THE BLACK DAHLIA

Former dick Bucky Bleichert tells how he solved the title murder case, and why the solution of the crime was kept secret though it cost him his badge, girl, and best friend. While the Marlowe-esque Bucky is fictional, his account agrees with the known facts of this real 1947 torture-killing of an L.A. party girl. Corruption and depravity are dressed in gaudy dialogue and period grit. This edition includes a concluding essay drawing parallels between the Dahlia case and Ellroy’s personal and life-changing encounter with murder. All this is served up by Stephen Hoye, who convincingly plays the detective with a world-weariness that fails to blunt his capacity for lust, shock, and revulsion. He modulates his pace shrewdly for suspense and drama, and manages to make the neo-noir clichés seem fresh and genuine. Y.R. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2006, Portland, Maine [Published: DEC 06/ JAN 07]