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Cuckoo Run
Ingrid's first novel.
256 pages, Paperback
Published February 1, 1980
18 people want to read
About the author
Ingrid Pitt
24 books7 followersIngrid Pitt (born Ingoushka Petrov) was a British actress, famous for her work in horror films. She married three times, first to Laud Roland Pitt Jr, an American GI; second to George Pinches, a British film executive; and then to Tony Rudlin, an actor and racing car driver. Her daughter, Steffanie Pitt-Blake, is also an actress.
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
July 13, 2017
Ingrid Pitt’s thriller novel, CUCKOO RUN, was a great deal of fun to read. It’s not exactly in the “female James Bond” vein, but a bit more like a grown-up female version of Jonny Quest with lots of situations that involved sudden violence and unembarrassed nudity. I’m guessing that Ms. Pitt saw this as the source material for a motion picture with herself in the lead. Of course, she was aware of her strengths as a performer and it would have been perfect casting. (One of the villains, as described, seems a dead-ringer for Anton Diffring which reinforces the “screen treatment” idea.)
However, it was a very exciting book and I looked forward to all of the twists and turns. Her heroine, Nina Dalton, is not a professional spy, yet she is an adventuress and a real fireball. Nina narrates the story and her comments and insights often reflected those found in Ingrid Pitt’s autobiography. I was drawn to this book because Pitt had mentioned that a popular thriller author of my youth, Alistair MacLean, had read the novel and agreed to write an endorsement for the publication. Unfortunately, he died before he could do so. Was this a case of Ingrid Pitt inflating her writing ability? I don’t think so. There were many moments that reminded me of vintage MacLean, although she did not copy them. (Ingrid Pitt had met Alistair MacLean when she appeared in WHERE EAGLES DARE, a screenplay he wrote that he later converted into a novel.)
Like the best of Alfred Hitchcock, there’s a MacGuffin that sets all of the hair-breath chases, escapes, fights, interrogations and sexual escapades in motion. And like Fleming’s writing, there are plenty of descriptive sections setting up exotic locales, stylish clothing and delectable foods. Through it all, though, the writer makes this version her own instead of settling for a mere copy or following a template.
There was a “Big Surprise” that wasn’t a big surprise to me. Perhaps I’ve seen too many movie espionage thrillers. There were also some minor reveals that I knew were coming. None of that diminished the fun I was having reading this.
To my knowledge, Ingrid Pitt never revisited the Nina Dalton character although she did write other books (most of them collections of short works). That is a shame. I would definitely have looked forward to further adventures.
However, it was a very exciting book and I looked forward to all of the twists and turns. Her heroine, Nina Dalton, is not a professional spy, yet she is an adventuress and a real fireball. Nina narrates the story and her comments and insights often reflected those found in Ingrid Pitt’s autobiography. I was drawn to this book because Pitt had mentioned that a popular thriller author of my youth, Alistair MacLean, had read the novel and agreed to write an endorsement for the publication. Unfortunately, he died before he could do so. Was this a case of Ingrid Pitt inflating her writing ability? I don’t think so. There were many moments that reminded me of vintage MacLean, although she did not copy them. (Ingrid Pitt had met Alistair MacLean when she appeared in WHERE EAGLES DARE, a screenplay he wrote that he later converted into a novel.)
Like the best of Alfred Hitchcock, there’s a MacGuffin that sets all of the hair-breath chases, escapes, fights, interrogations and sexual escapades in motion. And like Fleming’s writing, there are plenty of descriptive sections setting up exotic locales, stylish clothing and delectable foods. Through it all, though, the writer makes this version her own instead of settling for a mere copy or following a template.
There was a “Big Surprise” that wasn’t a big surprise to me. Perhaps I’ve seen too many movie espionage thrillers. There were also some minor reveals that I knew were coming. None of that diminished the fun I was having reading this.
To my knowledge, Ingrid Pitt never revisited the Nina Dalton character although she did write other books (most of them collections of short works). That is a shame. I would definitely have looked forward to further adventures.
Displaying 1 of 1 review