Patricia Highsmith novels ranked

[Bick]

I've read a fair few of her novels and feel I have the perspective to give a personal ranking, which may be of some use to those who want to dip their toes into 'Highsmith country', or simply in order to collegially disagree with my ranking - feel free! I've posted brief reviews of these books over the years on Chrons, so a quick search would reveal more in depth thoughts on them than are given here with such brevity.

1. The Tremor of Forgery (1969) - A writer in Tunisia accidentally kills someone with a typewriter - Highsmith's masterpiece
2. This Sweet Sickness (1960) - A superb and tense tale of obsession and unrequited love with suberb plotting and conclusion
3. Deep Water (1957) - Hugely entertaining - murders as seen through the eyes of a killer in suburbia
4. The Cry of the Owl (1962) - The tale of a stalker, as seen through the eyes of the stalker - stunning novel
5. Strangers on a Train (1950) - Highsmith's crime debut, very inventive, filmed by Hitchcock
6. The Talented Mr Ripley (1955) - the first and best Ripley novel - very good, but the novels above are even better
7. A Suspension of Mercy (1965) - A writer dreams of plans to kill his wife... and then she goes missing
8. The Two Faces of January (1964) - A cat and mouse caper across Greece, recently filmed
9. The Blunderer (1954) - A man is an obvious suspect in his wife's murder, and fails to see the danger clearly
10. Ripley Under Ground (1970) - A pretty good sequel to the '55 novel - Ripley travels widely, with charm, appeal and evil intent
11. Those Who Walk Away (1967) - Interesting and engaging tale set in Venice, but character motivations challenge believability

What have you read of these? The only novel of hers from her classic period that I've not yet read (other than her lesbian romance The Price of Salt, which is somewhat removed from her crime novels) and which might make this list, is The Glass Cell (1964). I also haven't yet read her later novels from 1972 onwards either - these are all supposed to be good, but few if any fans seem to place them in her top 10, so this list above may be of use for those interested in checking out her work.

Your thoughts?

 

[Victoria Silverwolf]

Nice analysis.

I haven't read your top three.

The Cry of the Owl is, indeed, a remarkable novel, with great psychological insight. I'm not sure I'd call the protagonist a "stalker" in the normal sense of the word, however. (The two film adaptations of this novel are good; the first, in French, is better.)

I haven't read Strangers on a Train but -- of course! -- the Hitchcock film is familiar. One of those plot ideas that is so simple and yet so brilliant that you think "Why hasn't somebody done this before?"

I've only read the first novel in the Ripley series. Quite good.

I haven't read the others on your list.

I did read The Price of Salt and it was very good. Although there's a gun at one point, it is not at all suspense.

I've also read A Game for the Living, her only true whodunit, which she herself thought was her worst novel. It was OK.

 

[Bick]

The Cry of the Owl is, indeed, a remarkable novel, with great psychological insight. I'm not sure I'd call the protagonist a "stalker" in the normal sense of the word, however. (The two film adaptations of this novel are good; the first, in French, is better.)

I agree, 'stalker' is very much an abbreviated and non-nuanced description - it's not quite right of course.

I've also read A Game for the Living, her only true whodunit, which she herself thought was her worst novel. It was OK.

Indeed - I've read that this is not representative of her oeuvre, nor is so good, based on her own appreciation. For that reason I've avoided it thus far, though I may give it a go one day.