The Big Sleep is Raymond Chandler's most loved, respected and well known novel. Chandler's Philip Marlowe is one of the best fictitious characters of all time. Read this book and find out why. The two other Chandler classics, The Long Goodbye & Farewell, My Lovely are equally good, they are not my personal favourites. I prefer the likes of The Little Sister, The High Window and The Lady In The Lake for their more pulpy adventures where Chandler's gift for snappy dialogue, Marlowe slumming it with corrupt cops, murderers, femme fatales, hired hands with a penchant for concealed knives and so on, all conspire to make Chandler's hero even more admirable, brave, sassy and impressive. I should probably read more widely on 20th Post-World War II American crime fiction but I can't be bothered; Chandler brings such a level of literary quality in his depiction of the compromised City of Angels that it's a delight; you even feel sorry for General Sternwood by the end. A great book and a great read.Read full review
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Raymond Chandler created this whole genre and this,the first of his Marlow books is in my opinion the best thing he ever did.He was clean shaved,well dressed and sober and he didn't care who knew it.A new language in 1939 and still sharp.
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Chandler’s first book that changed the style of detective and lifted the quality of writing.
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The greatest detective novelist ever ! High voltage prose on every page , femme fatales , ruthless killers and ultra-dodgy lowlifes - what more can you ask for in a novel ?
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Loved it , great story
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