Another instalment by Raymond Chandler in the Phillip Marlowe body of work, this one didn't work for me as well as the others. Perhaps it was the extra sordid subject matter, or the less interesting characters... or maybe I'll never be able to love any Chandler as much as I loved The Big Sleep. 
 Either way, if you love mysteries or Chandler in general this is a great book. If you aren't a mystery person, stick with The Big Sleep and give this a pass.