Saturday, December 27: Mississippi Mud
WHOA — I DIDN’T SEE THAT COMING
by John M. Floyd
I’m writing this because of an e-mail I received from a friend and fellow booklover about a month ago. She asked me if I could recall any stories that had particularly good “surprise” endings, and if so, would I pass them along to her? Well, as Mork from Ork would say, “Is a bear catholic?” (You might recall that Mork often got his clichés mixed up.)
You bet your booties I could recall some surprise endings. But more about that in a minute.
Hey Baby, Let’s Twist
Some editors will tell you that surprise endings have fallen out of fashion in contemporary fiction. Well, that may be true for literary fiction, but for mysteries and most other genre work, I would guess that at least half those stories still have twists at the end, and some of them have major plot reversals throughout the stories. (Of the current big-name novelists, Harlan Coben, seems to be one of the best at this.) And I can tell you, as someone who has published short stories in genre markets, I think surprise-ending tales are far easier to sell. Linda Landrigan, editor of Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine, told me she bought one of my soon-to-be-published stories because it had not only a twist ending but a double-twist, with a second surprise added to the first one. (My Criminal Brief colleague Rob Lopresti’s story “The Hard Case” (AHMM, April 2008) is a good recent example of a double-twist.)
Let’s face it, surprise endings are sometimes the ones we remember the most, and the longest. I learned years ago that one of the things readers look for in a story is uncertainty of outcome. We keep reading because, simply stated, we want to see how things turn out, and when the final resolution is unexpected, it’s usually that much more fun. One story that comes to mind in this holiday season is the feel-good conclusion of “It’s a Wonderful Life” — the surprise in this case wasn’t so much the ending itself, but the secret the angel revealed to George Bailey a few minutes earlier.
An Argument for the Other Side
I’ll admit that a twist ending’s not always the best option. Sometimes a wonderful piece of fiction will have a predictable or downbeat ending. In those cases the quality of the writing and the strength of the story itself keep us reading. I can think of a few books, especially in the area of creative nonfiction (The Perfect Storm, Seabiscuit, The Gates of the Alamo, etc.) that were excellent reads even though I knew beforehand what was going to happen, either from pre-release publicity or via a knowledge of history. And fictional stories like the 1997 movie “Titanic” or Frederick Forsyth’s novel The Day of the Jackal (the first based on a real event and the second on the fictionalized attempted assassination of a real person, Charles de Gaulle) worked in the same way. Sure, all of us knew the Titanic was going to sink, and we knew the assassination attempt on de Gaulle had to fail (because he was still alive when the novel was published) — but we were interested enough in the characters themselves that we kept reading or watching all the way to the end. That’s a sign of good writing.
O. Henry Would Be Proud
As I implied earlier, for those of you who might enjoy such things, here’s a partial list of stories (novels, shorts, and films) that I think have particularly memorable twist endings. If you’re already familiar with many of them, that’s good. If you don’t know about some of them, that’s even better, because then you can check them out if you like. And if you think of others that I’ve omitted (which is not only probable but inevitable) please let me know.
And if you don’t enjoy surprise endings at all … well, that would be a surprise.
Here goes.
Novels:
Presumed Innocent, Scott Turow
Rose, Martin Cruz Smith
Up Country, Nelson DeMille
The Reincarnation of Peter Proud, Max Erlich
True Crime, Andrew Klavan
To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee
The Taking of Pelham One Two Three, John Godey
The Exorcist, William Peter Blatty
The Odessa File, Frederick Forsyth
Red Dragon, Thomas Harris
The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, Agatha Christie
Primal Fear, William DiehlShort stories:
“Lamb to the Slaughter,” Roald Dahl
“#8,” Jack Ritchie
“A Retrieved Reformation,” O. Henry
“The Lottery,” Shirley Jackson
“The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance,” Dorothy M. Johnson
“Voodoo,” Fredrick Brown
“A Sound of Thunder,” Ray Bradbury
“The Gift of the Magi,” O. Henry
“The Door was Wide-O,” Elsin Ann Graffam
“The Ransom of Red Chief,” O. Henry
“Man from the South,” Roald Dahl
“Strangers on a Handball Court,” Lawrence BlockMovies:
“Witness for the Prosecution” (1957)
“Planet of the Apes” (1068)
“The Usual Suspects” (1995)
“Fight Club” (1999)
“Psycho” (1960)
“A Big Hand for the Little Lady” (1966)
“The Spanish Prisoner” (1997)
“No Way Out” (1987)
“The Sixth Sense” (1999)
“Body Heat” (1981)
“The Departed” (2006)
“The Thomas Crown Affair” (1968)
And that’s it. This column (thankfully) has no surprise ending.
Maybe next time …
I love twists and you listed many of my favorites. I was at B&N last night and saw a complete O. Henry in their bargain bin. I was sorely tempted and now I wished I’d acted on impulse.
Your top book, Presumed Innocent, both as book and film, not only has a twist, but it’s an honest whodunit with all the clues available and still managed to fool me.
I’d add another movie to your list, Se7en. It has a terrifying plot twist.
Leigh, I’m glad to hear you have more will power than I do, regarding bookstores’ bargain bins. As for O. Henry, I have one of those complete collections, and some of those stories are delightful.
And yes, Presumed Innocent’s ending still gives me goosebumps, because (like you) I was completely fooled. I forgot about Se7en, which indeed had a great twist.
I also forgot to include a good surprise-ending novel, Dennis Lehane’s Shutter Island, though I didn’t think it was as well written as his Mystic River and The Given Day.
So many stories, so little time . . .
Thanks for the plug, John. I look forward to your dobule twist story.
A few months ago I argued that while every twist story involves a surprise not every surprise is a twist. https://criminalbrief.com/?p=3543
Here are some of my favorite stories that have a twist:
Asimov- The Chuckle
Asimov – The Little Things
Borges – The Garden fo Forking Paths
Carol Cail – Sinkhole
Stanley Ellin – The Payoff
Ellin – You can’t be a little girl all your life
Faulkner – A rose for emily
Dick Francis – A carrot for a chestnut
Grafton – A poison that leaves no trace
Shirley Jackson – Th Possibility of evil
Kaminsky – Hidden
Jack Ritchie – The absence of Emily
Oh, and one novel:
Rex Stout – A Family Affair
I can still remember where I was when I read the end of that one, which is a good sign.
I have always been curious about lists. Do people who make them actually remember everything on them or do they keep a running list that they merely add to when something good comes along?
I have a pretty good memory going as far back as 1929 when I was four, but cannot recall the title of the Reginald Hill book I finished reading last night. Does this mean I was shortchanged when my mind was under construction?
Dick, I can’t speak for everyone, but my lists (certainly those involving “favorite” anythings) change every time I make one, and I’m not organized enough to keep running lists that I can add to.
And Rob — I think your list is way better than mine. I’m a little irked that I didn’t think of a couple of those to include in my own. (But I’m glad it gave me a chance to use “irked” in a sentence.)
As for surprises, I’m sure some of you were amazed to find that “Planet of the Apes” was released in 1068. Talk about OLD MOVIES . . . Anyhow, sorry about the typo.
So much for my “laser”-like editorial eye.
Thanks for the list(s). I’ll add Stephen King’s “Strawberry Spring” as well as Edward D. Hoch’s “Every Fifth Man.” R.L. Stevenson’s story “The Bottle Imp” has an ending as surprising as “Strange Case of Dr. J & Mr. H.” Henry Kuttner’s story “Private Eye” featured one of his many many twists but the twistiest Kuttner story has to be “Happy Ending” which starts with a surprise ending and ends with what I can only call a surprise beginning…
Oh, and Dick, if I ever find out why guys like me like making and reading lists I’ll, uh, list the reasons…
I have had a mental list of favorite stories for years, but I finally wrote it down after one of John’s columns that listed best stories/novels/movies. I’ll put it out as a blog entry one of these Wednesdays.
Something to do when you can’t sleep at night, I guess.
What drives me nuts is a favorite story I read a few years ago that I can’t find… I thought it was Larry Block, but it doesn’t appear in any of his collections, and I have no idea what the title was. Sigh…
Jeff, your additions are good ones. As usual, you guys are giving me some great stories to read and reminding me of some to reread!
Rob, I assume you have the huge Lawrence Block short-story collection called Enough Rope, right? I have the individual collections also, but many of the stories in ER appear in no others. At any rate, when/if you recall the name of the story you’re wondering about, please let me know!
And you’re not alone: many of my favorites that I once read in AHMM and EQMM are, I suppose, forever lost — I can remember neither the titles nor the authors.
Rob, perhaps the reason you can’t sleep at night is you’re lying there making lists.
I understand your frustration in not remembering Block’s story. My wife, bless her heart, leads the entire world in the ability to say, “I heard this interesting story on the radio. It was about, uh . . . um, well I can’t remember exactly but . . .”
I cannot believe I forgot this great novella turned novel about a time-traveller who goes back to the Civil War and changes history. The obvious ending is so damn obvious all through the book and so when the ending twist HITS (as soft and frightening as a sunrise) the reader did not see it coming.
“Bring the Jubilee” by Ward Moore.
My last comment on this book: “Oh, boy!”*
*footnote: “Quantum Leap” reference.
—jeff
John,
One of the many things I enjoy about your stories is that there is usually a twist or two. And I enjoy movies with a twist as well. “Sleuth” has more than the usual amount.
And 1068 is not out of the question. The movie could easily been influenced by the Battle of Hastings. Thanks for a great article.
Jeff, I will look up the Ward Moore novel you mentioned. If I enjoy it half as much as the Short Felonies collection you put me onto, I am once again in your debt.
Herschel, good to hear from you! Thanks for the kind words. And I too loved “Sleuth” — especially the old (1972) version.