Half a century
has not dimmed the excitement and freshness of Raymond Chandler's books.
He writes of the neon wilderness of Southern California that the he
understood better than any other writer since Nathanael West. Chandler
brought Los Angeles into focus; he stopped the kaleidescope, so that
we see the brilliant bits and pieces in perfect register; no random
movements, no distortion, no blur; all appears the way the city does
on a December night after the Santa Ana winds have swept away the smog
and the million lights sparkle like jewels.
The Big Sleep
In The Big Sleep,
the first of several Philip Marlowe novels, a paralyzed millionaire
seeks Marlowe's aid, and what appears to a routine case turns into violence
when the detective is confronted by the man's beautiful but psychotic
daughters...and finds himself involved in a case of blackmail that turns
into murder.
Farewell, My Lovely
presents a marvelous menagerie of Californians - a giant who does not
know his own strength, a victim with a broken neck, a ravishingly beautiful
blonde, and a husband who is rich and tolerant.
The High Window is
perhaps Marlowe's most baffling case...and the reader is left to his own
conclusions about the morality of California's inhabitants. Asked to retrieve
a stolen coin, Marlowe tough guy exterior turns to compassion when he
meets up with an old lady and her frightened young secretary - who share
a deadly secret that may lead to murder.
The Lady in the Lake
begins when a woman disappears and Marlowe tries to find out what she
might have done and what might have been done to her. His search takes
him into a violent society where evil lurks at every turn.
Chandler's 5th novel
has Philip Marlowe going to Hollywood as he explores the underworld of
glitter capital, trying to find a sweet young thing's missing brother.
A facsimile edition of the classic mystery, which first appeared in 1949,
features the fifth appearance of quintessential detective Philip Marlowe
as he tangles with the "little sister," a mousey receptionist
from Kansas. (1949)
Violence
and murder can be found almost any place. If you like proof - just follow
the tough babies who stagger, bruise and bully their unlovely ways through
these blistering pages.
Beginning with
Chandler's essay "The Simple Art of Murder", this book is
a collection of some of Chandler's short stories that originally appeared
in pulp magazines such as "Black Mask". Includes Pearls are
a Nuisance, Spanish Blood, The King in Yellow, and I'll Be Waiting.
