The Wycherly Woman (Vintage Crime/Black Lizard)

Rating:
Summary: At Half-Speed, MacDonald Still the Best!
Review:
Like the rest of Ross MacDonald's fine novels, THE WYCHERLY WOMAN begins with a strong central plot idea which (in this particular book) blossoms forth into a labyrinth of murder, blackmail, real estate fraud and adultery. Despite the seemingly overwhelming complexity of the story, MacDonald's fluid prose carries the reader along at breakneck speed to the novel's shocking, surprise conclusion.

Archetypal California PI Lew Archer is hired to locate Homer Wycherly's twenty-one-year-old daughter, Phoebe, who has been missing for two months. Archer soon discovers that the girl was last seen in the company of her estranged mother, Catherine. From that point on, the stories of the two Wycherly women become intertwined in a knot of increasing intricacy and peril. As Archer unravels this sordid skein, the reader is treated to a bizarre case of assumed identity that, despite its utter improbability, is nevertheless freighted with Freudian implication. The novel also features the skillful use of one of MacDonald's favorite devices, the family secret, which lies hidden and festering as it inflicts its insidious poison down through the decades with the inevitability of Greek tragedy.

The morally ambivalent resolution to THE WYCHERLY WOMAN demonstrates that, while the narrative is not wholly devoid of more standard "hardboiled" elements, MacDonald is far more interested in the moral, psychological and social dimensions of his story. Archer probes each of these areas in his unrelenting search for the truth, but he does so with the essential humanity and compassion that makes him such a compelling character.

To longtime MacDonald fans who perhaps missed this novel when it was first published in 1961, all of this will be familiar and much-loved territory. While there continues to be an abundance of mystery and detective fiction on the market, the seminal work of Ross MacDonald, with its depth of characterization and wide social range, paved the way for much of what is taken for granted in the genre today. Read THE WYCHERLY WOMAN for yourself and, although it is by no means his best work, witness a master who, like Raymond Chandler before him, set the stage for the next generation of crime novelists. (James Clar - MYSTERY NEWS)


Rating:
Summary: Sign of decline
Review: Ross MacDonald is an accomplished mystery writer, but this novel, while entertaining, is the most contrived of his many books. It rests on a case of mistaken identity that could not possible have occured, given the ages of the two characters involved. Sadly, this novel offers the first sign that MacDonald was losing his great gifts as a writer.

Rating:
Summary: Sign of decline
Review: Ross MacDonald is an accomplished mystery writer, but this novel, while entertaining, is the most contrived of his many books. It rests on a case of mistaken identity that could not possible have occured, given the ages of the two characters involved. Sadly, this novel offers the first sign that MacDonald was losing his great gifts as a writer.

Rating:
Summary: Very well done
Review: This is only the second book I have read by MacDonald but it certainly won't be the last. The plot and characterizations were both very strong. From what I have read so far, MacDonald compares very favorably with Hammett and Chandler. The thing that I probably like best about MacDonald is that his detective, Lew Archer, seems more like a real person than most of the detectives in this genre. He is tough, but he also shows some sensitivity and human emotion.

Rating:
Summary: One of his very best efforts.
Review: This novel includes everything MacDonald is best known for: far-flung sagas of wealthy families, gritty portrayals of California's marginal sectors, memorable characters, moral dilemmas, and a twist-filled plot leading to an irresistable climax. Worth a try even if you don't like mysteries or detective novels

Rating:
Summary: A little convoluted, but it works...
Review: This was my third Ross MacDonald/Lew Archer mystery and probably my last. As with all detective series type novels, they are starting to lose their luster. As a stand-alone mystery novel it is top-notch in both story and charactarization, although the plot wandered a bit. I don't have the deep insight provided by the previous reviewer, but I can say that if you like Chandler style LA Noir, this one is as good as it gets.

Rating:
Summary: A little convoluted, but it works...
Review: This was my third Ross MacDonald/Lew Archer mystery and probably my last. As with all detective series type novels, they are starting to lose their luster. As a stand-alone mystery novel it is top-notch in both story and charactarization, although the plot wandered a bit. I don't have the deep insight provided by the previous reviewer, but I can say that if you like Chandler style LA Noir, this one is as good as it gets.