One of Ross Macdonald's best, right up there with The Galton Case and The Chill (and my all-time favorite, The Wycherly Woman). I knocked half a star off my rating only because a few befuddled observations about "these kids today" were awkwardly inserted into the narrative at certain key points. Still, they're mercifully brief and were the expression of a sincere concern on Macdonald's part: convinced that young people were growing increasingly disaffected, he worried about the world they were inheriting from his generation. More than ever, the Archer of The Underground Man is an extension of/mouthpiece for the author himself. There's not much physical action, but the book is loaded with the kind of mystery and psychological tension that only Macdonald could produce.

Against the nerve-jangling backdrop of a wildfire that's spreading rapidly through the hills above Santa Teresa (Macdonald's fictionalized version of Santa Barbara), Archer searches for a missing boy who may have witnessed a murder. The private detective finds himself moved by the plight of the boy and his frantic young mother, and commits to a deeper personal investment in the case than is customary for him. Weary and cynical in middle age, Archer nonetheless views the novel's characters and their motivations from a heightened emotional perspective, which makes this a special book. Troubled families and the fascinating convolutions of their histories are a central part of The Underground Man, just as they're a central part of all Macdonald's novels, but what's really noteworthy this time around is the maturity that allows Archer to empathize with the other characters despite their flaws. Compare this Lew Archer to the more brusque iteration in The Ivory Grin or The Barbarous Coast to see just how far he (and Macdonald) had come. ( )

Another compelling and extremely well-written entry in Ross Macdonald's Lew Archer series of detective novels. This one, in concert with Macdonald's ongoing theme, revolves around an old family secret that comes back to haunt those lucky enough to have survived the events of the secret. Macdonald is simply one of the best writers of this sort of fiction, a writer with poetry and heartbreak and melancholy in his soul who conveys those attributes without undue cynicism and with an unobtrusive but magical way with words. This is one of his best. ( )

An average mystery, detective goes around asking questions of people about the whereabouts of a young boy. A couple of suspects turn up dead, a couple of others are said to be "nice" people, couldn't have done it tho rumors are quick to accuse them of drug use (set in the early '70s).
My reading was marred by the persistantly negative view of women as domineering and/or waspish. The detective found commonality with an informant in their experience of having been divorced; it makes me think the author shared the same commonality. Also, I generally dislike books involving extramarital triangles. ( )

a missing boy and a fire in the L.A. hills lead Lew Archer to a long buried crime

This is my favorite Macdonald book I've read thus far! Read in one day because I couldn't put it down. Such great descriptive prose!

"She opened the wardrobe closet for my inspection. It was stuffed with coats and dresses like a small army of girls crushed flat for storage and smelling of sachet. The chest of drawers was full of sweaters and other garments, like shed or unused skins." ( )