After Dark, My Sweet

By: Jim Thompson

Narrated by: Kevin T. Collins

A classic crime novel about a kidnapping scheme gone wrong from Jim Thompson's, America's "Dimestore Dostoevsky."

William "Kid" Collins was once a respected boxer. Now he's a drifter, on the run after escaping from a mental institution.

One afternoon he meets Fay, a beautiful young widow. She is smart and decent — at least when she's sober. Soon Collins finds himself involved in a kidnapping scheme that goes drastically wrong almost before it even begins. Because the kid they've picked up isn't like other kids: he's diabetic and without insulin, he'll die. Not the safest situation for Collins, a man for whom stress and violence have long gone hand-in-hand.

After Dark, My Sweet once again displays Jim Thompson as the undisputed master of American noir. The basis of James Foley's critically acclaimed film of the same name, with the sweep of an epic tragedy, Thompson's classic limns the dangerous territory of honest people all-too-easily sucked into wickedness, with no way out but down.

Critic reviews

"The best suspense writer going, bar none."—The New York Times

"My favorite crime novelist-often imitated but never duplicated."—Stephen King

"If Raymond Chandler, Dashiell Hammett and Cornell Woolrich would have joined together in some ungodly union and produced a literary offspring, Jim Thompson would be it...His work...casts a dazzling light on the human condition."—Washington Post

"Like Clint Eastwood's pictures it's the stuff for rednecks, truckers, failures, psychopaths and professors ... one of the finest American writers and the most frightening, [Thompson] is on best terms with the devil. Read Jim Thompson and take a tour of hell."—The New Republic

"The master of the American groin-kick novel."—Vanity Fair

"The most hard-boiled of all the American writers of crime fiction."—Chicago Tribune

Good Film, Good Book

What made the experience of listening to After Dark, My Sweet the most enjoyable?

It's a bit different than the 1990 movie starring Jason Patrick (which is a damn fine adaptation of this book). Since I had seen the movie--which are not identical but very close to the same tale--I think it hurt my enjoyment of this book. Had I not seen the film, I thin I'd be ecstatic about this book, as I love Jim Thompson.

To answer the question: The number one thing I liked about this audio version was Kevin T. Collin's portrayal of the main character, who's name is, coincidentally, Kevin "Kid" Collins.

The narrator's interpretation of Kid Collins is a bit different that what Jason Patrick portrayed i the film. And, Collins (the narrator) did an outstanding job with this voice--giving the listener a flawed, maybe punch-drunk, ex-boxer that could be talked into committing a major crime, but is also deceptively not as easily duped as he seems on the surface.

Kevin T. Collins is excellent as Kevin "Kid" Collins.

If you’ve listened to books by Jim Thompson before, how does this one compare?

That's hard for me to answer because of the film. It's a great neo-noir movie. And, this is a good noir story.

I think, if you haven't seen the film, and you like Jim Thompson, then you'll love this book.

What about Kevin T. Collins’s performance did you like?

I covered that above. The narrator is damn good--an excellent choice for this material. He uses his voice to sound fragile--even broken. Yet, he can be determined and strong.

Very subtle performance. Now that I've heard it, it would be hard for me to think of a better narrator for this story.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

A drifter. A bar fly. An ex-cop. And a scheme to make some money.

Any additional comments?

Another great book by Jim Thompson, perfectly narrated by Kevin T. Collins.

Over dramatic, terrible narration

What could have been a halfway decent book is made laughable by the overdramatic, overdone narrator. It dumbs everything down. His voices for the characters, particularly Uncle Bud, undermine the story so much. I wish I had just read the book itself (even though the book is written poorly and mostly predictable).