells now works as a claims adjustor for an insurance company. When an elderly woman, visiting Florence City from Boston, is murdered and robbed of $750,000 worth of jewelry insured by Bartell's company, it's his job to get it back. This is somewhat familiar territory for Bartells in which professional thieves rip off somebody's jewels, then use underworld connections to contact the insurance company and sell the jewels back for a fraction of the amount for which they were insured.
Bartells has been the middleman in these sorts of transactions before, but this time it's different because there's a murder involved. Professional thieves don't usually murder people and it throws off the whole equation and makes Bartell's job that much harder and infinitely more dangerous. The local cops, who still hate Bartells, don't want him mucking around in their investigation, and Bartells must also contend with the beautiful blonde heiress who stands to inherit the murdered woman's estate. And, of course, there are a number of other shifty and inscrutable characters as well.
Municipal corruption was a standard theme in a lot of MacDonald's books, most of which are populated by tough, relatively incorruptible protagonists like Cliff Bartells who may bend the rules here and there, but always in the service of a good cause. It's always fun to watch someone like Bartells come up against bad guys of various stripes in MacDonald's novels, and this book sets a high standard in that regard.
As is the case with a lot of MacDonald's work, read forty or fifty (or in this case, seventy) years down the road, some of the sex scenes are pretty awful, and the treatment of the female characters is at times cringe-worthy. Still, this is an excellent hard-boiled novel, and it's very much a book of its time. Over the course of the thirty-five years to follow, MacDonald would write a lot of really great crime novels, and The Brass Cupcake was a great beginning to his career.
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April 12, 2020John D. MacDonald’s career as a novelist begun in 1950 with “The Brass Cupcake” in 1950. From there, he wrote several novels per year and quickly became a very prolific author. By the time of his passing, he had written nearly 100 books and short story collections.
This Robert Hale, London, (1974) hardcover First Edition {thus), was first published in paperback by ‘Fawcett Publications in 1950. PBO (Paperback Original) True First Ed.
. Take a hard-boiled ex-cop named Cliff Bartells. Take a beautiful girl with the unlikely name of Melody Chance. Add the death of one Elizabeth Stegman of Boston, Massachusettes. Plus her missing jewels, insured for seven hundred and fifty thousand dollars. What have you got? Murder for profit, of course. Cold-blooded, premeditated
This Robert Hale, London, (1974) hardcover First Edition {thus), was first published in paperback by ‘Fawcett Publications in 1950. PBO (Paperback Original) True First Ed.
. Take a hard-boiled ex-cop named Cliff Bartells. Take a beautiful girl with the unlikely name of Melody Chance. Add the death of one Elizabeth Stegman of Boston, Massachusettes. Plus her missing jewels, insured for seven hundred and fifty thousand dollars. What have you got? Murder for profit, of course. Cold-blooded, premeditated
November 16, 2022
The Brass Cupcake, published by Fawcett in 1950, was John D. McDonald's first published novel. Although he had already published something on the order of two hundred short stories, this was his first full-length novel. McDonald is most well-known for his Travis McGee series and for his book, the Executioners, which was the basis for two major motion pictures entitled Cape Fear. This is a stand alone novel, not part of his McGee series, but like many of M'Donald's other books, this one takes place in Florida.
Cliff Bartells has a "brass cupcake," a sardonic description of his former badge. Bartells came home from the war and returned to Florence City, Florida, to work as a cop. As luck would have it though, Bartells is just about the only honest cop in the town. When he came back, he found that "with the growth had come a smear of big-city dirt." The town was now controlled by the syndicate and either you played ball with them or you'll find yourself all alone. After blowing the lid on corruption, he became the "only cop on foot in the whole city" and found that his gold badge now seemed to be bronze. When they took it away, it didn't seem to be a badge anymore. "Just another cupcake." He was forced to resign as the one honest cop in the town and found his way to work for an insurance company and charged with buying back stolen goods from fences. "But slowly and surely [he] was going sour."
Bartells is asked to recover a huge amount of jewelry after a widow is murdered and her jewels stolen, but the whole thing stinks big time and he is warned off the case by everyone and anyone. With the local mob warning him off and the police out to nail him for anything they can, Bartells doesn't have an easy time of solving this case, but he plunges in with his fists and his charm.
The actual mystery element is not unique, but what makes this book exceptional is the excellent descriptions that McDonald gives of the people and places. On the way, he meets a troubled heiress, Melody: "Wide slim shoulders tapered down to a small waist and tender concavity before the convex flaring of hip." "Her voice was low and husky- hoarse, the kind Bankhead and Dietrich have." He also flirts with his secretary, a young, innocent, farmer's daughter-type and a witness. There are brawls in parking lots and murders plenty and crosses and double crosses. The intense descriptions of the lengthy beating he takes as someone tries to beat a confession out of him are well-done.
All in all, this book is a fantastic introduction to the world of John McDonald and leaves the reader eager to start another such book.
Cliff Bartells has a "brass cupcake," a sardonic description of his former badge. Bartells came home from the war and returned to Florence City, Florida, to work as a cop. As luck would have it though, Bartells is just about the only honest cop in the town. When he came back, he found that "with the growth had come a smear of big-city dirt." The town was now controlled by the syndicate and either you played ball with them or you'll find yourself all alone. After blowing the lid on corruption, he became the "only cop on foot in the whole city" and found that his gold badge now seemed to be bronze. When they took it away, it didn't seem to be a badge anymore. "Just another cupcake." He was forced to resign as the one honest cop in the town and found his way to work for an insurance company and charged with buying back stolen goods from fences. "But slowly and surely [he] was going sour."
Bartells is asked to recover a huge amount of jewelry after a widow is murdered and her jewels stolen, but the whole thing stinks big time and he is warned off the case by everyone and anyone. With the local mob warning him off and the police out to nail him for anything they can, Bartells doesn't have an easy time of solving this case, but he plunges in with his fists and his charm.
The actual mystery element is not unique, but what makes this book exceptional is the excellent descriptions that McDonald gives of the people and places. On the way, he meets a troubled heiress, Melody: "Wide slim shoulders tapered down to a small waist and tender concavity before the convex flaring of hip." "Her voice was low and husky- hoarse, the kind Bankhead and Dietrich have." He also flirts with his secretary, a young, innocent, farmer's daughter-type and a witness. There are brawls in parking lots and murders plenty and crosses and double crosses. The intense descriptions of the lengthy beating he takes as someone tries to beat a confession out of him are well-done.
All in all, this book is a fantastic introduction to the world of John McDonald and leaves the reader eager to start another such book.
November 7, 2014
The first JDM book published and I hadn't read it until now. I've read a sprinkling of JDM's 'other' books but this was his first published novel.
As most friends know, I'm Travis McGee's only girlfriend and have been for many years. Reading the series from beginning to end for the third time but need to take more time to read other MacDonald's standalones.
This one was good but saw veiled "Travis" comments and descriptions. This insurance investigator (ex-cop) in my mind laid the groundwork for Travis' first book, "....Blue."
I've grown weary of saying "look at the period when the book was written" because reviewers tend to criticize a book due to cultural changes. Yes, things have changed since the early 1950's; many thing regarding America's view of women, race, and sex.
Crap, nevermind. That isn't a good argument at all. So many Americans believe just like they did in the 1950's about women (keep'em barefoot and pregnant in the kitchen); blacks would be happier in the fields singing cotton pickin' songs; and sex...the missionary position only and it goes without saying, the same sex! Anyone who thinks differently should be on boat to...to...a secluded island on Mars or something. Forgot religion...nevermind on that one...no need to get me started.
Damn...how did I go from a review on "The Brass Cupcake" about Cliff Bartells (a protype Travis McGee) to sex, drugs and rock 'n roll? Don't know but as you can see this was a great read...as always thanks to the master, John D. MacDonald.
As most friends know, I'm Travis McGee's only girlfriend and have been for many years. Reading the series from beginning to end for the third time but need to take more time to read other MacDonald's standalones.
This one was good but saw veiled "Travis" comments and descriptions. This insurance investigator (ex-cop) in my mind laid the groundwork for Travis' first book, "....Blue."
I've grown weary of saying "look at the period when the book was written" because reviewers tend to criticize a book due to cultural changes. Yes, things have changed since the early 1950's; many thing regarding America's view of women, race, and sex.
Crap, nevermind. That isn't a good argument at all. So many Americans believe just like they did in the 1950's about women (keep'em barefoot and pregnant in the kitchen); blacks would be happier in the fields singing cotton pickin' songs; and sex...the missionary position only and it goes without saying, the same sex! Anyone who thinks differently should be on boat to...to...a secluded island on Mars or something. Forgot religion...nevermind on that one...no need to get me started.
Damn...how did I go from a review on "The Brass Cupcake" about Cliff Bartells (a protype Travis McGee) to sex, drugs and rock 'n roll? Don't know but as you can see this was a great read...as always thanks to the master, John D. MacDonald.
August 24, 2020
John D. MacDonald's Debut Novel
A twisted version of Double Indemnity in which a former police lieutenant turned insurance investigator travels back to the Florida town where he worked as a cop to buy back some stolen jewels and find out who murdered the owner. The Brass Cupcake is a great read, and the main character is an exciting precursor to John D. MacDonald's Travis McGee.
A twisted version of Double Indemnity in which a former police lieutenant turned insurance investigator travels back to the Florida town where he worked as a cop to buy back some stolen jewels and find out who murdered the owner. The Brass Cupcake is a great read, and the main character is an exciting precursor to John D. MacDonald's Travis McGee.
July 15, 2018
I love JDM's style. Sometimes he gets a bit heavy-handed with the whole:
"He dragged her out of the chair and she squealed and tried to bite the back of his hand. He cuffed her upright and yanked her into my office...
...The silence lasted. Then the office door opened and they came out. Maybree had his chin up and he wore the conqueror's smile. He tugged Kathy along behind him. The sullen look was all gone from her face. Her dark eyes were aglow."
So, basically, hire John D. MacDonald to write, just don't hire him to help you with your woman, marriage, or daughter. I know, I know, I should probably separate the character(s) from the author, but I get the vibe that the John D's apple might not fall all that far from the 1950s, Schopenhaueresque (man dominant/woman subservient) tree.
Other than that one, BIG critique, I loved this book.
November 22, 2012
Macdonald's first novel, from 1950. Has many of the aspects that make the McGee books so great, yet was not such an amazing read to me. I'll ascribe this to it to being his first.
April 17, 2018
I haven't read JDM in over 30 years..long enough to forget what I've read, given the genre. I enjoyed this, thought it was definitely a 50s period piece. It was set in southern Florida, a territory Carl Hiaasen would further explore. Ostensibly a mystery, it was more following the protagonists thoughts (It was told in the first person), the guilty party being more or less apparent. I understand this was JDM's first, so I'm going to put him in rotation.
June 9, 2019
COUNTDOWN: Mid-20th Century North American Crime
BOOK 235 (of 250)
Hook - 1 star: "On a day when the February sun is indiscriminately painting all shades, from cherry red to tobacco-spit brown, on the shapes draped across our beaches...On a morning when the tanned young things...On a morning when you are at last positive...On a sun-split morning...It picks that morning to happen. Incorrect." Then a flashback. Very slow oft-putting start. And no, one should never open a book with a cliched weather report.
Pace - 2: The plot kicks in by the second chapter or so and things move nicely.
Plot -2: An older lady is killed, apparently, during a robbery of her safe containing jewels worth about $750,000. She's from Boston and apparently spending some vacation time in Florida and had to bring along $750,000 of jewels. On vacation? And during the robbery it appears she is murdered. Clif Bartells is an ex-cop on the scene, as he now works for an insurance company. The plot is, simply, on the ridiculous side.
Characters- 2: Cliff Bartells is an early version of Travis McGhee. Cliff was a lieutenant, refused to play a dirty cop on the take, is demoted to foot patrol, then quits and goes to work for Security Theft and Accidental Insurance Company. He is charged with getting the jewels back, for a fee. And that's exactly what Travis McGhee is doing at the start of the McGhee series. So this is worth a read just to catch a glimpse of MacDonald's early take on McGhee. Melody Chance plays a typical dumb blonde seductress, Furny a spoiled young rich man, and we never meet the older lady who is killed during the robbery. 3 stars only because of the appearance of an early McGhee.
ATMOSPHERE - 1: Oddly, the first page tells us all about the weather and beaches and pretty young things and that's about as far as MacDonald goes: he has difficulty explaining why Old Miss Stegman, her only family member, Melody, her 2 servants, and her family friend, Furny are all staying at different places: MacDonald can't quiet convince us that there is a differing level of quality of service, etc.. It makes no sense other than to give Cliff an opportunity to drive around and have something to do. Lazy writing: a very early (first?) effort by MacDonald.
SUMMARY: My rating is 1.6, and this is only worth reading if you're already a fan of the Travis McGhee series.
BOOK 235 (of 250)
Hook - 1 star: "On a day when the February sun is indiscriminately painting all shades, from cherry red to tobacco-spit brown, on the shapes draped across our beaches...On a morning when the tanned young things...On a morning when you are at last positive...On a sun-split morning...It picks that morning to happen. Incorrect." Then a flashback. Very slow oft-putting start. And no, one should never open a book with a cliched weather report.
Pace - 2: The plot kicks in by the second chapter or so and things move nicely.
Plot -2: An older lady is killed, apparently, during a robbery of her safe containing jewels worth about $750,000. She's from Boston and apparently spending some vacation time in Florida and had to bring along $750,000 of jewels. On vacation? And during the robbery it appears she is murdered. Clif Bartells is an ex-cop on the scene, as he now works for an insurance company. The plot is, simply, on the ridiculous side.
Characters- 2: Cliff Bartells is an early version of Travis McGhee. Cliff was a lieutenant, refused to play a dirty cop on the take, is demoted to foot patrol, then quits and goes to work for Security Theft and Accidental Insurance Company. He is charged with getting the jewels back, for a fee. And that's exactly what Travis McGhee is doing at the start of the McGhee series. So this is worth a read just to catch a glimpse of MacDonald's early take on McGhee. Melody Chance plays a typical dumb blonde seductress, Furny a spoiled young rich man, and we never meet the older lady who is killed during the robbery. 3 stars only because of the appearance of an early McGhee.
ATMOSPHERE - 1: Oddly, the first page tells us all about the weather and beaches and pretty young things and that's about as far as MacDonald goes: he has difficulty explaining why Old Miss Stegman, her only family member, Melody, her 2 servants, and her family friend, Furny are all staying at different places: MacDonald can't quiet convince us that there is a differing level of quality of service, etc.. It makes no sense other than to give Cliff an opportunity to drive around and have something to do. Lazy writing: a very early (first?) effort by MacDonald.
SUMMARY: My rating is 1.6, and this is only worth reading if you're already a fan of the Travis McGhee series.
January 28, 2018
The Brass Cupcake is a strong example of John MacDonald’s entertaining approach to the detective and noir milieu.
Only a few years after World War II, former cop Cliff Bartells is working as an insurance investigator in the thoroughly corrupt Florence City, Florida. Having quit the force over an ethical crisis, Cliff now recovers stolen merchandise for his employers. When a wealthy Boston dowager is killed in what everyone assumes is a botched robbery, Cliff’s job puts him in the dangerous terrain between the local criminal establishment and the compromised police force. But the victim’s fiery niece, Melody Chance, inspires Cliff to pursue both the recovery of her aunt’s jewels and the truth about her murder. Using his wits and a lot of guts, Cliff pursues an end game that could have a far greater impact than merely catching a killer.
The prolific MacDonald was a noir/detective genre master in the post-War era. His southern noirs took full advantage of their distinctive locales, showing that crime and mayhem could flourish in the sun just as easily as they did in grittier northern cities. The Brass Cupcake was a highly entertaining crime caper, packed with unusual characters, overheated scenarios and lots of sardonic humor. Cliff was a highly engaging narrator, directing the reader through the treacherous environs of his corrupt home turf with a winking self-knowledge and a healthy skepticism for everyone around him. The unconventional Melody made for a strong match, an intelligent, hard-driving woman not given to sentimentality. MacDonald populated this universe with a cavalcade of colorful crooks, cops, hustlers and honest saps, giving his lead plenty of headaches, wrong turns and calamities along the way.
Like many of his contemporaries, MacDonald didn’t waste time, keeping the plot moving along at a rapid pace en route to a rousing, elaborately constructed finale. With a perfectly balanced blend of character, plot and tone, MacDonald crafted an entirely absorbing bit of comedic noir that still packed a dangerous punch.
The Brass Cupcake demonstrates why MacDonald’s work should be on the reading list of any serious genre enthusiast.
Only a few years after World War II, former cop Cliff Bartells is working as an insurance investigator in the thoroughly corrupt Florence City, Florida. Having quit the force over an ethical crisis, Cliff now recovers stolen merchandise for his employers. When a wealthy Boston dowager is killed in what everyone assumes is a botched robbery, Cliff’s job puts him in the dangerous terrain between the local criminal establishment and the compromised police force. But the victim’s fiery niece, Melody Chance, inspires Cliff to pursue both the recovery of her aunt’s jewels and the truth about her murder. Using his wits and a lot of guts, Cliff pursues an end game that could have a far greater impact than merely catching a killer.
The prolific MacDonald was a noir/detective genre master in the post-War era. His southern noirs took full advantage of their distinctive locales, showing that crime and mayhem could flourish in the sun just as easily as they did in grittier northern cities. The Brass Cupcake was a highly entertaining crime caper, packed with unusual characters, overheated scenarios and lots of sardonic humor. Cliff was a highly engaging narrator, directing the reader through the treacherous environs of his corrupt home turf with a winking self-knowledge and a healthy skepticism for everyone around him. The unconventional Melody made for a strong match, an intelligent, hard-driving woman not given to sentimentality. MacDonald populated this universe with a cavalcade of colorful crooks, cops, hustlers and honest saps, giving his lead plenty of headaches, wrong turns and calamities along the way.
Like many of his contemporaries, MacDonald didn’t waste time, keeping the plot moving along at a rapid pace en route to a rousing, elaborately constructed finale. With a perfectly balanced blend of character, plot and tone, MacDonald crafted an entirely absorbing bit of comedic noir that still packed a dangerous punch.
The Brass Cupcake demonstrates why MacDonald’s work should be on the reading list of any serious genre enthusiast.
October 15, 2017
Head to Florida's gulf coast and follow ex-cop Cliff Bartells, as he heads into trouble trying to solve the mystery and murder. The author knows how to write a crime thriller and has several books to choose from.
July 20, 2017
Beach read
This book is perfect for crime buffs. Excellent plot, interesting characters and the kind of book that will appeal to most. Being a bit dated doesn't hurt it at all, in fact it adds to the pleasure.
This book is perfect for crime buffs. Excellent plot, interesting characters and the kind of book that will appeal to most. Being a bit dated doesn't hurt it at all, in fact it adds to the pleasure.
November 20, 2018
John MacDonald's first novel! Love his writing and he was a winner from the start!
April 8, 2018
Classic 50s noir. Hard to put down
Suspenseful tale of a good man bringing down thieves, murderers, and dirty cops, then ending up with the rich blonde. The 50s Florida milieu seems like another, far off place.
Suspenseful tale of a good man bringing down thieves, murderers, and dirty cops, then ending up with the rich blonde. The 50s Florida milieu seems like another, far off place.
April 26, 2012
Not one of MacDonald's greatest hits, but not bad. This book, first published in 1950, is an above-average potboiler with a lot of great description of what Florida's gulf coast was like not long after World War II ended. The plot is nicely twisted and the characters a lot livelier than any stereotype. But the book suffers greatly -- at least in the eyes of this modern reader -- from both an antique sense of what makes male-female relationships work and an almost laughable effort to employ unusual euphemisms to describe the sex scenes. The relationship stuff is the most jarring, as MacDonald seems to not only condone but actually encourage domestic violence as a solution to communication problems in a relationship (i.e., slap some sense into the woman and she'll appreciate your manliness). The sex scenes are just too awful to be anything but funny: ""...peeling the jeans down over the twin convexities of alive plum-tautness..." Still, it WAS his first novel. He got better. Recommended only for those, like me, who want to read everything this noir master ever wrote.
August 21, 2019
The Brass Cupcake is the first in a long string of great books by John D. MacDonald, the mystery master. Cliff Bartells, an ex-cop who is now adjusting insurance claims, gets drawn into the jewelry heist of the season in Florence City, Florida. If he cracks the case, or even just buys back the loot, he will have a big payday. But the cop inside goes to figure out the case.
MacDonald in this inaugural book writes fully formed. The character sketches are on point, the environmental paint the picture that is 1950s tourist-local Florida, and MacDonald gets in his shots on the human condition, which can be low and venal.
MacDonald in this inaugural book writes fully formed. The character sketches are on point, the environmental paint the picture that is 1950s tourist-local Florida, and MacDonald gets in his shots on the human condition, which can be low and venal.
July 26, 2020
I was thinking that Cliff Bartells might be my favorite detective character, but MacDonald ruined the story with a Barnaby-Jones-style ending.
November 24, 2023
A few months back, I came across a bunch of John D. MacDonald's books at a local Goodwill, all of them part of his Travis McGee series. I was bowled over by the rough-and-ready noise elements of his hard-boiled fiction, and on a subsequent trip in June I found another McGee novel as well as this one, a stand-alone novel and also, as it turns out, MacDonald's first. It took a long while to get around to reading it, but here we are.
"The Brass Cupcake" is the story of Cliff Bartells, a former cop and current insurance adjuster who gets called into a nasty case of robbery and murder. A wealthy spinster has turned up dead in the small Florida city that Cliff calls home, and the only heir is a beautiful but mercurial niece who has a lot of reasons to be suspected. But she's not alone; everyone from the chauffeur to the pampered guy who escorted the woman around is a suspect. And Cliff has to navigate his way around the local police department, who are directly in the pocket of a local mobster and less than enthusiastic about letting Cliff do his job of retrieving the lost jewelry that may or may not have been the motive in the first place.
Punching his words throughout with the grizzle of a world-weary man who's seen it all, Cliff Bartells is a worthy precursor to MacDonald's later protagonist McGee. A man handy with a quip or a firearm, he's no fool. And he eventually unravels all aspects of the case, even if he has to suffer some slings and arrows to reach the end. Will he uncover the thieves and the murderers? Will he melt the heart of the fiery heiress? Will he get revenge on the cops who beat him when he wouldn't play ball with their corruption?
Some aspects of this novel won't play well with modern readers; coming as this does from the hard-boiled world of literature in the late 1940s, it should come as no surprise how much of the actions taken in this book aren't always palatable. But usually the worst offenders are the bad guys of the piece, so in that sense it might slide by (and when the offender is our ostensible hero, it's fair for readers to wonder if Cliff really is a good guy after all). But by and large, "The Brass Cupcake" holds its own with the Travis McGee books I've read so far, giving us a first-person narrator who can get to the bottom of the case while also sustaining his even temper despite the many body-blows he might take. Because in the end, he might be put through the wringer but he'll come out at the end ahead of those who have abused the law or committed murder to help further their aims.
"The Brass Cupcake" is the story of Cliff Bartells, a former cop and current insurance adjuster who gets called into a nasty case of robbery and murder. A wealthy spinster has turned up dead in the small Florida city that Cliff calls home, and the only heir is a beautiful but mercurial niece who has a lot of reasons to be suspected. But she's not alone; everyone from the chauffeur to the pampered guy who escorted the woman around is a suspect. And Cliff has to navigate his way around the local police department, who are directly in the pocket of a local mobster and less than enthusiastic about letting Cliff do his job of retrieving the lost jewelry that may or may not have been the motive in the first place.
Punching his words throughout with the grizzle of a world-weary man who's seen it all, Cliff Bartells is a worthy precursor to MacDonald's later protagonist McGee. A man handy with a quip or a firearm, he's no fool. And he eventually unravels all aspects of the case, even if he has to suffer some slings and arrows to reach the end. Will he uncover the thieves and the murderers? Will he melt the heart of the fiery heiress? Will he get revenge on the cops who beat him when he wouldn't play ball with their corruption?
Some aspects of this novel won't play well with modern readers; coming as this does from the hard-boiled world of literature in the late 1940s, it should come as no surprise how much of the actions taken in this book aren't always palatable. But usually the worst offenders are the bad guys of the piece, so in that sense it might slide by (and when the offender is our ostensible hero, it's fair for readers to wonder if Cliff really is a good guy after all). But by and large, "The Brass Cupcake" holds its own with the Travis McGee books I've read so far, giving us a first-person narrator who can get to the bottom of the case while also sustaining his even temper despite the many body-blows he might take. Because in the end, he might be put through the wringer but he'll come out at the end ahead of those who have abused the law or committed murder to help further their aims.
April 8, 2018
Just loved it. John D. MacDonald’s Cliff Barttels reminds me of characters by Raymond Chandler (Phillip Marlowe) and Dashell Hammett (San Spade). Rough, touch, yet romantic and sensitive when it come to his women.
I’ve read several John D. MacDonald’s Travis Magee books and enjoyed each and every one. This one, still taking place in Florida, is just a bit more dramatic.
This plot centers around a heist of jewelry and the murder of Aunt Elizabeth. Melody stands to inherit a great deal of money from her Aunt. But, there are stipulations. One is her marriage to a smooth operator/cad named Furny (who’s real interest is getting his hand on Aunt Elizabeth’s money one way or the other).
Enter our hero, ex-cop turned Insurance investigator. Cliff is responsible for recovering the jewelry and/or paying
the premium. First, he must Investigate, and along the way he trips over
Police corruption. The crooked cops, all police officers Cliff previously work with. Since Cliff left the force, all remaining Cops have been out to get him for being an honest cop. Will Cliff have the support he needs or will he have to get another source involved to help him fine the thief and murder. Are they one in the same?
Excellent read.
I’ve read several John D. MacDonald’s Travis Magee books and enjoyed each and every one. This one, still taking place in Florida, is just a bit more dramatic.
This plot centers around a heist of jewelry and the murder of Aunt Elizabeth. Melody stands to inherit a great deal of money from her Aunt. But, there are stipulations. One is her marriage to a smooth operator/cad named Furny (who’s real interest is getting his hand on Aunt Elizabeth’s money one way or the other).
Enter our hero, ex-cop turned Insurance investigator. Cliff is responsible for recovering the jewelry and/or paying
the premium. First, he must Investigate, and along the way he trips over
Police corruption. The crooked cops, all police officers Cliff previously work with. Since Cliff left the force, all remaining Cops have been out to get him for being an honest cop. Will Cliff have the support he needs or will he have to get another source involved to help him fine the thief and murder. Are they one in the same?
Excellent read.
August 13, 2019
I believe this is MacDonald's first novel, and it's not his best work. The protagonist, Cliff Bartells, can be a real a**hole at times. The writing isn't up to the standards of MacDonald's later work, which is exceptional, and many elements of the book feel dated and cliché, like a late 1940's B movie. The plot works out pretty well, with Bartells delivering rough justice to those who need it most. But if you want to know why MacDonald is so highly praised, start with one of his later works instead of this one.
August 21, 2019
I think The Brass Cupcake is the best JDM I've read. It was his first novel and quintessentially hard-boiled. Reminded me a lot of Prather or Spillane. A lot less preachy than his later novels. Just straight ahead good detective fiction.
October 3, 2015
MacDonald's first novel. 1950. First chapter is a super efficient setup: the crime, the task, the stakes, the carrot, and the character all connected and careening into the hot Florida sun, so setting, too. Nice, tight, first ten pages. Just a wisp of backstory, enough to establish character without bogging down the story. Great rolling start. Reads a quite a bit like a mashup of Hammett and Chandler, with less of the easily recognizable MacDonald style (although it is apparent in the way he introduces and develops the characters), which is not so surprising for a first out of the gate hard-boiled novel after apprenticing with stories in the same detective magazines that Hammett and Chandler did.
So we have Cliff Bartells as our ex-cop turned insurance investigator and hard-boiled protagonist. He specializes in buying stolen property back from the thieves. And that is the task here. Recovering $750,000 worth of stolen jewels. To do that he has to battle not just the thieves, but the cops and the mobsters who run Florence City, Florida. Plenty of gun play, beatings, and sex (euphemistically described) for Cliff before he gets to the end.
Excellent classic hard-boild noir. Plus, you get to see how MacDonald's style evolved.
So we have Cliff Bartells as our ex-cop turned insurance investigator and hard-boiled protagonist. He specializes in buying stolen property back from the thieves. And that is the task here. Recovering $750,000 worth of stolen jewels. To do that he has to battle not just the thieves, but the cops and the mobsters who run Florence City, Florida. Plenty of gun play, beatings, and sex (euphemistically described) for Cliff before he gets to the end.
Excellent classic hard-boild noir. Plus, you get to see how MacDonald's style evolved.
May 1, 2016
Having read the first few books of John D. MacDonald's excellent Travis McGee series, I was curious to get back to the beginning and see how MacDonald started. "The Brass Cupcake" is MacDonald's first novel and it did not disappoint.
While the book's lead protagonist is not Travis himself, I found aspects of Travis McGee sprinkled throughout this story. Sure, there are some ultra violent scenes, and being published in 1950, the love scenes are tasteful. But best of all, the book did keep me guessing -- while at a certain point I was able to figure out the outcome of some aspects of the story, I certainly didn't figure out all of it and that's always nice and fun.
I'm perhaps a little too new to MacDonald's work as a whole to be able to say this, but "The Brass Cupcake" might be a good starting point on which to embark on his works. Now I find myself wondering if I should continue with his next published book ("Wine of the Dreamers" from 1951), or just continue on with his Travis McGee series? I'm inclination is to do the former.
While the book's lead protagonist is not Travis himself, I found aspects of Travis McGee sprinkled throughout this story. Sure, there are some ultra violent scenes, and being published in 1950, the love scenes are tasteful. But best of all, the book did keep me guessing -- while at a certain point I was able to figure out the outcome of some aspects of the story, I certainly didn't figure out all of it and that's always nice and fun.
I'm perhaps a little too new to MacDonald's work as a whole to be able to say this, but "The Brass Cupcake" might be a good starting point on which to embark on his works. Now I find myself wondering if I should continue with his next published book ("Wine of the Dreamers" from 1951), or just continue on with his Travis McGee series? I'm inclination is to do the former.
November 21, 2019
I haven't read a MacDonald in many years. I thought I'd enjoy the chance to revisit him. I give the mystery and plot 4 stars. However, the book is extremely dated, filled with misogyny and sexism. (Take away 1 star.) There were points when it made me cringe. Nevertheless, MacDonald was a superb writer and his descriptions are solid. Fun to read for a look back at what a hardboiled detective story used to be.
July 25, 2014
this is the first non-mcgee macdonald book i've read....it bodes well for the rest.
an insurance investigator drummed out of the police department for being too honest (this was the 50s) is on the trail of a jewel heist. along the way he will run into a murderer and a rich heiress...good times ensue.
an insurance investigator drummed out of the police department for being too honest (this was the 50s) is on the trail of a jewel heist. along the way he will run into a murderer and a rich heiress...good times ensue.
April 20, 2011
Originally came out in 1950. A year before I was born. It really takes me back to how much simpler things were back then. Really have to think they were better times, except for things like beating the confession out of whoever gets pulled in for a crime.
April 21, 2022
Not one of MacDonald's best, but an entertaining read.
May 1, 2020
John D. MacDonald. His is probably the most frequently appearing name in my library data base. 57 titles. Some date back to my father's collection, a big bunch to a treasure trove found at The Main Street Fair Book Booth and 21 of them are Travis McGee titles. And I've have not read him for years and years. My loss.
My good luck was having this re-issue offered me, with an introduction by Dean Koontz. While he is not a favorite of mine MacDonald is a favorite of his. He writes a heartfelt and acute introduction. Worth reading all by itself. And given a bit of time I'll have to read more of MacDonald. I reread a McGee a decade or so ago. Maybe I'll go for "The Girl, The Gold Watch and Everything", a rare John D. scifi title. I recall it as delicious. And plenty more. I probably have more John D. images hewn into my mind than of any other author.
This story, first published in 1950,, stands up terrifically well. The difference is the value of money but everything else could easily be set today. Is the high praise part nostalgia? Probably. Makes no never-mind. Without it the book would still be
Highly Recommended.
My good luck was having this re-issue offered me, with an introduction by Dean Koontz. While he is not a favorite of mine MacDonald is a favorite of his. He writes a heartfelt and acute introduction. Worth reading all by itself. And given a bit of time I'll have to read more of MacDonald. I reread a McGee a decade or so ago. Maybe I'll go for "The Girl, The Gold Watch and Everything", a rare John D. scifi title. I recall it as delicious. And plenty more. I probably have more John D. images hewn into my mind than of any other author.
This story, first published in 1950,, stands up terrifically well. The difference is the value of money but everything else could easily be set today. Is the high praise part nostalgia? Probably. Makes no never-mind. Without it the book would still be
Highly Recommended.
June 8, 2018
“The Brass Cupcake,” by John D. MacDonald has Cliff Bartells, a former lieutenant on the city police force of Florence, Florida, now an insurance adjuster, becoming more and more of a suspect in the murder and robbery of a local woman as the story moves forward. MacDonald has a way of writing that you can see and feel what’s happening. Purists might say it’s overdone, but it’s not, it’s just enough to make you feel the story while putting enough in the way so that you can’t predict the next scene or the eventual outcome. Cliff builds a relationship with Melody and the danger hovering over him engulfs her. The story is a true mystery, and Cliff seems to push it in the wrong direction, even with his best efforts to the contrary. Good book.
October 13, 2021
MacDonald's first published novel in which former police lieutenant Cliff Bartells, now insurance company recovery expert, serves as a proto-type for Travis McGee. All the usual elements found in a MacDonald novel are present - brawling, babes, beer, mean and corrupt small town cops, soft-hearted criminals, thieves, and murderers wrapped around a lot of smart-aleck dialog and the author's customary eye for detail. Social commentary in this one was kept to a minimum. Of interest was Cliff's observation on how the genre's heroes invariably make a miraculous recovery after a beating such as the one he suffers at the hands of his former fellow officers. MacDonald fell victim to that tendency on occasion as McGee's adventures piled up.
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