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hthacher's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
elctrc's review
3.0
Chandler uses words like no one else. His vernacular is both ridiculous and perfect. Dive in - it will take you an hour to punch through all four stories. His writing is tough, sparse, and beautifully to the point. Everything is described in such great detail but with such minimal language. Enjoy the booze, cigarettes, money, cons, and dicks.
verujaskova's review
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
1.5
megapolisomancy's review
2.0
Los Angeles, 1930s. Everything and everyone's dirty, one way or another, and a private dick just trying to look out for himself gets dragged into some hijinks involving a dame, double-crossing, getting pistol whipped, standoffs that end with one villain shooting another, constant smoking and drinking, dive hotels, fancy nightclubs, etc. You know the drill, and these four stories feel like pastiche even though they're coming straight from the source. It's all as casually racist and sexist as you'd expect a mainstream white author of the 1930s to be, characterization is nonexistent, the plots nonsensical (most particularly when it comes to the lengths the villains go to inexplicably avoid killing the protagonist), but mood is here in spades.
I should've just stuck with Tracer Bullet.
I should've just stuck with Tracer Bullet.
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