Death Is a Lonely Business

Death Is a Lonely Business is a mystery novel by Ray Bradbury published in 1985.

Related Topics:
Mystery - Ray Bradbury - 1985

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The story, set in 1949, is about a series of murders that happen in Venice, California, then a declining seaside community in Los Angeles. The main character (who never mentions his name) is a sensitive, modest writer, with a girlfriend studying in Mexico City. In the course of the story he meets Elmo Crumley, a detective who helps him solve the mystery behind all the semi-murders occurring among a series of eccentric characters in the forgotten town.

Related Topics:
Venice - California - Los Angeles - Mexico City

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According to the biography in the book, this was Ray Bradbury's first novel since the publication of Something Wicked This Way Comes (not counting the young adult novel The Halloween Tree). It deliberately evokes both the milieu and style of other mystery writers Raymond Chandler, Dashiell Hammett, James M. Cain, and Ross Macdonald, all of whom Bradbury names in the book's dedication. Yet the main character is undoubtedly Bradbury himself, portrayed in a period of his life just before his marriage and his success with The Martian Chronicles.

Related Topics:
Something Wicked This Way Comes - Young adult - The Halloween Tree - Raymond Chandler - Dashiell Hammett - James M. Cain - Ross Macdonald - Dedication - The Martian Chronicles

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Two sequels followed: A Graveyard for Lunatics (1990), and Let's All Kill Constance (2003), advancing the writer's career to 1955 and 1960, respectively.

Related Topics:
A Graveyard for Lunatics - Let's All Kill Constance

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