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The Zebra-Striped Hearse Audiobook
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(4.00) - 508 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
Strictly speaking, Lew Archer is only supposed to dig up the dirt on a rich man’s suspicious soon-to-be son-in-law. But in no time at all, Ross Macdonald’s private eye is following a trail of corpses from the citrus belt to Mazatlan. And then there is the zebra-striped hearse and its crew of beautiful, sunburned surfers, whose path seems to keep crossing the son-in-law’s—and Archer’s—in this powerful, fast-paced novel of murder on the California coast.
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"I heard this story serialized on NPR and I was hooked. It's my favorite in the Lew Archer series. Between the twisting plot, unique characters and Archer's deadpan asides, this book really captures the essence of the shifting cultural tides of southern California in the early sixties."
— Bob (5 out of 5 stars)
Quotes
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“A model of [Macdonald’s] excellence…has character, statement, and style.”
— New Yorker -
“Macdonald is one of the elite in hard-boiled mystery fiction. In his tenth book (1962), he again indulges us with the moody, smart-mouthed, introspective character of PI Lew Archer. The story—mostly set in Southern California—takes us inside people’s lives—we get to know them and sympathize with some of them…[Grover Gardner’s] flat middle-American voice is well suited to the characterizations in this book…A first-class reading.”
— AudioFile -
“Archer solves crimes with the instincts of a psychologist and the conscience of a priest, and the mid-twentieth-century Southern California setting is a wonderful ride in the Wayback Machine.”
— Los Angeles Times, praise for the series -
“This is completely and formally a detective novel, but with more meat on its bones than nine out of ten novels.”
— New York Times Book Review -
“This is hard-boiled detective writing at the top of its form.”
— Library Journal
Awards
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A Edgar Allan Poe Award Nominee for Best Novel
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A Los Angeles Times Pick of the Best Mystery Series
The Zebra-Striped Hearse Listener Reviews
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PRS, 5/10/2022
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" Somebody please tell me what the dang hearse has to do with the story. "
— Colleen, 2/1/2014 -
" Plenty of twists and turns in this page turner. "
— Larry, 1/29/2014 -
" A suspense filled,on the edges PI thriller by Ross Macdonald. What holds your attention is Macdonald's literary prose, his authentic feel for the environment, depth in characterization all combined together make reading this book worth wile.. "
— Adithyajones, 12/28/2013 -
" Yet ANOTHER detective series,but what the hell,I like detective books.I always find it interesting to read a book that was written about the time I was born,that being the 60's.It kind of makes me nostalgic. "
— Bnschmid, 12/28/2013 -
" An excellent detective novel. Macdonald was one of the best modern American writers. "
— Timothy, 12/17/2013 -
" This book definitely kept my attention... I thought it was going in a predictable direction but there were plenty of twists and turns that ultimately made for an entertaining read. "
— Jenn, 12/15/2013 -
" This is a detective story where Lew Archer tries to solve a mixture of murder, kidnapping and blackmail on the California coast. "
— Laura, 9/16/2013 -
" I listened to this as an audiobook, and it served its purpose, keeping me entertained during lunchtime walks. It's a so-so installment in the Lew Archer canon. What's hilarious is that the titular hearse barely makes an appearance. "
— Michael, 7/5/2013 -
" Well, for once I dunno what to say. One word is enough to best sum up my review - WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! "
— Srinivas, 4/18/2013 -
" A solid gritty mystery. "
— Marianne, 2/9/2013 -
" Very real character sketches. Classic hardboiled structure and of course excellent Archer. "
— Margaret, 11/8/2012 -
" Quick and easy read, but a fantastic mystery and a marvelous P.I. My husband and I are reading it outloud to each other at night, and I swear suddenly my sweet dorky man starts sounding like Humphrey Bogart. Lovin' it. "
— Sam, 6/23/2012 -
" Nicely crafted yarn with Macdonald's usual flare for creating dysfunctional families and believable characters. Great writing too. "
— Richard, 3/25/2012 -
" My first foray into Macdonald. Lew Archer is among the prototypes for the hard-boiled detective, and I enjoyed the book. "
— Steve, 12/20/2011 -
" I'd heard the name "Lew Archer" bandied about before, finally picked up a novel with him as protaganist. If you like Dashiell Hammett or LA noire, you'll like this. "
— Samantha, 11/20/2011 -
" Ross MacDonald with his hard boiled gumshoe Lew Archer, carries on the tradition of Chandler. A must for serious crime buffs. "
— Sean, 10/5/2011 -
" My first foray into Macdonald. Lew Archer is among the prototypes for the hard-boiled detective, and I enjoyed the book. "
— Steve, 3/3/2011 -
" late masterpiece. wonderfully complicated plot unearths years of duplicity, misbehavior, dysfunctional family relationships. all perhaps symbolized by the use of the titular vehicle as a surfers' car. "
— thegift, 11/14/2010 -
" An excellent detective novel. Macdonald was one of the best modern American writers. "
— Timothy, 7/21/2009 -
" Very real character sketches. Classic hardboiled structure and of course excellent Archer. "
— Margaret, 1/28/2009 -
" Somebody please tell me what the dang hearse has to do with the story. "
— Colleen, 7/18/2008 -
" Yet ANOTHER detective series,but what the hell,I like detective books.I always find it interesting to read a book that was written about the time I was born,that being the 60's.It kind of makes me nostalgic. "
— Bnschmid, 7/6/2008 -
" Plenty of twists and turns in this page turner. "
— Larry, 4/18/2008 -
" Quick and easy read, but a fantastic mystery and a marvelous P.I. My husband and I are reading it outloud to each other at night, and I swear suddenly my sweet dorky man starts sounding like Humphrey Bogart. Lovin' it. "
— Sam, 1/17/2008
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.