Only to Sleep

The Raymond Chandler estate has authorized another Philip Marlowe novel, this time by Lawrence Osborne. Only to Sleep (Hogarth, $26.00) picks up with Philip Marlowe, 72 years old, needing a cane and living the quiet life on a Mexican beach. Osborne is the third writer selected by the estate to pen a Philip Marlowe mystery and has a great list of personal credits. He succeeds John Banville in the Marlowe endeavor.

Two insurance investigators show up at Marlowe’s place asking him to look into the death of a sleezy LA businessman, who apparently fell off his yacht and drowned. They’ve paid the money to his widow, but still entertain doubts. His body was hurriedly cremated. Not surprisingly, the man, also in his seventies, was married to a much younger woman. Marlowe accepts the gig principally out of boredom, not for the money, and heads for LA.

In Los Angeles he finds the reported widow, Delores, who is attractive, a bit snotty, and evasive, quickly raising the level of suspicion. He visits with the police and others, but no hard information surfaces. With no new leads, Marlowe returns to Mexico and the scene of the crime.

The search starts slowly, but one is easily mesmerized by the languid prose and detailed descriptions similar to the great Raymond Chandler novels. Halfway through it’s obvious that there has been a scam and if anything, the reader begins to wonder if Marlowe still has it together, as he literally stumbles his way through the investigation. Once the scheme is uncovered the book begins to slow and the twist in the end is not really much of a surprise. I began skimming three-quarters of the way through and didn’t feel like I was missing anything.

Like Chandler’s great work, The Big Sleep, an element of the plot is left hanging, though you’re not likely to lose much sleep over it. Recall in Sleep that even Chandler wasn’t sure who killed the chauffer. I give Osborne credit, he’s done a good job of recreating the lingo, the many references to the distant past, and the overwhelming melancholy of a man well past his prime. I can’t give the book better than a C+, maybe a B- if you are really a hardcore Philip Marlowe fan.

Steve E Clark  as seen in the New York Times is Author of  Justice Is for the Lonely  and  Justice Is for the Deserving,  Kristen Kerry Novels Of Suspense. You can purchase his books via SteveClarkAuthor.com/BuyBook or request it at your local book store.  Want to know more about Steve Clark, read more reviews or speak directly with Steve?  Learn more about Steve at SteveClarkAuthor.com