Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

The Black Dahlia (L.A. Quartet #1)

3.65 of 5 stars 3.65 · rating details · 28,868 ratings · 1,041 reviews

On January 15, 1947, the torture-ravished body of a beautiful young woman is found in a Los Angeles vacant lot. The victim makes headlines as the Black Dahlia-and so begins the greatest manhunt in California history.Caught up in the investigation are Bucky Bleichert and Lee Blanchard: Warrants Squad cops, friends, and rivals in love with the same woman. But both are obsess...more

Paperback, 337 pages

Published August 16th 2006 by Mysterious Press (first published 1987)

more details... edit details

Get a copy:

More…

Friend Reviews

To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.

Lists with This Book

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson

And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie

Best Crime & Mystery Books

53rd out of 3,451 books — 7,994 voters

The Postman Always Rings Twice by James M. Cain

Best Noir

11th out of 315 books — 212 voters

More lists with this book...

Community Reviews

(showing 1-30 of 3,000)

filter | sort: default (?) | rating details

Jul 11, 2008 Nikita T. Mitchell rated it 2 of 5 stars

I'm not big on this whole "going green" trend, but today I thought about one thing all book lovers can do to contribute to society: use your library card more often.

You probably thought I had something clever to say. Sorry to disappoint but let me explain.

My Analysis of The Black Dahlia:
-324 pages in the book
-67 pages until the plot begins to unfold
-300 pages before the book becomes unputdownable, as I like to call it

What does that leave us with?
...approximately 67 pages of wasted paper and 23...more

34 likes · like · see review

Apr 17, 2012 Adam rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: police-procedurals, mystery, crime-fiction

I've had plenty of bad things to say about James Ellroy over the years, but his work continues to compel me. I found the writing style of American Tabloid unreadable, and the novels of his that I have read have ranged from awful (Brown's Requiem) to pretty good (LA Confidential and White Jazz), but no matter how powerful I found them in stretches or how vivid the subject matter, I always had reservations about his novels.

For whatever reason, however, I thought The Black Dahlia was really good, a...more

9 likes · like · see review

Apr 18, 2013 Ginny rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: romanzi

Montagne russe
Una storia torbida, di corruzione, imprudenza, squallore, disillusione e morte. Ma anche la storia dell'ossessione che accomuna due uomini, dilagando insidiosamente nel loro intimo fino a minare il loro equilibrio, la loro amicizia e la loro stessa esistenza.
Questa ossessione contagia in qualche modo anche il lettore, che viene come risucchiato nel meccanismo ammaliante - e al tempo stesso inquietante e insidioso - di una indagine minuziosa, che mette via via in luce i cupi retrosc...more

10 likes · like · see review

May 23, 2012 Kua rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery, gdl, a-4-5

Nonostante la seconda parte non mi abbia entusiasmato, questo libro è stato un approccio con James Ellroy più piacevole del primo tentativo (L.A. Confidential), di cui non ricordo praticamente nulla. Ho comunque un appunto da fare: non ho assolutamente capito PERCHE', dopo tutto il romanzo passato a cercare l'assassino della Dalia, una volta che Bleichert lo trova, di colpo viene preso da sentimentalismi di vario genere (francamente poco convincenti) e amen, lascia tutto come sta. Mah... La part...more

5 likes · like · see review

May 25, 2012 Jemidar rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: kindle-library, mystery-spy-thriller-whodunits

So gripping that I read this virtually in one sitting, but definitely not for fainthearted. This is 1940s LA at it's gritty, sleazy best with lashings of testosterone, violence, sexism, racism, blackmail, corruption, bad cops, shoddy developers, family secrets and the odd necrophiliac. The characters are way past being flawed; they are totally f*cked up. And the details of the murder are grisly.

Classic noir based on true crime, with the investigation being fictionalized into one man's obsession...more

10 likes · like · see review

Mar 31, 2013 Tfitoby rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: black-as-night

This sure is a bleak one and that's an understatement. Aside from the unnecessary opening section focussing on the evolution of the partnership and an interminable chapter giving a blow by blow account of a boxing match this is pretty much classic Ellroy.

This is a true noir, not hard-boiled or pulpy but a story as black and self-destructive as they come. The memoir of a cop making bad choices, knowing that he is making them and unable to stop his own fate; leaving out the existential malaise tha...more This sure is a bleak one and that's an understatement. Aside from the unnecessary opening section focussing on the evolution of the partnership and an interminable chapter giving a blow by blow account of a boxing match this is pretty much classic Ellroy.

This is a true noir, not hard-boiled or pulpy but a story as black and self-destructive as they come. The memoir of a cop making bad choices, knowing that he is making them and unable to stop his own fate; leaving out the existential malaise that usually afflicts the protagonist in these stories and replacing it with a brutal and hard edged look at the underbelly of L.A. in the late 1940's.

Ellroy takes the mood of something like Edward G. Ulmer's classic 1945 poverty row noir Detour and adds everything that they weren't allowed to show back then with this psychological character study. This is what makes him stand out from the crowd. On face value this could be taken as a police procedural novel but if you look beyond the stumbling detection plot you are invited in to a journey filled with depravity and weak willed men and the death of a beautiful yet impure girl used as a background or excuse for their behaviour.

Aside from that opening section there are few things that I had a problem with which caused the low rating, primarily that of the behaviour of the protagonist Bucky. We are consistently told that he has an obsession with the murdered girl but at no point did I ever know why or feel as if it was a natural progression of his character. He is a cop, he wants to solve the murder, he wants to investigate other crimes, it's just another murder and then all of a sudden, with no warning and no explanation he is fantasising about the girl and obsessing over the case. In his later work I think Ellroy got much better at this aspect of explaining his protagonists behaviour but for this one, sadly it was lacking.

I don't think I can let the review go by without mentioning the movie. It wasn't very good was it. I saw it first and knew it wasn't a very good adaptation. Initially whilst reading I thought it was because it was too faithful to the novel but as I came to the end I realised that I coudn't remember much of it from the film so that clearly wasn't it. The movie was bad but then I don't think this novel really lends itself to a good movie adaptation and in this age of any old hack (Suzanne Collins being the most recent example) writing a novel filled with cliches just so they can sell the movie rights that might not vibe but what's wrong with a book being written just to be an enjoyable book and nothing more?

To ape the man: Vibe! I enjoyed this book. Buy! This book. Read! About filth, bent cops, dead girls, psychotic killers and gratuitous political glad-handing. Don't! Keep it hush-hush. Give! A copy to everyone.(less)

14 likes · like · see review

Oct 19, 2012 Izzy rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: You

The Black Dahlia is a thriller
~~Ellroy’s masterpiece~~
~~Gritty, seamy, LA noir~~

UGH. SHUT UP, me.

Okay, so – what’s the most important singular event that has ever happened in your life? Think of something good. Bonus points if it was tragic. Extra lives if it sullied your early youth. Mortal Kombat Fatality (in an arcade, after school in the ‘90s) if it also involved sex and your mother.

Even if this important singular event didn’t involve these specific elements, surely you must have something to cont...more

9 likes · like · see review

Mar 14, 2009 Eric_W rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: mysteries-and-thrillers

"I want to be known as the greatest crime novelist who ever lived." Strong words from James Ellroy, whose novels combine the harsh dialogue and dark characters of Raymond Chandler and the evisceration of dirty family secrets that Ross MacDonald was so good at. The Black Dahlia takes place in Los Angeles just after the end WW II. Two officers, Mr. Ice and Mr. Fire, as they are nicknamed for their boxing styles -- they are both ex-boxers -- return to the ring for the glory of the LAPD and its tax...more "I want to be known as the greatest crime novelist who ever lived." Strong words from James Ellroy, whose novels combine the harsh dialogue and dark characters of Raymond Chandler and the evisceration of dirty family secrets that Ross MacDonald was so good at. The Black Dahlia takes place in Los Angeles just after the end WW II. Two officers, Mr. Ice and Mr. Fire, as they are nicknamed for their boxing styles -- they are both ex-boxers -- return to the ring for the glory of the LAPD and its tax referendum. They become friends and partners, both in love with the same woman, but that's only the beginning of the complications.

The dissected, brutalized body of a beautiful woman is discovered. Blanchard, the senior officer, takes a personal interest in the case because of the guilt he has been unable to exorcize, following the murder years before of his little sister. The case becomes a labyrinth of entanglements, however, as the two officers discover things about each other they wish they had not known. The case becomes an obsession for both. To reveal more would give away too many plot twists.

An article about Ellroy in New York (August 24, 1992) reveals that writing Dahlia must have been cathartic for him. Ellroy's mother was strangled under circumstances quite similar to those of the character in his novel. Ellroy's life has a dark side, too. His simulation of a crazy person was vivid enough to convince an army psychiatrist, who voided his enlistment in the army during Vietnam. Judging by some of the other things he did, I'm not sure if he was acting. He was in and out of jail for burglary, intoxication, and homelessness. Libraries became his only refuge, and he read constantly. He spent much of his twenties and thirties trying to shake the dual demons of alcohol and drugs, and his writing reflects the anger and intensity that his friend Joseph Wambaugh still sees in him whenever they get together. His characters are not nice people: the police anti-heroes break laws and kill people. They resemble the criminals they chase, but they are wracked by guilt. Society is corruption.

His books are wonderful reading, however, because of the intricate plots and great dialogue. But Ellroy warns, "I don't want to entertain readers. I want to shock them. I want a hellishly violent story told in hellishly violent language by a very bad man." (less)

10 likes · like · see review

Feb 17, 2012 Flash Beagle rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Strong narrative, severe violence, graphic depictions...

What was most interesting to me was Ellroy's theory of who & why the most sensational unsolved murder in LA history was committed - and the reason it remains unsolved. It's basic (lust, revenge, naivete, and, although over the top in its depiction, it is believable.)
Total spoiler ahead -
(view spoiler)...more Strong narrative, severe violence, graphic depictions...

What was most interesting to me was Ellroy's theory of who & why the most sensational unsolved murder in LA history was committed - and the reason it remains unsolved. It's basic (lust, revenge, naivete, and, although over the top in its depiction, it is believable.)
Total spoiler ahead -
(view spoiler)(less)

1 like · like · see review

Oct 27, 2009 Ben rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: read-in-2009, tough-guys-and-gals

Ellroy, heard enough about him recently? Another GR craze. I’ve been putting off this review for two weeks now, and honestly, I still don’t want to write it. The thing is, while I only enjoyed this to an “OK” level, I really can understand the commotion surrounding the guy. He wrote this with great insight and intensity; it has a brilliantly complex storyline, and it is very well executed. The web of connections are aplenty, it has a ferocious acuteness to it, and there was a period of time duri...more

16 likes · like · see review

Mar 03, 2010 Taka rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: japan_jul07-aug11, contemporary, detective-crime_fiction

Haunting--

If you weather through the slightly dull first 68 pages, you're in for a treat. Lies, betrayals, deceptions, frauds, frames, corruption, and all imaginable sorts of grime are loaded to be splashed on you. It's a damn good ride all the way to the climax where plot twist upon twist pummels you to half stupor. Although I thought the last twist was a bit too much, I gleefully turned the pages, immersed in the dark, dirty, intense world of the book and enjoying every moment in it.

James Ellr...more

6 likes · like · see review

Feb 07, 2009 Sarah rated it 3 of 5 stars

(First off, I should say that besides having seen a few previews of the movie version that came out a while back, I know nothing about the Black Dahlia or the wealth of other books about this case except for the 200 or so pages I've read so far. The movie previews had piqued my salacious curiosity and I randomly picked up the book from the library the other week without doing much research about what else is out there.)

At first I was struck by the literary heft of a book that reads like the har...more

1 like · like · see review

May 20, 2008 Tabby Kat rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: true-crime

Based on a notorious, unsolved Los Angeles murder case, the central drama of this hard-boiled mystery--set in the late 1940s--begins when the body of Elizabeth Short, an engagingly beautiful and promiscuous woman in her 20s, is discovered in a vacant lot, cut in half, disemboweled and bearing evidence that she had been tortured for several days before dying. Dubbed "The Black Dahlia" by the press, the victim becomes an obsession for two L.A.P.D. cops, narrator Bucky Bleichert and his partner, Le...more

1 like · like · see review

Dec 30, 2007 Sara rated it 3 of 5 stars

This is probably the hardest to read of James Ellroy's novels, but it's also one of my favorites. Apparently, Ellroy modeled the tragic death of the young starlet in the novel after his mother's mysterious death. In typical Ellroy fashion, there's plenty of intrigue, corrupt government officials, intrigue and heart-stopping action. This is also one of the only books that has any emotional resonance for me, probably because the subject was so close to reality for him. What I love most about Ellro...more

6 likes · like · see review

Aug 16, 2008 El rated it 2 of 5 stars

Recommended to El by: 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die (193/1001)

Shelves: late20th-centurylit, 1001-books-list

I have been out of town for the past week and do not have much desire to go in-depth in my discussion of books I have read in that time. The Black Dahlia in particular is one that I was so highly disappointed in that I don't have the heart to give it much more than an "it was okay" rating. As much as I adore perfectly twisted murder mystery movies and books I found Ellroy's book sadly incompetent. Maybe I expected something a little more Sunset Boulevard-in-print than this. All in all I found it...more

4 likes · like · see review

Jun 07, 2012 Arwen56 rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: romanzi

Finalmente sono arrivata al termine. Non ne potevo più. Questo romanzo mi ha tediata a morte: confusionario, poco credibile, scritto coi piedi e con un finale che fa venire il latte alle ginocchia. E meno male che ne avevo letto delle buone recensioni. Che non so proprio come abbiano fatto a scrivere coloro che le hanno redatte, perché trovarci anche solo un minimo pregio, è un lavoro da certosini.

In buona sostanza, col piffero che leggerò qualche altro romanzo di questo autore.

2 likes · like · see review

Jun 05, 2008 lisa_emily rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: harddick-types

Shelves: 1001-books, fictions

I was initially surprised by the tough-guy narrative style, but it fit the style and created the characters. Most interesting about this book is how the characters are manifested; each character was built of many shades between decency and fallibility; each character overcomes or is debilitated by past trauma; the reaction sets forth a trajectory which affects each life.

Not only is The Black Dahlia a curious character-study, but a snapshot of a Los Angeles trapped in time; a Los Angeles before b...more

like · see review

Jan 08, 2013 Dave marked it as to-read · review of another edition

Shelves: calibre, fiction

EDITORIAL REVIEW: El 15 de enero de 1947, en un solar de Los Angeles, aparecio el cadaver desnudo y seccionado en dos de una mujer joven. El medico forense determino que la habian torturado durante dias. Elizabeth Short, de 22 aÃ±os, llamada la Dalia Negra, llevara a los detectives a los bajos fondos de Hollywood, para asi involucrar a ciertas personas adineradas de Los Angeles. Ambos estan obsesionados por lo que fue la vida de la Dalia Negra, y, sobre todo, por capturar al individuo que la ase...more

like · see review

Aug 10, 2011 Erika L. Miller added it

Shelves: reading-between-the-wines

I'm not much for detective stories but this book has definitely sold me. It's written in a very unique voice, that of, Bucky Bleichert, an ex-boxer turned LA cop. The story starts off slow, at least in my opinion, about his relationship with his father, his fallen career and his time on the force. How he meets Lee Blanchard, another ex-boxer turned cop, and the steps that lead up to them becoming partners. I loved watching Bucky trying to remain the good cop and stay focused on his Warrants' cas...more

like · see review

Jun 16, 2013 Rafal Jasinski rated it 4 of 5 stars

Niezwykle udana próba zmierzenia się z niewyjaśnioną zagadką brutalnej zbrodni z lat czterdziestych minionego wieku. Ellroy z właściwą sobie finezją wplata fakty pomiędzy spekulacje, konfrontując postaci rzeczywiście związane z historią Czarnej Dalii z fikcyjnymi. Świadomość, iż sprawa nie znalazła do tej pory rozwiązania, od samego początku pozwala się domyślać, że jej finał znajdzie się daleko poza kulisami oficjalnego śledztwa, a jej bohaterowie staną niejednokrotnie przed trudnymi i niejedno...more

1 like · like · see review

Mar 21, 2013 Joshua Buhs rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: crime

Wow! The novel drew me in quickly, but I got kind of bored early on, not only because it took a while to get to the Dahlia--much of the first section probably would have served better in a flashback--but because even once the story shifted to the investigation, a lot of it seemed passe. I chocked this up to the book coming out in 1987, and itself being so rooted in the noir of Chandler and Hammett. [I did notice a lot of the dialogue would later show up in The Wire.]
But then the story kept pushi...more

like · see review

Jan 24, 2013 Chris Shepherdson rated it 5 of 5 stars

To read James Ellroy's oeuvre is to read what made America what it is today; glamour, filth, success, failure all share the page and the paragraph. To read Ellroy's masterwork, The Black Dahlia, is to read what made James Ellroy what he is today.
Based on the true story of the still unsolved murder of Elizabeth Short in 1947, The Black Dahlia is Ellroy's most heart felt work. Not surprising when one considers Ellroy's mother was murdered when he was a child and the young Ellroy transferred the em...more

like · see review

Aug 22, 2012 Robert rated it 5 of 5 stars

"On January 15, 1947, the torture-ravished body of a beautiful young woman is found in a Los Angeles vacant lot. The victim makes headlines as the Black Dahlia-and so begins the greatest manhunt in California history. Caught up in the investigation are Bucky Bleichert and Lee Blanchard: Both are obsessed with the Dahlia-driven by dark needs to know everything about her past, to capture her killer, to possess the woman even in death. Their quest will take them on a hellish journey through the und...more

like · see review

Jul 09, 2012 Büchermonster rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Officer Dwight “Bucky” Bleichert ist relativ frisch bei der Polizei in Los Angeles und strebt eine erfolgreiche Cop-Karriere an. Außerdem kann er eine erfolgreiche Laufbahn als Amateurboxer vorweisen, in der er unter dem Kampfnamen “Mr. Eis” bisher in über 30 Fights ungeschlagen blieb. Um seine Vorgesetzten beim Wahlkampf zu unterstützen und weil er sich im Gegenzug eine Beförderung erhofft, lässt er sich auf einen medienwirksamen Boxkampf gegen den befreundeten Sergeant Lee Blanchard ein, der a...more

like · see review

Jun 26, 2012 Elisa rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Il noir con tutti i sacri crismi. Poliziotti corrotti, dal pugno facile, in una Hollywood anni '40 dalle tinte fosche. Un assassinio atroce, una donna mutilata il cui cadavere viene trovato in mezzo alla strada. Le vite di due poliziotti stravolte dal tentativo di venire a capo del caso.

Uno dei due poliziotti protagonisti è la voce narrante, ci accompagna attraverso le rivelazioni, la raccolta dei tasselli che ricompongono la vita di Elizabeth Short nei giorni precedenti l'omicidio. Lo fa come s...more

like · see review

Jun 21, 2012 Ben Eldridge rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction

In a word, raw. The narrative holds together reasonably well for the most part, but honestly, this would have benefited from some brutal editing. The pacing is particularly uneven... major sections of the novel are extremely slow and unnecessary (almost the entirety of Part I could have been dropped). The makings of the future brilliance of Ellroy are evident: the drawn out tension of (main character) Bleichert's descent into obsession is amazing (especially early in Part IV), and his early fli...more

2 likes · like · see review

Apr 11, 2012 Michael Fierce rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: fans of fim noir, murder mystery detective novels, serial killer novels

Shelves: detective-murder-mystery, noir, serial-killer, favorite-book

The Black Dahlia is the fictional account of Hollywood's most notorious murder case of Elizabeth Ann Short in 1947. The book, written by James Ellroy, is a reinvention in form of the noir gangster and detective murder mystery novels and films from the 30's and 40's. Borrowing much of it's language, imagery and style from the most famous of the bunch, The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett, and The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler, that both starred Humphrey Bogart in the lead roles of the movie ver...more The Black Dahlia is the fictional account of Hollywood's most notorious murder case of Elizabeth Ann Short in 1947. The book, written by James Ellroy, is a reinvention in form of the noir gangster and detective murder mystery novels and films from the 30's and 40's. Borrowing much of it's language, imagery and style from the most famous of the bunch, The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett, and The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler, that both starred Humphrey Bogart in the lead roles of the movie versions. Personally, I feel that The Black Dahlia is an even better, more captivating, albeit harsher and grimmer book than those two major classics. Not everyone agrees with me. The first 40 pages are a bit overwhelming due to the unique slang and language that was common in the time period it's based on. After that, I think it kicks in and really tells a story you've never read before that really gets under your skin. In 1987, a couple of months after this book came out, I went to purchase another paperback copy of it to give to my best friend for Christmas, from my favorite bookstore in the world, The Dark Carnival in Berkeley, CA, 15 minutes from where I live. When I got there, all the James Ellroy books that were stacked up on the floor in their own section - just a week prior - were no longer there where I expected them to be. I asked a clerk, "Hey! What happened to all the James Ellroy books that were right over there" and pointed to the section. He said, "Oh, we moved them for the signing". I said, "....the..signing?". He said, "Yeah, he just got out of the bathroom and should be ready in a minute". I was, of course, shocked and didn't know what to say. The clerk then semi-whispered in my ear, "Yeah, and it's a funny thing too, but I couldn't help notice that he had a peestain on his pants next to his pocket. Guess he's just like the rest of us". Again, I didn't know what to say to that. James Ellroy was a gentleman dressed in a dark and light grey suit, with what looked to be black penny loafers on. I was only 1 of maybe 3 customers in the store and ended up getting two paperback editions of The Black Dahlia signed by him, of which he did his entire signings while standing up. We chatted for a minute, and other than the fact he seemed more astute than the average man, and was a bit better dressed, he most certainly didn't seem much different than any other older upper middle-class man and definitely not the nearly famous writer who had written books like "Cop" that were made into movies, who would someday have "The Black Dahlia" and "L.A. Confidential" made into blockbuster films, who would even have his own TV show one day. Several years later, I wrote a song with my band (at the time), Mephisto Odyssey, called, "Dream Of The Black Dahlia", an acid jazz techno song that broke into the U.K. Dance charts that became quite popular in France and Italy and a bit in the U.S. Although when I listen to that song now I think it's just AWFUL(!), but I always think it's pretty cool that I have James Ellroy and The Black Dahlia to thank for helping me break into the music business. ANYONE who loves good murder mystery detective novels or film noir should find this book to be an all-time classic, even though it is a purely fictional account of the famous investigation. If you are a book connoisseur, like me, track down the 1987 / 1988 paperback or hardbound edition with the awesome Elizabeth Ann Short cover, that looks as if it was painted by Nagel - maybe, most famous, for the cover painting on Duran Duran's "Rio" album. It's a killer! And so's this book! Highly recommended and a personal favorite!!!(less)

2 likes · like · see review

Jan 29, 2012 Krista Ashe rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: my-112-of-2012

So I'd seen a review that the last half of the book beat you over the head with plot twists. I'd like to challenge that review and say it was more like being blugeoned with a sharp object several times. I kept going, "Whoa, hold the phone! Srsly?!!" Don't get me wrong, I like a plot twist, but good lord, it was insane!

I knew the story of the Black Dahlia from watching a History channel or E True Hollywood story. I knew James Ellroy from LA Confidential. So I expected the gritty, no real hero, ta...more

like · see review

Jan 23, 2012 Shovelmonkey1 rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: fans of smoky bars and trenchcoats

Recommended to Shovelmonkey1 by: 1001 books list

Shelves: 1001-books, bookcrossing-books, murder-most-horrid, read-in-2010

* The door to the bar swings open and in strides a down at heel gumshoe with a cigarette drooping from his bottom lip. He strides through the bar, his stained raincoat flapping behind him as he pushes aside vacant bar stools and squints through the thinning veil of cigarette smoke. He spots his target and heads to a booth lined with vinyl seats at the back of the room. Pausing he grinds his cigarette butt beneath his heel, hands over the manuscript, tips his hat and leaves.*

And that is how this...more * The door to the bar swings open and in strides a down at heel gumshoe with a cigarette drooping from his bottom lip. He strides through the bar, his stained raincoat flapping behind him as he pushes aside vacant bar stools and squints through the thinning veil of cigarette smoke. He spots his target and heads to a booth lined with vinyl seats at the back of the room. Pausing he grinds his cigarette butt beneath his heel, hands over the manuscript, tips his hat and leaves.*

And that is how this book came into my possession.

Ok not really, it arrived in a brown paper envelope, wrapped and posted by another bookcrosser. But the first way was better, non?

Anyway this was my first foray into the dark, stained and sullen world of the crime noir and it was quite an interesting journey. The Black Dahlia herself was an unknown quantity and the allure of this story was the voiceless woman who, silent in a deathly slumber could not speak up for herself or provide evidence of her own character. This is where the press and detective agencies stepped in and filled in the blanks, not necessarily in the most factually accurate way, but in a way which gave the case the correct air of mystery, coupled with a shabby glamorous depravity. That's my aimed for look by the way - glamorous depravity.

The facts do not need a lot of embellishment to make the case dramatic and shockingly violent - Elizabeth Short was found severed in two at the waist drained of blood, naked and posed with a mutilated face. Even as a writer of crime noir or horror you would probably be hard pushed to come up with something worse and this once again shows that truth can indeed be stranger than fiction. Ellroy introduces two street savvy bare knuckle boxing detectives thrown together to solve the crime and get the girl(s) but embellishes the story with additional seedy Hollywood glamour a bit of laydee on laydee love and a few rogue starlets.

It says a lot about humanity that we hairless apes will shoot cannon loads of glitter over a crime and then wrap it in news print in order to shiny it up and turn it into a sort of public entertainment with no consideration of the fact that it was an actual person who was carved in half, bled dry and then carved up to resemble Jack Nicholson's Joker. War was mans inhumanity to man. Now it might well be the media.

(less)

11 likes · like · see review

Oct 03, 2011 Al rated it 2 of 5 stars

A hard core police procedural set in 1947 Los Angeles. Taking off on the famous Black Dahlia (true) case, this (fiction) book is seen through the eyes of a rookie policeman who becomes involved in the case and winds up getting sucked in beyond his depth. Lots of authentic tough guy talk, contemporary slang and police shorthand, some of which is a little hard to follow but manageable. Less manageable is the jumping around and resurrection of old clues and characters after many intervening chapte...more

like · see review

« previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 … 99 100 next »

new topic
Discuss This Book

topics	posts	views	last activity
Mysteries & C...: * June Group Read: The Black Dahlia	34	73	Jun 17, 2013 03:34pm
Books2Movies Club: Discussing the novel The Black Dahlia	11	28	May 15, 2013 04:50pm
Books2Movies Club: The Flick	1	11	Apr 30, 2013 06:50pm
Books2Movies Club: Josh Hartnett as Bucky?	1	10	Apr 30, 2013 04:35pm
El final	5	72	Mar 28, 2013 07:48pm
Aussie Lovers of...: Jan-Mar The Black Dahlia - Final Thoughts Spoilers	12	29	Mar 21, 2013 01:57pm
Aussie Lovers of...: Jan-Mar The Black Dahlia - First Impressions No Spoilers	7	25	Mar 05, 2013 07:00pm

combine
Other Editions (66)

More editions...

Genres

Mystery

405 users

Mystery > Crime

379 users

Mystery > Noir

139 users

Historical Fiction

97 users

Crime > True Crime

94 users

Thriller

91 users

Book Club

41 users

Literature > American

41 users

Thriller > Mystery Thriller

39 users

Suspense

37 users

See top shelves...

Readers also enjoyed similar books

About James Ellroy

James Ellroy was born in Los Angeles in 1948. His L.A. Quartet novels—The Black Dahlia, The Big Nowhere, L.A. Confidential, and White Jazz—were international best sellers. His novel American Tabloid was Time magazine’s Best Book (fiction) of 1995; his memoir, My Dark Places, was a Time Best Book of the Year and a New York Times Notable Book for 1996. His novel The Cold Six Thousand was a New York...more

More about James Ellroy...

Books by James Ellroy

The Cold Six Thousand (Underworld USA, #2)

More…

Share This Book

Facebook Twitter Your website

Trivia About Dalia nera

5 trivia questions

More quizzes & trivia...

Quotes from The Black Dahlia

“Some people don’t respond to civility.” — 8 people liked it

“Where’s your sketch pad?” I asked.

… “I gave that up,” Kay said. “I wasn’t very good, so I changed my major.”

“To what?”

“To pre-med, then psychology, then English lit, then history.”

“I like a woman who knows what she wants.”

Kay smiled. “So do I, but I don’t know any.” — 6 people liked it

More quotes…

title link	preview: The Black Dahlia
avg rating	preview: The Black Dahlia Goodreads rating: 3.65 (28868 ratings)
small image	preview: click here [close]
med image	preview: click here [close]
BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21704.The_Black_Dahlia?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1328772917l/21704.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21704.The_Black_Dahlia?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]The Black Dahlia by James Ellroy[/url]

The Black Dahlia (L.A. Quartet #1)

Friend Reviews

Community Reviews

Share This Book

Share This Book on Your Website