In a lonely place - Dorothy B. Hughes

The setting of this classic 1947 noir is post-World War II Los Angeles. For many here, the golden promise of sunny Southern California is running headlong into bleak reality. Returning veterans face a crisis of identity and masculinity -- and in the wide boulevards and dark canyons of the city, a serial killer preys on young working girls who wait alone in bars or at lonely bus stops. Hardboiled mystery writer Dorothy B Hughes employs a bold narrative strategy, writing from inside the mind of a man who may himself be the murderer. The suggestively named Dix Steele is an ex-airman, an isolated, tough-talking drifter who maintains the appearance of a nearly normal life, but spends his nights restlessly roaming the streets of LA. The first threat to Dix's carefully maintained charade comes in the form of a chance meeting with his best friend from the service, now a detective assigned to the serial strangler case. Playing with fire, Dix offers to help his friend to map the identity of the killer -- and is soon providing eerily accurate theories...