The Doomsters
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Cover of 1983 Bantam edition |
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| Author | Ross Macdonald |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Series | Lew Archer |
| Genre(s) | Mystery |
| Publisher | Random House Inc |
| Released | 1958 |
| Media type | Print (Hardcover, Paperback) |
| ISBN | ISBN 9-997-51958-2 |
| Preceded by | The Barbarous Coast |
| Followed by | The Galton Case |
The Doomsters is a 1958 mystery novel written by Ross Macdonald, the seventh book in the Lew Archer series. Many sources agree that this book marked a turning point in the series, wherein Macdonald abandoned his imitations of Raymond Chandler and Dashiell Hammett and found his own voice. It also marks the fixing of Lew Archer's character as a man more interested in understanding the criminal than in catching him.
[edit] Plot Outline
From the back cover of the 1983 Bantam edition:
The illustrious and obscenely wealthy Senator Hallman and his large family have had a run of bad luck. First the mother mysteriously croaks. The Sentator is the next to greet the Reaper. Then one son is stashed away in the nuthouse for keeps. And that's only the beginning. Maybe old lady Hallman was right when she said there were fates ganging up on the family—"Doomsters" she called them. But Lew Archer thinks their misfortunes emanate from a more human source—a certain crazed someone who won't quit until he runs out of Hallmans to kill.
