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Murder at the Bijou
Murder at the Bijou (originally titled Nothing More Than Murder) is noir master Jim Thompson's dizzying tale of deception, adultery, revenge, arson, and cold-blooded murder in Smalltown, U.S.A., Thompson's favorite setting. In this novel, Thompson's first major success as a pulp fiction writer, Joe Wilmot, trying to go straight after a stretch in the pen, finds a movie house in a small crossroads that can use a helping hand and someone with half a brain for business. The theater's owner, Elizabeth, isn't the smartest operator around – or is she? Joe and the plain Jane Elizabeth decide maybe it would be better for business if they got married. Why not? And then Carol shows up, a bit stale in the eye candy department but ready and willing to serve – in every way.
They've got insurance coverage on the movie house; their lives would all be better if the place maybe had an accident, a little fire. But things can go very wrong. And in Murder at the Bijou they do.
Fans of Jim Thompson will recognize the terse dialogue, plot twists and double-crosses, and a belief that nothing in the world in good, all of which makes Stephen King say that Jim Thompson is "My favorite crime novelist – often imitated but never duplicated."
They've got insurance coverage on the movie house; their lives would all be better if the place maybe had an accident, a little fire. But things can go very wrong. And in Murder at the Bijou they do.
Fans of Jim Thompson will recognize the terse dialogue, plot twists and double-crosses, and a belief that nothing in the world in good, all of which makes Stephen King say that Jim Thompson is "My favorite crime novelist – often imitated but never duplicated."
258 pages, Kindle Edition
First published December 11, 2014
3 people are currently reading
43 people want to read
About the author
Jim Thompson
153 books1,661 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
James Myers Thompson was a United States writer of novels, short stories and screenplays, largely in the hardboiled style of crime fiction.
Thompson wrote more than thirty novels, the majority of which were original paperback publications by pulp fiction houses, from the late-1940s through mid-1950s. Despite some positive critical notice, notably by Anthony Boucher in the New York Times, he was little-recognized in his lifetime. Only after death did Thompson's literary stature grow, when in the late 1980s, several novels were re-published in the Black Lizard series of re-discovered crime fiction.
Thompson's writing culminated in a few of his best-regarded works: The Killer Inside Me, Savage Night, A Hell of a Woman and Pop. 1280. In these works, Thompson turned the derided pulp genre into literature and art, featuring unreliable narrators, odd structure, and surrealism.
The writer R.V. Cassills has suggested that of all pulp fiction, Thompson's was the rawest and most harrowing; that neither Dashiell Hammett nor Raymond Chandler nor even Horace McCoy, author of the bleak They Shoot Horses, Don't They?, ever "wrote a book within miles of Thompson". Similarly, in the introduction to Now and on Earth, Stephen King says he most admires Thompson's work because "The guy was over the top. The guy was absolutely over the top. Big Jim didn't know the meaning of the word stop. There are three brave lets inherent in the forgoing: he let himself see everything, he let himself write it down, then he let himself publish it."
Thompson admired Fyodor Dostoevsky and was nicknamed "Dimestore Dostoevsky" by writer Geoffrey O'Brien. Film director Stephen Frears, who directed an adaptation of Thompson's The Grifters as 1990's The Grifters, also identified elements of Greek tragedy in his themes.
James Myers Thompson was a United States writer of novels, short stories and screenplays, largely in the hardboiled style of crime fiction.
Thompson wrote more than thirty novels, the majority of which were original paperback publications by pulp fiction houses, from the late-1940s through mid-1950s. Despite some positive critical notice, notably by Anthony Boucher in the New York Times, he was little-recognized in his lifetime. Only after death did Thompson's literary stature grow, when in the late 1980s, several novels were re-published in the Black Lizard series of re-discovered crime fiction.
Thompson's writing culminated in a few of his best-regarded works: The Killer Inside Me, Savage Night, A Hell of a Woman and Pop. 1280. In these works, Thompson turned the derided pulp genre into literature and art, featuring unreliable narrators, odd structure, and surrealism.
The writer R.V. Cassills has suggested that of all pulp fiction, Thompson's was the rawest and most harrowing; that neither Dashiell Hammett nor Raymond Chandler nor even Horace McCoy, author of the bleak They Shoot Horses, Don't They?, ever "wrote a book within miles of Thompson". Similarly, in the introduction to Now and on Earth, Stephen King says he most admires Thompson's work because "The guy was over the top. The guy was absolutely over the top. Big Jim didn't know the meaning of the word stop. There are three brave lets inherent in the forgoing: he let himself see everything, he let himself write it down, then he let himself publish it."
Thompson admired Fyodor Dostoevsky and was nicknamed "Dimestore Dostoevsky" by writer Geoffrey O'Brien. Film director Stephen Frears, who directed an adaptation of Thompson's The Grifters as 1990's The Grifters, also identified elements of Greek tragedy in his themes.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
March 14, 2024
It’s a while since I’ve read a Jim Thompson, and certainly a very long time since I’ve read any NEW Jim Thompson, so this is very much a treat.
I was talking with a friend recently about how Jim Thompson seems to have more cultural traction than Ross MacDonald. Both of whom are authors I love. MacDonald is, after all, an expert at what he does, with a fantastic canon of artful, psychologically deep and pleasingly complicated mysteries. The view we came to, however, was that MacDonald was possibly too arty. Too polished. Thompson puts everything on the page. Reading one of his thrillers is like reading someone slamming their psyche into words. It means he’s a far less polished writer, certainly much less arty writer, but it ensures he remains really fascinating.
Here a smalltown owner attempts a scheme which is obviously too clever by half. It’s vintage Thompson.
I was talking with a friend recently about how Jim Thompson seems to have more cultural traction than Ross MacDonald. Both of whom are authors I love. MacDonald is, after all, an expert at what he does, with a fantastic canon of artful, psychologically deep and pleasingly complicated mysteries. The view we came to, however, was that MacDonald was possibly too arty. Too polished. Thompson puts everything on the page. Reading one of his thrillers is like reading someone slamming their psyche into words. It means he’s a far less polished writer, certainly much less arty writer, but it ensures he remains really fascinating.
Here a smalltown owner attempts a scheme which is obviously too clever by half. It’s vintage Thompson.
May 8, 2016
Hysterical twist and turns noir mystery!
Murder at the Bijou is a story based in the 40's, where Joe Wilmot runs a cheap yet popular movie show in his small town. Since a noir novel always involves villains and damsels in distress, Joe has a lover in addition to his homely wife as well as a millionaire competitor angling for his share of the theater business. Hilarity ensues when there is murder, bribery, and double cross left and right.
Surprise ending! Thought I had it in the bag when in reality no one could have predicted this ending.
I have listened to and will continue to listen to Mike Dennis' performances. He has a perfect voice for noir.
September 10, 2017
Pretty solid, slightly above-average thriller from Jim Thompson. I guessed a major component of the final revelation (don't want to call it a twist) about a third of the story in, but not at all all of what transpires. Even if I had, I think I would have enjoyed the journey because of the casual writing style, the characters and the situation spiraling in so many different directions.
The version I listened to was the Audible audiobook brilliantly read by Mike Dennis. I'm assuming it was unabridged because it flowed nicely and didn't feel condensed. Dennis, apparently a crime writer in his own right (I'm interested, on the proviso that it's the audiobook of his own works read by him) is a perfect narrator for this material, with his dry, dusty, sharp and clear voice reminding me a little of a young Martin Sheen. I'd love to hear him read the Joe Lansdale Hap and Leonard books. I've also got him reading James M Cain's A BAD WOMAN on here and that'll be next. His performance was warm and engaging, with his voices for all the men flawless and the women...well, a little less so, but a pretty compelling package altogether.
So I guess this is a strong recommendation for me - get this audiobook and enjoy it! If not, settle for the paperback for a strong read. I'm moving on both with Thompson and Dennis, with POP. 1280 and James M Cain's A Bad Woman.
The version I listened to was the Audible audiobook brilliantly read by Mike Dennis. I'm assuming it was unabridged because it flowed nicely and didn't feel condensed. Dennis, apparently a crime writer in his own right (I'm interested, on the proviso that it's the audiobook of his own works read by him) is a perfect narrator for this material, with his dry, dusty, sharp and clear voice reminding me a little of a young Martin Sheen. I'd love to hear him read the Joe Lansdale Hap and Leonard books. I've also got him reading James M Cain's A BAD WOMAN on here and that'll be next. His performance was warm and engaging, with his voices for all the men flawless and the women...well, a little less so, but a pretty compelling package altogether.
So I guess this is a strong recommendation for me - get this audiobook and enjoy it! If not, settle for the paperback for a strong read. I'm moving on both with Thompson and Dennis, with POP. 1280 and James M Cain's A Bad Woman.
July 12, 2020
Just another name for "Nothing More Than Murder."
February 6, 2026
What a conclusion!!!!
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews