THE BLUE HAMMER

First edition, first printing. Original blue boards with a black cloth spine lettered in gilt, in the Hal Siegel designed dustwrapper. A very good copy, the binding square and firm, the upper board with ghosting from the dustwrapper, The contents, with spotting to the closed text block edge are otherwise clean throughout and without inscriptions or stamps. Complete with the lightly rubbed and creased dustwrapper that is a little toned at the extremities and otherwise without loss or tears. Not price-clipped ($7.95 on the front flap).

The final Lew Archer novel. Ross Macdonald's detective fiction has received multiple awards and widespread critical acclaim for its skilful integration of literary themes and styles without taking away from the classic appeal of genre fiction. In The New York Times the writer William Goldman described the Lew Archer novels as "the finest series of detective novels ever written by an American".