Blue City

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For other uses, see Blue City (disambiguation).

Blue City was a thriller written in 1947 by Ross Macdonald, originally released under his real name, Kenneth Millar. It was generally considered Macdonald's first truly hardboiled novel, a start along the road that was going to lead to many comparisons to Raymond Chandler and Dashiell Hammett.

[edit] Plot

Johnny Weather returned from the army to find his estranged father long dead. His father was a leading factor in the corruption of the town and an important person, but the police seem more than happy to let his murder remain 'unsolved', as does everyone Johnny encounters.

As he tries to dig up the murderer, he fences with a motley list of strange characters and hustlers, everyone from the astonishingly cruel man who took over his father's night club, to his father's ex-wife, who's more than willing to seduce Johnny to keep him off the subject of his father.

The entire book is set over a very short period of time, creating a frantic pace to the novel.

[edit] Other media

Blue City was adapted to film in 1986, starring Judd Nelson, Ally Sheedy and David Caruso. The film was poorly received by critics and audiences alike.