Our lucky winning number for the 28th Classics Club Spin is…
That means I will be reading…
The Lady in the Lake by Raymond Chandler.
According to Goodreads… this is the 4th in Chandler’s Philip Marlow series where… “A couple of missing wives—one a rich man’s and one a poor man’s—become the objects of Marlowe’s investigation. One of them may have gotten a Mexican divorce and married a gigolo and the other may be dead. Marlowe’s not sure he cares about either one, but he’s not paid to care.” Apparently, this is considered a masterpiece!
Am I happy about this? Well, to begin with I was a bit surprised, to be honest. See, this is a book that I found on the shelves of a little free public library on the Kibbutz where my cousins live. I went to visit them a few weeks ago and when I saw it there, I thought “oh, that will be a good addition to my Classics Club spin list,” and I was right! Serendipity? Maybe.
By the way, I had to laugh at this cover (which is the exact edition that I found) because… “New CLEWS…” um… shouldn’t that be CLUES? But really, it doesn’t matter, especially because I’ve been enjoying mystery novels lately, and although I was kind of hoping for another book on my list, I am looking forward to reading this one. I mean, I have seen films of several of his books, such as “The Big Sleep” and “Strangers on a Train,” so I know that Chandler wrote clever mystery novels. Mind you, I haven’t seen Robert Montgomery’s 1946 movie adaptation of this novel, which I understand was shot entirely as if you’re seeing everything through Philip Marlowe’s eyes!
So yes, after the initial surprise, I am VERY happy with this pick!
Now all I have to do is read and review this book by the 12th December, 2021. That shouldn’t be too hard, because it is 237 pages long, although the print on this copy is a bit… small. Still… there’s plenty of time, and I’m almost finished with the print book I’ve been reading lately, so this goes to the top of my TBR pile!
How about you?
What book did you get with this Classics Club Spin?
This book was first published in 1942 and is still available (via the following affiliate links) from Amazon, The Book Depository UK and US (free worldwide delivery), Foyles, Waterstones, WHSmith, Wordery UK and US, Walmart (Kobo) US (eBooks and audiobooks), the website eBooks.com, Booksamillion.com, iTunes (iBooks and audiobooks), new or used from Alibris, used from Better World Books (promoting libraries and world literary), as well as from as well as from Bookshop.org and UK.Bookshop (to support independent bookshops, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic) or an IndieBound store near you.
The Chocolate Lady's Book Review Blog 
Sounds like a good one for this time of year! I ended up with Rumble Fish by S.E. Hinton. I was hoping for something more suited for fall reading, but at least it’s short. 😉
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I didn’t spin or go by number, but I drew a classic title from a jar. DON QUIXOTE. I am NOT looking forward to it. I have to finish it by the end of November.
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Sorry to hear that. Isn’t it like, really long?
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This sounds like a great choice. Lady in the Lake is not on my classics list, but another book by Chandler is: The Long Goodbye. So I should read this one soon in preparation for getting to The Long Goodbye, which is the 6th book.
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I don’t know if you have to read these in order, to be honest. Mind you, I would have liked to have read the first one, but the character has been in several movies and TV series so I don’t think I’m missing anything.
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I read The Big Sleep and it wasn’t quite my think but I’d happily give Chandler another try so I’ll look forward to your review – hope you enjoy it!
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I’ve never read a Raymond Chandler mystery, but as far as classics go I would do better with this one than most of them. Enjoy the mystery and I look forward to seeing what you think of it!
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Happy reading! Clew is just an old-school version of clue, but I’m surprised to find it on a Chandler!
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I’ve never heard of this series before … but the description makes the book sound like a bit of a riot! It looks like a super fun read! I hope you enjoy it!
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The Philip Marlowe books spurned many movies, including two versions of The Big Sleep (one with Humphrey Bogart), as well as a whole bunch of TV miniseries. Some say that Marlowe is the type of hard-boiled detective that spurned the whole noir mystery genre. Today some call it a cliche, but it was Chandler who started it!
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Sounds like an interesting book, I hope you enjoy it. I love that vintage cover!
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I’m looking forward to your thoughts on this one.
I was curious so I checked. ‘Clew’ is just an archaic form of ‘clue’.
I’m also super happy with what I got: A Man Lay Dead, the first book by the New Zealand queen of mystery: Ngaio Marsh: https://wordsandpeace.com/2021/10/18/the-classics-club-what-i-got-for-the-classics-spin-28/
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Ah, I didn’t know that… who knew that archaic could be as “young” as the 1940s!
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I’ve read his major novels but never heard of this one. You can be sure of one thing- it will be very atmospheric
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So far, so good!
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Sounds like a fun pick! I’m kinda jealous, having ended up with an 800-page novel about WW2. Swapsies? 😉
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No, sorry! But I bet you’ll love it!
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