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The Cornell Woolrich Omnibus: Rear Window and Other Stories / I Married a Dead Man / Waltz into Darkness
Mystery aficionado Ellery Queen said of Cornell Woolrich that he can "distill more terror, more excitement, more downright nail-biting suspense out of even the most commonplace happenings than nearly all his competitors".Woolrich's work continues to fascinate readers all around the world, and this trilogy should become a staple in all noir collections. It contains two full length novels (I Married a Dead Man and Waltz into Darkness) and five short stories, including "Rear Window" -- works in which one of the genre's consumate "poets of terror" explores all the classic noir themes of loneliness, despair, futility, and occasionally redemption.
CONTENTS
Rear Window
Post Mortem
Three O'Clock
Change of Murder
Momentum
I MARRIED A DEAD MAN
WALTZ INTO DARKNESS
CONTENTS
Rear Window
Post Mortem
Three O'Clock
Change of Murder
Momentum
I MARRIED A DEAD MAN
WALTZ INTO DARKNESS
628 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1998
8 people are currently reading
526 people want to read
About the author
Cornell Woolrich
439 books475 followersCornell Woolrich is widely regarded as the twentieth century’s finest writer of pure suspense fiction. The author of numerous classic novels and short stories (many of which were turned into classic films) such as Rear Window, The Bride Wore Black, The Night Has a Thousand Eyes, Waltz Into Darkness, and I Married a Dead Man, Woolrich began his career in the 1920s writing mainstream novels that won him comparisons to F. Scott Fitzgerald. The bulk of his best-known work, however, was written in the field of crime fiction, often appearing serialized in pulp magazines or as paperback novels. Because he was prolific, he found it necessary to publish under multiple pseudonyms, including "William Irish" and "George Hopley" [...] Woolrich lived a life as dark and emotionally tortured as any of his unfortunate characters and died, alone, in a seedy Manhattan hotel room following the amputation of a gangrenous leg. Upon his death, he left a bequest of one million dollars to Columbia University, to fund a scholarship for young writers.
Source: [http://www.hardcasecrime.com/books_bi...]
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Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews
September 10, 2024
If there's one thing Woolrich excels at, it's tension - something very much on parade in this collection.
This is an omnibus that combines 5 excellent short stories (one of them perhaps the author's most famous, 'Rear Window') with two novels (the second one double the length of the first). This large volume is rather remarkable... until, say, the last 150 pages - when Woolrich makes an artistic choice that is ultimately less satisfying (even if he still keeps you turning the pages at high speed).
The shorter works are squarely placed in the realm of traditional noir that Woolrich serves so well. In each, he sets up a clever situation which is then explored in detail and mined for maximum effect. They are expertly done.
The first novel - 'I Married a Dead Man' - seems unique in that I don't recall the author ever being so ensconced in a woman's POV. Perhaps he has done that elsewhere in his work but perhaps not as completely as here. In reading Woolrich (esp. his longer works)... after awhile we begin to detect some of his more obvious flights of fancy when they're peppered within. They're usually easily 'forgiven' because not only is the writing generally of such high quality (and often truly inspired) but his occasional extremes serve to remind that, first and foremost, he's a storyteller: he's not always going for absolute realism but he *is* aiming to keep the reader enthralled. At the same time, he reminds us that 'Hey, it's just a story, you needn't take it that seriously.'
Woolrich's focus is usually on the less-admirable aspects of human nature; the weaknesses in people that arise when they are victims of circumstance or gain full plumage when they are moving full-tilt on chronically aberrant personalities. ~the latter being the case in the second novel, 'Waltz into Darkness'.
What sets the second novel apart in Woolrich's canon is his move into historical fiction. 'WID' is set (first) in 1880 in New Orleans. The novel is notable for its impressive depiction of the landscape of the time (fashion, customs, gender roles, etc.). Throughout the first 2/3 of the novel, the author whips up almost unbearable tension in a cunning display of ambitious (practically locomotive) duplicity.
But, at the 2/3 mark, Woolrich becomes prey to his own excesses. A specific action is taken by the protagonist that seems to spin the tale off-the-track and out-of-control. ~though some may not agree, including Woolrich himself. The intent may have been to fully capitalize on the novel's theme of 'Love turning to folly'. Nevertheless, the tonal shift into and of the latter section sends the tale into something of a quagmire and a driving narrative becomes stunted. (I was disappointed by Woolrich's capricious removal of two strong characters who could have perhaps taken the novel to a more interesting place.) It wasn't so much that I was captivated as much as my jaw was dropping in disbelief.
Still... that doesn't take away from the fact that, overall, this is a rather breathtaking volume. When Woolrich is on... he is on all cylinders.
This is an omnibus that combines 5 excellent short stories (one of them perhaps the author's most famous, 'Rear Window') with two novels (the second one double the length of the first). This large volume is rather remarkable... until, say, the last 150 pages - when Woolrich makes an artistic choice that is ultimately less satisfying (even if he still keeps you turning the pages at high speed).
The shorter works are squarely placed in the realm of traditional noir that Woolrich serves so well. In each, he sets up a clever situation which is then explored in detail and mined for maximum effect. They are expertly done.
The first novel - 'I Married a Dead Man' - seems unique in that I don't recall the author ever being so ensconced in a woman's POV. Perhaps he has done that elsewhere in his work but perhaps not as completely as here. In reading Woolrich (esp. his longer works)... after awhile we begin to detect some of his more obvious flights of fancy when they're peppered within. They're usually easily 'forgiven' because not only is the writing generally of such high quality (and often truly inspired) but his occasional extremes serve to remind that, first and foremost, he's a storyteller: he's not always going for absolute realism but he *is* aiming to keep the reader enthralled. At the same time, he reminds us that 'Hey, it's just a story, you needn't take it that seriously.'
Woolrich's focus is usually on the less-admirable aspects of human nature; the weaknesses in people that arise when they are victims of circumstance or gain full plumage when they are moving full-tilt on chronically aberrant personalities. ~the latter being the case in the second novel, 'Waltz into Darkness'.
What sets the second novel apart in Woolrich's canon is his move into historical fiction. 'WID' is set (first) in 1880 in New Orleans. The novel is notable for its impressive depiction of the landscape of the time (fashion, customs, gender roles, etc.). Throughout the first 2/3 of the novel, the author whips up almost unbearable tension in a cunning display of ambitious (practically locomotive) duplicity.
But, at the 2/3 mark, Woolrich becomes prey to his own excesses. A specific action is taken by the protagonist that seems to spin the tale off-the-track and out-of-control. ~though some may not agree, including Woolrich himself. The intent may have been to fully capitalize on the novel's theme of 'Love turning to folly'. Nevertheless, the tonal shift into and of the latter section sends the tale into something of a quagmire and a driving narrative becomes stunted. (I was disappointed by Woolrich's capricious removal of two strong characters who could have perhaps taken the novel to a more interesting place.) It wasn't so much that I was captivated as much as my jaw was dropping in disbelief.
Still... that doesn't take away from the fact that, overall, this is a rather breathtaking volume. When Woolrich is on... he is on all cylinders.
December 3, 2020
I don’t know what to say about this book except “Wow”! I never before remember reading a collection of stories and novels wherein I enjoyed every single word. Of course, the author is one of the masters of noir, so these aren’t joyful tales about good fortune, true love, and happiness. Plenty of despair, loneliness, darkness, suspense, desperation, and corruption, and such good writing. Anyone who likes James M. Cain or Raymond Chandler would love Cornell Woolrich. A truly excellent writer.
July 12, 2014
And so, while this book was tempting, I also only read one story in this - I will at some later date go back and read some Woolrich novels, but right now is for short fiction.
From this, I read "Three O'Clock" - another Woolrich classic, a crackerjack suspense story in which an average watchmaker fellow sets a bomb in the basement of his suburban home to kill his wife and her secret lover - only for him to become, let us say... detained (the set-up does a wonderful job of starkly informing us of the fact that it isn't just mere jealousy that drives him, but odd, random homicidal thoughts he has nursed since receiving a concussion in a car accident). It's an excellent, mechanical device of a story, proving Woolrich's suspense chops and ability to ratchet up desperation to unbelievable degrees. Gripping.
You can hear a pretty good (a bit rushed) reading of it here (just right click and save as to your desktop to download)
From this, I read "Three O'Clock" - another Woolrich classic, a crackerjack suspense story in which an average watchmaker fellow sets a bomb in the basement of his suburban home to kill his wife and her secret lover - only for him to become, let us say... detained (the set-up does a wonderful job of starkly informing us of the fact that it isn't just mere jealousy that drives him, but odd, random homicidal thoughts he has nursed since receiving a concussion in a car accident). It's an excellent, mechanical device of a story, proving Woolrich's suspense chops and ability to ratchet up desperation to unbelievable degrees. Gripping.
You can hear a pretty good (a bit rushed) reading of it here (just right click and save as to your desktop to download)
April 17, 2021
I only read Waltz into Darkness, but can't find a stand-alone Goodreads edition, so I'm putting the review on this collection. Given that this was published in 1947 and takes place in the late 1800's, the perspective on women can be a little annoying to today's female readers. The entire novel is a bit melodramatic, with the leading man being so sickeningly in love that he loses all his good sense. The writing was excellent and the author's descriptions were unique; I often found myself surprised that I knew exactly what detail he was describing.
November 4, 2015
Some stories shone more brightly -- or darkly? -- than others. I had much higher expectations for Rear Window, which felt contrived and two-dimensional (screenwriter John Michael Hayes deserves a ton of credit for the movie adaptation). Waltz into Darkness stood out as a unique twist on the trope of the femme fatale and was definitely the most elaborated of the stories in this book, and in some ways the most believable. I Married a Dead Man was happily a shade darker than its movie version. In general, given Woolrich's popularity and the prominence of his work, I was expecting more nuance and complexity of characters, and more compelling plots. Enjoyable, but I don't think I would put him on the same shelf with Chandler, Cain, Highsmith, et al.
April 22, 2010
Wonderfully pulp and tremendously well plotted with great suspense and timing - the short stories are fantastic and the novella "I Married a Dead Man" is great fun, with great gouts of guilt, blackmail and murder. The last novel, "Waltz into Darkness" starts off with a great and familiar premise and runs with it all the way but only missteps in the last lap for a hammy ending. Despite that, definitely worth a read. Certainly all of the pieces are products of a different era of writing but if you enjoy Damon Runyon, Raymond Chandler, or Dashiell Hammett you will be right at home.
December 7, 2025
You may not recognize the name but you have probably seen the film Alfred Hitchcock made out of the first of five short stories and two novels included in this book - Rear Window.
Woolrich is called a noir writer, and that is true some of the time. He definitely wrote thrillers, with murders and double crosses and impersonations. I think the novel I Married a Dead Man was at least an inspiration for a movie or two. I don't know that Waltz Into Darkness was but it's my fave thing here.
In that long novel, a New Orleans man has engaged in correspondence with a St. Louis woman and then becomes engaged to her. But when he meets her at the dock where her steamship landed on the Mississippi, she turns out to be much younger and prettier than he expected. There are about twenty twists and turns over the next 300 pages. Woolrich writes some heavy-handed passages about the nature of love here and there but mostly sticks to covering excitement, allure, disappointment, terror, and a lack of moral clarity. He had me fooled three or four times at least as to what would happen next.
Rear Window is different from the film mainly because there is no Grace Kelly character. It is a crackling story, though, as are the other short ones, especially "Momentum" in which one death leads to another and another and another and ends with a twist practically borrowed from O. Henry.
The novel I Married a Dead Man has a pregnant woman meeting a young married couple - this woman is also pregnant - on a train. Eventually, she gets involved with their family, and the father of her child shows up again, and all sorts of convoluted questions as to who did what and when are covered. I found it very entertaining.
I wasn't aware of Woolrich before. I'm glad to have made the acquaintance of his words.
Woolrich is called a noir writer, and that is true some of the time. He definitely wrote thrillers, with murders and double crosses and impersonations. I think the novel I Married a Dead Man was at least an inspiration for a movie or two. I don't know that Waltz Into Darkness was but it's my fave thing here.
In that long novel, a New Orleans man has engaged in correspondence with a St. Louis woman and then becomes engaged to her. But when he meets her at the dock where her steamship landed on the Mississippi, she turns out to be much younger and prettier than he expected. There are about twenty twists and turns over the next 300 pages. Woolrich writes some heavy-handed passages about the nature of love here and there but mostly sticks to covering excitement, allure, disappointment, terror, and a lack of moral clarity. He had me fooled three or four times at least as to what would happen next.
Rear Window is different from the film mainly because there is no Grace Kelly character. It is a crackling story, though, as are the other short ones, especially "Momentum" in which one death leads to another and another and another and ends with a twist practically borrowed from O. Henry.
The novel I Married a Dead Man has a pregnant woman meeting a young married couple - this woman is also pregnant - on a train. Eventually, she gets involved with their family, and the father of her child shows up again, and all sorts of convoluted questions as to who did what and when are covered. I found it very entertaining.
I wasn't aware of Woolrich before. I'm glad to have made the acquaintance of his words.
May 3, 2019
I picked this book up at the library because I love Hitchcock's Rear Window, a movie he expanded from the original short story here. The short stories immediately hooked your interest.
I thought the novella, I Married a Dead Man, was so well-written. It felt like watching an old black and white movie from the 40s, and my mom described it well as like watching an episode of The Twlight Zone.
Waltz Into Darkness had contained some racial gender stereotypes.
I'd never heard of this author before, but anyone who enjoys the American noir genre should read it, I think.
I thought the novella, I Married a Dead Man, was so well-written. It felt like watching an old black and white movie from the 40s, and my mom described it well as like watching an episode of The Twlight Zone.
Waltz Into Darkness had contained some racial gender stereotypes.
I'd never heard of this author before, but anyone who enjoys the American noir genre should read it, I think.
June 12, 2024
I have, as of this review, only read Rear Window (previously under a different title).
I go back and forth on this one - sometimes I like the book better for the sheer authenticity, but in the end the movie wins out, as I love the adjustment of adding in Grace Kelly. I would also add that it's a fun little story, and quite funny at times, but it just translates beautifully to film - the backdrop of the neighbors, the spying...all of it works better on screen than off IMO.
I will try some of his other works in the future and update when I've read them.
I go back and forth on this one - sometimes I like the book better for the sheer authenticity, but in the end the movie wins out, as I love the adjustment of adding in Grace Kelly. I would also add that it's a fun little story, and quite funny at times, but it just translates beautifully to film - the backdrop of the neighbors, the spying...all of it works better on screen than off IMO.
I will try some of his other works in the future and update when I've read them.
January 14, 2020
A cracker of a collection of short stories!! Really strong female characters as well ! Every story is distinct and nearly all are awesome!!! Absolutely gripping page turners... I enjoyed them even more since I mostly avoided reading more than one a day!
I especially enjoyed Rear Window, You'll never see me again ( my favourite!), Screaming laugh and death is my dancing partner!!
In hindsight, I think I read a different collection of stories!
I especially enjoyed Rear Window, You'll never see me again ( my favourite!), Screaming laugh and death is my dancing partner!!
In hindsight, I think I read a different collection of stories!
February 11, 2022
I bought this book for Rear Window, a great story, but somewhat different here than in the movie. And as I was reading I Married A Dead Man, it reminded me of something, Mrs. Winterbourne, which somehow became a romantic comedy! Waltz Into Darkness was good too, if a bit wordy, and the short stories had a couple of unexpected O. Henry type twist endings. Very entertaining reading from a true master of suspense.
August 28, 2023
Naturally, the brilliance of Waltz Into Darkness would leave one intrigued and starved for more. This collection of Woolrich's stellar signatures satisfies the craving of noir enthusiasts in the impeccable execution of plots and character interaction that unfolds and leads readers towards fulfilling ends.
April 25, 2019
Audiobook read by one of favorite narrators Fred Major.
Cornell Woolrich writes noir at its best including the very haunting “I Married a Dead Man” and, “Rear Window” (later film by the master Hitchcock)
Cornell Woolrich writes noir at its best including the very haunting “I Married a Dead Man” and, “Rear Window” (later film by the master Hitchcock)
March 4, 2024
It was fascinating to compare the short story and to the movie Rear Window for our course on Mysteries. Hitchcock used the various windows to explore the many phases of romantic relationships and spiced up the noir story with humor.
January 26, 2022
This is pulp fiction at its best. Combine the grit of Raymond Chandler with the twist endings of O’Henry and you get a Cornell Woolrich story. Loads of fun to read.
October 31, 2024
Love his stories. Stand the test of time
January 31, 2025
waltz into darkness - poor little fool, oh yeah, he was a fool, uh huh, uh oh, poor little fool, he was a fool, oh yeah.
September 14, 2025
Only read Rear Window (31 pages) as that was the only story that held any interest for me.
August 26, 2008
I read this because of the novella, "I Married a Dead Man," the basis for one of my most favorite Stanwycks (and that's saying a lot). Woolrich will never been Chandler, but he did a nice job with one of the main reasons why I like the movie, which is instilling in the reader/viewer a strong sense of place. That's enough to make me forgive some truly corkscrew plotting. And there's a real sterility when the main character refers to her child, the supposed reason for her masquerade. The screenplay also has a tighter, more plausible ending, but the leading men are pretty uniformly awful, so I enjoyed recasting this one in my head as I read.
"Rear Window" was almost tedious by comparison: the author was attempting some cutsey stuff like not revealing that Jeff is in a leg cast. Add in some typically appalling racism and the absence of Grace Kelly and Thelma Ritter's characters, and it's a dry read indeed.
"Rear Window" was almost tedious by comparison: the author was attempting some cutsey stuff like not revealing that Jeff is in a leg cast. Add in some typically appalling racism and the absence of Grace Kelly and Thelma Ritter's characters, and it's a dry read indeed.
August 17, 2010
Review is for Waltz into Darkness rather than the full omnibus. The story is perhaps too familiar from Hollywood (or Carmen): respectable man gives up everything, even resorts to murder, for the sake of a sexy but amoral woman. My objection is, in part, to Woolrich's style: passages seem padded, scenes with a private investigator sound like they're set in the 1950s rather than in the historical time of the book, and, strangely enough, women's fashions (the erotic appeal of the bustle, the scandal of the outline of a crossed leg under layers of petticoats) are given rather more attention than anything else.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 27, 2008
Yes, they made some good french new wave stale noir movies out of his books, but this guy was a lousy writer. His style wan't so bad, but the heavy reliance on outlandish coincidence as a plot mover combined with the impossibly melodramatic situations (which I enjoyed, however) make for a difficult read. I really really wanted to like this stuff, and after this volume read a couple more novels, mining for dark genius. James Cain does this stuff so much better.
June 13, 2011
The two long pieces were far too predictable. Made the reading boring. It was well written, but I felt five steps ahead of Woolrich at all times. Did not work for me in pieces that are being classified as Noir. There was no intrigue or tension; there were no plot twists. The short stores were more effective and not as blah, but still they were lacking in the amped up tension they should of had.
April 2, 2013
Dark. Unmistakably. Poor guy. Certainly an over-dramatization of "true love", one in which some still believe. But it's so impractical! Poor boy. Well-written it is. But it's time for something more upbeat, more grounded.
October 28, 2013
A handful of short stories and two novels from the man who wrote two Hitchcock classics, Rear Window (which is here) and The Trouble With Harry. It's such fun to read suspense, although I don't do it very often. Woolrich's noir style was straight up my alley. Great stuff.
Want to read
November 13, 2011Stephen King recommended book in Chapter 2 of Berkley's 1983 paperback edition of Danse Macabre.
September 10, 2016
I really liked these short stories.
Rear Window is a movie
Rear Window is a movie
February 13, 2012
I read two of the stories: "Rear Window" and "Waltz Into Darkness" because I had seen the films based on these two stories. Enjoyed them very much.
Read
October 12, 2016Some stories play out like O. Henry writing an a noir story, and others like Ross Macdonald writing a romantic morality tale.
Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews