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Black Money Audiobook
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(3.04) - 581 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
When private investigator Lew Archer is hired to get the goods on the suspiciously suave Frenchman who’s run off with his client’s girlfriend, it looks like a simple case of alienated affections. Things look different when the mysterious foreigner turns out to be connected to a seven-year-old suicide and a mountain of gambling debts.
Black Money is Ross Macdonald at his finest, baring the skull beneath the suntanned skin of Southern California’s high society.
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"This is the best Ross Macdonald book I've read so far. He's a stronger writer than Hammett, as strong a writer as Chandler, but less literary. Somewhere between the grace of Chandler and the pulp brutish force of Spillane. Very dark depiction of filial relations. Highly recommended."
— Daniel (5 out of 5 stars)
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“A beautiful job…rich in plot and character…The denouement is both surprising and shocking, and the whole is up to Mr. Macdonald’s extraordinarily high standards.”
— New York Times Book Review -
“Grover Gardner’s voice is clear and tough, a natural for the hard-boiled first-person narrative. Macdonald’s story—involving gambling debts, murder, sex, and blackmail—is as satisfyingly gritty as one expects…Gardner’s narration makes it all lively and fresh, rather than a nostalgic relic.”
— AudioFile -
“Master professional narrator Grover Gardner, who becomes each carefully drawn character and captures the exact mood and the many varied accents in the dialog, is outstanding here…A classy narrator in a classic of the genre. Five stars!”
— SoundCommentary.com -
“Lew Archer is as much of an institution as Perry Mason…It’s a thinking man’s murder mystery.”
— Kirkus Reviews
Awards
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A 2010 Audie Award Finalist for Best Mystery Narration
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A Los Angeles Times Pick of the Best Mystery Series
Black Money Listener Reviews
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PRS, 8/1/2021
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" Ross MacDonald's favorite among his works and certainly among my favorites from among his works! "
— Brian, 1/27/2014 -
" Some pretty good noir-voice moments but unfortunately a bit racist in points. Not offensive in 1965? "
— Beth, 1/22/2014 -
" Macdonald writes a many-layered plot better than anyone since Wodehouse, and his detective, Lew Archer, is the perfect combination of tough guy and philosopher. "
— Ak-75, 1/17/2014 -
" Ok mystery, but kind of generic and boring. I prefer books with a bit more spice. "
— Teddy, 1/14/2014 -
" I gave this 3 stars because the surprise ending just sort of dropped off. I thought he could have tied things up much better. "
— Mark, 12/12/2013 -
" Solid and highly entertaining detective fiction, on the noir side. "
— Stacey, 12/1/2013 -
" Another great Lew Archer story. In typical Ross Macdonald style, the plot is clever and complex, so you will never figure out "whodunit" until it is revealed at the end. "
— Valerie, 11/25/2013 -
" Well plotted, but not one of my faves. "
— David, 10/17/2013 -
" Ross Macdonald -- maybe my favorite noir guy out there. This is my fifth Lew Archer novel and I'm absolutely loving it. "
— Kurt, 8/21/2013 -
" First rate crime fiction. Or fiction, period. "
— Paul, 5/15/2013 -
" Part of my quick but thorough immersion in the hard-boiled detective genre. Hammett, Chandler, Ross Macdonald . . . read nine books by them and EC Bentley in nine days. This is one of the best (well, almost all Ross Macdonald's Lew Archer books are the best. "
— David, 3/18/2013 -
" Crime noir? Or crime snore? "
— Kathy, 3/27/2012 -
" dreams of social mobility / transcendence in USA of 1950's "
— thegift, 10/27/2011 -
" Good. A bit not PC in places but good solid vintage detective. "
— Ruth, 5/16/2011 -
" Fantastic noir re-imagining of the Great Gatsby, updated with 60s-era hedonism and cultural fatigue. "
— Jessica, 4/7/2011 -
" Well plotted, but not one of my faves. "
— David, 3/25/2011 -
" Crime noir? Or crime snore? "
— Kathy, 7/28/2010 -
" Ross MacDonald's favorite among his works and certainly among my favorites from among his works! "
— Brian, 6/25/2010 -
" dreams of social mobility / transcendence in USA of 1950's "
— thegift, 6/11/2010 -
" Ross Macdonald -- maybe my favorite noir guy out there. This is my fifth Lew Archer novel and I'm absolutely loving it. "
— Kurt, 12/16/2009 -
" My first and Ross MacDonald novel. He has few rivals for the use of the <br/>language. "
— Armando, 8/15/2009 -
" A Strict private detective procedural. <br/> <br/>No personal problems for the detective. <br/> <br/>But great stories of wounded people. <br/> <br/>Particularly of daughters who disdain their parents and run off with the worst kind of trash. <br/> <br/> "
— Jackpl, 2/19/2009 -
" Overall my favorite Macdonald book. A great inspiration to me. "
— Mark, 1/20/2008
About Ross Macdonald
Ross Macdonald (1915–1983) was the pen name of Kenneth Millar. For over twenty years he lived in Santa Barbara and wrote mystery novels about the fascinating and changing society of his native state. He is widely credited with elevating the detective novel to the level of literature with his compactly written tales of murder and despair. His works have received awards from the Mystery Writers of America and of Great Britain, and his book The Moving Target was made into the movie Harper in 1966. In 1982 he was awarded the Eye Award for Lifetime Achievement from the Private Eye Writers of America.
About Grover Gardner
Grover Gardner (a.k.a. Tom Parker) is an award-winning narrator with over a thousand titles to his credit. Named one of the “Best Voices of the Century” and a Golden Voice by AudioFile magazine, he has won three prestigious Audie Awards, was chosen Narrator of the Year for 2005 by Publishers Weekly, and has earned more than thirty Earphones Awards.