Black Path of Fear

The Black Path of Fear by Cornell Woolrich
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Scott and Eve thought they escaped her gangster husband by fleeing to Cuba. They are proven wrong when she is knifed and Scott looks like the killer. Can he clear his name and get out of Cuba alive?

Yeah, I just couldn't get behind this one. I like Cornell Woolrich but his stories are always hit or miss with me. This one is a miss, unfortunately.

I'm not sure why this one rubbed me the wrong way. I think it's because the main character was such a dipshit. By the time I was halfway through, I was really hoping he couldn't clear his name and he'd be executed in Cuba.

Other than that, it has all the Woolrich standards. The suspense was good, the female characters fell into the usual Woolrich categories, and the man on the run feel was consistent throughout. Too bad I had a hard time paying attention.

The Black Path of Fear isn't a horrible book. I think it was a case of the wrong book at the wrong time for me rather than life being too short. It's not bad but I just can't recommend it. Woolrich has written much better books than this one and you'd be better served spending your time with them.

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