The Lady in the Lake

London: Hamish Hamilton. 1944. First British Edition. Hardcover. Fair. (lacking the original dust jacket, but encased in a professionally-made facsimile reproduction of same; see 2nd image posted with this listing) [a pretty grubby-looking copy, with considerable soiling to orange cloth (most notably on the spine), and the front hinge starting to give way; "Xmas 1944" handwritten on front endpaper]. "A woman disappears and her husband, who admits that he hates her, hires a detective to find her. It could be routine, but it isn't." Not with Philip Marlowe on the job; and not in the hands of Chandler. Filmed in first-person p.o.v. mode by director/star Robert Montgomery in 1947. Not the nicest copy you'll ever encounter, but it'll look good on your shelf (just don't peek beneath the dust jacket). NOTE again that this book bears a FACSIMILE dust jacket, to serve the dual purpose of protecting the book from further wear and enhancing its appearance on the shelf; its presence has not been factored in to our pricing. .