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Content snapshot
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Violence
A lot
Murder investigation; some violence in the noir tradition; nothing graphic by modern standards
Language
Some
Period noir prose; moderate language
Sexual Content
Barely any
No sexual content; the era's conventions apply
Substance Use
A lot
Heavy drinking is central to the Los Angeles social world and to Marlowe's character; alcohol is pervasive
Emotional Intensity
Some
The melancholy of a world where loyalty is punished and corruption rewarded
What this book is about
Philip Marlowe meets Terry Lennox, a man with a scarred face and no good future, and is drawn into a case that connects a dead woman, a famous novelist, and the Los Angeles underworld. Chandler's most personal Marlowe novel is also his best—elegiac, atmospheric, and surprisingly sentimental beneath its hard-boiled surface.
Notes for sensitive readers
Reader-flagged moments and themes that may affect your experience.
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