In The Chill a distraught young man hires Archer to track down his runaway bride. But no sooner has he found Dolly Kincaid than Archer finds himself entangled in two murders, one twenty years old, the other so recent that the blood is still wet. What ensues is a detective novel of nerve-racking suspense, desperately believable characters, and one of the most intricate plots ever spun by an American crime writer.
The Chill (Vintage Crime/Black Lizard)
and over one million other books are available for Amazon Kindle. Learn more
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Book Description
Frequently Bought Together
Product Details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
Product Description
From Amazon
"The surprise with which a detective novel concludes should set up tragic vibrations which run backward through the entire structure," wrote Ross Macdonald in his 1981 Self-Portrait. Nowhere in his work does he better demonstrate this principle than in The Chill, first published in 1964. The plot is one of Macdonald's most masterfully constructed. Private detective Lew Archer is engaged to trace a missing spouse, who has vanished--apparently of her own free will--only a day into her honeymoon. Archer begins pulling at the threads of the case, and by page 25 they're already starting to reveal a deeper, darker story involving two murders 20 years apart. As usual, Macdonald's economical prose propels the reader forward from one action-packed scene to another, while the scenes in turn pile up to paint a rich, complex picture of buried memories, anguished relations between parents and children, the arrogance of the rich, and the search for identity. Then, at the end, one of the author's best surprise reversals changes the picture's colors entirely. Even if you're one of those discerning readers who find Macdonald's lesser work superior to most other mystery writing (as does this reviewer), The Chill stands out among his books. --Nicholas H. Allison
From Library Journal
Published in 1965, 1963, and 1950, respectively, this trio feature Macdonald's hard-boiled private detective Lew Archer. The plots involve murder, deceit, blackmail, sex, and all those other goodies that make for great crime stories.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Inside This Book
(Learn More)
Customer Reviews
Most helpful customer reviews
Format:Paperback
Noir fiction often has tested barriers and taboos. This Lew Archer novel is in that tradition in that it doesn't break any taboos, but it does hint at it. If THE CHILL were written today, I think it would have been a bit more direct.
As with many Lew Archer cases, this one starts innocently enough with his being hired to find a missing newlywed who's disappeared after an encounter with a mysterious visitor. In a short period of time, he's involved in a murder case, one in which he feels a vague sense of being responsible. There are the usual twists, the usual questions of identity, the interconnection of characters which doesn't at first meet the eye.
MacDonald characters are difficult to pigeonhole into "good" or "bad" categories. The motivations often come from deeply within the psyches of the characters.
The emphasis in this story as well as most in the series is on the puzzle. There are seldom recurring characters in these novels, and little interaction other than investigative betwee Archer and the other characters. And as always, the dark corners of human nature are well probed.
Definitely highly recommended.
By nobizinfla
Format:Paperback
Along with Hammett, Cain and Chandler, Ross Macdonald is a pioneer of the literate mystery novel.
In "The Chill" (written in 1963), Lew Archer has a missing persons case that leads to three murders committed over a twenty year period that he must tie together.
There is plenty of action, twists, reversals and suspense throughout...adultery, cons, frame-ups, blackmail.
The plot is complicated and complex; filled with plentiful characters (many with aliases). You have to pay attention and keep score.
The ending is a major surprise.
It is easy to see why it is among the IMBA's "100 Favorite Mysteries of the Century."
Well worth a second read.
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
I picked this book up from a friend. My edition was copyrighted in 1963. This is a great pure mystery. Pay close attention to the characters you will be surprised how this book ends. If you love to read a good mystery (who dun it) this is the book for you.
Want to see more reviews on this item?
›
Go to Amazon.com to see all 35 reviews
4.2 out of 5 stars
Most recent customer reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
great book
I picked this book up from a friend. My edition was copyrighted in 1963. This is a great pure mystery. Read more
Published on Oct 25 2002 by Tina
4.0 out of 5 stars
The Chill
It's complicated--it may have you flipping back through pages with a furrowed brow in order to get it all straightened out--but it does straighten out nicely. Read more
Published on Aug 20 2002 by sleeping sheepsnake
5.0 out of 5 stars
His best book
Moody, creepy, complex, and sad, this is MacDonald's best book. I think its as good as Chandler (and that is very good indeed). Read more
Published on Feb 12 2002 by Ken Braithwaite
5.0 out of 5 stars
Written in longhand in spiral notebook in Santa Barbara.
For those of us who keep going back again and again to read
the novels of Ross Macdonald, Raymond Chandler, Dashiell
Hammett, Ernest Hemingway and Peter Matthiessen, this... Read more
the novels of Ross Macdonald, Raymond Chandler, Dashiell
Hammett, Ernest Hemingway and Peter Matthiessen, this... Read more
Published on Dec 8 2001 by Chuck Thegze
3.0 out of 5 stars
good quick read
The surprise with this novel was not only the ending, it was MacDonald's way with adjectives and description. Read more
Published on Sep 12 2001 by E. Tobias
5.0 out of 5 stars
Classic noir at its peak.
This is one novel that, although devoid of any real action scenes, comes together in a tightly wrapped package that leaves the reader dangling until the very last few pages. Read more
Published on Feb 9 2001 by horseplaypublishing
5.0 out of 5 stars
One of the best mysteries i have ever read
Ross Macdonald could flat out write. His style is at times very 'Chandleresque', (he really enjoyed Chandler's books)but he brings something else to this story that even the... Read more
Published on Aug 24 2000 by John J. Raspanti
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Pleasure
Reading Ross MacDonald is a voyage into the past. His work is evocative of bygone eras and landscapes, and even on initial publication there was something decidedly old-fashioned... Read more
Published on Jan 9 2000
1.0 out of 5 stars
No suspense to be found here
Not a good read. Lacks any suspense or thrills. I know this is supposedly "vintage" but I have read alot of vintage with real character development and thrills both. Read more
Published on Sep 2 1999
1.0 out of 5 stars
Best described as vintage sophomoric
Maybe vintage but certainly not classic
Published on Sep 1 1999
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
Feedback
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
