The Two Faces of January

This book arrived in great condition in just a few days after ordering. Great service!

Chester Mc Farland, a clever swindler and defrauder, is travelling in Greece with his wife Colette. They are about to arrive in Athens and settle into The King's Palace. Another American also present in Athens at the same time is Rydal Keener. He is spending several months in Europe on what money he inherited from his grandmother. It is when Rydal sees Chester at the Benaki Museum for the first time that his resemblance to Rydal's father's twin brother strikes him. Rydal then decides to keep an eye on Chester. A few days later, Chester gets the unpleasant visit of a Greek police officer who informs him that he is working in co-operation with the American authorities. The latter are apparently more and more interested in Chester's shady past. Realising that he may well be arrested and extradited, Chester hits the policeman who then stumbles and falls, banging his head against the bathtub. A fatal blow. Chester immediately understands that he must hide the body in a small store-room down the corridor. It is at the precise moment when Chester is dragging the corps in the corridor that Rydal appears on the landing and witnesses Chester's act. Will Rydal help or blackmail Chester? As good as "Strangers on a train" or the Ripley series by the same author.

If you are already a Patricia Highsmith fan, I would highly recommend this book next. While the book starts out somewhat slowly, I think this pacing helps set the overall mood of the book and allows the reader to settle into a Highsmith "high" in anticipation of another skillfully written book. At any rate, by chapter two, everything starts to wind/unwind as the book settles into typical Highsmith high-gear which, if you're like me, will soon leave you physicially and mentally breathless in an attempt to keep up!The foreign setting of the book is also a delight, and the reader quickly becomes a part of the story, shadowing the 3 main characters in and out of the various cities, hotels, towns, and nefarious deeds that happen. There is also this undercurrent of very fine wit and humor throughout the book.The ending is, of course, the best part. It's been many, many years since I was last compelled to rush to the last page, as I neared the end of the book, to find out what happened. The ending is also prime Highsmith and a bit of a surprise--not, perhaps, for the characters in the book or the storyline, but certainly for Highsmith during this particular period of her writing.A great holiday/vacation read for anyone with a few days of peace to settle into the book--and to savor it from start to finish!

I thought this book was well written, but kind of slow to get into. Once the main characters met though, the pace increased pretty quickly. The story had many surprises, and kept me guessing what would happen next.Well written by Patricia Highsmith.