In a Lonely Place
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- Create Date：2021-04-23 14:53:01
- Update Date：2025-09-07
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- Author：Dorothy B. Hughes
- ISBN：1681371472
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Summary
Postwar Los Angeles is a lonely place where the American Dream is showing its seamy underside—and a stranger is preying on young women。 The suggestively named Dix Steele， a cynical vet with a chip on his shoulder about the opposite sex， is the LAPD's top suspect。 Dix knows enough to watch his step， especially since his best friend is on the force， but when he meets the luscious Laurel Gray—a femme fatale with brains—something begins to crack。 The basis for extraordinary performances by Humphrey Bogart and Gloria Grahame in the 1950 film version of the book， In a Lonely Place tightens the suspense with taut， hard-boiled prose and stunningly undoes the conventional noir plot。
Reviews
Kristina
，
If you read only the newest mystery/thriller fiction， you’re depriving yourself of some of the best that genre has to offer。 In a Lonely Place by Dorothy B。 Hughes is crazy good。 Hughes is an author who wrote in the 1940s and 50s， but in no way is this novel dated。 If you can overlook the few instances of slang （“dick” or “tec” for detective）， In a Lonely Place is a fast-paced， taut， contemporary mystery。 Well， it’s not a mystery as much—more of the hunted vs。 the hunter psychological thriller。 If you read only the newest mystery/thriller fiction， you’re depriving yourself of some of the best that genre has to offer。 In a Lonely Place by Dorothy B。 Hughes is crazy good。 Hughes is an author who wrote in the 1940s and 50s， but in no way is this novel dated。 If you can overlook the few instances of slang （“dick” or “tec” for detective）， In a Lonely Place is a fast-paced， taut， contemporary mystery。 Well， it’s not a mystery as much—more of the hunted vs。 the hunter psychological thriller。 It’s so good。Dix Steele is a World War II pilot home from the war。 He’s in Los Angeles looking to make his fortune but so far finding no luck。 To soothe his tortured soul， he wanders alone at night in the foggy canyons of Los Angeles。 Random chance brings him back in touch with an old Air Force buddy， Brub Nicolai。 Dix is surprised to learn his friend is now a police detective investigating a string of strangulations in the LA area。 Dix is less bothered by this than he is by his friend’s new wife， Sylvia， a calm， intelligent woman who seems to see right through his smiles and lighthearted conversation。 As the weeks pass， Dix becomes more frustrated with his financial prospects and a woman he quickly falls in love—a woman he suspects of cheating and spying on him。 As his worries grow， so does his paranoia and Los Angeles， once his perfect idea of paradise， begins to fill like a trap。This isn’t really a spoiler， because you learn this fairly early on， but I’ll hide it for the purposes of the review: （view spoiler）[Dix is the strangler。 The story is told from his perspective and it’s absolutely brilliant。 You experience his arrogance， his callousness， his self-pity， his misogyny。 The reason for his lack of success and happiness is women。 They sneak， they spy， they cheat and they lie。 But his character isn’t that simple。 While he’s thinking these things， he also is seeking a connection with women and wants their comfort and reassurance。 He falls in love easily and is tearful and weak。 It’s absolutely fascinating listening in on his thoughts as he sneers at the police and enjoys the daring nature of his friendship with Brub， a police detective investigating his murders。 While he’s patting himself on the back for fooling the police， you know that he’s wrong， that the police are more than likely investigating him now because he’s left too many loose strings and has too many connections to earlier strangulations。 There’s a kind of Breaking Bad vibe to the novel in that the friendship between Dix （criminal） and Brub （detective） mirrors that of Walter White （criminal） and his friend， Hank Schrader （DEA investigator）。 The end of the novel is satisfying and unexpected。 （hide spoiler）]In a Lonely Place is an excellent psychological thriller。 This is a short novel， under 200 pages and it moves quickly。 I read the bulk of it today （I hadn’t meant to; I meant to make banana bread and do lots of other things） but it’s difficult to put down once you sense events are spiraling out of control。 The afterword by Megan Abbott adds good commentary about the hardboiled detective fiction of the 1930s and 1940s and some background on film noir。 She also gives a brief （but excellent） analysis of the novel and its examination of toxic masculinity and how Hughes turned the conventions of detective fiction upside down by reversing gender roles。 I highly recommend this novel， particularly if you like dark， atmospheric smartly-written thrillers。 。。。more
Debbie
，
I stayed up half the night last night to finish this book。 Reading it， I was inside the mind of a serial killer， and I needed to see it to the end before going to sleep。 The afterward， by Megan Abbott， put the story in context and was a worthwhile addition。 This morning， I read about the movie， starring Humphrey bogart， based on the book and was surprised to find out that the killer in the movie was not the same as the killer in the book。 How could they have done that successfully？ Now I want to I stayed up half the night last night to finish this book。 Reading it， I was inside the mind of a serial killer， and I needed to see it to the end before going to sleep。 The afterward， by Megan Abbott， put the story in context and was a worthwhile addition。 This morning， I read about the movie， starring Humphrey bogart， based on the book and was surprised to find out that the killer in the movie was not the same as the killer in the book。 How could they have done that successfully？ Now I want to watch the movie。 。。。more
Ann-Cathrin Klöckner
，
Very well written。 Great character development。 It reminded me a lot of crime and punishment， watching the main character going more and more into a frenzy and towards insanity。
Colleen Woods
，
A near perfect noir that upends the usual misogynist conventions of the genre。
Ennaid Noyl
，
Postwar Los Angeles is a lonely place where the American Dream is showing its seamy underside—and a stranger is preying on young women。 The suggestively named Dix Steele， a cynical vet with a chip on his shoulder about the opposite sex， is the LAPD's top suspect。 Dix knows enough to watch his step， especially since his best friend is on the force， but when he meets the luscious Laurel Gray—a femme fatale with brains—something begins to crack。 The basis for extraordinary performances by Humphrey Postwar Los Angeles is a lonely place where the American Dream is showing its seamy underside—and a stranger is preying on young women。 The suggestively named Dix Steele， a cynical vet with a chip on his shoulder about the opposite sex， is the LAPD's top suspect。 Dix knows enough to watch his step， especially since his best friend is on the force， but when he meets the luscious Laurel Gray—a femme fatale with brains—something begins to crack。 The basis for extraordinary performances by Humphrey Bogart and Gloria Grahame in the 1950 film version of the book， In a Lonely Place tightens the suspense with taut， hard-boiled prose and stunningly undoes the conventional noir plot。 。。。more
Geoff Tate
，
there were usually people around so i don’t really get the title。
David
，
Dorothy Hughes pulled off a great trick here， by creating a troubled protagonist we can’t root for — a toxic， lazy， entitled and deluded wannabe millionaire， and an archetype as sadly relevant today as ever。 The reader should relish the smart， savvy women in supporting roles who take him down。 I hope it’s prescient。 So many men are just petulant， diaper less babies in this world who deserve to be totally razed and rebuilt。 My only beef with the novel is it’s consistently repetitive language， eve Dorothy Hughes pulled off a great trick here， by creating a troubled protagonist we can’t root for — a toxic， lazy， entitled and deluded wannabe millionaire， and an archetype as sadly relevant today as ever。 The reader should relish the smart， savvy women in supporting roles who take him down。 I hope it’s prescient。 So many men are just petulant， diaper less babies in this world who deserve to be totally razed and rebuilt。 My only beef with the novel is it’s consistently repetitive language， even it’s thoroughly engaging and propulsive。 。。。more
Richda Mcnutt
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Dorothy Hughes was ahead of her time， and "In a Lonely Place，" may be the genesis of noir。 The writing may appear somewhat dated to more modern （younger） readers， but it still fascinates。 For anyone not familiar with the noir genre， this is a good place to start。 Dorothy Hughes was ahead of her time， and "In a Lonely Place，" may be the genesis of noir。 The writing may appear somewhat dated to more modern （younger） readers， but it still fascinates。 For anyone not familiar with the noir genre， this is a good place to start。 。。。more
Anna
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Somehow sexy and Santa Monica， always coasting down the Incline
Ben
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At the times this felt a bit pat and overwritten， but the ending redeemed its overall quality substantially。
Exquisite Williams
，
Hughes is fantastic！Dix， the main character， is a compelling narrator despite how unreliable he is。 Its what happens when we aren't privy to his thoughts and feelings that really make the story and control the tension。 Hughes is fantastic！Dix， the main character， is a compelling narrator despite how unreliable he is。 Its what happens when we aren't privy to his thoughts and feelings that really make the story and control the tension。 。。。more
Chris
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I had known IN A LONELY PLACE through the Nicholas Ray movie version。What I expected， starting the book， proved to be correct: 1） the “life among the movie makers” atmosphere was gone， except perhaps as a far-off rattle barely perceptible to Los Angeles residents; and 2） Dix， the protagonist， was guilty。 That’s not a “spoiler，” btw。 What Hughes has written is a howdunnit rather than a whodunnit。That doesn’t prevent IN A LONELY PLACE — the title comes from Synge — from being an unpleasant narrati I had known IN A LONELY PLACE through the Nicholas Ray movie version。What I expected， starting the book， proved to be correct: 1） the “life among the movie makers” atmosphere was gone， except perhaps as a far-off rattle barely perceptible to Los Angeles residents; and 2） Dix， the protagonist， was guilty。 That’s not a “spoiler，” btw。 What Hughes has written is a howdunnit rather than a whodunnit。That doesn’t prevent IN A LONELY PLACE — the title comes from Synge — from being an unpleasant narrative about unpleasant people， written with no particular wit or psychological perception。 What LONELY PLACE has is a small- town atmosphere appropriate to late-‘40s Los Angeles。 Also a backstory involving someone called “Brucie。” （No， you snickerers， the “Brucie” in question is female。）Now if I could just understand how a character， male， acquires the name “Brub” 。。。 。。。more
W Freeman
，
“Fear wasn’t a jagged split of light cleaving you; fear wasn’t a cold fist in your entrails; fear wasn’t something you could face and demolish with your arrogance。 Fear was the fog， creeping about you， winding its tendrils about you， seeping into your pores and flesh and bone。” I was surprised how much this differed from Nicholas Ray’s （amazing） adaptation on the plot level but they share a dreary grey， dream-destroyed vibe — but this thing is much more sinister， an elliptical survey of the male “Fear wasn’t a jagged split of light cleaving you; fear wasn’t a cold fist in your entrails; fear wasn’t something you could face and demolish with your arrogance。 Fear was the fog， creeping about you， winding its tendrils about you， seeping into your pores and flesh and bone。” I was surprised how much this differed from Nicholas Ray’s （amazing） adaptation on the plot level but they share a dreary grey， dream-destroyed vibe — but this thing is much more sinister， an elliptical survey of the male returning from war as petulant， entitled and a forever compulsive rapist and destroyer。 It’s upsetting and evocative - Hughes wields language like a drill in the novel’s best moments。 She also largely paints around the picture and asks us to fill in most of the template details while we spend time with the characters which I greatly appreciated。 But I found myself disappointed when things finally unspooled and the plot came to a linear close — I was having too much fun with her devilish withholding。The names are hilarious to me: BRUB！ DIX STEELE。 （The book is also low key quite amusing， especially Dix’s never ending tirades against everything but especially his entitlement toward his Uncle Fergus’ money） 。。。more
O'Neal Sadler
，
Okay novel， but I guess after being spoiled by a fabulous film starring the great Humphrey Bogart and equally wonderful Gloria Graham， directed by an American auteur Nicholas Ray， this somewhat clunky novel is a grand disappointment。 Unlike the film， Dix Steele （I know） is actually the murderer （I'm not giving it away; it's mentioned in the first chapter）。 And whereas there is a complicated romance with a very complicated artist dating an equally complicated woman， nothing of the kind takes plac Okay novel， but I guess after being spoiled by a fabulous film starring the great Humphrey Bogart and equally wonderful Gloria Graham， directed by an American auteur Nicholas Ray， this somewhat clunky novel is a grand disappointment。 Unlike the film， Dix Steele （I know） is actually the murderer （I'm not giving it away; it's mentioned in the first chapter）。 And whereas there is a complicated romance with a very complicated artist dating an equally complicated woman， nothing of the kind takes place in the novel。 Ray envisioned a story totally removed from the original book， which is a classic thriller in every positive sense of the word。 His friend the police detective has a more prominent role in the book than in the film， which is important but I'll leave it there on why。Speaking about the film。 A great adaption doesn't always follow the book to the letter。 It captures the spirit of the book without going above and beyond it。 Ray did no such thing。 He literally reimagined the story not so much as a noir per se， as a psychological melodrama。 A story of a tortured man who has been beaten down by the Hollywood machine only to lose the one sole thing he loves in the world。 It doesn't hurt that Ray and Graham also had a contentious marriage that you can see pulsating scene-by-scene。"I was born when you kissed me; I died when you left me; I was alive for the few weeks that you loved me。" One of the all time great lines ever uttered in a film--but， alas， it is not in the book！ But that's hardly shocking: there isn't much in the film you'll find in the book。 But that's fine。 It isn't a particularly great book。 But that a cinematic genius like Ray could find a great story smothered in all that nonsense is a testament to both the director and the author， Ms。 Hughes， who was known for quick and simple pulp fiction thrillers。So， watch the movie and then read the book。 Be awed by the power of great filmmaking to turn a so-so story into an immortal classic。 。。。more
Vicki Holmsten
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I would not normally read a noir detective novel， but a friend recommended Dorothy B。 Hughes。 Great writing。 She should have been more recognized during her time， but glad to see she does pop up now on the occasional list of well-known noir writers。 I enjoyed this one--if "enjoy" is the right word for following the thoughts and actions of a serial killer。 I would not normally read a noir detective novel， but a friend recommended Dorothy B。 Hughes。 Great writing。 She should have been more recognized during her time， but glad to see she does pop up now on the occasional list of well-known noir writers。 I enjoyed this one--if "enjoy" is the right word for following the thoughts and actions of a serial killer。 。。。more
Laura
，
Didn't even though that a women's pulp fiction genre from the 30s and 40s existed until I read this book。 A real detective crime story。 Didn't even though that a women's pulp fiction genre from the 30s and 40s existed until I read this book。 A real detective crime story。 。。。more
Vera
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Wow。 The book？ 5 stars。 The movie， starring Humphrey Bogart as the character of Dix？ 1 star。 This little slip of a book packs a giant wallop。 Noir at its best。
David Van Fossan
，
She left out all the good parts！
James
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I picked this one up because I thought the cover was nice and I was not at all disappointed。
Tom Nora
，
I'm a big fan of noir， especially mid-century Los Angeles noir。 （Chandler， etc。） This book opened up a whole new genre for me –– hard boiled noir written by a woman。 It's more of a psycholoical thriller， inside the head of and the POV of an unsympathetic protagonist for the entire book。 The setting is Santa Monica and Beverly Hills， the places and streets where I grew up， so that made it even better。 I'm a big fan of noir， especially mid-century Los Angeles noir。 （Chandler， etc。） This book opened up a whole new genre for me –– hard boiled noir written by a woman。 It's more of a psycholoical thriller， inside the head of and the POV of an unsympathetic protagonist for the entire book。 The setting is Santa Monica and Beverly Hills， the places and streets where I grew up， so that made it even better。 。。。more
Joel
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4。75Not just a good noir， but an excellent character drama。 Good prose， great dialogue。 It all flows and reads so well。 Tight and rich。 My one minor qualm is that the ending feels just a little （little） bit rushed。 The film is also excellent， and less explicit （if my memory serves me）。 Not a criticism of the book in any way， just an observation。 It's always a credit to a book if it manages to suck me in when I've already witnessed the story on screen。 4。75Not just a good noir， but an excellent character drama。 Good prose， great dialogue。 It all flows and reads so well。 Tight and rich。 My one minor qualm is that the ending feels just a little （little） bit rushed。 The film is also excellent， and less explicit （if my memory serves me）。 Not a criticism of the book in any way， just an observation。 It's always a credit to a book if it manages to suck me in when I've already witnessed the story on screen。 。。。more
Chrissie
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******************Ride the Pink Horse 4 stars *The So Blue Marble TBR*Dread Journey TBR*The Fallen Sparrow TBR*The Expendable Man TBR*In a Lonely Place TBR ******************Ride the Pink Horse 4 stars *The So Blue Marble TBR*Dread Journey TBR*The Fallen Sparrow TBR*The Expendable Man TBR*In a Lonely Place TBR 。。。more
Melanie Vidrine
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One of the best of the noir detective genre。 The writing is fabulous， the plot unique。 I will have to search for more by this elegant author。
Ashley Parrott
，
I expected it to be more of a page turner based on the summary but I was left craving more action。
Isaac Lambert
，
haunting， in this pulp （written by a female！）， the slick writing is great at showing emotions which turn on a pin。 weird character names add to the fun。 loneliness in blackness like the night， trying to spice up life by taking 'reasonable risks' - a good read in this quarantine world。 here， the only cure is murder！ but， for Gods sakes， Dix， why？！ haunting， in this pulp （written by a female！）， the slick writing is great at showing emotions which turn on a pin。 weird character names add to the fun。 loneliness in blackness like the night， trying to spice up life by taking 'reasonable risks' - a good read in this quarantine world。 here， the only cure is murder！ but， for Gods sakes， Dix， why？！ 。。。more
Mark Robertson
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This novel is an exploration of the mind of a serial killer。 Because of this， I didn't feel all that comfortable while reading it - too much time spent inside the head of a truly sick predator。 You just want this guy caught as soon as possible。 Hughes does a great job describing the police work that eventually leads to the killer's capture， and the sense of place is a big part of this novel's appeal。 Not surprisingly， I guess， given that the reader is in the killer's mind throughout， there's not This novel is an exploration of the mind of a serial killer。 Because of this， I didn't feel all that comfortable while reading it - too much time spent inside the head of a truly sick predator。 You just want this guy caught as soon as possible。 Hughes does a great job describing the police work that eventually leads to the killer's capture， and the sense of place is a big part of this novel's appeal。 Not surprisingly， I guess， given that the reader is in the killer's mind throughout， there's not much humor in this book。 Because I felt while reading this that Hughes is a good writer， I'd be willing to read another Hughes book so long as it's not about a serial killer。 。。。more
Anna Curran
，
This was a good slow-paced book set in post-WWII America， from the perspective of a serial strangler。 The writing style was very different to more modern books of a similar genre， but I really enjoyed that。
Lucie
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 absolutely LOVED it。 hughes is， in my opinion， the perfect noir writer: she achieves a perfect balance between style and substance， engaging atmosphere and well-constructed plot。 and her use of an unreliable narrator is masterful: although the whole story is told in third person limited with dix as a point of view character， she manages to hold off on the reveal that he is the killer until the end。 i was on the edge of my seat for much of the novel。
Hobart Mariner
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Brutal， canny， sympathetic portrayal of the inner life of a serial killer leading a dissipated life as a sham-novelist in Los Angeles。 Impossible to ignore many elements of later， more famous books like The Talented Mr。 Ripley and The Killer Inside Me， both which seem to display some pretty pronounced influence from Hughes' novel。The main character is Dix Steele， a WW2 fighter ace who has come back to America。 His uncle is financing his attempt to write a novel out west; if not he has to come ba Brutal， canny， sympathetic portrayal of the inner life of a serial killer leading a dissipated life as a sham-novelist in Los Angeles。 Impossible to ignore many elements of later， more famous books like The Talented Mr。 Ripley and The Killer Inside Me， both which seem to display some pretty pronounced influence from Hughes' novel。The main character is Dix Steele， a WW2 fighter ace who has come back to America。 His uncle is financing his attempt to write a novel out west; if not he has to come back to New Jersey to work in the family business， I guess。 You gradually learn that he has no intention of writing anything， and that the only real project he has is a string of strangling murders of young women around Los Angeles。 （He has a pretty nice set up with a Dickie Greenleaf-esque friend's apartment， but the friend hasn't been seen in some time。。。）After losing a potential victim， and more or less on a whim he dials up an old friend from the war days。 He reconnects and learns that Brub is a detective。 This begins the most enjoyable part of the novel: Dix rekindles a friendship with Brub and commiserates with him as the flailing policeman tells him all about the apparently fruitless investigation。 Brub's wife Sylvia dislikes Dix more or less from the jump （aside: the afterword in the NYRB edition contains an interesting and original argument that the book is really about Sylvia and Dix's girlfriend trying to trap Dix， but it's not _quite_ persuasive）。 Apart from the murderer having little chats with his unwitting pursuer， the best part of the book， and really the place where Hughes' considerable talents as a novelist shine， is the depiction of Dix's psychological state。 He is trapped "in a lonely place" as is mentioned once or twice。 The description of "red knots" gripping his brain is beautiful。 Despite her keen insight into his weakness and impotent obsession， the depiction is not entirely unsympathetic。 Even though Dix has it easy， he's still suffering horribly。 It's maybe not a traditional entry in the genre for a couple reasons （there's not much mystery at any point， maybe a touch toward the end， and as the NYRB essay points out there isn't really a femme fatale in the normal sense）， but it's got a good deal of effective suspense。 The careful， terrifying depiction of the murderer's brain makes it a great book， but genre completionist's must read to see the impact it had on hard-boiled。 。。。more
Banuta
，
Once in the middle， couldn't put it down。 A pioneering story from the pov of a serial killer， a war vet returning from WWII。 Great female characters。 Dorothy B。 Hughes is another find。 Once in the middle， couldn't put it down。 A pioneering story from the pov of a serial killer， a war vet returning from WWII。 Great female characters。 Dorothy B。 Hughes is another find。 。。。more
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=In a Lonely Place
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=In a Lonely Place&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,In a Lonely Place&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0