The Second Murderer

A Philip Marlowe Novel

By: Denise Mina

Narrated by: Scott Brick

Philip Marlowe is on the hunt for a missing heiress—and up against a rival PI—in this smart and atmospheric authorized mystery from acclaimed crime writer and "one-of-a-kind storyteller" Denise Mina (James Patterson), the first woman to recreate Raymond Chandler’s infamous detective.

Has Philip Marlowe finally met his match?

It’s early fall when a heatwave descends on Los Angeles. Private Detective Philip Marlowe is called to the Montgomery estate, an almost mythic place sitting high on top of Beverly Hills. Wealthy socialite Chrissie Montgomery is missing. Young, naïve, and set to inherit an enormous fortune, she’s a walking target, ripe for someone to get their claws into. Her dying father and his sultry bottle-blonde girlfriend want her found before that happens. To make sure, they’ve got Anne Riordan—now head of her own all-female detective agency—on the case, too.

The search for Chrissie takes the two investigators from the Montgomery mansion to the roughest neighborhoods of LA, through dive bars and boarding houses and out to Skid Row. And that’s all before they find the body at The Brody Hotel. Who will get to Chrissie first? And what happens when a woman doesn’t want to be found?

In The Second Murderer, Denise Mina becomes the first woman to recreate Raymond Chandler’s infamous detective, delivering a clever and timely new take on Philip Marlowe, as well as a propulsive, dark, and witty mystery all its own.

©2023 Denise Mina (P)2023 Mulholland Books

Critic reviews

“Terrific . . . On top of nailing Chandler’s atmospherics, Mina delivers a truly surprising plot. Noir fans will hope Mina returns to the mean streets of L.A. again soon.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“A pitch perfect, cinematic homage to the master of noir crime fiction, Raymond Chandler, and his timeless hero, Philip Marlowe. Using whip-smart dialogue, and lush, sensual descriptions of the City of Angels, from Skid Row to the mansions of Beverly Hills, Mina's Marlowe faces danger at every turn with wit, compassion, and bourbon-proof smarts. I loved this book!”—Kathleen Kent, author of The Dime and Black Wolf

"Playful in its early stages, as Mina cheekily piles on Marlowe’s trademark similes . . . Female-forward in all sorts of ways—quite a change of pace for the legendary gumshoe."—Kirkus Reviews

story dialog

D Mina accurately/seamlessly captured the essence and character of P Marlowe as created by R Chandler. it was as if i had found a long lost Chandler Marlowe novel. only issue is with the narration of Marlowe, felt forced, however all other characters felt natural.

Fantastic

The narrator is perfect for this story.

I absolutely thought the writing here with its noir tone was pitch perfect & so much fun. Very authentic to Raymond Chandler’s character.

Hard to imagine Mina actually wrote this

I can’t understand why such a fine author, who usually writes intense and profound stories, would want to write this silly book. Strange.

Waste of time

Really disappointed with the book. Someone give me these hours back! Wasted time and money!

Loved this

Good for Denise Mina . She’s recreated the world of Philip Marlowe. And kudos to Scott Brick. His narration is superb.

Must be a LGBTQ Fan

Am l the only reviewer who cannot get the help vote tab to log it???
I took a chance on this new writer for Raymond Chandler series, Philip Marlowe. Scott brick can only do the best he can with dialogue he has been given. This was tedious and the dialogue was very descriptive but in a very downbeat tone. I miss parts and l didn’t care to go back and replay.
I still love Philip Marlowe, but not from this particular author.
Where my comments of help?

Terrible Book - Made no sense at all

We really enjoyed this book - initially. After a couple of hours we started to wonder where it was going. It made no sense at all! And - the author kept taking us on tangents about Marlowe that were totally irrelevant to the story. It's been a long time since I've been this disappointed in a book. And, although we like Scott Brick - he tends to be OVERLY dramatic - and that gets a little old.

In the Marlowe style, tough talk, no story

The book sounds like a 1930s tough guy, but there is no plot and no character one could care about.

Not even close

I struggled to keep listening hoping that it would turn out to improve. It didn't.