The Irish mystery writer John Banville, under the nom de plume of Benjamin Black, has brilliantly conjured the spirit of Raymond Chandler in "The Black-Eyed Blonde: a Philip Marlowe Novel". The reader who enjoys the classic works of Chandler, such as "Farewell, My Lovely", is sure to take a similar pleasure in this homage to Chandler.

The time setting of the novel has been moved forward by about a decade, into the early 1950's. There are references to television, the young Queen Elizabeth II, and Liberace, but otherwise the milieu of Southern California in the age of film noir will be familiar to readers of Chandler.

The plot is not quite as convoluted as in the typical Chandler novel, but it does get twisty nearer the end. But, as with Chandler, plot is secondary to character, dialogue, scene description and mood.

Philip Marlowe remains the iconic private detective of pulp fiction. He has a code of honor to which he remains faithful, despite the sordid situations in which he gets involved. He is on the side of right, but he has an uneasy relationship with law enforcement. The cops are portrayed as often dull-witted and mean-spirited, but more often as well-meaning clods who resent Marlowe's independence.

Marlowe's nature is solitary, if not lonely. He has no sidekick, no family we know of, no close friends. He plays chess by himself. He is capable of love, but apparently is incapable of committing to a relationship.

And he smokes and drinks almost constantly. That is consistent with the times, especially the smoking. And, this being a Marlowe novel, he is beaten senseless and later drugged into unconsciousness- and does not seek medical care after either incident. Marlowe is a tough guy, leaving the readers to cringe on his behalf.

Raymond Chandler's death in 1959 seemed to be the end of Philip Marlowe in the literary world, but "Benjamin Black" has brought him back to life in all his quirky glory. "The Black-Eyed Blonde" deserves a place on the shelf next to "The Big Sleep" and "The High Window". ( )

A fun enough homage to Chandler and Marlowe. The ending felt a tad rushed and a little out of left field. ( )

I love John Banville's writing, whether under his own name or as Benjamin Black, but this book fell a little flat for me. While I don't think he did a bad job of capturing Raymond Chandler's writing style for this Phillip Marlowe book, I think the author's lack of personal familiarity with the setting (southern California in the 50s) makes it sound like he's trying too hard.

As far as the mystery goes, it's noir, and as in other lesser examples of the genre, the moments matter more than the overall arc of the story. It's a shame those moments aren't better here. Some other reviewers go into excellent detail about what exactly is wrong, so I'll leave it to them.

I'm not giving up on Banville, and I'll keep reading the Quirke books he publishes as Black, too, but if this author writes another Marlowe, I'll probably give it a pass. ( )

Marlowe feels like a time traveller with his updated modern day sensibilities. Just get it over with and move the action into the present. Not offensively bad but joyless. The pointless callbacks got irritating - OK, I believe you have read the original books, well done you. This should really be an original novel what with all the liberties the author is taking and it feels like borrowing the character's name is just a cynical marketing move. ( )

It's always a risk to read (or write, come to think of it) a new chapter in the life of a well-known and loved character, but Benjamin Black hits all the right notes in this new Philip Marlowe novel. Black channels Chandler with care, grace and a soft touch, which I found very satisfying. I found that in the audiobook version, while it was very well done, the narrator's voice didn't really say "Marlowe" to me. In all other respects, though, the book is a fine echo of a classic Marlowe novel. ( )