The Cutie Mass Market Paperback – April 19, 2011

Original publication date: 1960... My first call was to Archie Freihofer. The names on my list were mostly men, rich men who liked expensive tail. Archie, being overseer of the joie de vivre girls, was the obvious guy to know these people.“I read about you in the papers, baby,” Archie cooed, when I told him who I was. “You got a good press agent.”“And you got a lousy sense of humor,” I told him. “Listen, I’ve got some more checking for you to do.”“Anything, sweetie.”I don't know where Westlake paid his dues (he himself claimed Hammett and Rabe as masters), but his first novel already has masterly strokes, particularly his pitch-perfect dialogue:“Yeah, I know how it is. But you haven’t seen Mavis since she left you for this Morgan character?”“Morgan, Martin, something like that. Started with an M. Had something to do with television.”“Yeah, but have you seen her at all since then?”“Mavis? No, of course not. I don’t know why she ever hooked up with me in the first place. She didn’t want to break into the nightclub circuit. She was an actress, not an entertainer. And she couldn’t sing a note.”“So I’ve heard. What was she like, anyway? What kind of a girl was she?”He grinned at me. “Oh, she was a sharp girl,” he said. “She knew what she wanted, that girl did.”“And what was it she wanted?”“Money,” he said. “That’s all, just money. And lots of it.”It's almost as if, knowing how well he could do dialogue, he contrived a plot in which a 'young executive' in the Outfit has to investigate a murder by interviewing as many people as he can, sometimes twice. The solution to the mystery is nothing special. And the attempt to have a twist at the end ("The doorbell rang.") will not bear a moment's scrutiny. Still, it is an enjoyable debut.

Hard Case Crime is a national treasure, but they often play fast and loose with their covers. This delicious cover has nothing to do with the book. It is probably a portrait of Mavis St. Paul, who is already dead when the story opens. To our knowledge as readers she never handled a revolver and although she was interested in men with money there is nothing in the story concerning a suitcase full of currency. The original title of this 1960 novel was THE MERCENARIES and Mavis was definitely a member of that group, but she is not "The Cutie" of the reissued book. "The Cutie" is the individual who murdered Mavis and tried to get away with it."Clay" (originally George Clayton) is investigating the case. Clay is the right hand of a syndicate boss (Clay dislikes the term 'syndicate') with the perfect name, Ed Ganolese. When Clay got himself in trouble during his college days Ed bailed him out and Clay has repaid him with undying loyalty. Now Clay is living with a dancer named Ella and agonizing over the fact that he loves her but also loves his job, something that will inevitably come between them.In the meantime he searches for the cutie who killed Mavis as well as a sad, stuttering heroin addict named Billy-Billy Cantell. Billy-Billy is something of a hopeless case, but he is a dealer within Ed Ganolese's operation and Ed is not pleased that some cutie has framed him for Mavis' murder.The Manhattan setting is nicely realized; the plot is tight, more or less plausible and the characters attractive in their unattractive nature. The story is absorbing, the dialogue excellent. This is all Hemingway lean but not Hemingway light, as Westlake's protagonist broods over his life and work, creating an authentic and serious theme at the heart of the plot-driven narrative.Bottom line: this is amazing early work and first-rate Westlake.

I've been a Westlake fan for years and finding these early stories from Hard Case Crime Novels is like finding a sack full of great Christmas presents that had been tucked away and forgotten in the back of a closet. As always, Westlake is/was a great story teller, a great creator of memorable characters, and a joy to read.I gobbled up "361" "The Cutie" and "Somebody Owes Me Money" the moment I saw them... and devoured them much too quickly. I just couldn't stop myself.

I'm a Donald Westlake fan and generally love his work. I think this one is an old piece that was discovered and published after his passing. It doesn't have the polish I have come to expect; it reads like world war II era writing and so has a ceertain charm, but it's definitely not modern.

This is one of those books where the pages start turning themselves after a while. Very clever plot, memorable characters, and a sense of place which drips post war NYC. There's even a very moral tale at the heart, but it does not get in the way of the action. One of Hard Case Crime's best releases, and I've read almost all of them.

Have been a Donald Westlake fan for so many years. Love all the books he has written

Always have been a fan of Donald E. Westlake. That said this is a great example of his work at a time when I was but an eight year old child. A true American novel which holds up as well today as it did in the 60's. Loved it.

I've been a Donald Westlake fan for ages.

Donald Westlake's debut novel is a good enough read, but the master hasn't reached the heights of excellence that for me he attained with the novels he later wrote under the name Richard Stark about the criminal Parker. Worth reading, and ingenious enough.

Clay, the hero of Donald Westlake's The Cutie (1960, reprinted 2009), is having a classically bad day - one that starts in the early hours of the morning. Clay's enjoying a little bit of special squashy time with his ladyfriend, Ella, when he's interrupted by a freaked out junkie, Billy-Billy. Billy-Billy has been framed for the murder of Mavis St. Paul, professional mistress. He knows he's screwed, and needs Clay to sort him out. Clay, as the right-hand man to mob boss Ed Ganolese, is sadly used to this sort of situation.Ed, oddly, doesn't ask Clay to "clean the problem up" (that is, shoot Billy-Billy twice in the head). It turns out that the neighborhood junkie has important connections. Clay puts Billy-Billy into hiding and heads off on his own. However, Mavis St. Paul had some connections of her own. As well as a host of ex-lovers, she was currently boinking the head of the city's political machine. In a misguided attempt to avenge her murder, the grieving political chieftan has unleashed the police with instructions to take down Ed Ganolese.Clay is at the center of the storm as Ganolese orders him to sort the situation out. The only way to get the cops to go away is to solve the murder. Clay, cold-hearted bastard and seasoned killer that he is, finds himself on the side of the angels, making him a very unlikely hero.The book's original title was The Mercenaries, and Clay is, ostensibly, a shining example of the breed. He's well-paid and well-appointed, moving with shark-like smoothness through the city's corrupt waters. But nothing's ever that simple with Donald Westlake. Clay's a creature of deep loyalties. His connection with Ganolese is based on an emotional debt, not a monetary one. He's also loyal to Ella, who patiently applies pressure on her lover to quit his criminal life.The combination of tricky detective work and ever-increasing tension makes The Cutie another Westlake masterpiece. The ambiguous ending leaves the reader wondering. Clay's lifestyle is unsustainable. Sooner or later, Ella or Ganolese will win his soul wholly, and until then, he's living hour by hour.

I've just got into reading these "noir" thrillers (disparagingly described as "pulp fiction") from Hard Case and have read a few Spillane. This is the second Westlake I've read and what a book! A real page turner with so many twists and turns you think you are on a roller coaster. Unbelievable to think the book was first published in 1960 - seems incredibly fresh. Pleased Hard Case has republished these classics - thrillers as thrillers should be - tight, terse and tense.