The Lady in the Lake is a 1943 detective novel by Raymond Chandler featuring Philip Marlowe, a Los Angeles-based private investigator. The story follows Marlowe as he is hired by wealthy businessman Derace Kingsley to find his missing wife, Crystal, who had requested a divorce to marry her new lover, Chris Lavery. As Marlowe investigates, he uncovers layers of corruption, deceit, and murder. Marlowe's investigation leads him from a small mountain village to Lavery’s house and the discovery of a dead woman's body at Little Fawn Lake, which at first appears to be Kingsley's wife, Crystal. However, as the story unfolds, Marlowe learns that the dead woman is actually Kingsley’s caretaker’s wife, Muriel, and that Crystal's fate is far darker. Through encounters with corrupt cops like Al Degarmo and a complex web of lies, Marlowe uncovers a plot involving mistaken identities, the real murderer of Crystal, and the truth behind the mysterious deaths of multiple women. In the end, it is revealed that Crystal was killed by Mildred Haviland, the ex-wife of Degarmo, who also killed Lavery and framed Marlowe. Degarmo, implicated in the crimes, tries to escape justice, but Marlowe unravels the conspiracy. The novel's plot is intricate, with Chandler’s signature hard-boiled dialogue and sharp twists adding to the gripping detective mystery.
