The Cocktail Waitress by James M. Cain

In The Cocktail Waitress our protagonist is Joan Medford, a beautiful young mother who recently became a widow after her abusive husband got into a deadly car accident.  She takes a job as a waitress in a seedy local cocktail lounge to make ends meet and to take care of her young son.   At the Rose Garden Lounge is where she meets two men that will change her life – a rich, old man, Earl K White III, and a good-looking charmer named Tom Barclay.  As Joan’s relationship evolves with these two men – danger and drama unfold.  As the reader, you will decide if Joan Medford is a femme fatale or an innocent bystander that’s always at the wrong place at the wrong time.

“The Cocktail Waitress” is the last novel by famous American crime fiction author James M. Cain (1892 – 1977).  Many of you might be more familiar with James M. Cain’s works that were adapted into Hollywood films like Double Indemnity and Mildred Pierce.  James was not just an author, but also an editor, journalist, and screenwriter in his day.  At the end of the book, an afterword written by Charles Ardai gives us an inside look at how this lost manuscript for The Cocktail Waitress was found and put together including more background and details on author James M. Cain’s life.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Hardcover:  The Cocktail Waitress

Author:  James M. Cain

Publisher:  Titan Books

MSRP:  $23.99USD

Available:  September 18, 2012

For Mature Readers