Farewell, My Lovely by Raymond Chandler

“… soon what started as a search for a missing person becomes a matter of life and death…” (Raymond Chander, ‘Farewell, My Lovely’, blurb)

Farewell, My Lovely by Raymond Chandler is the second novel in the Philip Marlowe detective fiction series. I really enjoyed reading this novel, as, similarly to The Big Sleep, the multiple complex narrative strands left me not wanting to put the book down. I became completely immersed in each narrative strand/ sub-plot within the novel and felt that I needed to express my enjoyment in reading this. This novel is great for anyone who wants to read crime fiction as the Philip Marlowe series does not need to be read in any particular order for the reader to be able to understand the events and characters within each narrative, as the only continuous character is the protagonist Marlowe himself.

The main plot of this novel is Marlowe’s mission to find Velma, Moose Malloy’s missing love. Marlowe meets Malloy for the first time at the very beginning of the novel, where he discovers that the giant man is looking for his past lover after his release from prison, where he served 8 years. Malloy’s aggression is shown through his abusive and dangerous actions in chapter one, where he goes on a rage after being unsuccessful in his first attempt to find Velma. Marlowe is simply an observer in this moment, being in the right place at the right time so to speak.

Throughout the novel the binary opposition of Marlowe versus the police reveals to the reader corruption of society, particularly for the common person as the rich bribe and manipulate their way out of facing the consequences of their illegal ways to make money. Marlowe is shown as being metaphorically backed into a corner as he tries to solve the mystery of the missing necklace (belonging to Mrs Grayle) and the murder of Lindsey Marriott. This sub-plot alongside the main narrative strand enables a clear division to be shown between private detectives and the police, the two should be on the same side to control crime, however, it becomes apparent that they are against one another. The general cops become just as bad as the criminals as they take bribes and form alliances with the rich in order for their underground businesses to thrive illegally. Its only after Marlowe escapes from being drugged and held hostage by an illegal doctor, that he understands the connections between the two forces. His only option being to find evidence to talk to the chief of police, he tracks down the ring leader of the organisation who stole the rare jade necklace, to catch the gangsters all the while trying to track down Velma.

The symbol of drinking/alcohol is an important aspect of the narrative. Marlowe uses alcohol to get information from people in order to help him in his search. Alongside this, Marlowe is described to be drinking frequently, his consumption of alcohol ultimately a coping mechanism at times. Social drinking is prominent throughout due to a lot of Marlowe’s investigation taking him from one bar to the next.

Overall this novel is packed full of unexpected twists and turns of events as the reader follows Marlowe around the suburbs of LA. The reader becomes suspicious of every person Marlowe meets, as they don’t always turn out to be who they say they are.

I hope you enjoyed this recommendation. Please leave a comment to let me know what you think of the novel!

~ Mary

---

References:

Raymond Chandler, Farewell, My Lovely(1940), (Penguin Random House, London: 2010), p. 1-306