Clandestine [Paperback]

James Ellroy (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1, 1999

Fred Underhill is a young cop on the rise in Los Angeles in the early 1950's -- a town blinded to its own grime by Hollywood glitter; a society nourished by newspaper lies that wants its heroes all-American and squeaky clean. A chance to lead on a possible serial killing is all it takes to fuel Underhill's reckless ambition - and it propels him into a dangerous alliance with certain mad and unstable elements of the law enforcement hierarchy. When the case implodes with disastrous consequences, it is Fred Underhill who takes the fall. His life is in ruins, his promising future suddenly a dream of the past. And his good and pure love for a crusading woman lawyer has been corrupted and may not survive. But even without the authority of a badge, Fred Underhill knows that his only hope for redemption lies in following the investigation to its grim conclusion. And the Hell to which he has been consigned for his sins is the perfect place to hunt for a killer who hungers but has no soul.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Ellroy has distinguished himself as a superb hard-boiled detective storyteller, and with Clandestine, his reputation will only gain more luster. Set in post-World War II Los Angeles, this crime story features Fred Underhill, an ambitious policeman who loses his badge while investigating a serial murderer. Underhill pursues the investigation on his own and eventually prevails. While these core elements are common to most crime stories, Ellroy uses them without making them clich d. He succeeds by combining skillful characterization, fast-paced action, and lightly restrained sarcasm to present a delightful mystery. Narrator Jeremy Gage is a master of nuance and timing. This should be popular among library patrons; a great addition to mystery collections. Very highly recommended.DRay Vignovich, West Des Moines P.L., IA
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Audio Cassette edition.

Review

"Not merely a great hard-boiled crime fiction writer, Ellroy's developing into one of the great American writers of our time." -- Los Angeles Times Book review

"Our best living mystery writer." -- Austin Chronicle

Ellroy's crime fiction represents a high mark in the genre." -- New York Newsday

"Ellroy is the master." -- San Diego Union-Tribune

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks; later printing edition (February 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0380805294
• ISBN-13: 978-0380805297
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (25 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #661,328 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

James Ellroy was born in Los Angeles in 1948. He is the author of the acclaimed L.A. Qurtet - The Black Dahlia, The Big Nowhere, LA Confidential and White Jazz, as well as the Underworld USA trilogy: American Tabloid, The Cold Six Thousand and Blood's a Rover. He is the author of one work of non-fiction, The Hilliker Curse: My Pursuit of Women. Ellroy lives in Los Angeles.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars OPUS SECOND, July 15, 2001

By 

Daniel S. "Daniel" (Geneva, Switzerland) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Clandestine (Paperback)

Second novel of James Ellroy, published in 1983, CLANDESTINE develops the themes already present in BROWN'S REQUIEM. Fred Underhill is a young talented cop who believes he has found some clues proving that a serial killer is at work in the Los Angeles area. We are in 1951, in the middle of the Korea war, and the americans see communists everywhere.

In his mystical quest, Fred Underhill will meet Dudley Smith, a L.A.P.D. lieutenant who'll have the career we know under James Ellroy's pen. Smith or/and the author does have an obsession : the "Black Dahlia" mystery he has been unable to solve. It's the second time in two books that Ellroy evokes this affair that will give a few years later its name to one of James Ellroy's most known novels. Another recurrent Ellroy theme appearing in CLANDESTINE is the description of the death of one of the serial killer's victim, similar to the circumstances of the death of the writer's own mother.

Fred Underhill is also a golf addict and a tormented human being who'll seek redemption during the five years he'll pass in order to solve the case he has discovered. I must confess that the last fifty pages of CLANDESTINE are so gripping that I couldn't leave the book for one minute before its ending.

A book to rediscover.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of my favorites...., February 3, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Clandestine (Paperback)

One of my favorites of all of Ellroy's novels. It's an earlier work, but the book is extremely solid. I believe this is the first time we are introduced to The Victory Motel, Dudley Smith, and his groupies. Very entertaining. Some parts are almost gut-wrenching in their humanity. Much of the book is bittersweet. If you are a fan of Ellroy's better known works like LA Confidential and The Black Dahlia -- Clandestine will not disappoint...

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Master Finding His Voice, January 29, 2004

By 

Michael A. Beyer (Chicago, IL United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Clandestine (Paperback)

One of James Ellroy's first efforts, CLANDESTINE showcases a writing voice not yet matured into the staccato hipster prose of his L.A. quartet or the historical fiction of American Tabloid/The Cold Six Thousand.

That said, it's still a great read (though the romantic sequences between Underhill and Lorna are a bit clunky). The last fifty pages are classic, non-stop page turners. The interrogation scenes with Dudley Smith, Underhill and Eddie Engels are Ellroy-esque and brutal, yet they lack the wit and cold intelligence of the interrogation scenes from L.A. Confidential. Lt. Dudley Smith is a monster, but not quite the cold, calculating beast he becomes in Ellroy's later masterpieces.

For those not acquainted with the earlier works of James Ellroy, this one's a must. As I read this book, I could definitely see stronger beginnings of the voice that now makes Ellroy one of the world's very best.