Mildred Pierce by James M Cain

This novel was a surprise to me. As it came in the same volume with The Postman always rings twice and Double Indemnity I thought this was going to be another noir, crime novel, but it wasn't. I googled it and got "hardboiled novel" but to me it felt like a drama with a dark twist. There were no detectives or crimes but a couple of excellent female characters not always doing the right thing. Mildred Pierce is the name of the protagonist, a middle class housewife who, after a divorce, has to work to support her family. Set in the 1930 in California, USA, Mrs Pierce is a rarity. A successful, independent working, single woman. She is a fully fleshed out character showing resilience, commitment and ambition. But she is not a saint. Her struggles with her daughter Veda give the story a dark tone, which I enjoyed. Veda is detestable, capricious, manipulative with a personality disorder it seemed. Loved her. She is to blame for a couple of plot twists in the second half of the novel. While I liked Double Indemnity more, I think this novel is worth reading for its depiction of credible, complex women and the exploration of daughter-mother relationship.