 James Mallahan Cain was born in Annapolis. He grew up in Chestertown, Maryland, and graduated from Washington College. After serving in the First World War, he returned to Baltimore where he began working as a reporter. He worked for the Baltimore American and the Baltimore Sun. Later he moved to Hollywood where he tried screenwriting, but found greater success when he turned to fiction. In 1948, he returned to Maryland and settled in Hyatsville. |
Titles and year of publication:
| 1) The Postman Always Rings Twice | 1934 |
| 2) Serenade | 1937 |
| 3) Mildred Pierce | 1941 |
| 4) Love's Lovely Counterfeit | 1942 |
| 5) Career in C Major and other stories (Also published as: Everybody Does It [1949]) (short stories) | 1943 |
| 6) Double Indemnity | 1943 |
| 7) The Embezzler | 1944 |
| 8) Three of a Kind (Contains: Career in C Major, The Embezzler, and Double Indemnity) | 1944 |
| 9) Past All Dishonor | 1946 |
| 10) The Butterfly | 1947 |
| 11) The Moth | 1948 |
| 12) Sinful Woman | 1948 |
| 13) Three of Hearts (Contains: Love's Lovely Counterfeit, Past All Dishonor, and The Butterfly) | 1949 |
| 14) Jealous Woman | 1950 |
| 15) The Root of His Evil (Also published as: Shameless [1958]) | 1952 |
| 16) Galatea | 1953 |
| 17) Mignon | 1962 |
| 18) The Magician's Wife | 1965 |
| 19) Rainbow's End | 1975 |
| 20) The Institute | 1976 |
| 21) The Baby in the Icebox (short stories) | 1981 |
| 22) Cloud Nine | 1984 |
| 23) The Enchanted Isle | 1985 |
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