“Along with Raymond Chandler, Cornell Woolrich practically invented the genre of noir.”
—Newsday

This novel, written in 1948 is the last installment of the so-called Black Series which includes "The Bride Wore Black", "The Black Path of Fear", "The Black Angel", "Black Curtain" and "Black Alibi". At one time, Woolrich wrote in a letter to a devoted fan by the name of William Thailing that "Rendezvous in Black" and "The Black Angel" were his two favorite novels.

Some scholars agree that "Rendezvous in Black" could easily be considered Woolrich's last piece of work created during his major writing period published under his own name. He had one other major work published under William Irish, "I Married a Dead Man".

On a mild midwestern night in the early 1940s, Johnny Marr leans against a drugstore wall. He’s waiting for Dorothy, his fiancée, and tonight is the last night they’ll be meeting here, for it’s May 31st, and June 1st marks their wedding day. But she’s late, and Johnny soon learns of a horrible accident—an accident involving a group of drunken men, a low-flying charter plane, and an empty liquor bottle. In one short moment Johnny loses all that matters to him and his life is shattered. He vows to take from these men exactly what they took from him. After years of planning, Johnny begins his quest for revenge, and on May 31st of each year—always on May 31st—wives, lovers, and daughters are suddenly no longer safe.

"'Rendezvous in Black', the greatest suspense novel from the greatest suspense writer of all time, Cornell Woolrich, is back in print..... Do not pass up this chance to encounter one of the most startling, emotionally rattling, and beautifully written pieces of noir in American literature. 'Rendezvous in Black' is nothing short of a masterpiece: strange, horrifying, sometimes illogical, stark, achingly poetic, and ultimately devastating. - Claude Avary, Amazon Reviews

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