A Bullet for Cinderella (also published as On the Make)

I was disappointed in this book. Very old school. Definitely not a Travis McGee work, or even Barrier Island, etc.. I wish the McGee series of books were available on Kindle so I could easily read them again (are you listening copyright holder $$$$$ ?). This seems more like early Mickey Spillane.

The prolific John D. MacDonald was a master of crime fiction (many might call him *the* master) and the author of more than 65 novels between 1950 and 1986. A Bullet for Cinderella is a relatively early example of his work from 1955. It was reprinted as On the Make, and as its superior original title suggests, it's a classic of noir writing.

Tal Howard was a POW in the Korean War. While in prison camp, he learns from a dying friend about embezzled money his friend had buried back home. After the war, Tal sets out to find that money, though he does not know where it was buried. His only clue was that "Cindy would know," but he does not know who Cindy is or where she is. Telling you anything more would ruin the pleasure of seeing if Tal succeeds.

Though this book is not considered among MacDonald's best, I thought it was a minor masterpiece. His writing is spare and simple and he wastes no words. Despite creating a scary villain among a cast of hard-boiled characters, the only obscenity he uses is an occasional "damn" without sacrificing any atmosphere or realism. It is a testament to MacDonald's consummate skill as an artist.

To the hundreds of aspiring writers whose books litter the store and other websites, reading John D. MacDonald will show them what their works ought to look like, but don't. At least it should teach them humility as they shake their heads in wonder.

This is a stand-alone novel, first published in 1955, and written by John D. MacDonald, who is best known for his Travis McGee series. It's a classic Fawcett/Gold Medal novel in which the protagonist starts out with an apparently reasonable objective but soon finds himself in over his head and in danger of losing his life in some very unpleasant way.

In this case, the protagonist is a man named Tal Howard, who had the misfortune first of going off to war and then of being captured and sent to a prisoner of war camp. The camp, of course, was a horrible experience and while there, Tal became friends with another prisoner named Timmy Warden who came from a small town named Hillston.

Sadly, Timmy died in the camp, but before he did so, he confessed to Tal that he had stolen $60,000 (at a time when that was still a lot of money). He had embezzled the money from his brother, George. To add insult to injury, Timmy had also been sleeping with George's trampy wife, Eloise. Timmy tells Howard that he buried the money and that only a woman named Cindy would know where to find it. Timmy regrets all of this now, and hopes only to survive long enough to return to Hillston and make things right with his brother.

Timmy dies before he get a chance to make amends. Tal Howard is eventually rescued from the camp and after he recovers is at loose ends. After his experience in the war, he has no interest in resuming his old life and so decides to go to Hillston, find the mysterious Cindy, dig up the money and live happily ever after.

Naturally, this won't be easy. And once Howard reaches Hillston, he realizes just how complicated a task he has set himself. To make matters worse, there's already another ex-POW from the camp named Fitzmartin, who apparently heard part of Timmy's story and who's arrived in town ahead of Howard, also determined to find the money. Fitzmartin is a psycho S.O.B., typical of the villains that MacDonald tended to create, and obviously he's going to pose a formidable obstacle in the way of Howard's objective.

If all that weren't bad enough, little Hillston proves to be a town with a lot of dark secrets and mysteries, and the deeper Howard digs, both literally and figuratively, the more trouble he's going to be in. Along the way, naturally, he'll also encounter any number of interesting females, and the end result is an engaging tale that should appeal to any fan of classic hard-boiled crime fiction.

Travis McGee fans, of which I am one, have usually gone on to read other books by John D. MacDonald. This is one of his earlier ones and, while the author is not as skilled as he was when he began his McGee books, this remains a fine pulp fiction novel.
Even in his early days, MacDonald's prose could grab the reader and not him go. This book illustrates some of that prose power. However, later books also show the author becoming more polished and even more powerful. The book doesn't have a complicated plot. But like almost every MacDonald's novel, there are scenes the reader will remember. For me, the book was also intriguing because it took place back in the fifties. MacDonald's books are time capsules. He catches the flavor and atmosphere of that period.

Travis McGee fans, of which I am one, have usually gone on to read other books by John D. MacDonald. This is one of his earlier ones and, while the author is not as skilled as he was when he began his McGee books, this remains a fine pulp fiction novel.
Even in his early days, MacDonald's prose could grab the reader and not him go. This book illustrates some of that prose power. However, later books also show the author becoming more polished and even more powerful. The book doesn't have a complicated plot. But like almost every MacDonald's novel, there are scenes the reader will remember. For me, the book was also intriguing because it took place back in the fifties. MacDonald's books are time capsules. He catches the flavor and atmosphere of that period.

A fast read for most any reader. The classic John D. MacDonald by a long stretch. Keeping my fingers crossed for the Travis McGee series to be published for Kindle one dayThe Death Merchant.

Well written. Perfect length for the story. Quick and easy read with dollops of suspense dropped into the pages to keep you turning. The plot is somewhat formulaic murder-mystery: there is some hidden money and a few dead bodies. Overall, good pulp-fiction by a writer who was still in the process of developing his chops and cutting his teeth.

The characters were, especially the women, not very believable and the pace dragged in the first half. The momentum really picked up in the second half. The romances I could not really buy, and, like Ivanhoe, he ends up going for the wrong woman.