Staff Pick
In a Lonely Place is classic noir, brooding and introspective, filled with shadows and a thick marine fog that cloaks the darkest of deeds. But more than that, it's an indictment of an America no one likes discussing, a past that isn't "great," but problematic in the extreme. Dorothy Hughes demonstrated the perils of toxic masculinity and misogynistic entitlement decades before those issues became part of a larger conversation, in ways that feel groundbreaking even 70 years after the book's original publication. Recommended By Lauren P., Powells.com
A WWII veteran with a dark secret winds up in California... will the law catch up with him before the body count rises? Hughes's terse, suspenseful style is marvelous. If you love classic noir or The Talented Mr. Ripley, you'll probably love this brief, gripping novel. Recommended By Eva F., Powells.com
Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
A classic California noir with a feminist twist, this prescient 1947 novel exposed misogyny in post-World War II American society, making it far ahead of its time. Fighter pilot Dix Steele has returned from World War II and is yearning to recapture "that feeling of power and exhilaration and freedom that came with loneness in the sky." He prowls the Los Angeles night--bus stops and stretches of darkened beaches are where he seeks and finds young women on their own. His funds are running out and his frustrations are growing. Where is the good life he was promised? Why does he always get the raw deal? Then he runs into his old Air Corps buddy Brub, now working for the LAPD, who just happens to be on the trail of a strangler.... Written with controlled elegance, Dorothy B. Hughes's tense noir is at once an early indictment of a truly toxic masculinity and a twisty page-turner until the very end.
Synopsis
A classic California noir with a feminist twist, this prescient 1947 novel exposed misogyny in post-World War II American society, making it far ahead of its time. Los Angeles in the late 1940s is a city of promise and prosperity, but not for former fighter pilot Dix Steele. To his mind nothing has come close to matching "that feeling of power and exhilaration and freedom that came with loneness in the sky." He prowls the foggy city night---bus stops and stretches of darkened beaches and movie houses just emptying out--seeking solitary young women. His funds are running out and his frustrations are growing. Where is the good life he was promised? Why does he always get a raw deal? Then he hooks up with his old Air Corps buddy Brub, now working for the LAPD, who just happens to be on the trail of the strangler who's been terrorizing the women of the city for months...
Written with controlled elegance, Dorothy B. Hughes's tense novel is at once an early indictment of a truly toxic masculinity and a twisty page-turner with a surprisingly feminist resolution. A classic of golden age noir, In a Lonely Place also inspired Nicholas Ray's 1950 film of the same name, starring Humphrey Bogart.